Recently I’ve heard from some of you who are trying many of these songs and ideas. It is great fun to hear your stories and envision your process! Let me encourage you again that there really is NO specific “right way” to incorporate singing into your home. What I’ve shared are just ideas that worked for us – and hopefully will give you complete freedom and a few tools that can be used to take your OWN journey. The steps and sequences shared here reflect a loose pattern of ideas more than a prescriptive or rigid equation. (We certainly didn’t follow them religiously!) Remember that the destination is NOT a particular product, but rather the sharing of fun interactions around vocal music with those you love.
Obviously, what constitutes a “family” in 2020 may range wildly – from a couple with young children to a single parent with older kids to a family including live-in grandparents. As I write this during the CV-19 pandemic I know personally of several temporary living “pods” and long-term family groups which have been created by our current circumstances – older parents living with several young adults, some of whom come with spouses and grand-kids as well. No matter where you are or who you live with at present, singing can be a source of creative joy, pulling you together during challenging seasons such as these. Don’t worry about getting it “right” as much as sampling and “tasting” these ideas, finding the ones that your family enjoys and then building your own menu of choices.
Hopefully you enjoyed singing Yonder Come Day – my 1st example in a progressive three-step process of learning to sing in parts. Siya Hambe is a familiar melody to many, with a bit more complex harmonic style. Whereas Yonder Come Day contains three fairly separate, uniquely shaped lines (easier for most singers to create with independence) the harmony parts in Siya Hambe parallel the shape of its melody in 3rds. A South African freedom song of hope, which we learned when we studied the continent of Africa, the Swahili is not difficult. The english verse (“We are marching in the light of God”) is a simple uplifting translation. In this recording TJ (age 6) sang the melody as Casey (age 10) and I harmonized.
It was such fun to immerse our kids in a plethora of new cultural ideas as we studied the unique aspects of Africa. Discovery and “hands-on” learning motivated them, so we created the flag of South Africa, cooked an authentic African soup recipe (which I remember included both peanut butter and tomatoes!) and read a chapter book about the life of an African child. We even crafted an African talking drum (out of two whipped topping containers) and learned about the communication of the Yoruba people, who use drumming to send messages to other villages. Siya Hambe was one more mode in which to experience this fascinating culture. It was also a great example of the way music played a powerful role in throwing off apartheid. This unifying song of hope illustrates the place of music in cultural movements.
Below you will find the pdf version of the music, followed by our recording.
Siya Hambe
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