The Carnival of the Animals

101314_01101314_02101314_03101314_04101314_05 The entire school is currently studying Camille Saint-Saëns beloved work, “The Carnival of the Animals.” We have discussed how Saint-Saëns wrote “The Carnival of the Animals” as a joke for his music students and only allowed it to be published posthumously.

Each grade band is listening and learning at their own level of development. Kindergartners practiced creative gross motor movement, dancing as each animal. Lower Elementary students colored pictures of the animals as they listened then answered questions about what they heard. 4th and 5th graders spent time deciding which instruments and tempi they would choose for the animals then listened to hear what Saint-Saëns picked — they got in some awesome lion moves as well. Middle School students are learning about the role of the conductor and interpretation, listening to several recordings of the same movement looking for nuances and differences between them.

In January, the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra will be performing “The Carnival of the Animals.” Look in your email for a link to sign up for tickets and go with the whole school! The sign up deadline is November 5th.

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