Lullaby Archives - Donna & Andy

My Hamster

Andy Duinker — Wed, 23 Apr 2025 23:35:13 +0000

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My Hamster

by Donna Rhodenizer

Audio Sample

Listen to melody + accompaniment for My Hamster as you follow along with the lyrics.

Part of a song collection

My Hamster is one of 12 songs from the award-winning song collection "Computer Cat". Donna Rhodenizer has written these songs in a variety of styles and skill levels for singers from ages 5-12+.

Learn more about this fun collection for elementary-aged kids, choirs and solo vocal students. The 93-page book provides the vocal score, full score and separate lyrics pages for 12 songs. Enjoy!

Please note: audio tracks for the e-book version are sold separately. Print copies of the book include CD (24 tracks)

Stream and purchase audio tracks

Stream or Purchase from many streaming sites including: Spotify, Apple Music, iTunes, Amazon, Pandora, Deezer.

The Computer Cat CD (Donna & Andy performance and instrumental) tracks (24) are available for download or physical CD on this website.

Teaching tips

Introducing the song

Starting a conversation with students about their pets is certain to result in many stories. If students do not have a pet, they can discuss an animal they would like to have as a pet.

The pet in this song is a hamster. Somehow the hamster has gone missing. The singer thinks the hamster has run away. Perhaps it is because he would prefer different food, or perhaps he thinks the owner is hogging the blankets when they are sleeping at night. Ask the students what reasons they think might have caused the hamster to leave his cage and subsequently go missing. Don’t rule out a hamster who is looking for adventure, long lost relatives or maybe, like our school hamster, he just wanted to go to the gym for a workout and then got lost before he could return!

Score study

My Hamster is written in 3/4 time. This may be a less familiar meter for younger singers. Include activities to explore 3/4 meter.

While the teacher taps the beat, have the students clap or say the rhythm duration syllables for the rhythm of the lyrics.
Switch and have the students tap the beat while the teacher says or claps the rhythm.
Sway to the beat, changing direction on beat one of every bar. Add a scarf to this motion to assist with a visual cue for the flow of 3-beat meter.
Have the students use a 3-beat conducting pattern as they listen to the music for My Hamster.

For students who are having a difficult time with the feeling of 3/4 time, ask permission to tap on their shoulder and then gently tap the beat as they sing the song. Tap beat one with a slight accent to assist with the recognition of three-beat groupings.

Harmony singing

My Hamster includes an alto harmony part.

Introduce the harmony part after the melody line is well internalized.

Teach the harmony line on its own.

Have the harmony part sung by a student who is more experienced and able to sing an independent line to create harmony with the melody.

When adding the harmony line to the melody, have the teacher provide support by singing the harmony line with the student while playing the melody on the piano.

If the student finds it difficult to sustain their part while another part is being played or sung, invite them to cup their hands behind their ears so they can hear their own voice more strongly. We call this “elephant ears”. It allows the sound of their own voice to be captured and sound stronger while still being able to hear the other part being sung.

Expressive singing

Use good breath energy and create long, legato phrases.

Use clear diction so the story can be understood.

Use dynamics to create musical interest and highlight the lyrics as part of your expressive performance.

19 cross-Curricular activities

19 Cross-curricular activities are provided in the PDF download extending the focus of this song to other subject areas including:

Fine arts: music, visual art, dance
Language arts
Math
Social studies
Technology

Colouring page

Download (pdf), print and have fun colouring this page while you listen to the song My Hamster.

Composer's Notes

The grade five class at our school had a hamster. One day they arrived to find the hamster cage empty. The morning announcements featured the grade five request for anyone seeing their hamster to return him, or let the class know he was okay. I decided to write them a song when I heard their beloved hamster was missing. I am pleased to report that after three days, the hamster was indeed found, alive and well. He was in a bin of basketballs in the gym, down two flights of stairs and at the opposite end of the school. No one knows how he got there, but we know he must have been in good shape after navigating all those stairs and hanging out in the gym for three days!

You are Invited

When you have enjoyed singing this song with your students - please drop by again and leave a Review on this page. Thanks!

Please send us your performance video - we might be able to post it on this page!

Send us your video of My Hamster and perhaps we can post it here.

The post My Hamster appeared first on Donna & Andy.

Listen Friends

Andy Duinker — Sat, 03 Aug 2024 15:52:34 +0000

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Listen Friends

by Donna Rhodenizer

Audio & Lyrics

Follow along with the lyrics as you listen to the accompaniment with melody guide for Listen Friends.

Teacher Tips

Introducing the Song

Ask the students if they have ever heard bells ringing in a nearby church or other location.

Bells were used to help tell the time for people who lived nearby. Churches and schools would ring their bells to let the people know that a church service was ready to start or classes were ready to begin.

Students can be encouraged to move their bodies to simulate the movement of a large bell ringing its message. It is a slow, swaying motion.

Students may know another song about the bells. The traditional song Frère Jacques/Are You Sleeping is about brother John needing to wake up because the morning bells are ringing.

Listen Friends is about bells ringing to signal the end of the day. Children will be in their beds, dreaming pleasant dreams.

Expressive singing

Listen Friends could easily be considered a lullaby. The gentle melody is accompanied by chords that mimic ringing bells.

Discuss how the song should be sung to portray the feeling of calm and quiet preceding the time when children are sleeping.

The English lyrics ”Ding dong ding” and the French lyrics “din, dan, don” represent the sound of ringing bells. Decide how you will use your diction to make the words sound like bells. Singers may want to gently accent the beginning consonant and let the end of the words be soft and gentle.

Simple Chord accompaniment

Handbells/handchimes

The accompaniment for the A sections of Listen Friends is written using two chords that alternate. Use handbells or handchimes to create the two chords: D-F#-A and A-C#-E-G.

Older students can discuss how these chords are built by adding intervals of a third above the base notes of the Tonic/do and dominant/so notes from the D major scale. Younger students can be assigned a bell to create the chords and simply be instructed to play when it is their turn (either group 1 or group 2). Ideally, if two octaves of the same chord can be generated, playing the lower octave and then the upper octave in each bar creates lovely movement.

Arrange students in four groups. D chord – lower and upper octave, and A chord – lower and upper octave.

Place the lower octaves together and the upper octaves together so hand signals can be used with no confusion as to which group is supposed to be playing.

Group handbell/handchime details are in the download.

Orff instruments

Using Orff instruments is also an option for creating an accompaniment. Keep a steady, open-fifth “bordun”. Metallophones and/or glockenspiels are preferred as they will have a lingering bell-like tone. Orff instrument scores are included in the download for this song.

The metallophone score is the suggested arrangement if there is only one octave of instruments playing with no alternating between lower and higher octaves. If the option exists to alternate between lower and higher octaves, use the metallophone/glockenspiel score.

It is expected that students will most likely learn the Orff accompaniment parts by rote or with teacher signals (similar to the handbells). The Orff scores are included as a reference and an aid for teachers.

Language Study

A French adaptation of this song provides the opportunity for a language study, or to use this song with young French immersion students. With the ABA form and lyrics that repeat in the A section, the lyric load is accessible for young singers learning a new language. The vocal score is provided with one verse in English and one verse in French, creating a longer performance piece with both languages represented.

Composer's Notes

Listen Friends

My first teaching job was at a school where there was a three-octave set of handbells. I fell in love with the sound and the versatility of handbells as a teaching tool in my elementary music classroom. I have used handbell arrangements with my older classes who are learning to read music, and they have used handbells to compose their own songs. Handbells also have facilitated the exploration of chord changes.

Listen Friends was written with handbells in mind. I have used this song as a performance piece with my youngest students (ages 5-6) organizing them into two chord groups and giving them visual cues for when to play. It is beautiful and impressive to see these young students sing and accompany themselves! The lyrics had to be simple (as they always are for my “littles”) and the melody was created to fit in the sweet spot of their developing vocal range. As often happened in my French immersion school, once the English students performed this song, the French students needed a turn, so French words were also created with the help of a French-teaching colleague. Simple songs can be beautiful, effective and a wonderful addition to concert performances. I think Listen Friends is one of those gems!

You Are Invited

When you have enjoyed singing this song with your students - please drop by again and leave a Review on this page. Thanks!

Please send us your performance video - we might be able to post it on this page!

Send us your video of Listen Friends and perhaps we can post it here.

The post Listen Friends appeared first on Donna & Andy.

Bedtime Tango

Andy Duinker — Sun, 04 Dec 2022 01:18:09 +0000

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Bedtime Tango

by Donna Rhodenizer

Audio & Lyrics

Follow along with the lyrics as you listen to the accompaniment with melody guide for Bedtime Tango!

Part of a Song Collection

Bedtime Tango is one of 12 songs from the Juno-nominated song collection "Dinosaurs, Dragons and Me" Donna Rhodenizer has written these songs using a variety of styles including a lullaby/tango, bluegrass, blues and pop in a variety of skill levels for singers from ages 5-12+.

Learn more about this fun collection for elementary-aged kids, choirs and solo vocal students. The 122-page book provides the vocal score, full score and separate lyrics pages for 12 songs. Enjoy!

Please note: audio tracks for the e-book version are sold separately. Print copies of the book include CD (24 tracks)

Dinosaurs, Dragons and Me print book (without CD) is also available on Amazon

Stream and purchase audio tracks

Stream or Purchase from many streaming sites including: Spotify, Apple Music, iTunes, Amazon, Pandora, Deezer.

The Dinosaurs, Dragons and Me CD (Donna & Andy performance and instrumental) tracks (24) are available for download or physical CD on this website.

Teaching tips

Introduce the song with a discussion.

Do you ever find it difficult to settle down when it is time to sleep?
Are there are any other things you do instead of going to bed?

What is a tango?
Find some examples of this fiery dance.

Use expressive singing to change the feel of the song when it is a lullaby vs. the feel of the song when the child is dancing, playing, or reading.

Use legato singing and a change in dynamics for the final “goodnights” of the song.

12 Cross-curricular Activities

12 Cross-curricular activities are provided in the PDF download extending the focus of this song to other subject areas including:

Fine arts: dance/movement, music, visual art
Language arts
Social studies
Science

Colouring Page - download

Download (pdf), print and have fun colouring this page while you listen to the song Bedtime Tango.

Composer's Notes

Bedtime Tango

I vividly remember when I started writing Bedtime Tango. I was on my way home from a three-day conference, having left my three small children at home with their dad. Three days of busy conference included a quiet hotel room for two nights, making it a real vacation for this composer/Mom! As I was driving home, I was thinking about the nighttime rituals that occur in a household of young children: one more story, one more drink of water, one more kiss goodnight.

My initial idea was to write a lullaby (how optimistic of me!) but as soon as I thought of the opening line, “when it is time for bed, and I don’t want to go” I had visions of my boys as they would find all sorts of things to stretch out the day and stall the inevitable destination of sleep. I knew that once I arrived home there would not be a moment of quiet to write down my ideas, so I pulled over to the side of the road to jot down lyrics and write the melody using solfege syllables (a handy tool when there is no manuscript paper at hand). I could take you to the exact spot where I parked the car to write down my ideas.

Later, I was able to work with those scribbled notes to complete the story. I had fun flipping back and forth between a lullaby and a tango as the backdrop for the lyrics of Bedtime Tango. I also let my adult self win the battle, as I ended the song by winding things down with a final “goodnight”. After all, eventually we do need to sleep, right?

In the recording studio, I wanted a “mother’s voice” but I didn’t want it to be my voice (in addition to the singing) so I conscripted my sister to read the lines “it’s bedtime, stop dancing.” She was a nervous wreck trying to make sure she nailed her three lines of “script” with just the right combination of stern reprimand and supportive parent. Making her task even more difficult was the fact that she really thought it would be more fun to continue dancing, reading and playing. She wasn’t sure she wanted to be put in the role of the authoritarian. We talked her through the process and we got the track recorded. I’m glad I asked her to contribute to this track!

You are invited

You are invited to send us your performance of Bedtime Tango. Maybe your video will be featured here on this page.
Please drop by again and leave a Review on this page. Thanks!

Included in this

12 Song Collection

Send us your video of Bedtime Tango and perhaps we can post it here.

The post Bedtime Tango appeared first on Donna & Andy.