Sound of the City: Books and Activities for Kids

Thinking of Chicago music always brings to mind our city's music legacies and some personal, happy memories of attending various jazz, blues and house music festivals downtown. When I picture "Chicago music," I also think of street musicians playing horns alongside a synthesizer or radio, and young adults with paint cans and drumsticks creating a wildly loud, peppy beat for drivers along the expressway. 

What images or melodies come to mind when you think about Chicago music?

Reading 

One of my favorite summer books to recommend about music is Make A Pretty Sound because Jenkins spent her formative years right here in Chicago. She was playful, engaging and fun, teaching not only children, but parents and professionals who work with kids how to "make pretty sounds" throughout her lifetime. She produced 62 albums and received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award so, if you don't know her music, today would be a great one to check it out.

How Sweet the Sound: In light of it being the 250th Anniversary of America's founding, I wanted to recommend this beautiful tribute to "a soundtrack for America," celebrating chants, drumbeats, hymns, blues, jazz, electric, soul, rap and many other sweet sounds of "American people surviving and thriving."

Nothing: This whimsical, colorful picture book features the pianist David Tutor performing an "extraordinary new composition by someone named John Cage." And extraordinary it is indeed, because it's philosophical and controversial. In fact, not a single note of music for 4 minutes and 33 seconds.

Brain-Building Activities 

• Make a DIY Jam Band with homemade instruments (put some dry beans or rice in a toilet paper roll and shake them up)! This can be a great way to spend time together as a family, neighbors and friends. You could try to cover your favorite songs or write your own! 
• Blow on some empty bottles of soda pop or juice to make a classic jug band. Try filling them up with water to various lengths to see how the sounds change.  
• Make a guitar out of cardboard. Raid the junk drawer in your house for some rubber bands, some thumb tacks, and something square like a box. Any size or thickness of bands will work, but more variety will lead to more sounds. Tighten or loosen the rubber bands and compare the sounds they make.
• Stretch balloons over empty cans and gather spoons, pencils or pom-poms to make drums. You and your child can customize the drums with markers or stickers!