Curious Parents Youth & The Arts Resources

youth & the arts

Dinner & a Show

There’s Sound All Around at the Baldwin School
By Katie Jillions & Juliet Piccone

Perfect pitch, intonation, laughter, and fun echo in the halls of the Baldwin School when Sound All Around is in town. Upon arrival, a learning environment surrounded us. The Baldwin School is amidst several other preparatory schools in Pennsylvania. While our tickets were being checked, we looked around at the many awards and trophies the Baldwin School displayed.

Every child loves music and Sound All Around presents a variety of shows that teach children about various types of instruments; we attended the percussion portion of the series. Each show teaches the audience about different instruments in the group and how to play them. Everyone gathered in a large room whose walls were lined with chairs and whose floor was covered in mats for children and parents to sit upon. Miss Misty told us stories while Suzanne accompanied her on the piano and Don played the percussion instruments. 

Misty involved the audience with several warm-up exercises, one of which involved dividing the audience into three sections and having them each say different phrases. Don was then introduced with his instruments. 

Don, a musician from the Philadelphia Orchestra, plays the timpani. He started us off by playing a piece called “The King” and asked the children what they thought the king was feeling in the song. The kids provided a variety of very intelligent answers, all of which were correct. 

“Music can say all kinds of things. Everyone interprets something that is different and that is their opinion,” he said.

Don then told everyone a story about his cat Kiki with the aid of the instruments. The kids were asked to sing along, and everyone in the room got into it. Misty had fun testing Don on his knowledge of notes, and even played the Itsy Bitsy Spider, which everyone sang. After everyone was sure that Don could play different percussion instruments, he provided sound effects as Misty told everyone a story about moving a mountain. The audience participated by “playing” the instruments in their seats. 

As a closing, Don played the Elephant’s Lament and everyone under three feet tall stood and acted like elephants. Water and pretzels were then served in the cafeteria and there were instruments provided for the children to try. Some of the instruments were the chimes, the triangle, and the tambourine.

Sound All Around is a great way to introduce young children to the world of music. Children of all ages were present and everyone enjoyed himself or herself. There are several shows in the Sound All Around series, covering different types of instruments. Be sure to see at least one of them!

Sound All Around plays at the Academy of Music in Philadelphia on Feb. 24, March 24, and April 28. It takes place at the Baldwin School on March 10, March 31, and April 21. For more information, call 215.893.3141 or visit philorch.org.

While On The Main Line...

Also head over to Suburban Square for a meal at Ruby’s Diner. This “blast-from-the-past” diner is open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner and is your classic 1950s diner. Decorated in red leather and stainless steel, you’re guaranteed to get the best burgers and desserts. There are train tracks hanging from the ceiling and classic Coca-Cola adds on the walls. The service is remarkable and the food is the same. There are healthy options for every meal, from salad, apples, or their classic “no trans-fat” fries. Be sure to steal away from healthy foods for dessert, however, and try their apple pie a la mode, which was possibly the best we’ve ever had!

Juliet Piccone is a Junior at Moorestown High School and Katie Jillions is a junior at Holy Cross High.