Before becoming a member of the Homeschool Review Crew, I had not been exposed to anything from Memoria press, ever. As you can see by going to this link, we have loved what we have used thus far! Memoria Press makes classical education easier with Music Appreciation I, and even though we do not follow the classical education method, the products from this company work well in our eclectic, relaxed style as well. This package is intended for grades 3 – 5, however I am using it for my boys who are in various levels, both below and above that range, and it’s working well for them.
Having grown up in a house filled with music, it has made me so happy to have a way of exposing my own children to both listening to and learning about music. I spent my life hearing many of the pieces included in Music appreciation 1, as my father had a very extensive musical library on vinyl record albums (yes, as a matter of fact, I *am* that old, lol!).
One of my boys in particular (The Batman) very much enjoys classical music, which I think my dad would have liked had he still been living when we adopted our kids. Because of the fact that my boys really like music in many forms, we are very much enjoying this product!
The concept of this lesson book with included music CD’s is one I really like. Although I can simply play music and try to instill an appreciation of it myself, and probably succeed, I cannot teach them about the music, the history involved, or the musical concepts without doing a great deal of research. Luckily, Memoria Press has already done that research for me! I also like having the selections for each lesson on the included CD’s. This means I don’t have to find them myself for this course.
The lessons in this book are ordered in such a way that the boys are learning all of these things without a ton of effort. The format is as follows:
- Listen (to the piece called for, on the included CD’s)
- A Little History (about the composer, the musical style, the time in history)
- Musical Concept about the form, includes the piano score of a portion of the piece so you can play it if you like)
- About The Piece (discusses the style of the piece)
- Music History (discusses the period, such as Baroque)
- Facts To Remember (numbered list of what was taught)
- Listen Again (with instructions on what to listen for)
Music Appreciation 1 does not just cover classical music. This book goes into pieces by Aaron Copland and George Gershwin as well. With this being Music Appreciation 1, it makes me look forward to the possibilities of further books on this subject by Memoria Press!
Members of the Review Crew have also been reviewing the following from Memoria Press:
- Traditional Spelling I
- Traditional Spelling II
- Prima Latina
- Latina Christiana
- First Form Latin
- Second Form Latin
- Third Form Latin
- Fourth Form Latin + Henle I
To read what 79 other Homeschool Review Crew members thought of this and the above named other products from Memoria Press, please click on the banner below:
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