.com Review
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"The STRINGS all soar, the REEDS implore, / The BRASSES
roar with notes galore. / It's music that we all adore. / It's
what we go to concerts for." In this exuberant tribute to
classical music and the passionate, eccentric musicians who play
it, author Lloyd Moss begins with the mournful moan and silken
tone of one trom. A trumpet sings and stings along, forming a
duo, then a fine French horn joins in, "TWO, now THREE-O, what a
TRIO!" The mellow cello ups it to a quartet, then ZIN! ZIN! ZIN!
a violin soars high and moves in to make a quintet. The flute
that "sends our soul a-shiver" makes a sextet, and "with steely
keys that softly click," a sleek, black, woody clarinet slips the
group into a septet. We move on! A chamber group of ten! And the
orchestra is ready to begin. Moss should be congratulated for
creating a playful, musical stream of rhyming couplets that
seamlessly, slyly teaches the names of myriad musical groups.
Marjorie Priceman, the whimsical, masterful illustrator of Elsa
Okon Rael's When Zaydeh Danced on Eldridge Street (
/exec/obidos/ASIN/0689804512/${0} ) and Jack Prelutsky's For
Laughing Out Loud ( /exec/obidos/ASIN/0394821440/${0} ), won a
Caldecott Honor Award for this swirling, twirling, colorful
musical world worthy of thunderous applause and a standing
ovation. (Ages 4 to 8) --Karin Snelson
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From Publishers Weekly
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This debut book by author Moss, as kids today would say is
boss. Its clever, jazzy verse presents (In language that is never
dense) a helpful intro to each orchestra instrument-how some are
alike but rather more are different. He starts with the
trom's "mournful moan," playing solo (i.e., alone); then adds
a trumpet, French horn and cello-all sounding forth a signature
"hello." Each musical portrait (in quatrains) abounds with
perfectly chosen, alliterative sounds. Thus the flute, notes
Moss, "sends our soul a-shiver; flute, that slender silver
sliver." And Priceman's zany art's just right, with loose-limbed
figures taking flight around each spread in garb bizarre, if
proving how funky musicians are.With every new instrument joining
the throng of diligent players practicing song, Moss incorporates
numbers and stops only when his team finally reaches a "chamber
group of ten." So the book can be used as a counting tool (A
great way to perk up a dull day at school): but it really works
best, it's easy to see, as a deft means of meeting the symphony.
So a plentiful praise to this finely matched pair, whose pictures
and words show unusual flair.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed
Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
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From School Library Journal
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Kindergarten-Grade 5?Layout, design, illustrations, and
descriptive verses blend in perfect harmony to give voice to the
unique sounds of 10 orchestral instruments. Readers meet the
"Fine FRENCH HORN, its valves all oiled/Bright and brassy, loops
all coiled," and the "FLUTE that sends our soul a-shiver;/ FLUTE,
that slender, silver sliver." One by one as the numbers progress
from ONE TROM playing SOLO all the way up to "A CHAMBER GROUP
of TEN," the excitement, motion, and sounds increase. Priceman's
amusing watercolors present an inspired assortment of characters
who pose, prance, and float across the page and stage, their
seeming wildness giving form to each instrument's function, as
their exaggerated features and elongated limbs give them a
sophisticated wit and elegant air. The rich, swirling background
colors change with each double-page spread. As the numbers of
players grow, the proscenium and curtain become more and more of
a presence until viewers find themselves facing the concert
group, and then onstage behind the musicians, who are facing the
audience, taking a bow. A delight for music classes as well as a
great introduction to the concert hall, this title will surely be
met with applause.?Jane Marino, sdale Public Library, NY
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.
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From Booklist ( /gp/feature.html/?docId=1000027801 )
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Ages 6^-8. In a fine preemptive strike, this zesty
introduction to the orchestra could open young minds to the
pleasures of classical music. Graceful rhyming couplets present
10 instruments and their characteristics: "With mournful moan and
silken tone, / Itself alone comes ONE TROM. / Gliding,
sliding, high notes go low; / ONE TROM is playing SOLO." Next
the trumpet joins the trom to make a duo, and then a French
horn makes it a trio. In the process of adding instruments, the
book teaches the names of musical groups up to a chamber group of
10 as well as the categories into which the instruments fall:
strings, reeds, and brasses. Amazingly, Moss conveys this
encyclopedic information while keeping the poem streamlined and
peppy. Priceman's sprightly, sunny hued gouache paintings should
take a bow, too. The symphony she portrays is hardly stiff: her
musicians are characters--eccentric nonconformists who obviously
love the music they are making. Superb in both concept and
execution, this title is a sound addition to any collection.
Julie Yates Walton
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Review
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"A delight...this title will surely be met with applause."
-- "School Library Journal, " starred review
A Caldecott Honor Book
An American Library Association Notable Children's Book
A "School Library Journal" Best Book
A "New York Times" Best Illustrated Book
"A book from which music issues forth as clearly as from any
music box."
-- "New York Times Book Review"
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About the Author
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Lloyd Moss, the classical music guru of WQXR, has a long
list of TV and film appearances and voice-overs to his credit. He
lives in Croton-on-Hudson, New York.
Marjorie Priceman, illustrator of many accled picture books,
has won Caldecott Honors for her illustrations in Zin! Zin! Zin!
A Violin! by Lloyd Moss and Hot Air: The (Mostly) True Story of
the Frist Hot-Air Balloon Ride, which she also wrote. She lives
in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania.
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