Goodbye, Old Paint

Here at Let's Play Music, we use several traditional songs to help teach music. (Read our post on why we use folk music.) 

One of my favorites is Goodbye, Old Paint, and I've found lots of ways to have fun with it in all three years of the curriculum.  This song gives a perfect example of how we can layer levels of skill into an activity.

Say Will, why don't you pull out that thing and play us a tune?

Goodbye Old Paint was a trail-drive song first notated around 1885. Cowboys spent long hours in the saddle, herding their cattle for days and weeks.  And what did they do for fun? They made up songs!  They couldn't bring pianos, just whatever small instruments they could carry.  Cowboy Jess Morris learned this song from another cowboy with a jew's harp, and decided to make his own arrangement for fiddle.  In a 1928 fiddle contest, Jess was singled out for his interesting arrangement of Goodbye, Old Paint and had his tune was recorded for the first time on vinyl.

We enjoy rockin' out in our car to this modern version of this song by Dan Zanes, on his album, Rocket Ship Beach.

*Goodbye, Old Paint, I'm leavin' Cheyenne.

Goodbye, Old Paint, I'm leavin' Cheyenne.

Old Paint's a good pony, he runs when he can.

Good morning, young lady, my pony won't stand. 

*Goodbye...

I'm ridin' Old Paint and I'm leading Old Tan

Good Morning Little Annie, I'm off for Montan'

*Goodbye...

Oh hitch up your horses, and feed them some hay,

Seat yourself by me as long as you stay,

*Goodbye...

My wagon is loaded and rollin' away,

My horses ain't hungry, they'll not eat your hay,

*Goodbye...

 

My Let's Play Music students always want to know: "what do those lyrics mean!?" So, here's one interpretation: This is a song about a cowboy (insert your favorite cowboy name... Winston), leaving Cheyenne and heading to Montana on his horse, Old Tan (insert a bold reason to be moving states... to meet his bride). He must leave behind his beloved childhood pet pony, Paint, because the pony's too old to make the journey. This song is almost 150 years old and they did not have horse trailers back then, you'll want to explain to your child.  And why was the horse named Paint? American Paint Horses are breeds that are beautifully mottled, so this pony must have been spotty. (Follow the link to learn more about horses with the various official patterns- pretty cool.)

Dan Zanes sings about Little Annie, the cowboy's younger sister who always wanted a pony, (why not?) and will take care of Paint while he's gone.  Annie says, "hitch up the horses and sit down and hang out," but our cowboy says, "My wagon is loaded and my horses are fed so I'm just gonna take off now. Bye!"

I often have some 4 or 5 year-old students who are so sad to consider leaving a beloved pet behind. Having a verse about sister, Annie, pet-sitting is a really happy twist.  Occasionally, we'll decide that Winston comes back to visit, so we sing:

Hello, Old Paint, I'm back in Cheyenne

Hello, Old Paint, I'm back in Cheyenne

I'm back in Cheyenne, yeah I came from Montan'

Hello, Old Paint, I'm back in Cheyenne

First Year: Harp and Bells

Students will meet Old Paint in the first year at lesson X.  We love that this song is harmonized with only one chord: red. At this point in the curriculum, it is important for the student to play independently on the harp while accompanying a group of singers.  To make this requirement a bit easier, we love using a song that has no chord changes.  Students just focus on correct strumming and timing to find the beat and play steadily.  Does your child strum too quickly, or play without coordinating with the singers!?  Practice at home using any of our practice-at-home harp tecniques (read our post).

Teacher Darlayne Coughlin (Middleton, WI) has first and second year students play Old Paint on a gathering drum. If you have a drum at home, get it out so your child can master matching the beat. This is critical before moving on to bells.

I like to prop the bells in the case like this. For the first try, I have my daughter just play the red C bell on the downbeats (all that drum practice will pay off). Only once that's mastered, I let her try adding in the E and G notes of the broken red chord (what is a broken chord?).  

I love to have a drum, harp, piano, or other bells continue playing the downbeats only, so my bell-player remembers to get back to the C for every downbeat. In the absence of a piano, I slap the floor as if I were playing a drum, and I say "you have to make sure to play red every time I slap the floor, so we can stay together." If you have younger or older children, pull them in to practice this song- the more the merrier! Everyone keeps the downbeat with their instrument and the bell-player plays a broken chord.

Students love melody, too, and are learning to read on the staff.  Teacher Genny Earl (Mesa, AZ) notated our melody. I love that it is NOT colored, because we want students to focus on baby steps and skips instead of matching bell colors. This is essential in how we teach students to read music (read our post). If you have a super-smarty first-year student, let her read and learn the melody. (Yes, we are missing a few bells)

Second Year: Keyboard

Old Paint comes back in second year to help students play the red chord on keyboards.  We play nice and slowly to give small hands the ability to keep up and gain strength. After all, Paint's an old horse and can't go very fast. It is most important that students use the correct fingering (1,3,5) so fingering and correct hand shape will be integrated through muscle memory.  I like to paint all of my students' 1,3, and 5 fingernails RED to help them match up those fingers to the red chord stickers on the keyboard.  When we practice this song over and over at home, we add in the extra verses from Dan Zanes, or I play a duet with the melody an octave higher while my daughter plays the chords. If your kiddo struggles to play the red chord due to weak fingers, keep practicing and also add in our non-piano finger-strengthing games.

If you have a super-smarty student (I call them Super Turtles), here are some additional ways to make a one-chord song like Old Paint exciting:

• Take Paint for a walk. Play the lowest red chord you can find, then jump up an octave, then another. Be sure to sing the song as you help him walk along the keyboard from low to high.
• Kick him into a canter (see photo below). Play bugs instead of slugs (quarter notes instead of whole notes) while you sing. Keep a steady rhythm.
• Give Paint a friend. Play the left hand while you sing (as long as you use correct fingers: 5,3,1). Then, play both hands in steady red chords.
• Go Marching. Have the left hand and right hand take turns playing the chords, nice and slowly.
• Be a fancy circus horse! If your child has mastered everything so far and has strong hands, play the chord in a broken style (just like we played on bells last year). Be willing to go really slowly at first. It's not a race.
• Play the melody. I recommend you get the bells out and practice reading/playing melody there for now, since playing on the keyboard will require stretching the hand into some handshakes we haven't practiced yet.

Old Paint loves to canter across the keys!

Having lots of fun with Paint? The iPhone app Horse Lovers Camera lets you superimpose horse images over other photos.  Now your Paint can play the piano, too! If you create a fun Old Paint photo, please share it with us on our Facebook page.

Third Year: Mixed Paint

Old Paint comes back again in third year when we work on chord inversions. When we sing the red chord, we sing Do-Mi-Sol.  BUT, we could also sing Mi-Sol-Do or Sol-Do-Mi and it would still be a red chord.  I take my red triangle from class and rotate it around, "Look! Old Paint is doing cartwheels!"  Students in every year can and should practice singing the chords in different inversions like this. Soon enough they'll be playing all the inversions on the keyboard, too. (Watch for our upcoming post on inversions.)

I hope you enjoy singing about our favorite horsey pal, no matter which year of the curriculum you are in!

-Gina Weibel, M.S.
Let's Play Music Teacher

A Happy Ending for the Three Blind Mice. Why folk music?

You child might be asking you: Why were the mice blind? Why did the farmer's wife chase them!?  What happened next!?

Rest easy once you've heard the extended story with pictures and happy ending, in this online (and offline) storybook by John Ivimey. The mice even end up with a pet cockroach…so friendly!

CLICK HERE TO READ THE BOOK

History of Three Blind Mice

This nursery rhyme became mainstream in children's literature in the 1842 publishing of "The Nursery Rhymes of England". However, it was originally written with music in 1609.  It is speculated that the origin of the tale of the mice came from the Catholic Queen Mary I (Bloody Mary), Henry VIII's only surviving daughter, who was known for her merciless hounding of Protestants.  The story could relate to Mary's 1555 execution by burning of three Protestant bishops.  The mice's blindness could be interpreted as faithlessness, alluding to their rejection of Catholicism.

Mary Tudor is also featured in the nursery rhyme "Mary Mary, quite Contrary", enjoyed by our Sound Beginnings Students.  The 'silver bells' and 'cockle shells' in the garden likely referenced torture devices like thumbscrews, and the 'maids' referred to The Maid (a pre-guillotine device for beheading).

Why Do We Sing Nursery Rhymes?

Let's Play Music adopts many Kodaly concepts of music education.  Authentic folk music has short form, pentatonic style, and simple, repetetive language.  The clear, simple, musical styles in nursery rhymes provide the perfect foundation for mastering beginning rhythmic and melodic skills.  Mastery of skills and concepts in progressive levels of difficulty is critical for the long-term musical success desired by Let's Play Music families.  'Three Blind Mice' is a melody that has withstood the test of time; any tune with poor melodic or rhythmic qualities would not have been passed from generation to generation for over 400 years!

"Kodaly felt that simple, expressive forms of nursery songs and folk music were most suitable for children because they were living music, not fabricated or contrived for pedagogical purposes. The language of folk music tends to be simple, drawn from speech patterns familiar to children even before they enter school."

"Kodaly felt a close relationship between the music of the people and the music of great composers. He believed that a love for the masterworks could be cultivated through a knowledge of and a love for one's own folk music."

Folk music plays an important artistic role for each musician: providing a cultural musical background.  In the Let's Play Music effort to educate the whole musician, we practice singing several folk songs to provide students with an ageless cultural background from which to draw from as they begin creating their own music.  

A fantastic way to understand the simplicity and richness of folk music is to peek at samples of folk music from several different cultures (click here).  You'll notice that each cultural video shows simple music, with only a few musicians, using instruments characteristic of their country.  Folk music often takes place outside for anyone to dance to.  Now that you've joined Let's Play Music, you'll have many opportunities to play and dance to folk music, too.

Let's Play Music also adheres to the 9 National Standards for Music Education.  Standard number 9 is: understand music in relation to history and culture. We offer a valuable string to the past when we teach children that music has been around since before even their parents were born!  Music has a role in life beyond just entertainment, and even beyond music education.  Your music teacher might let your child in on the secret that today they learned a song that is over 400 years old!  Back in that century, singing rhymes and songs to each other was the way people recorded history.  

A Little More Mi-Re-Do

Of course we love the simple melodies in folk songs since they give our beginning students the perfect complexity of tune to examine and identify.  Your child should be able to  hear and identify the mi-re-do in 'Three Blind Mice' and soon will be able to figure out how to pick out the entire tune, note-by-note on bells or keyboard from carefully listening and identifying solfeg. Encourage your child to 'mess around' with the bells, tell him that he just might able to figure out a well-known song, and chances are he'll come to you with a big proud smile once he gets it!

'Hot Cross Buns' is another easy mi-re-do tune you may want to sing and play with your child this week.  It actually ONLY uses these 3 notes!  (MRD, MRD, DDDD, RRRR, MRD).  If you let your child in on the 3-bell secret, and challenge him to pick out the melody, he'll master it like a jigsaw puzzle.  

Like any puzzle, we start with the easy puzzles that only have a few pieces.  Eventually your child's ears will be ready for more complex puzzles.  The ability to sing melodies from memory and pick them out on a keyboard is an exercise in relative pitch / intervallic ear training, some of the basic skills that Let's Play Music incorporates in our training of the whole musician.

-Gina Weibel, M.S.

Related Articles:

- Musical Superpower: Develop Perfect Pitch

- Ear Training: Learn to hear Intervals

A new Twist on a Classic Game: Memory Sounds

I was recently on a 5-hour flight with my four-year-old, and we stayed busy the entire time.  I had packed her Memory game and her Let's Play Music tone bells amid other toys and books.  Together we invented "Memory Sounds," a way to play the Memory game using tone bells to strengthen both ear-training and memory.  If you have a new set of tone bells and are looking for another fun way to put them to use, read on!

Sound Memory
What you will need: A Memory game (check your local thrift shop- I got mine for $2), a set of Let's Play Music tone bells, and a curtain or binder or wall to hide the bells from the players/ listeners.

Set Up
You won't need all of the matching pairs from your Memory game.  At most you will need 8 pairs.  Set up a divider so your child can't see the bells.  Lay your bells from left to right, high to low: this seems backwards to YOU, but your child facing you will hear low sounds on HER LEFT and high sounds on HER RIGHT.  Next to each bell, choose two different pictures to represent that sound.  Finally, put the matches from all of those pictures into a "draw box".

The first time we played this game, we were in tight quarters on a plane (photos below).  I used a blanket draped between our seats as a barrier, and had the bells on my tray.  Since it was our first time and I wanted her to get confident with the game, I only used three pairs.  If your child struggles with hearing and matching sounds, just use a few pairs, and use tones that are NOT adjacent (not an interval of a second).  I used Do, Mi and Sol.

One-Player Game
The listener chooses two cards and holds them up so the musician can see them.  The musician states the picture and then plays the corresponding bell.  "Train...ding!  Banana...ding!"  If the two sounds match, the player makes a pair.  If they don't match, she tries a different combination of pictures.  Even when she hasn't made a match, she's practiced identifying if the sounds match! A valuable skill!

This game is fun and challenging for ANY family member, even recent Let's Play Music graduates.  I was impressed how quickly my 8-year-old LPM-grad made matches. (In the video below, we hadn't yet realized it's best to have the bells laid out high-left to low-right for the musician.)

Multi-Player Game
Each player takes a turn picking two pictures and listening to the sounds, hoping for a match.  Just like in regular Memory, players can gain advantage by paying attention to the combinations chosen by others.

Major Scale Strategy
It didn't take my kids long to come up with a helpful strategy!  Each time you guess two cards and hear the tones, set the cards on the floor in a line, placing the cards approximately as far apart as the tones sounded, with the higher sound to the right.  You'll visually be lining up the tones and helping them find mates.  At the end of the game, all of your pairs will be arranged in a Major Scale!  Remove the screen/ divider, and you'll be able to check that all of the matches were correct AND they are all in the correct order to make a major scale.

I hope you'll have some family fun game time playing this game as the musician or the listener.  Just for the record, the white noise on the airplane was so loud that the tinkle of our tone bells could hardly travel more than a few feet: no patrons were harassed in the making of this blog post.

-Gina Weibel, M.S.
Let's Play Music Parent