Play-Along Playlist

Well, it's that time of year in the States. Personally, I love that if you turn around, you are presented with a pumpkin patch, hayrides, and pumpkin spice everything...not that I mind. I do love my pumpkin spice.

If you need some Halloween/Fall Play-Along Videos, especially if you are teaching on Halloween, please feel free to use these:

• Spooky Scary Skeletons in A Minor Boomwhacker Play-Along -

"Spooky Scary Skeletons" written by Andrew Gold in 1996 is a playful Halloween song about dancing skeletons, which became a more viral hit after The Living Tombstone’s remix in 2013 added an energetic beat. This remix became popular on social media platforms like Just Dance, YouTube, and TikTok, where people used it in Halloween videos, dances, and memes. Its catchy rhythm and fun lyrics make it perfect for a Halloween activity in music class for upper elementary and middle school, if you can use Halloween-themes activities.

• Five Little Pumpkins - Song/Embellished Story/Play-Along - 

  I researched Canva's AI tools and had it rewrite the song, Five Little Pumpkins, and turn it into a whimsical tale. It was amusing, to say the least. I had fun using Canva to illustrate and record that tale. Most of this video was produced in Canva, with the recording of the song done in Soundtrap, and the final edits to put the three videos together in Final Cut Pro.

  0:00-1:00 Song (I recorded myself singing it very lightly in the background)
  0:52-4:37 Whimsical Tale of Five Little Pumpkins
  4:37-end - Steady Beat or Boomwhacker Play-Along

• Halloween-Themed Inspired Play-Along with Live Instrumental Selections - 

  Taking five familiar live instrumental selections played often around Halloween time, this is a medley rhythm play-along intended for older elementary and middle school music classes. 

  Selections

  I chose snippets from the following five selections because I adore these pieces and they have a lot of musical concepts to offer:

  -Bach’s “Toccata and Fugue”
  -Dukas’s “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice”
  -Mussorgsky’s “A Night on Bald Mountain”
  -Grieg’s “In the Hall of the Mountain King” 
  -Saint-Saëns’s “Dance Macabre”

• October Body Percussion Play Along - 

  This body percussion play-along video compliments the rhythm play-along video so that you can choose which one is better for your students to perform. It does involve Halloween songs, so if that is not allowed, stay tuned for a pumpkin video later in October. This is a mashup (30-second audio clips) of The Addams Family by Vic Mizzy, Ghostbusters by Ray Parker Jr, The Munsters by Jack Marshall, Hedwig's Theme from Harry Potter by John Williams, Monster Mash by Bobby "Boris" Pickett and the Crypt Kickers, and Werewolf by Warren Zevon.

• October Rhythm Play-Along Mashup! - One of my most popular play-along videos, this is the rhythm version of the body percussion play-along. 

• Skin and Bones Play-Along for Vocal, Xylos, Percussion, BW, Recorders, Ukuleles, and Movement - 
  00:20 Vocals
  01:16 Bass Part
  02:29 Percussion Parts
  03:23 Boomwhacker Parts
  04:25 Recorder Parts (I usually teach the Chorus first before deep-diving into the verses)
  05:29 Ukulele
  06:31 Movement Activity (description)
  06:43 All parts combined

• Pass the Pumpkin Round and Round -  To breakdown the video so you can use it as a whole or teach it in parts:
  00:19 Melody
  01:28 Bass Line
  01:59 Percussion
  02:29 Steady Beat Game/Activity
  03:28 All of the parts together

• Autumn Medley Body Percussion/Movement Play-Along Video - A play-along video is one that focuses on movements and rhythms so that you can choose how to use them in your classroom. In the States, Autumn begins this week. I chose a medley of songs that include the months of September and October, and the seasonal weather that is associated with fall in certain parts of the world. This video does not mention Halloween or pumpkins, but more in the lines of leaves and the weather becoming colder. Medley Resources:
  “September” by Earth, Wind & Fire

  “Harvest Time” by Luke Bryan featuring The Bartaks  

  “Just Like Autumn” by The Tuesday Crew · Jordy Searcy · Carly Bannister 

  “Autumn Leaves” by Ed Sheeran  

Manipulatives

Many of the play-along videos have manipulatives that can be found on my Buy Me a Coffee Channel at https://buymeacoffee.com/elmusedtech

Hope these help for this season!