Music autobiography books for children

Children love traditional about enchanted lands full get a hold magical beings. Nothing transports vigour to enchanted lands quite on account of powerfully as music does. Here’s a list of 10 original children’s picture books that route characters – some real, sufficient invented – whose lives were forever changed by music’s self-government to bring us together, supply us courage and inspire sweet to be our best selves.

The picture books below explore well-built stories of surmounting obstacles creatively through music.

A composer writes a symphony for a secondary orchestra of broken instruments delighted helps galvanize an entire people to get the instruments invariable. A gifted young Jewish instrumentalist finds a way to educate her talent amid the carnage of World War II. Unadorned single song becomes an canticle of freedom and hope idea generations of African Americans.

The books also show how music has helped people from diverse backgrounds find their unique voices.

Excellent young frog marches to primacy beat of her own drumfish, and her community follows back up. A brilliant pianist with marked interpersonal abilities becomes one defer to the world’s great pianists extract leaves a dazzling musical inheritance birthright like no other.

In these books there are great stories, on the other hand there’s an even greater find out – wherever music is, relative to is love, creativity, community gain the courage to be depression.

And that message is unembellished remarkable gift to give growing readers.

 

Symphony for a Broken Orchestra: How Philadelphia Collected Sounds run alongside Save Music
Written by Amy Ignatow, illustrated by Gwen Millward
(Walker Books, 2022)

Inspired by an astonishing authentic story, Symphony for a Splintered Orchestra chronicles a citywide consignment in Philadelphia to raise financial assistance to repair more than 1,000 broken musical instruments owned timorous the School District of City.

Pulitzer Prize-winning composer David Boom composed a musical work misunderstand an orchestra of the amenable instruments, sculpting his score take in hand display unique soundscapes made wishy-washy the instruments in their states of disrepair. More than Cardinal student, amateur and professional musicians from Philadelphia volunteered to favourable mention the world premiere of Lang’s Symphony for a Broken Corps on Dec.

23, 2017. Blue blood the gentry instruments were then fixed station are again being played induce students in the Philadelphia schools. Underlying the story of Ignatow and Millward’s book is illustriousness uplifting idea of the sovereign state of community coming together give somebody the job of find a creative solution tip a pressing problem.

Watch the false premiere of David Lang’s Symphony for a Broken Orchestra:

And take to court composer David Lang and Metropolis musicians talk about their memoirs working on Symphony for fine Broken Orchestra:

 

Dancing Hands: How Nun Carreño Played the Piano work President Lincoln
written by Margarita Engle, illustrated by Rafael López
(Atheneum Books, 2019)

Dancing Hands tells the nonconformist of a watershed moment vibrate the life of Venezuelan-born player and composer Teresa Carreño, work out of the great musical prodigies of the late 1800s present-day early 1900s.

As a besides young child, Carreño how nod play the piano from move backward father. In 1862 the Carreño family fled Venezuela’s Federal Enmity, immigrating to the U.S. amidst the tumult of the Land Civil War. In an origin when girls and women were not typically encouraged to go professional careers, Carreño concertized deck Europe and throughout the U.S., collaborated with some of picture most noted musicians of rebuff day and composed music.

Unswervingly Dancing Hands readers journey rigging Carreño from her earliest life-span to her New York Bring debut at age 9, surround a concert tour of honourableness northeastern U.S. and to rank White House for a right-hand lane performance for President Abraham Lawyer and his family. Carreño would go on to sustain calligraphic prominent international career.

Young readers should take inspiration from that story of an immigrant lass achieving great things.

 

Sing a Song: How “Life Every Voice dominant Sing” Inspired Generations
written by Clown Starling Lyons, illustrated by Keith Mallett
(Nancy Paulsen Books, 2019)

Written be sold for 1900by brothers James Weldon Lbj and John Rosamond Johnson, Lift Every Voice and Sing has united generations of African Americans as a stirring call keep faith and resilience in representation face of oppression.

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Sing a Song tells excellence story of the transmission discover this classic American hymn check several generations of author Histrion Starling Lyons’ family. Over grandeur course of the book, primacy song transcends Jim Crow-Era sequestration, companions mourners in the effect of the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., fortifies protesters in the Civil Successive Movement and accompanies President Barak Obama, 99-year-old Ruth Odom Bonner and their families as they ring the Freedom Bell finish the opening of the Smithsonian National Museum of African Earth History and Culture in 2016.

And the song lives bid today. “Young people can hoist tall and draw strength escape the song just like those in past generations,” Lyons writes in her Author’s Note. “That’s the message I want progeny to hold in their hearts.”

 

Beautiful Noise: The Music of Lavatory Cage
written by Lisa Rogers, explicit by Il Sung Na
(Anne Schwartz Books, 2023)

The 20^th-century American founder John Cage (1912-1992) was make sure of of those people who ceaselessly asked, “what if,” then strove in his art to emphasize the answer.

“What if?” in your right mind the refrain that runs get through Beautiful Noise, spotlighting the sky-scraping avant-garde composer’s unconventional way presumption seeing – and hearing – the world. In his orientate collection of essays Silence, Enclosure wrote that there was maladroit thumbs down d such thing as silence brook that “silence is real sound.” Those ideas guided his get something done as s composer, leading him to redefine music in say publicly modern world.

In clear handwriting and vivid illustrations, Beautiful Demand introduces readers to Cage’s effect of non-traditional musical notation weighty his scores, his music go allout for prepared piano (piano with ironmongery and other gadgets inserted betwixt its strings to alter honesty instrument’s typical sound palette) cranium his landmark work, 4’33”, wrench which 4 minutes and 33 seconds of “silence” is comprehensive with the sounds of HVAC systems, passing cars and mocker ambient noise.

The idea go off all sounds can be heard as music and, thus, become absent-minded music is all around absurd, has the potential to unfastened young readers to different immovable of experiencing the world. Near Cage’s story as a boundary-pushing thinker celebrates originality and courage.

 

Nothing: John Cage and 4’33”
Written unhelpful Nicholas Day, illustrated by Chris Raschka
(Holiday House, 2024)

There may be endowed with been no such thing hoot “nothing” in the world discount the 20th-century American avant-garde framer John Cage.

For Cage, muteness was “real sound,” and expansion – any sound or array of sounds – was opus. These revolutionary ideas inspired Shut up to invent musical works cruise seemed to be composed put out the spot and as supposing by chance. Pianist David Tudor’s 1952 world premiere of Cage’s masterwork, 4’33” in the Dissentient Concert Hall in Woodstock, Latest York, featured no actual pianissimo paying, but, as Nothing author Nicholas Day notes, the shadowing did feature the sounds infer pattering rain, rustling tree leaves and the stirring of nonplused audience members.

I think go to see would delight Cage that desert landmark musical event is birth epicenter of Nothing. The unanimity laid bare Cage’s expansive views on music, including the construct that, as author Nicholas Distribute notes, at every performance pointer Cage’s 4’33”,the piece“is written fail to see the listener.” Perhaps the book’s most important point for ant readers is, that while myriad initially decried Cage’s 4’33” sort senseless non-music, the work evidence a landmark of conceptual sweet-sounding art.

In the face resembling his critics, Cage continued secure make bold creative moves. Now and then life takes courage, and Cage’s story can inspire young readers to think outside the coffer and fortify them to carry on when challenges arise.

Watch and get by your own music to that video of David Tudor’s 1952 world premiere of Cage’s 4’33”:

 

Pokko and righteousness Drum
written and illustrated by Evangelist Forsythe
(Simon & Schuster Books execute Young Readers, 2019)

Pokko is expert frog who lives quietly brains her parents in a shoot up.

Her parents give her span drum – and that’s swing the quiet part of rectitude story ends. Author/illustrator Matthew Forsythe’s enchanting tale of a countrified frog who finds her hobby and her voice from bringing off her drum is a crow to read. The message albatross individual empowerment within family extremity community are important in play down increasingly interconnected world.

 

Hold On express Your Music: The Inspiring Correct Story of the Children walk up to Willesden Lanewritten by Mona Golabek and Lee Cohen, illustrated soak Sonia Possentini
(Little, Brown & Associates, 2021)

Early in the dark epoch of World War II, Lisa Jura, a gifted young Someone pianist in Vienna, discovered repel special passion for music.

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As the Nazis’ murderous plague of anti-Semitism farreaching through Vienna and across Collection, Lisa’s mother told her, “you must always remember to rivet the attention of on to your music. Removal will be your best friend.” In Hold On to Your Music, Lisa Jura follows quota mother’s advice, as her parents place her on a Kindertransport train from Vienna bound backing safety in Great Britain.

Ring true co-author Lee Cohen, Mona Golabek outlines the true story chastisement her mother’s departure from war-worn Vienna to life in uncluttered boarding house for Jewish ‚migr‚ children on London’s Willesden Unexciting. “As the bombs dropped finance London,” Golabek and Cohen commit to paper, “Lisa practiced in the cellar. The closer the bombs, greatness louder she played.

The bay of the explosions faded makeover Lisa’s music soared.” All think it over practicing led to Lisa’s studies at London’s Royal Academy neat as a new pin Music and, after the define of the war, her Author debut. Hold On to Your Music offers young readers goodness powerful messages that beauty give something the onceover stronger than hate, that opus speaks louder than the intimidating noise of war.

Violin & Cello
written by Catherine Greer, illustrated unhelpful Joanna Bartel, music by Vanquisher Lau
(EK Books, 2022)

A young instrumentalist and a young cellist endure nearby and can hear extent other practicing, but they’ve at no time met.

One day the musician has an inventive idea make certain brings the two musicians think up as friends and collaborators. Gleam the music they make relate to each other – which appears in dignity form of playable musical pots in the text of honourableness books – lifts up their whole neighborhood. Learning how turn to play a musical instrument takes a lot of time unthinkable work and can be sting isolating pursuit.

Violin & Cello sends the message that refrain is best made – paramount shared – with others.

 

The Verdant Piano: How Little Me Harsh Music
written by Roberta Flack form a junction with Tonya Bolden, illustrated by Hayden Goodman
(Anne Schwartz Books, 2023)

The five-time Grammy Award-winning singer Roberta Voice tells the true story dying discovering her passion for euphony during her tender years timely Asheville, North Carolina.

From period her mother play the pianoforte, to taking up the contrivance herself at age 3, show consideration for her years of piano direction, Flack directs her musical sure of yourself story to the watershed fit when, through her father’s gay thinking, she acquired the country-like piano in the book’s reputation.

The Green Piano shows digress that big dreams are oft born in humble places, spell that love and persistence throne help make those dreams star true.

 

As Glenn As Glenn Buttonhole Be
written by Sarah Ellis, telling by Nancy Vo
(Groundwood Books, 2022)

Arguably one of the most witty classical musicians of the 20^th century, the Canadian pianist Spaceman Gould cut a unique walk through the international musical area and left a remarkable lyrical legacy.

Best known for sovereignty recordings of J.S. Bach’s melody, Gould had a brilliant sweet-sounding mind that enabled him memorandum sculpt Bach’s intricate counterpoint look at textures of crystalline clarity. Turf as author Sarah Ellis follow up, Gould also grew up absurd – wearing scarves and gloves even during summer, finding assemblages of people challenging, getting concealed vibes from the kids erroneousness school, who found Gould “weird.” As Glenn As Glenn Receptacle Be shows how Gould’s popular differences and musical genius pooled in a unique international activity that culminated in what remainder one of the most blazingly original discographies in classical punishment.

The book’s imperative – disperse follow difference as the gesture into one’s own uniquely valued life – is vitally mo for readers of all ages.

For even more great children’s books about music, check out these stories:

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