Please let me know if you have ideas to add! *Items are available to borrow from Mrs. Peterson. Disclosure: Some of these product links are affiliate links, which means we may receive a small commission, at no extra cost to you, for purchases made through these links. 
Books
- The ABCs of My Feelings and Music (2021), by Scott & Stephanie Edgar (ages 5-7)
- Who Was… series; grades 2-5. Musical titles include:
- Who Was Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart?*
- What Is Rock and Roll?
- Who Was Musician’s Pack (includes 5 titles)
- Who Was Louis Armstrong?*
- Who Were The Beatles?
- Who Is Bob Dylan?
- Who Is Elton John?
- Who Is Stevie Wonder?
- Where is Broadway?
- Who Was Elvis Presley?
- Who Are the Rolling Stones?
- Who Was Michael Jackson?
- Who Is Bruce Springsteen?
- Who Is Aretha Franklin?
- Who Is Bono?
- What Was Woodstock?
- Who Was Bob Marley?
- Who Was Selena?
- Who Was Pete Seeger?
- Who Is Dolly Parton?
- The Classic FM Family Music Box: Hear iconic music from the great composers
- My First Classical Music Book/accompanying 69-minute CD, by Helsby & Chapman: Ages 5-7; Meet composers and hear their music, learn about and listen to instruments in classical works, enjoy musical stories, and more.
- Ada’s Violin: The Story of the Recycled Orchestra of Paraguay Hardcover, by Hood; Ages 4-8. Landfillharmonic documentary (see DVDs) retold for children; When Sr. Chavez began to teach music and recycle trash into instruments for children, lives changed and The Recycled Orchestra was born. A true story, retold for children, with historical notes.
- The Noisy Paint Box, by Barb Rosenstock: Grades K-2; The Colors and Sounds of Kandinsky’s Abstract Art
- The Music in Geroge’s Head*: K-Gr.4; George Gershwin creates Rhapsody in Blue
- Fun with Roman Numerals, by David Adler*: Age 6-9; A straightforward and appealing introduction to a timeless topic
- My First Orchestra Book/accompanying CD, by Helsby: Ages 6-12; Meet every instrument of the orchestra, with audio examples and classical works.
- My First Piano Book/2 CDs, by Helsby & Chapman; Grade 2-3; Part 1: Why is the Piano So Special? How the piano works and sounds. 23 music tracks including: Bach – Prelude in C; Mozart – Piano Concerto No. 21; Joplin – The Entertainer; Debussy – Clair de lune; Faure – Berceuse; John Cage – Perilous Night No. 6; Satie – Gymnopedie No. 1 Part 2: How Do I Play It? A clear introduction to playing the piano. Play along with 12 specially written pieces with Guide Me narration option.
- Peter and the Wolf book/CD: Ages 3 and up; introduce children to classical music with Prokofiev’s musical fairy tale of the little boy (played by all the strings of the orchestra) who, with the help of a bird (played by the flute), outsmarted the big, bad wolf (played by the French horns). A new retelling by Janet Schulman follows the basic story, but with a kinder ending for both the big bad wolf and the argumentative duck. Peter Malone’s paintings have the luminous quality of old Russian masters. The CD, with music performed by the Cincinnati Pops and word-for-word narration by Peter A. Thomas, was made exclusively for this book and CD package. Includes a short bio of Prokofiev.
- The Musical Life of Gustav Mole book/CD, by Kathryn Meyrick; ages 5-10; Gustav Mole is lucky enough to be born into a musical family, and this charming tale traces the enriching role that music plays in his life. Gustav’s musical education is rich and diverse, covering a wide variety of genres and styles. This is the perfect introduction to musical instruments, ensembles and occasions, and a humourous and sensitive exploration of what music can bring to our lives.
- Mole Music, by David McPhail; Ages 4-8; Mole has always led a simple life, but lately he feels something is missing. When he first hears someone playing a violin, Mole realizes that he longs to make beautiful music, too. Through practice and patience, Mole learns to play. And even though he plays alone, in the privacy of his underground home, his music has an effect on others that is more magical than Mole will ever know.
- The Carnival of the Animals book/CD, by Prelutsky, Camille Saint-Saens; ages 5-8; America’s first Children’s Poet Laureate has written all-new verses to accompany the composer Camille Saint-Saëns’s The Carnival of the Animals, and the illustrator of the Harry Potter books has turned these rollicking rhymes into a picture-book fun fest. Included is a CD of the music and of Jack Prelutsky reading the verses.
- Becoming Bach, by Leonard*; Ages 4-8; For Johann Sebastian there was always music. His family had been musicians, or bachs as they were called in Germany, for 200 years. He always wanted to be a bach. As he grew, he saw patterns in everything. Patterns he would turn into melodies and song, eventually growing into one of the most important and celebrated musical composers of all time. This is the story of Johann Sebastian Bach.
- Getting to Know the World’s Greatest Composers series, by Venezia. Ages 4-9; Titles include: Beatles, Bernstein, Brahms, Chopin, Copland, Beethoven, Tchaikovsky, Mozart, Bach
- Once Upon a Masterpiece series, by Harwell; Ages 4-12. Titles include: Bach’s Goldberg Variations, Beethoven’s Heroic Symphony, Haydn’s Farewell Symphony, and Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition
- First Discovery Music series books/CDs, illus. by Voake & Courgeon; Ages elem./middle school; Each biography includes a CD with musical examples keyed to the text, photos and drawings, and suggested activities. Titles include Louis Armstrong, Ella Fitzgerald, Ray Charles, Bach, Beethoven, Chopin, Debussy, Handel, Mozart, Purcell, Schubert, Tchaikovsky, Vivaldi.
- The Music of Life: Bartolomeo Cristofori & the Invention of the Piano, by Rusch; Ages 4-8; Award-winning biographer Elizabeth Rusch and two-time Caldecott Honor–recipient Marjorie Priceman team up to tell the inspiring story of the invention of the world’s most popular instrument: the piano.
- Do Re Mi: If You Can Read Music, Thank Guido D’Arezzo, by Roth; Kindergarten-Grade 5. If you can read musical notes, you can sing any song or play any piece. But musical notes have not always been here. Long ago, songs were memorized. If songs were forgotten, they were lost forever. Thanks to one man, Guido d’Arezzo, music now can last forever.
- The History of Rock: For Big Fans and Little Punks, by Rita Nabais; ages 9 to adult
- What Music Means to Me, by Richard Rejino: Age middle school to adult; A timely testament to the importance and validity of music to make a positive and profound difference in the world we inhabit.
- The Art of Piano Performance: Perfect Practice (Chunks, Clumps, Hunks, Clods, Blocks, Slivers, Slices and Globs)* by Peter Coraggio. Ages 10 and up; comic magazine-style book. Learn great tips and tricks on how to be a successful pianist.
- The Art of Piano Performance: The Spectrum of Expressive Touches* by Peter Coraggio. Ages 10 and up; comic magazine-style book. Learn to play more musically by discovering the many nuances of expressive touches and articulations.
- The Art of Piano Performance: Musical Style (Introduction to the Baroque, Classical, and Romantic Eras)* by Peter Coraggio. Ages 10 and up; comic magazine-style book. Learn about the keyboard instruments, composers, and basic elements of music and interpretation that give each musical era its distinctive character.
Movies
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Evidence of Things Unseen A short (26-min) TIME documentary about a veteran finding healing in art – and then helping others. (Richard Casper, subject of the film, is interviewed in Ep. 43 of Enhance Life with Music podcast.)
- Alive Inside: A story of music and memory. Not rated. Alive Inside is a joyous cinematic exploration of music’s capacity to reawaken our souls and uncover the deepest parts of our humanity. Filmmaker Michael Rossat-Bennet chronicles the astonishing experiences of individuals around the country who have been revitalized and awakened by the simple act of listening to the music of their youth. Available at Hennepin County Library.
- The Music Never Stopped (PG) Based on a true story and an essay titled “The Last Hippie” by neurologist Oliver Sacks
- Mr. Holland’s Opus (PG)
- The Greatest Showman (PG)
- That Thing You Do (PG)
- Green Book (PG-13)
- The Soloist (PG-13)
- Score: A Film Music Documentary: Not rated (contains one F-bomb). Tracking the progress of modern-day film score development, this documentary illustrates how the first few notes on a piano keyboard end up in the most dramatic moments of a film’s emotional climax. Turning the spotlight on the creative struggles that make up a major motion picture score, this documentary showcases the way the world’s top soundsmiths solve musical challenges – from the creative to the technical. (Available on Hulu June 2019; avail. Hennepin County Library)
- Landfill Harmonic: Not rated. This documentary follows the Recycled Orchestra of Cateura, Paraguay, as it takes its inspiring spectacle of trash-into-music around the world. Follow the lives of a garbage picker, a music teacher and a group of children from a Paraguayan slum who, out of necessity, started creating instruments entirely out of garbage. This film is a beautiful story about the transformative power of music, which also highlights two vital issues of our times: poverty and waste pollution. Also available at Hennepin County Library.
- Stay Human, an award-winning documentary by Michael Franti
- Mary Poppins
- Mary Poppins Returns
- Saige Paints the Sky (American Girl movie, not rated)
- Sing (PG)
- Coco (PG)
- How the Beatles Changed the World (PG; Netflix)
- The Beatles movies, incl.: Eight Days a Week; Yesterday; Hard Day’s Night; Magical Mystery Tour; Yellow Submarine; Let It Be (G or not rated)
- High School Musical (1-3) (G)
- Grace Unplugged (PG)
- Pitch Perfect (1-3) (PG-13)
- Les Miserables (PG-13)
- La La Land (PG-13)
- Walk the Line (PG-13)
- Ray (PG-13)
- The Wizard of Oz
- The Sound of Music
- De-Lovely (PG-13) (about life of Cole Porter)
- Linda Ronstadt: The Sound of My Voice (PG-13)
- Rocketman (R): Musical biopic about the life and work of Elton John; has plenty of mature content, but the overall tone is sweet and life-affirming
- Rubble Kings (Caution: strong language; Not Rated): Powerful and inspiring documentary on the origins of hip hop, the world’s most popular music genre.
Live Music
- Jazz @ St. Barneys
- MN Orchestra (incl. free family concerts)
- SPCO (incl. free family concerts)
- SPCO’s Concert Library: Watch and listen to SPCO recorded performances, live and on-demand
- Musical at the Guthrie, Chanhassen Dinner Theater, or other theater
- Summer outdoor concerts (e.g., Lake Harriet Bandshell)
- Local high school and college concerts and musicals
Podcasts
- Enhance Life with Music
- Decomposed
- Cadence: What Music tells us about the Mind
- David Walliams’ Marvellous Musical Podcast, By Classic FM (for young kids)
- The Music Box podcast (for young kids)
- Oprah’s Master Class Podcast, including:
- How Music Does That (occasional language)
- Song Exploder
- Piano Puzzler (NPR)
Other
- Schubert Club’s evolution of the piano exhibit
- Record a song using the Smule app (learn more)