The Music Box

Today’s episode is quite the operation. We’ll put on our lab coats and be doctors, examining all the elements of our first patient — jazz! Join us as we explore blue notes, call and response, and syncopation. -

Additional lessons and resources at musicboxpod.org

In this musical short, we’ll celebrate Juneteenth by exploring liberation through music! We’ll journey around the U.S, taking a look at the lives of Black composers from three different time periods. We’ll briefly cover the history of the Juneteenth holiday, and through the lives of Florence Price, Scott Joplin, and Rhiannon Giddens, we’ll investigate how the African musical tradition continues to influence American music. Additional resources at musicboxpod.org.

This episode was written by Kiana Del and Fiona Palensky. Special thanks to Michelle Tyrene Johnson and Stori Crawford.

Support for the Music Box comes from PNC, the Norton Foundation, and the sustaining members of Louisville Public Media.

-This episode is an extra special musical journey that explores the world of time signatures, also known as meter. We're calling it "Meter: The Musical," which features original music from host Faith Murphy and Kiana Del, WUOL's engagement manager for music education. In the musical, two kids find a magical music box that transports them to Meter World, where they learn about different genres of music and try to find where they really belong.

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Meter: The Musical! Music and lyrics by Faith Murphy and Kiana Del; book by Faith Murphy

Special thanks to our guest musicians: Noah Barker, Trevin Little, Jailynn Lake-Noel, Fiona Palenski, and Stephen Murphy

Recording and mixing engineer: Eric Matthews

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We'll look at rhythm patterns in music and how they can change the sound of a song. You’ll learn about the different ways you could fill up a measure, and how rhythm adds texture and excitement to music!

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It's another visit to the magical land of Arpeggio, as the inhabitants learn what repetition and practice really mean.

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The second part of our feature on Black American composers features more time-traveling fun with Miss Kiana! Bring your dancing shoes and your listening ears.

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Featured music:

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We’re going on a musical journey with Miss Kiana this week, traveling through time to meet some of America’s Black composers! Bring your dancing shoes and your listening ears.

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Featured music:

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What does “tone color” mean in music? Isn't color something that you SEE? We'll dive into tone color and timbre today, using examples from pop, jazz, and classical music.

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Featured music:

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We're learning about patterns and song form on The Music Box today! From binary to ternary to rondo and more, you’ll be able to identify the forms of some of your favorite music.

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Featured music:

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If you’ve ever been to the opera, you may have found yourself wondering what’s happening onstage. Sometimes opera plots can be tough to understand, especially if you’re a kid! Today we’ll learn about a couple of operas written specifically for kids: “L’enfant et les sortilèges” by Maurice Ravel, and “Brundibár” by Hans Krása.

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SPECIAL NOTE FOR GROWNUPS: “Brundibár” is best known for being premiered at the Theresienstadt concentration camp in 1943, performed by a cast of interned children. We opted not to give these details in the podcast episode, because it’s a lot to explain to our youngest listeners. It’s an important part of the history of the opera, though, and a powerful example of art being used in the toughest circumstances. We’re linking some resources below so that you can choose to share this part of the story with your kids if you wish.

Brundibár - Wikipedia entry

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