It’s Tuesday, Tucson Songstress friends, which means it’s time for another Top 10 Tuesday music activity. The wind is a characteristic of Spring, and I can’t think of a more musical element. So today, we will be talking about all things “wind” in the music department.
To complete this activity we will need two of our Top 10 Tuesday musical instruments. (Click HERE to see a complete list of all 10.)
We will need the pitch tube. Here is a picture of one.
They are not available through Amazon.com, but I have found them from time to time at the Dollar Store. For convenience sake, click HERE to go to a website called Music in Motion where they are available for purchase.
You will also need a recorder. Here is a picture of a basic Yamaha recorder.
I have bought them before at my local drug store, but they are available for purchase through Amazon.com. Click HERE to check it out on Amazon.
You will also need an outdoor music source like an iPad where you can download a few songs about the wind. Here are a couple of my favorites:
–”Windy” by The Association: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QiQgDzeJV2s
–”Candle in the Wind” by Elton John: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NoOhnrjdYOc
–”Blowin in the Wind” by Bob Dylan: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vWwgrjjIMXA
–”Ride Like the Wind” by Christopher Cross: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HNOn6enPC7U
Finally, you will need a chart of musical wind instruments. There are many online, but I like this one from this website: http://leadermusi.en.ec21.com/WoodWind_Instruments–1759170.html
The Activity
This activity is best for older preschoolers (Pre-K) and school-aged children. Younger children will have a difficult time getting sound out of the pitch tube. If you are trying this with a younger child, you will most likely have to spin the pitch tube for them to produce sound.
Go outside with your child and note what the air feels like around. Hopefully from time to time, you will feel a bit of wind that you can point out. Once outside, hand your child the pitch tube. Pitch tubes are an excellent example of how sound travels through space. As you spin the tube a various speeds and create various “winds,” different tones will come out of it depending on how fast you spin.
Play “wind” songs for your child with various tempos. The above list is a perfect variety for the activity. With each song, ask your child to spin the pitch tube with a corresponding tempo. Note the different sounds that come out of the windy pitch tube. Your child has now created sound using the wind!
It is impossible to talk about the subject of wind in music without mentioning the wind instruments. Show your child the chart above and explain that these are instruments that you blow wind through in order to produce a sound.
Now it is time to take out your recorder. Very simply, have your child blow “wind” though it. When they put their fingers over the holes, they are changing the wind, so the sound will change, too. It is a good example of how a wind instrument works, and now your child is aware of how wind and music go hand in hand.
I hope you have enjoyed today’s Top 10 music activity. For an archive of previous activities, click HERE. Please check back every Tuesday for more musical fun. Until then, play on!
