in response to my Barney induced cringe Fred asked:
>Excuse me Charlie but what's wrong with the song??
>
>Fred
Welllll, as I said previously I'm the mother of two young children & I'm
afraid I've hit overload with dear ol' Barney. Even here in Australia, the
purple one is extremely popular with the kids!
The actual sentiments of the song are quite good & the tune itself is that
old nursery rhyme "This old man". My problem stems from the fact that I
only have to hear the opening strains of this particular version & images of
big purple dinosaurs & 'TV cute' kids come rushing to mind.
There are probably millions of kids (and some adults) who adore every bit of
Barney they can get & it's wonderful that this song can serve as an
introduction to music appreciation for the young.
My two girls like to 'play' the harp & we sit down & try to work out the
tunes for some of the more basic rhymes etc. My 3yr olds favourite though
is still 'Twinkle Twinkle Little Star' (an oldy but a goody).
My eldest recently announced that she has decided to save up and buy a harp
of her own (a 26 string celtic lap harp is what she's set her goal for)...at
least that what she says this week! Last week she wanted to buy a 'Wizard of
Oz' inspired Barbie!
But one way or another I believe that allowing kids the oppourtunity to
experience & make music of their own is worth...adding a few extra dollars
to the 'piggy bank' every now & then & maybe even worth listening to the
Barney song (occasionally!!!) too.
Does anyone know of a good beginners harp book with nursery rhymes/kids
tunes in it, hopefully available in Australia or at least via mail order?
Keep on harping!
Charlie Sweeney.