Learning About Nature Through
Music and the Arts
Be Curious Be Inspired Create and Share Through Music |
Be Curious Be Inspired Create and Share Through Music |
I was just going through and organizing some slide presentations that I use in school to demonstrate different concepts when we are playing instruments. It happened to be about taiko, a Japanese style of drumming that we learn at different points throughout the year, but because of the rhythm syllables (kuchishoga 口唱歌 ) that we learn while playing, I started thinking about organizing another playlist on my YouTube channel of different styles of rhythmic language - rhythm syllables - that are used around the world for learning percussion rhythms, and came back to this amazing video of a rhythm called Kassa, from Guinea. It shows the rhythmic language used to learn the patterns. Why I am sharing this for today, and here in the outdoor learning section of this site, is because I just read the amazing description of why we are drawn to rhythms that is written in the description section of this video: "African percussion represents rhythm. All areas of life - vegetable, animal or mineral - are based on rhythms from birth to death: our breath, walking, seasons, weather, growth/blooming of plants, sleeping patterns, heartbeats... everything comes and goes, and all of these various rhythms are interconnected. It is the polyrhythm of life, the circle of life. What is more natural than being captivated by that which governs all activity: rhythms?" What a beautiful description of the rhythm and interconnectedness of everything? I felt this very much while being outside all last year; the sunrises and sunsets (we saw both as there is a very short day in Canadian winter), the return of certain birds etc... we talked about these rhythms being something to which we become much more connected when we are outside enjoying nature every day. This video also has a beautiful description of how everything around us is rhythm: I still have people that are shocked that we did music outside all last year. And yet... everything in nature, everything around us is rhythms.
Rhythms are nature. Nature is rhythms.
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Click HERE to go back to the first postBio - Jennifer EngbrechtI am a music specialist in the Louis Riel School Division in Manitoba, Canada. I have a strong interest in the interrelationship of all subject areas, especially infusing the arts into all learning, and as their own stand-alone subjects. NEW:
So excited to be interviewed for Green Teacher Magazine's "Talking With Green Teachers" Podcast My article in the MSSTA Journal for Fall 2021... Click on the image below:
My article in the Summer 2021 Green Teacher Magazine. Click on the image below:
Disconnect: The Outdoor Education Podcast - listen to this episode about Teaching Music Outside by clicking on the picture below:
Looking for the WSO Manitoba Mosaic lesson for Hey Terre by Kelly Bado?
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