notating "Skip to My Lou" in 3 keys

I hope you'll take the challenge and try to write out the notation for the song "Skip to My Lou".  Watch the video to get you started.  You'll need staff paper and pencil or you can print out this large staff and use pennies as moveable notes.  The melody of "Skip to My Lou" outlines the tonic triad (I) and then the dominant seventh chord (V7) and ends with stepwise motion to end on "do" (surprise, surprise).  Remember that sight singing is a skill and, just like any other skill, it takes practice.  Don't worry if you don't get all of the solfege syllables correct.  The most important thing is that you are hearing the intervals when you see them on the page.

notating "Polly Wolly Doodle" in D

Today's lesson walks you through the process of notating "Polly Wolly Doodle" starting with the rhythm, adding the solfege and, finally, putting it all on the staff.  There is a short explanation of straight beat versus swing beat.  "Polly Wolly Doodle" has a swing beat.

ear training with dulcimer

Today was the Charlotte Folk Society's Ice Cream social at the Historic Rosedale Plantation.  After a delightful (despite the heat) afternoon of playing dulcimer and fiddle and singing I came home to do my music lesson for the day.  I had lots of music from the day going through my mind, but the song that came to me when I sat down with my dulcimer was "Polly Wolly Doodle".  I haven't sung or thought about that song in years.  It was one I enjoyed singing in elementary school.  Maybe the old fashioned feel of the day at Rosedale triggered the memory or maybe it was trying to think of a song with lots of the pattern drm.  Anyway, today's lesson is ear training on the dulcimer with "Polly Wolly Doodle".  You will echo the phrases by singing the solfege which stays within the range tdrmfs with the tonic being “do”.  You will also find the tonic when I stop the song at random places.  It is always important to know where the tonal center of the song is.  This will help you sing in tune.

sight singing "Jubilate Deo" in two keys

Today's lesson gives sight singing practice with the round "Jubilate Deo".  It is notated in A major and B major on a grand staff with unison in the treble and bass clefs.  Since the song is only one line long you can compare the lines and see how the patterns in the different keys and clefs are the same even though they start at different places on the staff.  This is the beauty of the moveable "do" system of sight singing:  Once you know the tonic and the starting pitch, you can sing in any key (provided you can hit the pitches).  "Jubilate Deo" has a large range (drmfsltdrm) and works well in A, Bb or B.  If you pitch in higher or lower than these keys, then some people may not be able to hit the higher or lower notes.  You can listen to the round sung in six parts by Community Singers at practice this week.  We are singing it in Bb.

singing arpeggios in G and A major

An arpeggio is a chord that is sung or played one note at a time.  In today's lesson you will practice reading and singing arpeggios for the I, IV and V chords in G and A major.  Being able to move easily among the tones in a chord will help you when singing harmonies.

harmony - "You Are My Sunshine"

Today's lesson is a harmony part for "You Are My Sunshine".  It moves in parallel motion to the melody.  It is very obvious when you see the notation that the contours of both parts are the same.  The harmony part is a third above the melody.  Pause the video at the beginning and try to sight sing the harmony before watching.

sight singing practice in A major

Today's lesson continues with the round "Gaudeamus Hodie".  I have notated it in A major in the bass clef so that you can check yourself if you tried writing it out in yesterday's lesson.  I realized after recording the video that I played the tonic up an octave from the way it is notated.  Altos and sopranos will sing it where I sing it.  Tenors and basses will sing it as written which is an octave below where I sing in the video.