I'm John Gleadall - teaching for 40 years and finding that bespoke material that matches and challenges the ability profile of the children is a good way forward. 20 years in 'socially challenged' schools, 10 years in a more leafy area and 10 years in junior school - it's a good mix and has resulted in a wide variety of musical material for children.
I'm John Gleadall - teaching for 40 years and finding that bespoke material that matches and challenges the ability profile of the children is a good way forward. 20 years in 'socially challenged' schools, 10 years in a more leafy area and 10 years in junior school - it's a good mix and has resulted in a wide variety of musical material for children.
It's that time of year and here's an easy arrangement for a bizarre collection of instruments.(The ones available in my junior school!) It's in C - dead easy in the verse and something more challenging for the more advanced children in the middle eight. If you need any other instruments JUST GET IN TOUCH. There's a demo track and a backing track of just bass and drums.
It would be lovely to get some feedback if you download this arrangement.
kidzmusicals@icloud.com
Choral arrangement of I'll Think Of You - the children just LOVE this! Check out the video link - there are also tutorial videos on how to do the Epic Patty Cake Clapping,
It would be nice to get some feedback if you download this arrangement.
Irrestible contrapuntal melodies in this song about the 3 wise men travelling to Bethlehem complete with very easy harmonies - two tunes that are easily sung. There’s a middle eastern ethnic element to the ‘street beat’ rhythm. THIS REALLY WORKS AND THE CHILDREN LOVE IT!!!
I’ve rescored this with easy guitar chords.
The children can practice at home with the You Tube demo and the learning aids on my website.
Get in touch if you need help or more information, or wish to comment about the song.
I couldn't find a vocal score for this so I transcribed it from the movie. The kids just LOVE this - pretty tricky but a great concert piece. Get in touch if you want individual parts or MIDI file.
It’s that time of year again - cauliflowers are still fluffy but sometimes it’s nice to ring the changes. Here’s a different song written in four parts. Each year group sings their own verse and then they all sing the verses together - it’s a challenge but it works! Kidzmusicals@me.com
Here's a KS1/2 Harvest song in a country style. It is written to have a line dance in the middle of it - you could do 'The Funky Cowboy' as demonstrated in the video, or get the children to create a 'Harvesting Line Dance' with digging and reaping actions.
If you don't fancy the line dance, simply repeat a verse or write some lyrics of your own.
There is a vocal demo, a backing track, a score and a set of lyrics.
A song written for year two pupils looking at seeds, sun, water, light etc. The year two children came up with the vocabulary they have learned whilst learning about seeds and how they grow. Feel free to add your own verses or get the children to write their own lyrics. The melody is quite 'bendy' and will adapt to different length phrases. Please feedback any good ideas!
A song sung by the families of three soldiers in the Gallipoli campaign - you'll have to listen to the song and read the full description in the downloadable document if you're interested - it's too complicated to explain in this space! It's 100 years since the Gallipoli landings. If you'd like to perform the song you'll have to get in touch and tell me what key - this is a challenging sing! I've demo'd it in Bm - but the score and backing track here is in Gm. This song is from my musical 'The Canterville Ghost'.
There's a version on You Tube:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OE40AGRWPAE
kidzmusicals@icloud.com
A musical version of the classic Oscar Wilde story .
A junior school class go on a residential visit to a castle - a haunted castle…… Luckily they are able to sort the ghost’s problems whist learning about his various descendants through a series of 12 really good songs/dances written by the composer of ‘The Button Box’. just get in touch.
A wonderful new Christmas song by John Gleadall. A reworking of ‘Away in a Manger’ in a Gospel style with a great contrapuntal chorus with three melodies coming together to finish the song. This is a challenge - but totally worthwhile, the end result is superb! There is a short musical interlude in the middle, ready for an appropriate reading as a voice over. I’ve done this from year 3 to full church choirs. It’s my favourite composition!
You have the demo, the backing track and the lyrics and score in this package.
As a ‘home learning aid’ I’ve recorded the parts individually and put them on my website, also on You Tube - so you can send your choir home and ask them to learn part 1, 2 or three at home - there’s NEVER enough rehearsal time. Please let me know if this is helpful.
Also there’s a You Tube demo of the song
By the way you should obviously get your sweetest, dearest child to sing the ‘Away In A Manger’ solo at the top of the song!
This is from ‘The Nativity Play’ - also available on TES resources.
A new really good fun song for the Harvest festival written in a Gospel style. This song has proved very popular so I’ve added parts for different year groups. There are now parts for each year group. Check out the audio demo and backing track. If you like this song please comment.
Also please check out ‘Harvest Hoe Down’ which is in a country style complete with line dance! kidzmusicals@icloud.com
plus! REGGAE REGGAE HARVEST! See the You Tube link to this new song.
Here’s a school band arrangement created for the bizarre collection of instruments available at my junior school. The audio link provides a guide. If you want a midi file or other parts get in touch.
I notice that this arrangement has clocked up over 5000 downloads and not many ‘thank yous’ it would be great to get some feedback!
kidzmusicals@icloud.com Who you gonna call………
A simple band arrangement which makes “Twinkle Twinkle” swing. Each section of the band is featured. Check out the demo track - there is also an accompaniment track for those with no bass and drums. If you need more parts or a midi file to drop into Sib. just get in touch kidzmusicals@icloud.com
A ‘Gospelled Up’ version of this song with a new four part bridge section which is totally mesmerising when you get the four year groups singing a part each.
Totally doable and totally good fun - plus you get the whole school doing contrapuntal part singing!!!! The sound on the chorus is amazing when you get the handclaps going……:
John Gleadall
kidzmusicals@icloud.com
A practical project to make a note finder (great Home learning task!). Just follow the instructions on part one (note that you really need to use a craft knife to make this successfully) and then cut out part two and insert into part 1 - slide the notes onto the line or space you want to identify, then just read off the pitches (on treble or bass clef) through the small windows. Part 2 is best on thin card. Once made, use the note finder to solve the musicals code story worksheet. musicals4all.com/contact/
Please leave feedback if you download.
John Gleadall
A light hearted tongue twisting Inn Keepers song telling Mary and Joseph that they are booked solid - it’s Christmas for goodness sake! Alternative piano parts and vocal score now included in 4/4 and 6/8 time - it swings a lot! Piano part is quite complex - I can compose for piano but scoring is a whole different skill! Get in touch if you need more.
Full demo here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1aY9FtXgQR0
Contact me at musicals4kidz@icloud.com
John Gleadall
YOU DIDN’T BOOK IT IN ADVANCE
AND NOW YOU HAVEN’T GOT A CHANCE
AND WE’VE GOT NO ROOM TODAY
YOU WOULD HAVE BEEN MUCH WISER
IF YOU LOOKED ON TRIP ADVISER
’COS WE’VE GOT NO ROOM TODAY
YOUR CHANCES ARE QUITE SLIM
’COS WE’RE FULL UP TO THE BRIM
SO YOU’D BETTER KEEP ON LOOKING
’COS WE’VE TAKEN EVERY BOOKING
YOU’VE REALLY GOT A MISSION
TAKE A LOOK AT HER CONDITION
AND WE’VE GOT NO ROOM TODAY!
YOU MUST BE OFF YOUR ROCKER
’COS WE’RE ABSOLUTELY CHOCKER
AND WE’VE GOT NO ROOM TODAY
YOU MIGHT THINK THAT IT’S SENSELESS
IT’S BECAUSE OF CAESAR’S CENSUS
BUT WE’VE GOT NO ROOM TODAY
YOU REALLY SHOULD BE GOING
CAUSE WE’RE FULL TO OVERFLOWING
NOW WE’RE ABSOLUTELY CRAMMED
EVERY ROOM IS SIMPLY JAMMED
AND YOU REALLY OUGHT TO KNOW
THAT WE’VE BEEN SLEEPING HEAD TO TOE
AND WE’VE GOT NO ROOM TODAY!
ARE YOU REALLY OFF YOUR HEAD,
WE’RE PUTTING SEVEN IN A BED
AND WE’VE GOT NO ROOM TODAY
NOW YOU’LL HAVE TO STAY OUTSIDE
BECAUSE WE’RE FULLY OCCUPIED
AND WE’VE GOT NO ROOM TODAY
YOU REALLY SHOULD REMEMBER
THIS IS BETHL’HEM IN DECEMBER
JUST CROSS US OF THE LIST COS
IT’S THIS BUSY EVERY CHRISTMAS
IF YOU REALLY WANT THE TRUTH
WE’RE EVEN SLEEPING ON THE ROOF
AND WE’VE GOT NO ROOM TODAY –
I REALLY MEAN IT
GOT NO ROOM TODAY!
This is simple to sing - yet extremely effective. This works from year 2 up to adult. It's a simple three part song with three melodies that all work together and finishes on a great three part chord - harmony by stealth!
It makes a great start to any Christmas Concert - it just works.
The Lyrics are:
1 Time is back again welcome back again
Though it's been a year
Since the music played seasons come and fade
Now we're singing here - Christmas
2 Time is near
The music's here - Christmas
3 Time is near, it's a year, we've been here
Sing our song, it's so long. now we're here - Christmas
And that's it! Your singers/class/choir/whole school will learn it in ten minutes. Get them to go to the youtube link and learn it at home.
Get in touch if you have any questions or requests.
musicals4kidz.com
A different kind of Christmas song from John Gleadall. It takes some effort to get this right, but I promise you it totally works; the children want to sing it and play it. It’s a one finger ukulele song and a quirky arrangement with exchanges between boys and girls. I’ve been told it’s not ‘normal’ enough for juniors but I do it every year with year 3 and they just love it. Listen to the demo - you’ll smile. kidzmusicals@icloud.com
A song written as a songwriting project with year 5 children. Every child in year five wrote a couple of lines using a vocabulary and ideas bank we created through discussion. Then every child sang their own (or somebody else’s ) short phrase. I edited and glued it all together with accompaniment. This is now an assembly song - I think it’s lovely! The demo is sung by the children who wrote it. Get in touch with me, John Gleadall, if you would like the backing track or have any queries: kidzmusicals@icloud.com
A collection of songs from the writings of Lewis Carroll - I’ve set all of the ‘Alice’ poems to music in a suitably bizarre way - so let me know if you need one that’s not featured here.
These resources would be an excellent part of any work or presentation featuring the "Alice in Wonderland’ or ‘Through The Looking Glass’ stories.