Practicing Autoharp at Home

At Let's Play Music, we recognize that your child is developmentally ready and excited for some fabulous musicianship training even though her young fingers don't have the dexterity she needs to practice those skills at the keyboard just yet. The autoharp gives us a beautiful way to grant her that learning experience while letting the fingers have just a little more time to mature and grow.

All first-year students enjoy playing the autoharp in class and a few lucky ones can also practice at home.  For the rest of us, here are some tips for the WHY and HOW of practicing autoharp skills at home without a harp!

Why Practice Autoharp?

Playing the autoharp in class gives students the chance to learn a multitude of skills simultaneously.  

A student coordinates both hands while playing the harp.

They read and interpret the chord map, push the correct button with one hand, and strum with the other hand.  

They establish  a steady beat then try to incorporate chord changes without losing it.  

They sing the melody, practicing their ability to harmonize with the accompaniment they create, and match pitch to the instrument.  

Each child's ability to hear chords and cadences and identify them will improve.  

When it comes time to play piano, these students will be prepared to have their eyes reading and hands working.  

They'll keep that beat and know how to time motions to play on the beat.  

They'll be listening to themselves and self-correcting.  

As they compose their own songs and accompaniments in year 2 and 3, their ear-training for chords will lead to success.

In light of all the learning going on, would you be delighted to practice all of those skills and have it be almost as effective as using a real harp?  

Use Your Book
Your child will make great strides in these skills simply by pointing to the chord changes in her book as she hears them on the CD, or by pressing the chord triangles as if they are buttons and strumming the floor, table or bumpy spine of the book.  Don't make the mistake of under-valuing this simple, elegant tool that's already at your fingertips!  

Option: Download an App 

If you have an iPad or an iPhone at home, consider autoharp apps that you can download to practice playing your Let's Play Music songs.  "Musical Autoharp" by Thumb Wizards is $0.99. 

Another fun option is to play autoharp ONLINE HERE. The letters on your computer keyboard correspond to the buttons, so you can strum by pressing keys or using the mouse to push buttons.  For example, letters E R T corresponds to the F C and G chords.  You could put Blue, Red, and Yellow stickers on E R T and your child is set to play.

Follow the chord maps in the back of your child's Red and Blue semester practice books- you're all set! 

Where to Put Stickers
If you use the app, it does not have the colors of the chords, so  you may be left wondering what chords to play. If you look carefully, each button on the autoharp has a letter, as well as the word major or minor after it.  
There are two keys that our Let's Play Music harp songs are performed in: C or F.  We perform songs in whichever key ensures the melody falls within a comfortable range for children to sing. 

Red, Blue, and Yellow chords will be identified as I, IV, and V chords in the Orange semester. In the key of C, the scale degrees are: C=1, D=2, E=3, F=4, G=5, A=6, B=7.  Yes, you will be quizzed on this in Orange semester!

You can put Red, Yellow, and Blue stickers on your real harp, or your computer keyboard, but for the iPad app I found it easiest to have sticky notes on the edge pointing at the button (you can't put stickers right on the button.)

The key of C Major

Red chord (the I chord) = C Major        Put a RED sticker on C.

Blue chord (the V chord) = F Major       Put a BLUE sticker on F. 
Yellow chord (the IV chord) = G Major    Put a YELLOW sticker on G.

pg 55 Primary Chords Song, 
pg 57 Chords in Pieces, 
blog post 5 Fat Turkeys, 
and Blue Semester: pg 51 On top of Spaghetti
pg 54 Bill Grogan's Goat 

Here is a photo of my ipad, ready to be played in the KEY OF C  by my 4-year-old.  I used  post-it-notes to indicate the chord colors, and attached them around the edges of the screen.

The key of F Major

Red chord (the I chord) =F Major      Put a RED sticker on F.

Blue chord (the V chord) =Bb Major    Put a BLUE sticker on Bb (B flat)
Yellow chord (the IV chord) =C Major   Put a YELLOW sticker on C.

pg 56 Barnyard Boogie
pg 58 Ain't it Great to Be Crazy?

and from the  Blue Semester: pg 53 El Gallo

Here are the post-it-notes set up for the Key of F.

Make Your Own Autoharp: Easy 

It's quick and easy to go low-tech! One option is to print out a photo of the auto-harp push-buttons.  Now your child will have something to touch while reading the map and singing along. Done!

Make an Awesome Autoharp

I can already see the gears turning in the minds of artsy-crafty parents.  Why not make a full-on homemade autoharp!?

1. Start with a full photo of an autoharp.  Print it out in color (either 8x11 or 11x17).  I email files to my neighborhood office store and they print things for a small fee.

2. Mount it on some foam-core or cardboard or plywood to keep it sturdy.

3. Optional: Do you want to Mod-Podge over the image to protect it forever? 

4. If desired, add texture to the "strings" of the harp.  We used Elmer's glue and ran a bead of glue along each string image.  When it dried it left a ridge on each string that my daughter can feel as she glides her fingers across.  You could lay down a length of fishing line or fine string into the glue as well, to get the texture.  

5. Add real stickers to the appropriate chord buttons. (read on for help finding the chords)

Teacher Emy LeFevre cut plastic sheets into harp shape (this would also work with wood) and machined grooves to give texture for strings and buttons. Wow!

Buy An Autoharp
If all that crafty talk made your head spin, you might be interested in simply buying an autoharp.  The great news is that your family will be a huge hit around the campfire, on long road trips, at the family-reunion talent show, and during TV-free week.  

LOOK FOR an autoharp with at least 21 chords.  15 chords can get you through your Let's Play Music experience, but you'll wish you had more when you start to play with your own fake book of favorite songs.  If you see diatonic vs. chromatic harps, choose the chromatic; it has strings representing every note, like both the black and white keys on the piano.
Used harps can be excellent, and a good buy as low as $100, especially if they come with a recommended case for keeping the harp safe.  Ebay is the most common place to find a used harp and Oscar Schmidt is the most common maker of harps at our level, costing $250-$600 or more new. 
You'll also need to pick up a digital tuner and a tool for tuning your strings if it was not included.

AVOID a harp  that can't hold a tuning or that has pins that seem very loose, which might be expensive to replace.   
If a string is missing or broken, however, you can probably replace it inexpensively. If the harp is not holding tune for more than a few weeks, you may need to replace all strings (we recommend you do one at a time or take it to a shop to have it done.) If you buy a used harp and find that it needs the felt replaced, that is another job you can reasonably do at home with an ordered kit.

 
- Gina Weibel, MS
Let's Play Music Teacher

Solfege: Part 2 : 7 Reasons We Love It!

We recently posted Part 1 of our Solfege series: all about the history of solfeg and its usefulness in ear training.  Today I'll share 7 more reasons Let's Play Music teachers use solfege and LOVE IT!

1. There's a Word for That
Can you imagine teaching your child to identify colors without having any color words?  Not easy!  Similarly, as students learn to discern pitches and intervals between pitches, using a system  for putting a name to the pitches (solmization) facilitates the process immensely.  China, Japan, Korea, India, and Indonesia all have solmization schemes for associating pitch to a name.  When talking about fixed pitches, we use the alphabet (C is always C) and when talking about scales and relationships between notes in a scale, we use solfeg!

2. Whole-Body Involvement
Each of our young students (and even many of our toddler Sound Beginnings students) master the  hand signs and use them to experience singing, ear-training, and note-reading with their whole body.  As they hear the pitches moving up and down, their hands move up and down through space accordingly.  As they recognize intervals and relationships between the notes, they can feel the distance of jumps between pitches and grasp them with their hands.

Adding this kinesthetic mode of learning to an auditory and visual skill heightens a child's absorption of the information, accommodates various learning styles, and facilitates integration and long-term learning.  Solfeg is a popular tool for University students majoring in music fields;  it should be shared with young children, too, who adore and quickly internalize having a physical movement to put with their singing.  You already knew wiggly, active children enjoy having actions to accompany their favorite nursery songs, right?  If there's a way to make teaching more physical AND more fun for them, let's do it!

 3. Understanding Scales and Key Signatures
Would you love to be able to quickly and easily sing every major scale?  You can do it today! You don't have to memorize the notes of every single scale, just memorize the 7 solfeg syllables and start singing on whichever pitch you wish to be DO.  That's part of the power of the moveable DO  (read more here): the relationships within each scale will remain the same.

'Do' corresponds with the tonic of whatever key a particular composition or melody is placed. Thus in the Key of C major, C is Do, and in the Key of F major, F is Do.  You can see those two scales already engraved on your Let's Play Music tone bells!  Truly, any bell or piano key could be Do.  Of course you'd have to add some black keys to your scale to get it to sound like a major scale, but now after a few months of Let's Play Music training, your child could pick out (by ear) which black keys were needed.

Do is the note that the music rotates around and pivots back to. Whatever key we sing in, Do really is home!  Most songs end by bringing the melody back to Do.


 
4. Intervals
We recently posted about the powerful ways that mastering intervals will help you improve musicianship in your reading, singing, and composing music.

Solfeg is a handy tool for students wishing to master interval training.  The goal is to instantaneously recognize the precise intervals when heard, and having solfeg words to identify them is very helpful in this process.  "The notes I just heard sounded like...Do-Fa! It's a 4th!"

Here are just a few relationships I am confident my Let's Play Music students can hear and identify:
Do - Re : major 2nd 
Do - Mi : major 3rd 
Do - Fa: perfect 4th
Do - Sol: perfect 5th
Mi - Sol: minor 3rd  
In class we sing this as Sol-Mi more often than as Mi-Sol, but they are the same interval, of course.

5. Sight Reading Music
Choir class is a very common place to find solfeg at work; students are taught to rely on solfege for sight-singing melodies.  Singers can quickly read and sing the written melody if they interpret it in terms of solfege because they have learned the relationships between each solfege note and don't need to be retaught those relationships for whatever key the music is written in.

Here are some videos of choir students performing 4-part vocal music they have never rehearsed, using solfeg syllables and hand signs. In the 3rd year of Let's Play Music, your teacher will use her hands to show signs for the students to 'sight sing'.


 
At the piano, sight-reading music in the same way and hearing it with our inner voice helps us to self-correct as we play.  Solfege allows us to be able to play a tune in another key (transpose) by choosing a new DO and playing the same solfeg pattern (see an example here.)  We will practice singing and transposing this way in Purple and Orange semesters!


6. Sharps, Flats and Minor Keys
Now that we know having a way to sing the steps of a scale makes it easier to learn music, some folks have wondered why we don't prefer to sing numbered steps (1,2,3,4,5,6,7) instead of the solfeg syllables.  The word 'seven' is already less-than-popular because it is not a monosyllable, but all of the numbers become problematic if we ever want to introduce sharps or flats.  'Raised-seven' is definitely not an easy-to-sing monosyllable!

With solfeg, for a note that is lowered a half-step, we sing it with an A sound (like in the word "nay") but spell it with an e. Thus mi becomes me (may), la becomes le (lay), ti becomes te (tay), etc. This works for all scale steps except re which is already an e sound, so re lowered a half-step become ra (rah!).

For a note that is raised a half-step, we sing it with an ee sound, but spell it with an i. Thus, fa becomes fi. This works for all steps except mi and ti, but they are almost never raised anyway. 

Here are the syllables for the chromatic scales (play every single key on your piano, both black and white, as you sing):
ascending: do di re ri mi fa fi sol si la li ti do
descending: do ti te la le sol se fa mi me re ra do

In Let's Play Music class, we won't spend much time teaching all of the raised and lowered syllables, but it is a beautiful and simple system to grow into as your child takes interest in further musical skills.  Each year I have one or two Orange students wanting to compose in minor keys, and I do help them master me, le, and te so they can be sure to write an appropriately minor melody.

7. Solfeg Works
The final, and perhaps best, reason I want to share about why Let's Play Music teachers love solfege is simply that it works.  Students wanting to become better musicians (and get passing-grades in their college-level music classes) find that having the right tools will get the job done.  There's no need to wait until college; solfege can help your very young child improve musicianship right now.  Understanding, internalizing, and using solfege will lead you and your child to be bilingual: you speak the language of music!

Be sure to read SOLFEGE: PART 1: When You Know the Notes To Sing...
and SOLFEGE PART 3: Learn the Hand Signs

- Gina Weibel, MS
Let's Play Music Teacher

Parent Involvement is Key

Let's Play Music has something different from any private piano lesson or even any group piano class: parents are part of the class every other week (every month in year two.)

We establish music as a venue for parents to play with, love, and bond with their child.  A child who perceives music study in this positive light flourishes!

Why? The Research

A recent thesis examined the value of parental involvement during music class. Some excellent reasons for attending music class with your child were quantified:

86% of young students benefit from parental encouragement in music-making during class. They are willing to get involved when you show them how. 

Parent involvement during music class helped students feel more competent.

Parent involvement during music class fostered a strong bond between parent and child. They began to communicate and relate to each other in a more meaningful way as a result of shared music class participation.

Parent involvement coupled with a musical home environment improved music retention, plans to pursue music, music achievement, and music aptitude. They learn more because you reinforce it!

Participation in music classes enhanced the musical home environment.

Who Can Persevere?  

An additional survey published in 1996 by Jane Davidson showed that musical achievement is closely linked to high levels of parental involvement. Davidson and her colleagues found that parental involvement is the crucial factor determining whether a child persists with music lessons or gives up.

Davidson also showed that the highest-achieving children were ones who received the most support from their parents, up to the age of eleven. 

Thereafter, children are increasingly driven by an intrinsic motivation to practice regularly by themselves. Davidson goes so far as to suggest that high levels of musical achievement are likely to be unattainable without a positive emotional atmosphere and the support of parents. 

The most crucial determinant is not a parent’s musical literacy, but the time commitment they are willing to make. Successful learning, after all, is a group effort involving parents, teachers and the student.

In Class

At Let's Play Music we've designed parent-day classes specifically to foster parent-child interactions and boost the benefits of your attendance. You're not just here to watch!

Wondering what you can do to get the most from time in class?


Be an example of musical enjoyment. Modeling enthusiastic participation and respect, because you're being watched and copied! Be the best student in the class and sing along.

Connect with your child.  Look into her eyes, smile, give frequent hugs, rock her on your lap. Show her that this is an event you enjoy attending.

Endorse the spirit of playfulness. Laugh at appropriate times, get a little silly, play the games and make faces during the puppet show.  Skip, dance, be silly!

Encourage listening. Train your child to listen to the teacher's instructions by refusing to repeat them to your child (otherwise you'll train her to ignore the teacher and wait for you to interpret each instruction! oops!). Turn off your phone to show that you are fully present and you expect your child to be fully present, too.  Don't chat with other parents to teach your child that she should stay focused, too.

Give encouragement. Accompanying a group of singers can be scary. When your child plays the harp, echoes Ed, or plays a piano solo, give her a big smile and hug at the end.  Use non-verbal ways to give praise and encouragement for trying new things.  Reward effort, not just results!

Enjoy being with him. Your child's first experience with music will delight him because he sees your delight in being with him.  He will sing when he sees that you enjoy singing, that you enjoy hearing him sing.  This factor will do more for motivating him to make music than all the theory he learns in class!

Parents' Commitment

Your child will rely heavily on your nurturing and shared enjoyment to motivate him to study music for several years.  Research showed that until age 11 it is parental drive that usually keeps students in music lessons.  Around then, students discover their own joy in creating music, and blossom into a lifetime love of music.

I have had a few parents say to me, "I'm not sure if I should register Billy for class.  I really understand the benefits of music, and I really want us to enjoy music, but I don't know if he is ready to commit. He's so young! How can he decide?"  

I tell this Mom I've heard enough to know that Billy is perfect for my class. 99% of the time it is the parent's excitement, attitude, and dedication that will determine Billy's success.  I don't think I ever met a 4 or 5-year-old who could comprehend the commitment of a 3-year program. They can't remember anything that lasted 3 years!

You can maximize results at home when you:

Tailor practicing to your child. We know children come with unique personalities.  In our post on Child Whispering, I share how different personalities might enjoy practicing differently. You know your child best.

Maintain the spirit of fun. We value play as part of the learning process. Provide an environment where it's okay to make mistakes and learn from them. It's okay to be imperfect and learn at your own pace. Creating music is a fun, lighthearted, and happy activity.

Do it together. Sing along with the CD and your child. Take turns playing the bells. Play a duet at the piano.  Learn along with your child as he learns new skills. He will love music because he'll know it as something that strengthens your relationship.

Maintain your commitment. If Billy sees that you've lost interest in helping him practice, turning on music, getting out puppet shows, and attending class, there's a good chance his practice habits will waver, too. Students have their own personalities and some enjoy practice more than others, but they universally need some level of support from parents.

Enjoy spending special time with your little musician, and check out other blog posts written to help you find fun ways to play and practice music.

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

Music in the News: Kim Seybolt

The Windsor Beacon of Windsor, CO recently visited the studio of Let's Play Music teacher Kimberly Seyboldt. This is what they found.

 

Kimberly Seyboldt, owner of Let's Play Music in Windsor, poses Thursday in her teaching room in her home. Let's Play Music seeks to teach kids music fundamentals culminating in being able to compose music. / Sam Noblett/The Beacon

Kimberly Seyboldt has a passion for music, and she shares that passion by taking elementary school-aged children and turning them into composers at her Let’s Play Music business.

Seyboldt has operated Let’s Play Music in Windsor for six years after moving to town from Tucson, Ariz. She has since grown her home-operated business from just four students in the first year to 34 musical learners in the program currently.

"What sets Let’s Play Music apart from normal music lessons", Seyboldt said, "is its interactivity."

“She teaches them difficult music theory concepts through song and dance,” said Amy Brown, a pianist and mother of three children who have been through the program. “They don’t even realize that they’re learning it.”

The learning takes place through a structured program based in the teachings of music masters Zoltán Kodály, Carl Orff and Émile Jaques-Dalcroze.

Seyboldt teaches the principles of Kodaly through the association of sound to body by using hand symbols to teach the solfège symbols. These are the set of ascending notes commonly known as do, re, mi, fa, sol, la and ti.

Orff’s teachings are learned via instrument with the progression of percussion, voice, tone bells and piano. The Dalcroze principles are used to teach rhythm through movement, which the Let’s Play Music curriculum does through with puppet shows set to classical music.

Taking classes every week, students are enrolled in the program for three years, which mimics the school-year schedule. It culminates when the students compose their own song at the end through the use of the various instruments they have learned, including voice.

One focus of Seyboldt’s teachings, and the one she believes is most important, comes through strong parent involvement. Parents are asked to come to lessons every other week for the first year and then to move to once a month in the second and third.  A lot of the success is due to the parents and what the kids do at home,” Seyboldt said. “I feel lucky to have dedicated parents.”

Excellent Let's Play Music teachers can be found across the USA.  Find one near you now.