Ravel’s “Boléro” is easy to listen to, with the repeated melody revealing very interesting and contrasting colours. It is a continuous build up of sound, with the brilliant orchestration by Ravel showing both the colours of individual and different combinations of instruments. The narration describes the piece as it goes along, both the mood of the music and the instruments that are playing.
Aaron Copland’s “Fanfare for the Common Man” is short but very effective, and is a good representation of the brass instruments. This fanfare can easily be exchanged for another one should the artistic director of an orchestra find another more fitting.
The beginning of Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony is included for good measure as well as humour, and is played while the mouse goes on a hunt for something edible backstage. For playschool concerts a 40 second version is played, for a family concert the whole of the first movement is played, without repeat.
The encore is one of the most popular Icelandic songs, “A Sprengisandi” by Sigvaldi Kaldalóns. Often sung by Icelandic children and others of all ages, it is the most popular encore of the Iceland Symphony Orchestra, a galloping “tour de force” arranged colourfully by a former player and conductor of the ISO, Páll Pampichler Pálsson.
Maxi’s Song was written by the author, Hallfríður Ólafsdóttir. It is already very popular with young children at playschool, who have thoroughly enjoyed singing along with the full orchestra. The playschools prepared for the event by downloading the tune, music and text from the ISO’s website.
Here is an example of the music and lyrics