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It's the holiday season, and that means holiday music! But you may not know as much about your favorite holiday songs as you think... In our final episode for this season, Miss Faith drops some holiday knowledge. And stay tuned after the show for a special holiday bonus! *** Featured songs: Andy Williams: It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year Alvin & the Chipmunks: Frosty the Snowman Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings: Eight Days of Hanukkah Wham!: Last Christmas Gene Autry: Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer Gwen Stefani: Jingle Bells Nat King Cole: The Christmas Song José Feliciano: Feliz Navidad Barenaked Ladies: I Have A Little Dreidel Idina Menzel: Ocho Kandelikas Mary J. Blige: Petit Papa Noel La Rondallita: El Burrito de Belén Marcela Mangabeira: All I Want for Christmas Is You Faith Murphy: Cozy Corona Christmas *** Donate to support this and future seasons of The Music Box.

Today’s the last installment of our series on music from around the world, where we’ll learn about the music of Nicaragua from Marlon Obando Solano, a native of San Lorenzo, Nicaragua, who now lives in Louisville, Kentucky. You’ll hear about different folk traditions, including dances that tell stories about Nicaragua’s people and history. You’ll also learn a new song about bananas! *** Featured music: La Mora Limpia - Otredad El Solar de Monimbo Nicaraguan Marimba El Gueguense Baile del Toro Huaco Baile la Gigantona Suenos del Mar - Appalatin *** Resources to help Nicaraguans affected by recent hurricanes and flooding: Red Cross GoFundMe organized by Marlon Obando Solano’s family *** Donate to support this and future seasons of The Music Box.

We’re going to the mountains today with musician Cari Norris, who teaches us about the traditional music of the Appalachian region. We’ll hear banjos and dulcimers, fun songs to sing along, and how this music can keep families connected. *** Featured music: Hillary Klug & Jim Wood: Arkansas Traveler Hillary Klug: Fire on the Mountain Jean Ritchie: Killy Kranky Jean Ritchie: Shady Grove *** Donate to support this and future seasons of The Music Box.

We’re using some of our favorite happy songs to power an imaginary train ride, with a lesson in fast and slow tempo. From grave to presto and everything in between, we’ll move our bodies to the beat. *** Featured music: Whitney Houston & Mariah Carey: When You Believe John Lennon: Imagine Cast of The Wiz Live: Brand New Day Nat King Cole: Smile Katrina and the Waves: Walking on Sunshine Flo Rida: Good Feeling Eva Cassidy: People Get Ready Judy Garland & Barbra Streisand: Get Happy/Happy Days Are Here Again *** Donate to support this and future seasons of The Music Box.

Continuing our explorations of music outside the European tradition with our guide Charles Amewudah, a native of Ghana and a drumming teacher. We’ll learn about the different kinds of percussion instruments used in Ghanaian music, and how drumming is part of life in Ghana. *** Aseye Ensemble, the drum group led by Charles Amewudah More information on the Ewe drumming tradition, including images of the instruments A video of dancers with a drum ensemble from the Volta region of Ghana *** Donate to support this and future seasons of The Music Box.

We're taking a (virtual) trip to different parts of the world and learning about music from different places! Today, we'll learn about music from Thailand and Iran with multi-instrumentalist and composer Jon Silpayamanant. *** Born in Udon Thani, Thailand, Jon Silpayamanant is an intercultural multi-instrumentalist, composer, and music educator based in the greater Louisville area. As a biracial Thai American with musical families on both sides of the world, he has been navigating musical code switching and bimusicality for much of his life and uses that experience to inform his understanding of how music ecosystems interact, hybridize, and evolve into new styles and genres. *** More information on the Saw U More information on the kamancheh *** Donate to support this and future seasons of The Music Box.

Getting along with friends can be a challenge, but we've got the musical solution! We’re returning to the magical land of Arpeggio for today’s adventure. Sing along with the Three Fierce Fairies! *** Donate to support this and future seasons of The Music Box.

It's a time-traveling musical adventure as we learn about beat and rhythm. We’ll put on a pair of magical boots that will help us save the future of music! *** Featured music: Dancing in the Street - Martha Reeves and the Vandellas Stayin’ Alive - The Bee Gees The Power of Love - Huey Lewis and the News Gettin’ Jiggy Wit It - Will Smith I Gotta Feeling - Black Eyed Peas *** Donate to support this and future seasons of The Music Box.

We'll explore the world of dynamics (how loud or soft a sound is) with a big box of fireworks! KA-BOOM! You’ll hear some very special pyrotechnics and learn some special words to describe dynamics. *** Donate to support this and future seasons of The Music Box.

You'll learn about how math is used to make music! Just like chopping vegetables in half, you can chop notes in half too. *** Featured music: Ninja Re Bang Bang: Kyary Pamyu Pamyu *** Donate to support this and future seasons of The Music Box.

So many people in our community are grieving and reacting to current events related to the Breonna Taylor case. Out of respect, we’re going to postpone today’s episode until next week. We’d rather direct your attention to what’s happening in our city now. You can follow the news coverage from our sister station WFPL, and we’re putting some links below for how to talk with your family about racialized violence, justice, and equity. And don’t forget, there are lots of past episodes of The Music Box you can check out anytime in our podcast feed. Go listen to some music you love today, and we’ll be back with you next week. How to talk to kids about racism, racial violence and police brutality Racism and Violence: How to Help Kids Handle the News How to Talk with Kids About Racism and Racial Violence

So many of the composers we usually learn about in school are men -- but that's only telling half the story of who writes the music we love. *** Featured music: Felix Mendelssohn: A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Op. 61, Incidental Music, No. 9 Wedding March (Boston Symphony, Seiji Ozawa) Fanny Mendelssohn: String Quarter in E-Flat Major: IV. Allegro molto vivace (Quatuor Ebene) Igor Stravinsky: Firebird Suite (Chicago Symphony) Ethel Smythe: The March of Women (Chorus and Orchestra of the Plymouth Music Series, Philip Brunelle) Duke Ellington: Cottontail Ella Fitzgerald and Duke Ellington: Cottontail Pete Seeger: Freight Train Elizabeth Cotten: Freight Train The Chicks: March, March Beyonce: Brown Skin Girl Annie Lennox & Aretha Franklin: Sisters Are Doin’ It For Themselves *** Donate to support this and future seasons of The Music Box.

It’s our Season 4 premiere! We return to the fantasy world of Arpeggio with a tale of two very different performing groups and how they learn to get along.

We’re wrapping up our season with a very special story, featuring a magical land full of extraordinary creatures. And you’ll learn a few new things you can do with your voice too! *** National standards incorporated: Singing, alone and with others, a varied repertoire of music. *** Additional resources: Solfege Hand Signs Solfege Scale with Hand Signs *** Donate to support this and future seasons of The Music Box.

We’ll learn about meters in music, also known as time signatures, using math. You'll be able to hear the difference between 3/4 and 4/4 and understand how to read a time signature. Then… it’s an epic battle between time signatures! Who will win?? *** Featured musical excerpts: The Beatles: Yellow Submarine Dionne Warwick: What the World Needs Now Rodgers & Hammerstein: My Favorite Things from “The Sound of Music” Post Malone: Sunflower Queen: Another One Bites the Dust Pentatonix: Waltz of the Flowers Elton John: I’m Still Standing Beyonce: Love On Top Anthony Gonzalez: Un Poco Loco from “Coco” *** National Standards Incorporated: Reading and notating music *** Additional resources: Rhythm Lesson Musical Meter! Time Signatures, Bars and Barlines Worksheet: Time Signatures Worksheet: Note Types and 4/4 Time *** Donate to support this and future seasons of The Music Box.

Artists and musicians can inspire each other's work, even though they use different materials and techniques! We’ll learn about some of the ways that art and music intersects, and we’ll take a turn being inspired ourselves. *** Featured musical excerpts: George Gershwin: An American in Paris, New York Philharmonic conducted by Leonard Bernstein Jane Ira Bloom: Jackson Pollack, from Chasing Paint: Jane Ira Bloom Meets Jackson Pollack John Cage: Sonata V, from Sonatas and Interludes for Prepared Piano, performed by Giancarlo Cardini *** National Standards incorporated: Understanding relationships between music, the other arts, and disciplines outside the arts Understanding music in relation to history and culture *** Additional resources: Wassily Kandinsky: 100 Famous Paintings Analysis and Biography Jackson Pollock: 100 Famous Paintings Analysis and Biography Pablo Picasso: 150 Famous Paintings, Bio & Quotes by Picasso A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte *** Donate to support this and future seasons of The Music Box.

This is the final episode in our mini-series about songwriting: we’ll explore how instruments are used to tell stories in sound — most specifically, in movie soundtracks! You’ll be sure to hear a few familiar tunes here, and you’ll never watch movies the same way again. *** Featured musical excerpts: John Williams: Star Wars Main Theme, from “Star Wars” Original Motion Picture Soundtrack Hans Zimmer: …To Die For, from “The Lion King” Original Motion Picture Soundtrack John Williams: Hedwig’s Theme, from “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone” Original Motion Picture Soundtrack Opetaia Foa’i, Lin-Manuel Miranda, and Marc Mancina: We Know the Way, from “Moana” Original Motion Picture Soundtrack Rachel Portman: Tino, from “A Dog’s Purpose” Original Motion Picture Soundtrack *** National standards applied: Listening to, analyzing, and describing music* *Understanding relationships between music, the other arts, and disciplines outside the arts Understanding music in relation to history and culture *** Additional resources: “Tino” from A Dog’s Purpose 10 film composers you should know -- besides John Williams Female composers are trying to break film’s sound barrier THE POWER OF MUSIC IN FILM - How music affects film Moana: On-set visit with Lin-Manuel Miranda, Opetaia Foa’i & Mark Mancina *** Donate to support this and future seasons of The Music Box.

This is the second of three episodes on songwriting. This week, we’ll learn about how songs help us celebrate special occasions (hint: it involves cake and candles) and also how songs can make us feel strong in the face of hard times. We’ll hear some examples about songs that bring people together, and we’ll write our own verse to a well-known call-and-response song. *** Featured music: B.B. King: Why I Sing the Blues Aretha Franklin: A Change Is Gonna Come Pete Seeger & the Song Swappers: We Shall Not Be Moved *** National standards incorporated: Singing, alone and with others, a varied repertoire of music.  Composing and arranging music within specified guidelines. Improvising melodies, variations, and accompaniments. Understanding music in relation to history and culture. *** Additional resources: Songwriting With Kids How To Teach Children to Write Songs Sing Me A Story - Songs and Stories for Kids in Need *** Resources for discussing current events with your kids: Race Talk: Engaging Young People in Conversations About Race and Racism (Anti-Defamation League) 75 Things White People Can Do For Racial Justice (Medium) How White Parents Can Use Media to Raise Anti-Racist Kids (Common Sense Media) Resources for Talking About Race, Racism, and Racialized Violence With Kids (Center for Racial Justice in Education) *** Donate to support this and future seasons of The Music Box.

This is the first of a series of three episodes on songwriting. This week, we’ll learn about how rhyming words can help us tell a story. We’ll start with some songs you already know, and then we’ll write our own song! *** Featured music: W.A. Mozart: Variations on “Ah vous dirais-je, Maman” (Twinkle Twinkle Little Star) *** National standards incorporated: Singing, alone and with others, a varied repertoire of music** **Composing and arranging music within specified guidelines *** Additional resources: Songwriting With Kids How To Teach Children to Write Songs | Songwriting Tips Sing Me a Story - Stories and Songs for Kids in Need *** Donate to support this and future seasons of The Music Box.

We had a new episode all ready to go for you, but it just doesn’t feel right in this moment. Listen in and we’ll tell you why we’re hitting pause this week. And we’ll be back with you next week with a new episode about how you can write your own songs. *** Resources for discussing current events with your kids: Race Talk: Engaging Young People in Conversations About Race and Racism (Anti-Defamation League) 75 Things White People Can Do For Racial Justice (Medium) How White Parents Can Use Media to Raise Anti-Racist Kids (Common Sense Media) Resources for Talking About Race, Racism, and Racialized Violence With Kids (Center for Racial Justice in Education)