Composer Alma Deutscher, born 2005 Inspiring! This young composer creates a piece of music based on three notes pulled form a hat . Use this idea — words rather than notes — as a model for a writing project. British Composer, Alma Deutscher, (born 2005) is always, relaxed — charming. A child who puts other children at ease. This video from January, 2014, when Alma was eight, is many things, including, the perfect introduction to composing. The interviewer, often talking in Hebrew (this is from Israeli television), asks Alma to pull three notes from a hat and then improvise a piece based on those notes. The interviewer then talks with her about improvisation. It would be easy to construct a writing exercise inspired by this musical improvisation project. Write words on a card, put in a hat, and pick three (or if you are a teacher hand out the randomly chosen words to your class). Alma talk about harmony and some other features of her improvisation that are unique to music. But analogues for harmony can be found in the idea of themes, or sub-plots, that might interact with the words chosen in the drawing. After the improvisation Alma then plays a fun fast an furious piece inspired by a bees and appropriately called, “Bee,” written by a little known composer François Schubert (1808-1878). The interview ends with Alma playing for the first time the first part of her Piano Sonata No. 1 — a piece for piano and violin that I find unusually beautiful. More information: Alma Deutscher at the Wikipedia. Alma at YouTube. Alma Deutcher’s website. Please support her work by purchasing her album or downloading the music from iTunes. Search on Alma Deutscher.
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Interview and Internet links for author Kate Messner
This is a strong interview by Kate Messner for her book, Writing is Magic, or is it? Her message is simple and direct: writing is about revising. She talks about when she was a child thinking she could never write as well as her favorite authors, like Judy Blume. Then, she learned that it isn’t what you first put down on paper but rather what you end up with – and that she could! Young writers cannot hear the message too often! I’d play this video at least once ever couple months in your classroom. • Writing is about revising! • A work is done when you find yourself going in circles over minor corrections. Kate Messner’s Wake up Missing has been reviewed in Stone Soup Magazine. Internet links for Kate Messner Website Facebook Twitter Books by Kate Messner Hide and Seek All the Answers The Seventh Wish Rescue on the Oregon Trail (Ranger in Time #1) Capture the Flag
Madeleine L’Engle Talks about Letting the Book Write Itself
Author of “A Wrinkle in Time”. . Madeleine l’Engle. Many authors talk about the precision with which they plot out their books, taking pride in being in full control of the process. Other authors, Madeleine L’Engle included, acknowledge and even embrace a less conscious level of control. In this except from a longer talk by Madeleine L’Engle, she talks about writing as a mystical process in which she, the author has a relationship with her story that is rather mystical. She talks about the story as having a life of its own — with its own needs — and herself, the author, as a servant of the story. A practical way of helping students understand what Madeleine L’Engle is saying is that once you start writing you may find that the story you have created takes on a life of its own and that you need to follow where it (your imagination) is taking you even if this may not be the original direction you had planned out for your story. • Let your story tell itself. • Let your heart speak, too, don’t just write a story from your mind.
