homeschool music lessons · music history · music lessons · video lessons

Brahms – Composer Biography for Kids (FREE Video + Worksheets)

Want to learn about German great composer, Johannes Brahms? Get started with this popsicle stick theater production for kids from the MakingMusicFun.net Music Academy. If you’d like to dive in even more, I’ve included a collection of resources below the video to help you create a fantastically fun and engaging unit for your kids or music classroom students.

✅  Get the FREE Meet Brahms Study Guide

Get more out of this FREE MakingMusicFun.net Music Academy video, Meet Brahms | Composer Biography for Kids, print the free study guide. It provides a series of questions that will keep your kids listening and learning all the way through.

Click the following link to print the worksheet:

Johannes Brahms Video Study Guide

🔵  More Brahms Composer Resources

The Hey Kids, Meet Brahms composer biography from MakingMusicFun.net is a printable version of the composer video. Your students will find it useful for completing the worksheets.

EXCERPT: Johannes Brahms was born in Hamburg, Germany on May 7, 1833. Johannes’ father, a town musician, gave him his first musical instruction. At the age of seven he studied piano with Otto Friedrich Willibald Cossel. Young Brahms gave concerts in Hamburg and worked playing piano in restaurants and theaters to help support his family. Read more on MakingMusicFun.net.

Want to give your kids a hands on music-making experience? Print the sheet music below and provide it to them or their music teacher. Don’t have a music teacher? Give the FREE piano lesson a try. All you need is a piano keyboard with full-sized keys!

Beginner/Easy Piano Sheet Music

Brahms’ Lullaby (Cradle Song) Easy Piano Sheet Music/Level 3
Lullaby and Goodnight Beginner Piano Sheet Music/Level 1
Waltz in Ab for Piano Solo by Johannes Brahms
Hungarian Dance No. 1 Easy Piano Sheet Music/Level 5
Hungarian Dance No. 5 Beginner Piano Sheet Music/Level 1
Hungarian Dance No. 5 Easy Piano Sheet Music/Level 5

Free Easy Piano Lesson for Kids

Brahms’ Lullaby | Easy Piano Lesson for Kids

Beginner/Easy Guitar Sheet Music

Hungarian Dance No. 5 by Johannes Brahms for Beginner Guitar Solo (Tab)
Hungarian Dance No. 5 by Johannes Brahms for Easy Guitar Solo (Tab)

Band and Orchestra Sheet Music

Brahms’ Lullaby FREE Easy Flute Sheet Music
Brahms’ Lullaby FREE Easy Clarinet Sheet Music
Brahms’ Lullaby FREE Easy Alto Saxophone Sheet Music
Brahms’ Lullaby FREE Easy Trumpet Sheet Music
Brahms’ Lullaby FREE Easy Violin Sheet Music

Brahms Worksheets and Board Game

Brahms | Crossword Puzzle
Brahms | Word Search Worksheet
Meet the Composer Job Application Worksheet
Brahms | Coloring Page
Beethoven at Bat™ | Music Composer Board Game

Homeschool Music Lesson Plans

Johannes Brahms | Homeschool Music Lesson Plans

Play the Meet Brahms Soundtrack

The Meet Brahms soundtrack features FREE and premium piano sheet music from MakingMusicFun.net. Click the links below to listen to and print the piano sheet music.

Brahms Lullaby | Easy/Level 3 Piano Sheet Music


Hungarian Dance No. 1 Easy Piano Sheet Music/Level 5

Hungarian Dance No. 5 | Easy Level 5 Piano Sheet Music

composer biographies & worksheets · music history · piano sheet music

Patriotic Music Sheet Music for Beginner and Easy Piano

Americans are proud of their United States and have lots of great songs to show this. Patriotic music has been written to make people feel proud and courageous from the times of the founding fathers in the 18th century to the present day. A sense of patriotism (love of ones country) is part and parcel of American history and culture. Patriotic hymns, national anthems, military and theatrical music are all ways to show deep love for the nation. Patriotic songs in the early days were sung by the British settlers and reflected their hopes and dreams. Some of these were re-written with new words to familiar tunes as the United States grew. Patriotic songs arose from the conflicts that made America independent and great.

The ‘Star Spangled Banner’

‘The Star Spangled Banner’ is sung in school assemblies, at sports events and gatherings of all sorts. It is part of who we are as Americans. In 1814, Francis Key wrote a poem inspired by the flag that hung triumphantly over Fort McHenry during the naval battle of Baltimore, known as the ‘Star Spangled Banner’. Like a number of other American songs the poem was set to a familiar tune called, the Anacreon Heaven, written by John Stafford Smith for a London based social music club for men. The song became the official song of the United States Navy in 1889, President Woodrow Wilson endorsed it in 1916, and in 1931 it officially became the American National Anthem, agreed by congress and signed by President Herbert Hoover. The song is symbolic of what it means to be an American. *Anacreon was a Greek poet who wrote short songs.

About the Composer of ‘Star Spangled Banner’

John Stafford Smith (1750 1721) was born in Gloucester, England. He was a composer, musicologist and organist. He had a firm grounding in music, he followed in his fathers footsteps as church organist. As a child he sang in the Gloucester Cathedral School choir. He was one of the first collectors of Johann Sebastian Bach manuscripts. He wrote the Anacreonic song which later became known as ‘The Star Spangled Banner’ the patriotic song we known as the American National Anthem.

Print Beginner Piano Sheet Music

Print ‘The Star Spangled Banner’
| Free Printable | Intermediate Piano Sheet Music

Lyrics for ‘Star Spangled Banner’

Oh, say can you see by the dawn’s early light
What so proudly we hailed at the twilight’s last gleaming?
Whose broad stripes and bright stars thru the perilous fight,
O’er the ramparts we watched were so gallantly streaming?
And the rocket’s red glare, the bombs bursting in air,
Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there.
Oh, say does that star-spangled banner yet wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave?

On the shore, dimly seen through the mists of the deep,
Where the foe’s haughty host in dread silence reposes,
What is that which the breeze, o’er the towering steep,
As it fitfully blows, half conceals, half discloses?
Now it catches the gleam of the morning’s first beam,
In full glory reflected now shines in the stream:
‘Tis the star-spangled banner! Oh long may it wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

And where is that band who so vauntingly swore
That the havoc of war and the battle’s confusion,
A home and a country should leave us no more!
Their blood has washed out their foul footsteps’ pollution.
No refuge could save the hireling and slave
From the terror of flight, or the gloom of the grave:
And the star-spangled banner in triumph doth wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

Oh! thus be it ever, when freemen shall stand
Between their loved home and the war’s desolation!
Blest with victory and peace, may the heav’n rescued land
Praise the Power that hath made and preserved us a nation.
Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just,
And this be our motto: “In God is our trust.”
And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

History for ‘Yankee Doodle’

‘Yankee Doodle’ is a song that has a long history, it is not known who wrote it. The tune to this popular song is thought to be very old, possibly medieval. A 15th century Dutch version with lyrics for a harvest song, form the basis to the modern song, including the word “dudel” which roughly translates as a simpleton. Macaroni is a reference to a 17th century wig and a dandy was a superficial, vain person, someone who was focussed on his appeareance and having a good time. A self made British Dandy was a middle class man who pretended he was from a higher class than he was, someone who put on airs and graces and impersonated the aristcracy. They tended to wear fancy silk and put feathers in their caps. There may be a number of underlying themes in this song.

About the Composer of ‘Yankee Doodle’

This tune is hard to pin down to a particular author. It is thought to have had several versions, possibly originating as a song written by the pre American revolution British to mock the American soldiers. It is likely that the current version was written by Edward Bangs in 1776.

Print Beginner Piano Sheet Music

‘Yankee Doodle’ Free Easy Piano Sheet Music

Lyrics for ‘Yankee Doodle’

Yankee Doodle went to town
Riding on a pony,
Stuck a feather in his cap
And called it macaroni.
Yankee Doodle, keep it up
Yankee Doodle dandy,
Mind the music and the step
And with the girls be handy.

Father and I went down to camp
Along with Captain Gooding,
And there we saw the men and boys
As thick as hasty pudding.
Yankee Doodle, keep it up
Yankee Doodle dandy,
Mind the music and the step
And with the girls be handy.

There was Captain Washington
Upon a slapping stallion,
Giving orders to his men
I guess there were a million.
Yankee Doodle, keep it up
Yankee Doodle dandy,
Mind the music and the step
And with the girls be handy.

Yankee Doodle went to town
Riding on a pony,
Stuck a feather in his cap
And called it macaroni.
Yankee Doodle, keep it up
Yankee Doodle dandy,
Mind the music and the step
And with the girls be handy.

Yankee Doodle, keep it up
Yankee Doodle dandy,
Mind the music and the step
And with the girls be handy.

Alternate Lyrics for ‘Yankee Doodle’

Yankee Doodle went to town
Riding on a pony,
Stuck a feather in his cap
And called it macaroni.

Yankee Doodle went to town
Riding on a pony,
He stuck his head in a beauty shop
And came out with a Toni.

Original Dutch Lyrics for ‘Yankee Doodle’

Yanker, didel, doodle down,
Diddle, dudel, lanther, 
Yanke viver, voover vown,
Botermilk und tanther.

‘We Love You America’ 

‘We Love You America’ is a simple American Patriotic song . It is an easy song to sing and play which is great for building confidence for beginner musicians.

About the Composer of ‘We Love You America’

Andrew Fling was born in West Chester, Pennsylvania in 1963. As a child he played clarinet and trumpet in the school band. He received his Bachelor of Music degree in Music Theory and Composition and K-12 music education certification at Arizona State University. He shares his love of music with kids through music lessons, general music and band in Christian and public schools, and through this website which he founded in 2007.

Print Beginner Piano Sheet Music

We Love You America (Fling) | Free Easy Piano Sheet Music 

Lyrics for ‘We Love You America’

We love you America,
Atlantic to Pacific.
We love you America,
We think you are terrific.

‘America the Beautiful’

Katherine Bates was inspired to write the words for this song in 1883 on a trip to teach summer school in Colorado Springs. She saw and wrote about white buildings at “White City”, the ” World Colombian Exposition” in Chicago, fields growing wheat in Kansas and scenery, including Pikes Peak. Pikes peak was the original name of the poem. It was first published in 1895 for the 4th of July.

About the Composer of ‘America the Beautiful’

America the Beautiful’ was set to music by Samual Ward (1848-1903), who was born in Newark, New Jersey. He studied music, wrote hymns, founded the Orpheus Club of Newark and was an organist at Grace Episcopal Church. ‘From Sea to Shining Sea’ is an American idiom referring to the land stretching between the Atlantic and the Pacific Ocean. A God given land whose beauty is written about in the poem ‘America’ by Katherine Bates, which inspired Samual Ward to set it to music. This became the patriotic song ‘America the Beautiful’. Strange but true, although they lived at the same time, they never actually met! Samual Ward died a year before the song became popular and ironically Katherine Bates did lived to see it.

Print Beginner Piano Sheet Music

‘America the Beautiful’ (Ward) |
| Free Printable | Easy Piano Sheet Music

Lyrics for ‘America the Beautiful’

O beautiful for spacious skies,
For amber waves of grain,
For purple mountain majesties
Above the fruited plain.
America! America!
God shed His grace on thee,
And crown thy good with brotherhood
From sea to shining sea.O beautiful for pilgrim feet
Whose stern impassion’d stress
A thoroughfare for freedom beat
Across the wilderness.
America! America!
God mend thine ev’ry flaw,
Confirm thy soul in self control,
Thy liberty in law.O beautiful for heroes prov’d
In liberating strife,
Who more than self their country lov’d
And mercy more than life.
America! America!
May God thy gold refine
Till all success be nobleness,
And ev’ry gain divine.O beautiful for patriot dream
That sees beyond the years,
Thine alabaster cities gleam,
Undimmed by human tears.
America! America!
God shed His grace on thee,
And crown thy good with brotherhood
From sea to shining sea.

‘Battle Hymn of the Republic’

‘Battle Hymn of the Republic’, also known as ‘Mine Eyes Have Seen the Glory’, is an American Civil War song written by American writer Julia Howe and set to the old song ‘John Brown’s Body’. The song was written during the American Civil war and sung as a Protestant Christian ‘Camp’ song. It has half a century of history written in a few words and is about the good spiritual morals of America.
It is a religious worship hymn, battle march and social activist chant rolled in one. It sounds like a spiritual, an echoe perhaps of its roots, the song Howe may have heard Unionist troops sing as they marched. A song about a man, John Brown who tried to start a slave rebellion, ‘John Brown’s Body’inspired her to write the lyrics which united the abolition of slavery with religeous righteousness. To this day it represents the moral view, be good and God will welcome you in heaven.

About the Composer of ‘Battle Hymn of the Republic’

William Steffe (1830-1890) was born in South Carolina. He is attributed with writing down the music for the song we know today as ‘Battle Hymn of the Republic’ in about 1856. It was a camp-meeting song which brought people together and lifted their spirits to God “Glory Hallelujah.” The tune became the Unionist marching song in the American Civil War. William Steffe was a South-Carolina born Philadelphia bookkeeper and insurance agent as well as a composer.

Print Beginner Piano Sheet Music

Battle Hymn of the Republic’ (Steffe) | Easy Piano Sheet Music 

Lyrics for ‘Battle Hymn of the Republic’

Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord;
He is trampling out the vintage where the grapes of wrath are stored;
He hath loosed the fateful lightning of His terrible swift sword;
His truth is marching on.

Glory! Glory! Hallelujah!
Glory! Glory! Hallelujah!
Glory! Glory! Hallelujah!
His truth is marching on.

I have seen Him in the watch-fires of a hundred circling camps;
They have builded Him an altar in the evening dews and damps;
I can read His righteous sentence by the dim and flaring lamps,
His day is marching on.

Glory! Glory! Hallelujah!
Glory! Glory! Hallelujah!
Glory! Glory! Hallelujah!
His truth is marching on.

I have read His fiery gospel writ in rows of burnished steel!
“As ye deal with my condemners, so with you My grace shall deal!
Let the Hero, born of woman, crush the serpent with his heel,”
Since God is marching on.

Glory! Glory! Hallelujah!
Glory! Glory! Hallelujah!
Glory! Glory! Hallelujah!
His truth is marching on.

He has sounded forth the trumpet that shall never call retreat;
He is sifting out the hearts of men before His judgment seat;
Oh, be swift, my soul, to answer Him; be jubilant, my feet!
Our God is marching on.

Glory! Glory! Hallelujah!
Glory! Glory! Hallelujah!
Glory! Glory! Hallelujah!
His truth is marching on.

In the beauty of the lilies Christ was born across the sea,
With a glory in His bosom that transfigures you and me;
As He died to make men holy, let us die to make men free!
While God is marching on.

Glory! Glory! Hallelujah!
Glory! Glory! Hallelujah!
Glory! Glory! Hallelujah!
His truth is marching on.

The Minstrel Boy’ (Moore)

Many Americans are proud of their Irish roots. ‘The Minstrel Boy‘ by Thomas Moore (1779-1852) is thought to have written this patriotic piece in memory of friends from Trinity College, Dublin, who fought in the 1798 Irish Rebellion. The ‘Minstrel Boy’ is a patriotic song set to the melody of ‘The Moreen’ which is an old Irish Air. It was a popular song sung by Irishmen during the American Civil War and continued to be sung in WWI. It is sung to this day, especially where there is a strong historical link to Irish-Americans. Many organisations with these links, such as police and firefighters sing it today.

About the Composer of ‘The Minstrel Boy’

Thomas Moore (1779-1852) was born in Ireland. He was a poet, singer, songwriter and entertainer. He acted in plays and enjoyed music and the performing arts. He wrote ‘The Minstrel Boy’ and also the well known song ‘Rose of Summer’. He was given the nickname of “Anacreon Moore” as he was required to burn Lord Byrons memoirs when he died. Thomas Moore considered becoming an actor, but in the end became a lawyer. Strange but true, Thomas Moore went to several different schools in Dublin and learned to speak with an English accent, he adopted it and spoke with an English accent for the rest of his life. He was friends with students who looked for French support to drum up a revolution against the British, they tried but failed. Thomas Moore is known for writing a collection of Irish Melodies as well as the patriotic song
‘The Minstrel Boy’ .

Print Beginner Piano Sheet Music

The Minstrel Boy’ (Moore) | Free Easy Piano Sheet Music

Lyrics for ‘The Minstrel Boy’

The minstrel boy to the war is gone
In the ranks of death you’ll find him
His father’s sword he has girded on
And his wild harp slung behind him
“Land of Song!” said the warrior bard
Tho’ all the world betrays thee
One sword, at least, thy rights shall guard
One faithful harp shall praise thee!

The Minstrel fell! But the foeman’s chain
Could not bring his proud soul under
The harp he wore ne’er spoke again
For he tore its chords asunder
And said “No chains shall sully thee
Thou soul of love and bravery!
Thy songs were made for the pure and free
They shall never sound in slavery!”

‘You’re A Grand Old Flag’

Your’e a Grand Old Flag‘ is sung at Scout meetings all around America. It is a tribute to the American Flag and contains references to a number of other patriotic songs. A popular version with slightly different words is the anthem for Melbourne Football club. George Cohen wrote this marching song for his stage musical ‘George Washington, Jr’ . The title is said to have arisen from meeting a Civil War veteran who held a folded flag which he referred to as “A grand old rag”, Cohen took this and coined the phrase ‘Your’e a Grand Old Flag’. The song was recorded with the original wording and the veteran is penned into the play. The song hit musical the heights in popularity and hit a record, becoming the first song from a musical ever sell over a million copies of sheet music!

About the composer:’You’re A Grand Old Flag’ (Cohen)

George Cohen(1878-1942) was born in Providence Rhode Island, but his birth certificate is said to have contained two mistakes, his date of birth and his mothers name! So sometimes things are not quite what they seem, his family say he was born on the American Patriotic day July 4th, Independance Day. Whether true or not, it is perhaps fitting for a man who would later composed the patriotic song as ‘You’re a Grand Old Flag’. He was an American composer, playwright, lyracist, actor, singer, dancer, in short a multitalented all round entertainer. His career began as part of a vaudeveille act ‘The Four Cohens’ which was a family performance group. He was a prolific composer. He wrote more than three dozen Bradway musicals and over 300 songs. He was an early member of ASCAP the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers. Because he did so much for American musical theatre, there is a famous statue of him in Tyne Square.

Print Beginner Piano Sheet Music

You’re A Grand Old Flag (Cohan) | Easy Piano Sheet Music

Lyrics for ‘You’re a Grand Old Flag’

There’s a feeling come a stealing
And it sets my brain a reeling,
When I’m list’ning to the music
Of a military band.
Any tune like “Yankee Doodle”
Simply sets me off my noodle,
It’s that patriotic something
That no one can understand.
“Way down South in the land of cotton,”
Melody untiring,
Ain’t that inspiring!
Hurrah! Hurrah!
We’ll join the jubilee,
And that’s going some
For the Yankees, by gum!
Red, White and Blue,
I am for you,
Honest you’re a grand old flag.

You’re a grand old flag,
You’re a high flying flag,
And forever in peace may you wave.
You’re the emblem of
The land I love,
The home of the free and the brave.
Ev’ry heart beats true
Under Red, White and Blue,
Where there’s never a boast or brag;
But should auld acquaintance be forgot,
Keep your eye on the grand old flag.

I’m a cranky hanky panky,
I’m a dead square honest Yankee,
And I’m mighty proud of that old flag
That flies for Uncle Sam.
Though I don’t believe in raving,
Ev’ry time I see it waving,
There’s a chill runs up my back
That makes me glad I’m what I am.
Here’s a land with a million soldiers,
That’s if we should need ’em,
We’ll fight for freedom!
Hurrah! Hurrah!
For ev’ry Yankee Tar
And old G. A. R.*
Ev’ry stripe, ev’ry star,
Red, White and Blue,
Hats off to you,
Honest, you’re a grand old flag.

You’re a grand old flag,
You’re a high flying flag,
And forever in peace may you wave.
You’re the emblem of
The land I love,
The home of the free and the brave.
Ev’ry heart beats true
Under Red, White and Blue,
Where there’s never a boast or brag;
But should auld acquaintance be forgot,
Keep your eye on the grand old flag.

‘When Johnny Comes Marching Home’

When Johnny Comes Marching Home ‘ was written by Patrick Gilmore an Irish-American, during the American Civil War. It was to become the theme tune for the 1942 musical of the same name. It was originally written under the pen name of Louis Lambert, a fashionable thing to do at that time. It is thought to be a song born from something heard and the circumstance of
Gilmore’s sister waiting for her sweetheart, a Unionist in that war.

About the Composer of ‘When Johnny Comes Marching Home’

Louis Lambert aka Patrick Gilmore(1829-1892) was born in Ballygar, County Galway, Ireland. He is known for his contributions to military music. At fifteen he played in an English band in Canada.He played in various bands and was a band leader, he played at President Buchanan’s inuaguration.
He founded his own band in 1858 and soon joined the war. He fought alongside General Burnside in North Carolina and was later put in charge of re-organizing military music, and given the title Band Master General. He organized Big Band extravaganzas and wrote the 22nd Regiment March. He set up what is now known as Maddison Square Gardens. He was a key figure in 19th century music. He founded the military music of today with his innovation of setting brass against reed instruments. In 1970 he was added to the Songwriters Hall of fame.

Print Beginner Piano Sheet Music

When Johnny Comes Marching Home | Easy Piano Sheet Music

‘When Johnny Comes Marching Home’ Lyrics

When Johnny comes marching home again,
Hurrah! Hurrah!
We’ll give him a hearty welcome then
Hurrah! Hurrah!
The men will cheer and the boys will shout
The ladies they will all turn out
And we’ll all feel gay when Johnny comes marching home.The old church bell will peal with joy
Hurrah! Hurrah!
To welcome home our darling boy,
Hurrah! Hurrah!
The village lads and lassies say
With roses they will strew the way,
And we’ll all feel gay when Johnny comes marching home.Get ready for the Jubilee,
Hurrah! Hurrah!
We’ll give the hero three times three,
Hurrah! Hurrah!
The laurel wreath is ready now
To place upon his loyal brow
And we’ll all feel gay when Johnny comes marching home.Let love and friendship on that day,
Hurrah, hurrah!
Their choicest pleasures then display,
Hurrah, hurrah!
And let each one perform some part,
To fill with joy the warrior’s heart,
And we’ll all feel gay when Johnny comes marching home

Patriotic Music Quiz

Q1 Who wrote the song ‘The Star Spangled Banner’?

A1 Francis Key wrote the song.

Q2 The ‘Battle Song of The Republic’ is also known as?

A2 ‘Mine Eyes Have Seen The Glory’

Q3 Patrick Gilmore aka Louis Lambert first set Brass instruments with?

A3 Reed instruments.

Q4 Why is there a statue of George Cohen in Tyne Square?

A4 Because he did so much for American musical theatre.

Q5 The word anacreon is associated with which two composers?

A5 Stafford and Moore.

Interested in playing a few of the greatest patriotic songs ever? This post includes a wonderful collection of beginner and easy piano sheet music and lyrics for the patriotic songs that inspire us.

__________________________________________________________

Browse Piano Sheet Music and Music Theory Posts:



Nursery Rhyme Piano Sheet Music for Children
More Nursery Rhyme Piano Sheet Music for Children
Famous Composers for Little Fingers
Free Easy Piano Sheet Music | Level 3
Free Easy Piano Sheet Music | Level 4

music history · music lessons · piano sheet music

Cobbler, Cobbler | Mother Goose Beginner Piano Sheet Music

The Cobbler, Cobbler is a traditional rhyme that tells the story of a cobbler who encountered an impatient customer. The song has been translated into several languages, and adapted to become the lyrics for a rock ‘n roll song.

Print Easy Piano Sheet Music

Cobbler, Cobbler | Beginner Piano Sheet Music 

cobbler-cobbler-piano

Lyrics for ‘Cobbler, Cobbler’

Cobbler, cobbler, mend my shoe.
Get it done by half past two.
Half past two is much too late!
Get it done by half past eight.
Stitch it up, and stitch it down,
And I’ll give you half a crown.

 

Alternate Version

Cobbler, cobbler, mend my shoe
Get it done by half past two.
Half past two is much too late,
Get it done by half past eight.

Cobbler, cobbler, mend my shoe
Get it done by half past two.
Stitch it up and stitch it down
And I’ll pay you a shiny crown

Cobbler, cobbler, mend my shoe
Get it done by half past two.
Half past two is much too late,
Get it done by half past eight.

Cobbler, cobbler, mend my shoe
Get it done by half past two.
Stitch it up and stitch it down
And I’ll pay you a shiny crown

__________________________________________________________________

Related Beginner and Easy Piano Sheet Music

Somewhere In My Memory (Home Alone) | Easy Piano Sheet Music
All Through The Night | Free Beginner Piano Sheet Music (PDF)
How Far I’ll Go (Moana Movie) | Easy Piano Sheet Music
This Is Me from Greatest Showman | Easy Piano Sheet Music (Digital)
The Piano Chords Fun Book | Chords and Arranging for Kids

cobbler-cobbler-mother-goose-piano

 

homeschool music lessons · music history · music lessons

Boil Them Cabbage Down (Bile That Cabbage Down | Easy Piano Sheet Music (PDF)

Boil Them Cabbage Down, also known as Bile ‘Em Cabbage Down, is a classic American folk song often played on a fiddle. According to Ralph Rinzler, the song can be traced back to an early English country dance titled, “Smiling Polly,” which was first printed in 1765.

Some historians say that the origins of Boil Them Cabbage Down can be traced back to when African slaves from Niger were brought to the southern United States. The song described as “a negro reel tune which has become universally popular among white square dance musicians.” This theory is supported by the fact that the tune is played with a fiddle, and that Nigerians used primitive instruments that resembled the fiddle, guitar, and banjo. The subject of Boil Them Cabbage Down is a hoecake, which is a thin, flat cake made from cornmeal and baked over a fire on the blade of a hoe.

Print Easy Piano Sheet Music

Boil Them Cabbage Down | Easy Piano Sheet Music

boil-them-cabbage-down-piano.png

Boil Them Cabbage Down (Bile Them Cabbage Down) Lyrics

Went up on the mountain,
And I give my horn a blow,
Thought I heard my true love say,
“Yonder comes my beau!”

Bile dat cabbage down,
Bake dat hoe-cake brown,
Craziest song I ever heard,
Bile dat cabbage down.

Took my gal to the blacksmith shop,
To have her mouth made small,
She turned around a time or two,
And swallowed shop and all.

Bile dat cabbage down,
Bake dat hoe-cake brown,
Craziest song I ever heard,
Bile dat cabbage down.

Possum in a ‘simmon tree,
Raccoon on the ground,
Raccoon says, “You son-of-a-gun,
Shake some ‘simmons down!”

Bile dat cabbage down,
Bake dat hoe-cake brown,
Craziest song I ever heard,
Bile dat cabbage down.

Someone stole my hunting dog,
Wish they’d bring him back,
He chased the big hogs through the fence,
And the little ones through the crack.

Bile dat cabbage down,
Bake dat hoe-cake brown,
Craziest song I ever heard,
Bile dat cabbage down.

Met a possum in the road,
Blind as he could be,
Jumped the fence and whipped my dog,
And bristled up at me.

Bile dat cabbage down,
Bake dat hoe-cake brown,
Craziest song I ever heard,
Bile dat cabbage down.

Once I had an old gray mule,
His name was Simon Slick,
He’d roll his eyes and back his ears,
And how that mule would kick!

Bile dat cabbage down,
Bake dat hoe-cake brown,
Craziest song I ever heard,
Bile dat cabbage down.

There’s gold up in them there hills,
I know it for the truth,
For my gal fell up there,
And lost her new front tooth.

Bile dat cabbage down,
Bake dat hoe-cake brown,
Craziest song I ever heard,
Bile dat cabbage down.

________________________________________________________________

music history

History of Music for Kids | Quick Reference Guides

The music of any culture is influenced by any and all aspects within that culture, including the social  experience, climate, visual art, and technology. The ideas expresses in music, the places where music is played or listened to, the support for composers, musicians, and the arts in general vary between countries and periods. Music history is typically the study of western art music from a chronological perspective.

The names for the musical periods have always been borrowed from art history, and tend follow similar goals. The dates for each period are only approximate, though they provide a helpful guide to studying music history.

Quick Reference Guides

Each of the following guides highlights the composers than influenced each period and the qualities of the music that defined the era.

Medieval (before 1450) –  Plainsong of the Roman Catholic Church flourished.  Forms of Sacred music forms developed during the late 13th century include the conductus, discant, and clausulae, motet.

Renaissance (1450 – 1600)  – The invention of printing enabled wide spread ditribution music scores.  International style gave way to highly diverse stylistic trends, including a trend toward simplicity in church music. Notable composers of the Baroque period include Josquin Desprez and Palestrina.

Baroque (1600 – 1750) – Instrumental music became prominant in the Baroque Period, and many important music forms were defined.  Notable composers of the Baroque period include Antonio Vivaldi, George Frideric Handel, and Johann Sebastian Bach.

Classical (1750 – 1820) – The music of the Classical period is characterized by a clearly defined melody with accompaniment.  Notable composers of the Classical period include Mozart, Haydn and early Beethoven.

Romantic (1815 to 1910) – In the Romantic period, music became much more expressive. Notable composers of the Romantic period include late Beethoven, Tchaikovsky, Wagner and Brahms.

Impressionism (1890-1940) – Lead by the French, the movement was founded as a reaction to the excesses of the Romantic period. Notable composers of the impressionistic period include Claude Debussy and Maurice Ravel.

Modern (1894-Present) – The 20th century is marked by a divergence into a variety of compositional trends and movements. Notable composers include George Gershwin, Aaron Copland, Arnold Schoenberg, Charles Ives and Igor Stravinsky.

_________________________________________________________________

 

history-of-music-kids

music history

Modern Period in Music: Quick Reference

The 20th century is marked by a divergence into a variety of compositional trends and movements. The Modern period began with music in a late Romantic in style, while at the same time the impressionist movement was taking form in France, with Claude Debussy as a prominent leader.  American composers were developing their own nationalistic style by the 1920’s with works by George Gershwin and Aaron Copland.  In Vienna, Arnold Schoenberg set as his goal to finally and completely breakdown tonal harmony, favoring a music that did not give weight to any particular musical tone.  The twelve tone row, an ordered series of all twelve notes of the chromatic scale, effectively accomplished this goal.  Also of importance is the neoclassical style of Igor Stravinsky, and minimalist music of composer Philip Glass.

Further Reading

Arnold Schoenberg – Wikipedia.org

Twelve-Tone Technique – Wikipedia.org

Claude Debussy – Wikipedia.org

George Gershwin – Wikipedia.org

Aaron Copland – Wikipedia.org

Igor Stravinsky – Wikipedia.org

Philip Glass – Wikipedia.org

_________________________________________________________________

music history

Impressionist Period: Quick Reference

The Impressionist period in music was a movement, primarily in France, that began in approximately 1890 and and ended its mainstream popularity in 1940.  The movement was founded as a reaction to the excesses of the Romantic period.

The most notable composers of the Romantic period include Claude Debussy and Maurice Ravel.

As is the visual art work of this same period, musical impressionism focused on creating an atmosphere rather than an emotional outpouring. The sounds of the impressionist works tends to be dissonance and include the whole tone scale and other uncommon scales. Impressionist composers also favored shorter musical forms such as the arabesque, nocturne, and prelude.

Further Reading

Impressionism, In Music – The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition.

ImpressionismEncarta Concise Encyclopedia. Microsoft Corporation.

_________________________________________________________________

music history

Romantic Period: Quick Reference

The Romantic period refers to a time in music history extending from about 1815 to 1910.  While the Romantic period does not have to do with romantic love, the passionate and expressive nature of romantic love served as the theme for many works composed during this period. The Romantic period follows the classical period, and preceeds the modernist period.

The most notable composers of the Romantic period include late Beethoven, Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Richard Wagner, and Johannes Brahms.

The Romantic movement believed that not all truths are not self-evident, that there were realities that could only be expressed through emotion and intuition. Romantic music sought to increase the expressive power of music to describe these deeper truths, while preserving the formal structures developed during the classical period.

_________________________________________________________________

music history

Baroque Music Period: Quick Reference Guide

Baroque period extends from approximately 1600 and 1750. This period began after the Renaissance and is followed by the Classical period. The term baroque means “misshapen pearl”, which began as a characterization of the “new” architecture. It was later was applied to the music as well.

The composers of the Baroque period include Antonio Vivaldi, George Frideric Handel, and Johann Sebastian Bach.

With the baroque period came the development of functional tonality. Its composers and performers also used more elaborate musical ornamentation, further developed of musical notation and new instrumental playing techniques, and established opera as a musical genre.

Further Reading

Baroque Music – Wikipedia.org

_________________________________________________________________

music history

The Classical Music Period: Quick Reference Guide

The term “classical music” is generally used as a term meaning music featuring instruments of the symphony orchestra and choir.  It is, however a period in musical history the lasted from 1750 to 1820.  The Classical period falls between the Baroque and the Romantic period.

The composers from this period are Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Ludwig van Beethoven, and Joseph Haydn.  Beethoven is also sometimes considered to be a romantic Period composer as his dates (December 16, 1770 –  March 26, 1827) and musical style bridge the transitional period.

The Classical period in music moved toward structural clarity, and away from the layered polyphonic style of the Baroque period.  The a melody became a predominated feature over harmony.

Further Reading

Classical Music – Wikipedia.org

Classical Composers Database – Classical music composers with biographies and works

______________________________________________________________