Music Curriculum

Joseph Haydn, The Merry Little Peasant, is a simple, inspiring children s biography of the great musician Franz Joseph Haydn which will win its way into the hearts of all music-loving children. As a child, Franz Joseph Haydn was called "Little Sepperl." He used to sit on a stool near his father with two smooth pieces of wood held firmly in his hands, playing his own make-believe violin. His parents watched as the boy drew one piece of wood slowly across the other. He played very seriously and kept perfect time! One day he went to live with his cousin in a town near Vienna. He learned to read music and sing. Once when the drummer was too sick to march in a procession, little Franz Joseph was asked to take his place. He practiced all day on a barrel with a cloth tied over the top until he could play the part without a single mistake. Such were the musical beginnings of the boy who would play before kings and who penned some of the most beautiful music ever written. Recommended for boys and girls from 8 to 12 years of age."

The Handel at the Court of Kings Study Guide is packed with timelines, maps, character highlights and extra tidbits of information about the life of George Frederic Handel. Use this Study Guide to accompany the children s classic, Handel at the Court of Kings. This guide is written for children in grades K 6. With the information presented and its reading comprehension questions, it makes a perfect addition to any study of master composers."

With clarity, and admirable simplicity keyed to the understanding of children, Opal Wheeler has traced the many-sided career of George Frederic Handel, whose restless nature vied always with his tremendous ability as a composer and director. Handel s strange boyhood, clouded by the fact that his father did not want him to become a musician, and the later years when, thanks to the patronage of the Duke of Saxe-Weissenfels, his music was played before the greatest music lovers of Europe makes for fascinating reading. The selections of Handel s music included are those best understood and most apt to be mastered by young musicians. One evening, back in 1691, conservative Doctor Handel was shocked and dismayed to find his small son carrying the torch at the head of a band of singers wandering through the little town of Halle. The good doctor never quite understood the all-consuming love of music which drove his son from childhood on and on to the great heights he eventually attained as the beloved Father of the Oratorio, the composer of the magnificent MESSIAH. Opal Wheeler has given us here the most finished, most completely satisfying book on her list of fine music biographies. Handel at the Court of Kings should be a favorite of all children who love music, whether they are young musicians themselves or not."