Welcome to Music Podcast

Welcome to Episode 30 of the Welcome to Music Podcast!

In Part 1 of our Rounds & Partner Songs series, Susie explores some fun and accessible ways to introduce children to singing in parts. We begin with Fruity Samba, a lively two-part round written by Susie & Phil, before moving into the wonderful Charlie Chaplin, which can build into an exciting four-part round.

We then explore Make New Friends and Sing, Sing Together, two beautiful melodies that can be sung independently and as rounds before being combined as partner songs.

Finally, we travel to West Africa with Funga Alafia and Obwisana, exploring how these songs can be used individually and as rounds and brought together as partner songs.

Throughout the episode, Susie shares practical ideas for gradually moving children from confident unison singing into rounds and independent part-singing, while developing listening, concentration, pitch, harmony and ensemble skills.

Read the accompanying Episode 30 blog for teaching ideas, background information, colourful resources, music notation and activities to use with your children.

To view the blog notes for this episode, click here!

Thanks for joining us for Episode 29 of the Welcome to Music Podcast!

In this episode, Susie continues her chat with the incredibly creative and dedicated Bill Henry — known to many as Mr. Henry — a full-time elementary music educator based in the U.S. Bill shares how he balances his busy teaching schedule with a thriving creative life, rising at 4am each day to dedicate three solid hours to producing engaging music education content.

Using tools like Logic Pro and Final Cut Pro, Bill crafts fun and educational videos for his popular YouTube channel, Mr. Henry’s Music World, and talks us through some of his personal favorites. We also dive into his top-rated Music Podcast for Kids — a brilliant resource for classroom use or for when you have a substitute teacher — as well as his recorder, ukulele, and piano programs designed specifically for young learners. This episode is full of practical inspiration for music teachers everywhere!

To view the blog notes for this episode, click here!

Thanks for joining us for Episode 28 of the Welcome to Music Podcast!

In this episode, Susie chats with the incredibly creative and dedicated Bill Henry — known to many as Mr. Henry — a full-time elementary music educator based in the U.S. Bill shares how he balances his busy teaching schedule with a thriving creative life, rising at 4am each day to dedicate three solid hours to producing engaging music education content.

Using tools like Logic Pro and Final Cut Pro, Bill crafts fun and educational videos for his popular YouTube channel, Mr. Henry’s Music World, and talks us through some of his personal favorites. We also dive into his top-rated Music Podcast for Kids — a brilliant resource for classroom use or for when you have a substitute teacher — as well as his recorder, ukulele, and piano programs designed specifically for young learners. This episode is full of practical inspiration for music teachers everywhere!

To view the blog notes for this episode, click here!

Thanks for joining us for Episode 27 of the Welcome to Music Podcast! In this episode, Susie chats with Stacy Werner (Education Director for Musicplay Online MPO) and Carey-Lyn Gould (CEO of Themes & Variations Inc.) 

Join us for an inspiring conversation as Stacy and Carey-Lyn share their journey into MusicPlayOnline — the widely loved Canadian-American digital platform for elementary music educators — and how they stepped into leadership following the unexpected passing of founder Denise Gagne. They reflect on continuing Denise’s legacy, their commitment to music advocacy, the creation of the Denise Gagne Memorial Society Fund, and their vision for the future. You'll also hear about upcoming events, about MPO’s 10th Anniversary, and their favourite teaching resources.

Don’t miss this heartfelt and insightful episode and receive a one-month FREE subscription to MusicPlayOnline (instructions on the blog notes - link below)! 

To view the blog notes for this episode, click here!

Thanks for joining us for Episode 26 of the Welcome to Music Podcast! In this episode, Susie chats with Bryson Tarbet — passionate music educator, founder of That Music Teacher, and creator of the Elementary Music Summit in the USA. Bryson is dedicated to creating more accessible music classrooms, drawing on his own experience as a neurodiverse individual. Much of his work centres around supporting teachers through professional development and coaching, particularly in building systems that simplify lesson planning, unpack pedagogical concepts from repertoire, and bring more joy to both teaching and learning.

This inspiring conversation follows Bryson’s professional journey and how it led him to working full-time in his business. He shares practical strategies for making classrooms more inclusive — from offering noise-cancelling headphones and fidgets, to being mindful of environmental factors like fluorescent lighting. Bryson also highlights valuable resources including the Purposeful Pathways series by Beth Ann Hepburn and Roger Sams, a lesson plan template, and a free Music Without Barriers Guide for inclusive teaching. Plus, he gives us a sneak peek into the upcoming Elementary Music Summit — a five-day online professional learning event for music educators happening in mid-July.

And excitingly, Susie will be presenting a session at the Summit titled Sing It, Say It, Dance It, Play It — an Orff-based approach that integrates speech, song, story, body percussion, movement, and percussion instruments. More details coming soon!

You won’t want to miss this inspiring and insightful episode — it’s full of practical ideas you can use right away in your music classroom.
 
Go to welcometomusicpodcast.net/ to listen to the podcast and find a summary as part of the blog. You can also find the podcast on Apple Music, Spotify and the streaming services.

To view the blog notes for this episode, click here!