YC1 and Mozart's "The Magic Flute"!

The Young Child Level 1 kids are having a great time exploring Mozart and "The Magic Flute". Here's a really brief synopsis of the plot .... when viewing the youtube clips, be sure to move on with the story when the kids lose interest ;) To return to the story after each clip, just hit the "back" arrow in your browser.

A young prince named Tamino was lost in an enchanted forest. He fell asleep and when he awoke a strange man covered in feathers and carrying a bird cage on his back was standing next to him. The strange man explained that he was, "Papageno, chief bird catcher for the Queen of the Night.

Just then, three maidens appeared and said, "We have been sent by the Queen of the Night to ask your help in returning our Princess Pamina. She has been stolen away!" They gave Tamino a picture of the lovely princess and he placed it in his pocket near his heart.

Quite suddenly, the Queen of the Night appeared and told Tamino that he had been chosen to rescue her daughter. (you can skip ahead to 4:24 or so in the video)

To help Tamino, the Queen of the Night gave him a "magic flute" that had special powers. "Whenever you play it, all sadness will give way to joy and even wild creatures will be charmed. The magic flute will be your guide and no harm will come to you." She also gave Papageno a set of magic bells and told him to help Tamino.

When Tamino and Papageno reached the castle where the Princess was held captive, Papageno became so afraid that he ran away. Tamino was frightened to, but he remembered his magic flute. As he played, the animals came out of the forest and began to gather around to listen to the lovely music.

Soon the lovely princess was rescued and Tamino and Pamino were married. However, poor Papageno was sad because he was all alone. He wished he had a wife and began playing his magic set of bells. Just then, a little old lady popped up in front of him and said, "My name is Papagena and I have come as the answer to your wish." Papageno said he would marry her and just then, she turned into a lovely bird-like creature like him. They were so happy that they danced around and sang to each other like happy birds!
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And just for fun... a bird singing a bit of the Queen of the Night Aria
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.......and next semester we'll be exploring Britten's "Young People's Guide to the Orchestra" - just in time to be able to see it at the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, too, if you hurry and get tickets from the TSO now!