By Seth Hoffman

Over the past month I’ve had the good fortune to be a part of so much music. It’s been my experience that music can do a world of good. I’ll begin by telling about what I’ve been doing in the schools here in Wellington.

Sometimes I visit a class or school only one time. I ask about their connection with music. “What’s your favorite song to hear?” “Does anyone in your family play an instrument?” “Do you like to sing?” “Who is your favorite musical artist or group?”

Music Conversations

We may go off on a brief tangent on any of these topics, and then I start playing a song. Often times I begin with “The Color Song.” The first part of this song I sing to them. Then, I sing the song again, and everybody helps create new verses.Finally, we all sing the new song altogether. I tell you, and it’s good fun, and it can really bring the room together.

Sometimes I play “The Color Song” on the Strumstick. I then give a brief background about myself, and the role music has played in my own life. I share how I used to be very much an introvert. I was quite shy, and I did’t connect easily with people or new situations. Music has helped me come outside of my head.

I share about how music takes down walls. Normally when we walk down the street, we typically don’t interact with strangers.

It might even feel a little bit strange or threatening if a stranger strikes up a conversation with you out of the blue. When we add a musical instrument into the equation, that wall often comes magically down.

Instrumental Role Playing

I do a role playing activity where I have one student pretend to walk past another another down the street. First, this is done with no instrument. Then they repeat the same activity where one or both will have an instrument.

Music has been part of almost every culture since the beginning of time. It’s not surprising that it “resonantes” with so many people. We talk about the different parts to a song. We listen to a song and identify the:

beat – rhythm – chord progression – melody – feel – mood – lyrics – chorus – verse – dynamics.

Next, I demonstrate building a song using the loop pedal. I start with a beat to set the rhythm. Then, I add a basic chord progression. Next, I add a simple melody. I might add some different sounds and layers to give the song texture and set the mood. Finally, with the help of the group, we add some words.

Here’s a video of me doing some song building in a bar in Wellington. I do basically the same thing in classes, though the song topic and lyrics may vary.

Collaboration

I am so impressed at the way that students are able to work together, collaborate, listen to each other, and present their creations. Some students who don’t typically get to shine became the stars of the class. Students who might not normally work together discovered that they could make incredible sounds together. Everybody got to be included, and everyone could participate in a way they felt comfortable and successful.
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Seth Hoffman

Community Publishing will be publishing a Multimedia Book written and Illustrated by Seth Hoffman titled, Janie and the Hummingbird. Seth is a musician, artist and educator based out of Albuquerque, New Mexico. Follow his adventures here every Tuesday. 

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