Welcome to anyone who has a children’s or family-friendly song to share ~ and those who simply wish to listen, of course! This is fun for all ages, with a focus on child-centered, family-friendly songs. Facilitated by Bonnie Lockhart and Nancy Schimmel, this song swap features regional members of the Children’s Music Network as well as anyone with a children’s song to share. Perhaps you will learn a new favorite or teach one to someone else!
The Children’s Music Network is a national nonprofit that celebrates the positive power of music in the lives of children by sharing songs, exchanging ideas, and creating community. Membership includes full-time and part-time performers, songwriters, classroom teachers, music educators, librarians, storytellers, record producers, distributors, broadcasters, parents, grandparents, and children. We sing, share, teach, write, play, perform, produce and enjoy children’s music.
Bonnie Lockhart is an Oakland-based singer, songwriter, and educator. Welcoming all to participate in music making, Bonnie inspires teachers, youngsters and parents to collaborate in singing games, rhythm bands, lyric improvisation, and story-telling songs. With a repertoire rich in cultural diversity, Bonnie entertains while nurturing the seeds of children’s self-esteem. For more about Bonnie, her programs and CDs, visit her website:
http://bonnielockhart.com
Nancy Schimmel was raised in a storytelling family. Her father was a fine autobiographical storyteller who regaled visitors with stories of his time on a sailing ship that was pressed into service to carry freight during the first World War. Her mother, singer/songwriter Malvina Reynolds, introduced her songs by telling the stories behind them. Nancy started performing as a summer camp counselor in her teens, did further work with children as a librarian, and began telling stories to mixed-age audiences at Renaissance Faires and art fairs in the San Francisco Bay Area in the early ’70s. Nancy can be found online at Sister’s Choice, “a small company creating books and recordings of storytelling and songs for children and adults”. Like other members of the Children’s Music Network, Sister’s Choice “recognizes children’s music as a powerful means of encouraging cooperation … celebrating diversity … building self-esteem … promoting respect and responsibility for our environment … and cultivating an understanding of nonviolence and social justice.”
http://www.sisterschoice.com