Hello Kindermusik families,
Mother's day....it's over but every day is mother's day. Parenting is hard work. I hope you will keep a song in your pocket to go along with the happy moments and to lift you during the challenging ones.
The children you share with me in Kindermusik are extraordinarily beautiful, inside and out. It is a reflection of the love they receive from their parents and those supportive grandparents! Thank you for a WONderful semester. I hope to see you all for the summer session though I know for some you'll miss the fun because the schedule is not going to mesh. Make sure you get the first choice for your fall class soon. I know many of the classes will be full before the middle of August. See the website for the schedule and to register.
Here's a Joyful Noise summer afternoon camp opportunity July 9-13 for 4-7 year olds: (and I'm very excited to say my daughter, Claire, soon to be college graduate, will be teaching at this Joyful Noise camp!) Registration ends this week so you'll want to check it out right away. Some scholarship is available.
I've got 2 great live music events to share with you. The first is this coming Friday, May 18, at the White Horse in Black Mountain. To raise summer camp scholarship funds the faculty, along with the artists in residency "Free Planet Radio" will be performing in concert. This is a family friendly event with a silent auction before the concert. I'm definitely going. The music will be so spectacular! Don't miss it!
The second live music event is Sunday May 20th at the Folk Arts Center on the Blue Ridge Parkway 3pm. It's the Asheville-Buncombe Youth Orchestra Symphonic Pops concert. (My daughter, Anne, plays cello in this orchestra!)
I am very grateful to my umbrella organization, Joyful Noise Community Music and Arts, for working tirelessly to fulfill the mission (As a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, our mission is to provide quality arts experiences that inspire creativity, cultivate connections to our regional cultural heritage, and enrich the lives of all members of the community.) It doesn't happen without human power. Currently the Board has a position open for President and a general board member.  There are strong board members in the positions of accounting, secretary and vice-president.  The Executive Director of Joyful Noise and the faculty are motivated and completely involved in directing the organization on a daily basis as well as managing long-term operations. If you should know of anyone (a Kindermusik mom or dad, grandparent, aunt or uncle, motivated friend!) please let me know or email Kristen_Dotti@yahoo.com .
 Thanks for reading to the end of this post. I hope to see you at either or both of these live music events and then in one of the classes soon.
Keep singing and twirling!
Love,
Yvette
www.kindermusikwithyvette.com

Thank you for the hugs and kisses!

How I love week 12! It amazes me every time. Such growth, children singing out loud, creative dance moves, shy children venturing out, kinesthetic children finally willing to prove to us that they have been learning all along...the older children are reading music and can hear it in their head and they are getting better and better at playing their glockenspiel, the "graduating class" now knows what a Bflat is and knows when you need one!

Then comes week 13 when I realize the semester is almost done! NO! Not yet! We still have so much work to do! Alas, time does not stand still for anyone!

I hope you will continue to nurture your child's innate musicality. Here's the link for the summer classes and fall schedule: online.  I know there will be full classes, I hope you will be in the mix!

Here's a live music opportunity. I know this is last minute notice but Joyful Noise is having their spring recital tomorrow, April 29 at Trinity United Methodist Church 587 Haywood Rd. beginning at 2pm. There will be a short dance recital at 3:15, reception at 3:30 and then more recital at 4pm.  There is a LOT of talent to share. It is a special time for the families of the children who have worked so hard to get to where they are: Making music!

Thank you for all the hugs and kisses I get after every class! I love you all!
See you in class!
Yvette

ANNOUNCING:

Yes, lots of announcements. You know the children do not have patience for announcements and parents forget by the time they are back in their cars. So here it is all written down. I hope to see you at some of these events!

• New Village 8 week class ($135) beginning March 7, 11am, in South Asheville, and March 9, 11:15, in Weaverville. Tell your friends that babies under 5 months have a $50 discount for this class. The tiny babies are so receptive….don’t wait another minute! Do you know someone who has just had a baby?

Joyful Noise Community Music and Arts (my umbrella organization) has some great opportunities. I will be there:

• Join us for our FREE SpectacularSaturday Sampler on Saturday, March 3rd 1:00 am- 4:00pm at our Weaverville location of 30 Alabama Ave. You will have the chance to experience sample classes in clogging, Irish step dancing, drama, cello, violin, fiddle, banjo, guitar, singing, songwriting, music mind games, and Kindermusik. You must register by March 1 by emailing cherylrenfro@hotmail.com or call 828-712-7559 for details and registration. Classes are offered ranging from newborns to adults so everyone is welcome. Come join us for this energizing day offered to students new and old to say thank you, welcome, and keep experiencing the arts!
•   Spring Showcase Sunday, March 18 3:30pm FREE
  Calvary Baptist Church in West Asheville This event is a concert sharing of many of the musicians and groups that are part of Joyful Noise. At the end there’s a fiddling tune for everyone to dance too! (with Kindermusik egg shakers!)

• Joyful Noise 2012 Quilt Raffle
  Tickets are on sale now for the 2012 Joyful Noise Raffle Quilt. Proceeds from ticket sales will be used to provide scholarships to deserving students. The quilt raffle will take place on Sunday, March 18, 2012 at the Joyful Noise Student Spring Showcase at Calvary Baptist Church on Haywood Road in West Asheville. You do not need to be present to win. Raffle tickets are $10 each or 3 for $25. Buy a ticket and support community music and arts in the Asheville area. Tickets are available in person from Joyful Noise faculty, students and families or online at jnrafflequilt@gmail.com.

• Sign up for Joyful Noise Newsletter (www.joyfulnoisecenter.org) and you’ll find out about many great (most free) live music opportunities where you can bring your young children and practice listening together!

 This is a picture of the beautiful quilt. It really is gorgeous and beautifully made. I do have tickets to sell. Please ask me!

Let me finish my sentence!

There's a delicate balance of keeping the beat during class and stopping to explain a tidbit about the amazing work the children are doing in Kindermusik! I don't always get a chance to finish my sentence.....But I do hear from families that they appreciate knowing some of the details. I hope you'll read on because I'm also going to tell you about some great free live music events!

1.      Giddy UP Horsey! Knee bounces help to dissipate cortisol by deep pressure applied to receptors between each vertebra in a child’s spine. Cortisol, the horomone of flight or fright (stress) build and strengthen the neural pathways to the brain stem where attention to and action for survival is paramount. Activity in the brain stem controls heart rate, respiration, digestion, preparing them for a fight or for fleeing. These systems are important for survival of the species. The brain stem is not where creative thinking and learning happens. By stern reprimands, arm shaking, swats to the bottom, etc, the average toddler receives a good dose of cortisol about every 9 minutes of his waking life. Adrenaline takes about a day and a half to neutralize. Children with excessive cortisol actually have larger brain stems. (This would be a child in an extreme situation.)
So enjoy these knee bounce activities at home. They are good for you too! Have you noticed how much giggling goes on with the Giddy UP Horsey activity? Laugher and fun help build neural pathways to the frontal lobes of the brain where creativity, problem solving and thinking happen. This amazing information comes from articles and a book I read by Joseph Chilton Pearce.

2.      “Village” (newborn to 18 months): We’ve been exploring our senses and I mentioned that I would look up how many senses we actually have! First the 5 we commonly know as our senses: Touch, smell, sight, taste, and hearing. Then there’s proprioceptive or kinesthetic sense which tells the brain about the relative positions of the parts of the body (Why do babies wait until they are in the car to wave goodbye? They are “Looking” for their hand!) The senses of Acceleration and Balance (strongly connected to the Vestibular system) allow one to sense body movement, direction, and acceleration, and to attain and maintain postural equilibrium and balance. And other senses like temperature, pain and other internal senses….See Wikipedia if you want to follow this trail!

3.      Listening in “Imagine That!” (3 ½ to 4 ½ yo) We are playing with a listening puzzle that asks the children to listen to layers of sound all at once. I’d love a chance to help the parents understand the importance of listening with intent. Our hearing actually happens with the movement of tiny muscles and like any muscle they can be strong or weak. Amazingly our ears are connected to nearly all our senses, body organs and our vestibular system.  When listening with intent it becomes a full body experience whith physical, intellectual and emotional elements. Practice listening very carefully to layers of sounds in your neighborhoods, grocery stores, parking lots, and of course MUSIC!

4.      “Young Child 2” Wow! We are learning to read music and to sing what we read. They are really working hard. The more you work with the activities and listen to the CD at home the more the children will be excited to show me what they know. You, the parents, are really partners in this journey and when your child is taking piano, violin, flute (or bassoon!) your level of involvement and attitude will determine the child’s success. In Kindermusik you are learning as much as the child is about how this journey will unfold. Remember, at this level, if your child doesn’t seem interested in the glockenspiel they YOU play it and that will count if they are within hearing distance.

5.      “Young Child 4” This is getting exciting! This week I will show them music with some notes missing. I know they will easily guess the song and fill in the blanks then play it on their glockenspiels!  The more you listen to the CD and sing along to all the songs the easier it will be for them to figure out the puzzle! It is time to be thinking about the next step: Private lessons. Violin? Cello? Guitar? Some teachers have long waiting lists and it’s a good idea to start this ball rolling.
If ever you have questions, I try  to be quick to respond with email: singandtwirl@gmail.com


See you in class!
Yvette

Spectacular Saturday Sampler including Kindermusik with Yvette

I'm excited for this event! Come and find out more about Joyful Noise Community Music and Art Center and participate in a Free Kindermusik class, Family style!
Here's more info about this event:

In a Nutshell: Joyful Noise, Spectacular Saturday Sampler

We'd like to express our gratitude to the community for the support we've received by offering everyone a chance to come experience our classes for free.  We are offering a FREE Spectacular Saturday Sampler that will include sample classes in clogging, Irish step dancing, drama, cello, violin, fiddle, banjo, guitar, singing, songwriting, music mind games, and Kindermusik.

Join us for our FREE Spectacular Saturday Sampler on Saturday, March 3^rd 1:00 am- 4:00pm at our Weaverville location of 30 Alabama Ave.  You will have the chance to experience several different classes in this fun-filled day, but you must register by March 1 by emailingcherylrenfro@hotmail.com or call 828-712-7559 for details and registration.  Classes are offered ranging from newborns to adults so everyone is welcome.  Come join us for this energizing day offered to students new and old to say thank you, welcome, and keep experiencing the arts! www.joyfulnoisecenter.org

Hope to see you AND bring your friends along too!
Yvette