The festive cheer has well and truly taken over at Figurenotes HQ. We’ve been planning some Christmas Figurenotes activities for Drake Music Scotland musicians and thought we’d share the joy with you all. If you’re planning Christmas parties and events at your school or music setting then read on for some festive Figurenotes fun.
- Bauble Composition
- Christmas Cake Composition
- 3-chord Christmas songs
- Christmas Rhythm Game
- Christmas Corners
Bauble Composition
String up a garland, tree, or just some festive hooks (candy canes repurposed?)
Download this template for Figurenotes baubles or make your own. Inspired by Sorcha Pringle, we made some tactile ones using different textures for different notes. These work brilliantly for musicians with visual impairment.
Create a tune using the baubles
Play it!
You can also use these large print outs to pin the bauble on the Christmas Tree or hang them from Rudolph’s antlers.
Christmas Cake Composition
Get a traybake cake with icing that you can stick things to.
Source a selection of sweets or icing in Figurenotes colours (and shapes, if you’re feeling clever). Smarties, Skittles, Quality Streets – the list is endless.
Cut the traybake into bars. Stick your sweets to the top to create a tune.
Perform it before you eat it.
4-chord Christmas Songs
Take a look on the Figurenotes Accessible Music Hub for some Christmas bangers. Use Figurenotes guitars for the simplest way to play the chords. You can create a Figurenotes band in no time! Our suggestions are:
Rockin’ Around The Christmas Tree
Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer
Christmas Rhythm Game
Our rhythm canon is back with a festive twist. These rhythms are set over two bars and can be mixed up to create a fun game. A great introduction to syncopation.
Christmas Corners
I’m sure many of you played a version of this at school. There are lots of ways to make this musical and accessible.
Set out 4 corners/areas of the room and assign them to something. For example, a Christmas tune, a rhythm, a colour.
People must listen for the game leader to play a tune, a rhythm, a note, or whatever you’ve chosen. They then must get to the assigned corner/area as quickly as they can. This develops listening skills and focuses the ear so well.
To make this more accessible for people with limited movement or classrooms with limited space, you can use torches shone on a wall, for example. Call and response also works well, be it playing, clapping, or singing. Let your imagination run wild.