Last week I wrote about some of the great books about music and musicians that the Buda Public Library has for adults. There are also many great picture books that would be great for everyone! Here are some of my favorites:
“When the Beat was Born: DJ Kool Herc and the creation of hip hop” by Laban Carrick Hill, illustrated by Theodore Taylor III is about how Clive Campbell (later DJ Kool Herc) had the idea to make the breaks in popular music longer for dancing, leading to the creation of hip hop.
“Ballet for Martha: Making Appalachian Spring” by Jan Greenburg and Sandra Jordan, illustrated by Brian Floca, tells the story of the first performance of the ballet “Appalachian Spring,” including Aaron Copland’s beautiful music based on the Shaker tune “Simple Gifts”, Martha Graham’s innovative choreography and Isamu Noguchi’s set design.
“Duke Ellington’s Nutcracker Suite” by Anna Harwell Celenza, illustrated by Don Tate tells the story of how the jazz version of Tchaikovsky’s music for the famous ballet came to be. Our copy of this book also comes with a recording of Duke Ellington’s version.
“Want to Be in a Band?” by Suzzy Roche and Giselle Potter follows a young girl as she forms a band with her two older sisters and describes some of the steps you must follow, such as practicing, getting gigs and dealing with stage fright! This semi-autobiographical story is loosely based on Roche’s experience of being in an indie-folk band with her sisters for thirty years.
Connect with music at the Buda Public Library!