Prep Level C ( 5 year old and up)
Music appreciation
We recommend starting introducing classical pieces through playing them for your preschoolers on piano/keyboard with Gentle Piano first. Parents have to learn it using Right, Left and/or Both hands with child present or participating in piece learning/singing Solfeggio/performing.
After ‘hand on’ experience the same piece should be presented as original with the help of CD, You Tube, iTunes and other listening devices. We will provide you with the sample links here, in our curriculum for your convenience, but feel free to brows different interpretations of the same piece.
Movements, dancing, ‘conducting’, loosing attention during the listening to original version is appreciated. You don’t have to push ‘just listening’ – a child has to do something happy and enjoyable while the music lasts.
The piece should be presented to a child during the entire 4 – 4,5 weeks segment of curriculum on different occasions. The structure (playing a piece 1-2 times a day) and spontaneity should be combined.
Every time before or after the piece is being played the name of it and name of composer should be announced.
If the piece is stimulating and exciting we recommend listening to it 1-2 hours before nap or night sleep. If the piece is soft and smoothing, it may be presented to a child, when he/she starts resting and about to sleep.
Every piece of this list after initial introduction during 4-4.5 week segment should be played occasionally with new pieces of the curriculum. It is important to keep all the music in mind and be able to differentiate one piece from another.
The sample of the orchestra version of the piece could be found on You Tube as Symphony # 94 (1st part) – for instance
Sight-reading: Joseph Haydn ‘Surprise Symphony’. Gentle piano: Favorite Classics Primer. Play on R2, L2 and P2
Ear Training
Guess Key Game – playing the game for 2-3 min and stop it by pressing F1. Always record the score! SING the names of the notes while playing.
Gentle piano – Nursery Primer – ‘Mulberry Bush’ – play the piece by R1, L1 and P1 and sing the names of the notes.
Piano
Exercises: learning how to play 5 fingers exercise using R and L and both hands.
Learning ‘names’ of each finger of the Right hand as ‘Do’,’Re’, ‘Mi’,’ Fa’, ‘So’ and of the Left hand as ‘Do’, ‘Ti’, ‘La’, ‘So’, ‘Fa’
Piano pieces: Introductory Songs -‘Hot Cross Buns’: S, R1, L1, P1
‘French Song’: S, R1, L1,
‘Jingle Bells’ and other pieces *optional*
Theory Theater
Interactive theory
Learn to place cards in order from Do, Re, Mi and other notes forward and backwards.
Music appreciation: E. Humperdinck ‘Slumber Song’ (to play, find in Favorite Classics Primer)
Look for E. Humperdinck Hansel and Gretel Overture. Original sample -
Ear Training
Listen to a first track of ‘Music Alphabet’ Song and sing it alone with a singer: SoftMozartSolfege1.1DotoDo.ppt
Nursery Primer: ‘Ten Little Indians’ Play R1, L1 and P1 and sing the notes with Solfeggio
Piano
Keep playing 5 fingers exercise from middle ‘Do’ using both hands.
Hanon #1.
Learning with the TEACHING VIDEO:
Learn the exercise with R, L and both hands.
Gentle piano – Introductory songs – ‘Hot Cross Buns’ and ‘French Song’ and other *optional*: try to make perfect score playing the pieces with both hands.
Interactive theory
Note Alphabet Game. Play for 5 minutes and write the score down.
‘Guess Key Game’: play 3 minutes and keep records on the score
THEORY THEATER: Watch the video about mistakes:
Music appreciation
Tchaikovsky ‘Nutcracker’ – March (from Gentle piano). For parents – beginners to play at least 8 bars using Right or Left hand.
Original sample -
Ear Training
PP singing of Note Alphabet Song from ‘Do’ to ‘Do’ Song and sing it alone with a singer: SoftMozartSolfege1.1DotoDo.ppt and ‘Re’ to ‘Re’. SoftMozartSolfege1.2RetoRe.ppt
Nursery Primer: Play ‘Tom, Tom, the piper’s son’ on R3, L3 or P3 and sing the piece with the names of the notes.
Piano
Exercises:
- Playing ‘Hanon #1’ up and down with R, L and both hands.
- Learning to play ‘White and Black Cat’ (Chromatic Scale) using the TEACHING video:
with R, L and both hands *both hands optional*
Piano Pieces:
- Practice playing R (H), L (H) and P(H) of all the pieces that you had been selected for recital and try to make perfect score
- Gentle Piano: Christmas Carols and Christmas Classics. Read on 1 or on 3 the songs that you like.
Interactive theory
‘Fruit Lines’ game. Play for 4-5 minutes.
THEORY THEATER: Watch 'Heartbeat of music'
Music appreciation
Piano piece to be added to Song Library ‘Carol of the Bells’.
Original sample -
Ear Training
Singing with PP files the track from Mi to Mi SoftMozartSolfege1.3MitoMi.zip
Gentle piano: Nursery Primer. ‘Mary had a little lamb’. Play the piece on R3, L3 and P3 and sing R hand with Solfeggio names.
Piano
- Hanon #1 – playing using 2 hands up and down
- Chromatic Scale – playing with both hands up and down
- Practicing piano pieces with TEACHING VIDEOS and getting ready for the recital.
Interactive theory
Note Duration game. Playing for 5 minutes at a time and writing the results down.
THEORY THEATER: Watch 'Heartbeat of music' 2
Music appreciation
piano version Favorite Classics Primer - Liszt ‘Liebestraum’. Original sample -
Ear Training
Singing with PP notes from Fa to Fa
Gentle Piano: Sing the song ‘The Farmer in the Dell’ with Solfeggio names.
Piano
- Hanon #1 – playing using 2 hands up and down
- Chromatic Scale – playing with both hands up and down
- Practicing piano pieces with TEACHING VIDEOS and getting ready for the recital.
- Picking up new piano pieces for the next semester
Interactive theory
Playing Treble Staff Puzzle for 3 minutes.
Music appreciation
Piano experience – Favorite Classics Primer – Beethoven ‘Turkish March’
Original sample:
Ear Training
Singing with PP files from So to So softmozart.com/forum/31-share-files/1047...-solfege-1.html#1047
Playing and singing Solfeggio ‘Alphabet’ song from Nursery Primer
Piano
- Learning to play triads with both hands
- Sight-reading Nursery Primer on R4, L4 and P4
- Practicing the piano pieces for May recital using R and L hands
Interactive theory
Practice rhythmical dictations as it shown on the dedicated page.
Learn how transpose (to play from different keys) with Gentle piano
Bass Staff Puzzle. Playing for 3 minutes.
Music appreciation
Piano experience – Mozart for Children: ‘Spring time song’ – play at least with Right hand.
Original sample -
Ear Training
Singing with PP scale from La to La softmozart.com/forum/31-share-files/1047...-solfege-1.html#1047
Nursery Songs Primer: Play ‘Humpty-Dumpty’ and sing with Solfeggio.
Piano
- Learning to play Do-Major:
- Sight-reading: ‘Nursery Primer’ on R5, L5 and P5
- Gentle Piano: working on learning pieces for the May recital playing with R, L or even both hands. Try to play pieces on H mode (to hide the notes)
Interactive theory
Learning to count lines and spaces to the note’s name (Flash cards, Level 1 page 3). Take a card and say all the tiny ‘stick’ notes before the round large one.
Music Appreciation
Piano Experience– Favorite Classics Primer – Rubinstein, Melody
Original sample -
Ear Training
Singing with PP from Ti to Ti.
softmozart.com/forum/31-share-files/1047...-solfege-1.html#1047
Singing ‘London Bridge’ with Solfeggio.
Piano
- Repeat all the exercises.
- Sight-reading all the pieces from ‘Nursery Primer’ in R6, L6 and P6.
- Playing the pieces for the recital with R, L, P and H (hidden notes).
- Playing the pieces with no computer *optional*.
interactive Theory
Flash Cards Level 1 page 3 and the rest: Guess what the note is, "a girl" or "a boy". Check the right answers by flipping the cards.
Music appreciation
Piano experience – Favorite Classics Primer – Rossini ‘William Tell Overture’
Original sample -
Ear Training
Gentle Piano: Solfeggio and Chords. Level 1 C major. First piece – S, L and L(H). The rest of pieces are S and L(H)
Singing ‘London Bridge’ with the Solfeggio names of the notes.
Piano
PLEASE, USE THE TEACHING VIDEO SECTION (IF POSSIBLE) TO POLISH YOUR CHOSEN PIECES: www.softmozart.com/forum/55-teaching-videos.html
*Please, contact us for individual consultation on choosing your piano pieces for your child, if the listed Albums are too easy for him/her*
Interactive theory
Saying the first circle of Note Alphabet in less than 20 seconds.