Welcome!
We have gathered a selection of ideas and websites for musical activities to do at home. We hope you enjoy these and welcome your comments, suggestions or questions about the content on this page.
Take Five!
Here we share five free inclusive online music-making activities for children, young people and their families selected by the Music Education Islington team.
We also have a Listening Corner feature for Listen & Learn activities.
Here’s our current music and sound menu.
Listening Corner
- The Caribbean Musical Melting Pot: The Rise and Rise of Soca
Explore the increasing global influence of Caribbean sounds starting with soca - a blend of African and Trinidadian rhythms - in the islands of Trinidad and Barbados.
Listen & Learn (49 mins, BBC Radio) - Sculptress of Sound: The Lost Works of Delia Derbyshire
Celebrate the life and work of Delia Derbyshire, the BBC Radiophonic Workshop composer who realised Ron Grainer's theme for Doctor Who.
Listen & Learn (56 mins, BBC Radio)
- Welcome to the Arctic
A clip from Arctic Sound Walk, an immersive, slow radio experience of hiking through the Arctic tundra.
Listen & Learn (2 mins, BBC Radio)
- British Music's Caribbean Roots - The Documentary
Discover the Caribbean roots of Black British music from grime to UK garage, to drum to jungle, to gospel to lovers rock, from roots and dub to ska, to reggae and calypso.
Listen & Learn (53mins, BBC Radio)
Myleene’s Music Klass
Body Percussion & SingingNotting Hill Carnival -
Musical Sounds and Genres
Learn about the sounds and music of carnival from this short BBC News clip celebrating 50 years of Carnival in 2017. Listen for soca and other Caribbean-origin music: reggae, calypso and of course, the steel pan, (or steel drum) the unique instrument originally developed on the island of Trinidad.
Notting Hill Carnival 2017Kitchen Samba
Rob's Kitchen - Ijexa Junk PercussionVisual Piano
Dot Piano is a web browser-based visual instrument. Use your computer keyboard to play musical notes - creating colourful dots that dance across the screen.
Dot PianoOutdoor Music & Found Sounds
Create music using things you find in the garden or park inspired by composer John Cage's Child of Tree with this resource from Birmingham Contemporary Music Group.
Garden & Park MusicWhy 'Take Five'?
We've named this section Take Five after the best-selling jazz single of all time, recorded by the Dave Brubeck Quartet and originally released in September 1959. Composed by saxophonist, Paul Desmond, Take Five is written in the unusual time signature of 5/4 i.e. five beats to a bar.
Listen & Learn
Music at Home : Listen and Explore Offline Activities
Keep listening to and exploring music and sound offline with our Music at Home activity worksheets produced by the Music Education Islington team.
Short Courses
Try one of our free Music Education Islington short courses. We have posted a small selection below - perfect for home learning.
For the full menu of short online courses currently on offer, please visit our official Music Education Islington website.
Rap with Bad Lay-Dee KS2KS3
Rock & Pop Islington KS3KS4
Calling all young instrument players
Passionate about music and want to play live with other young people?
Join one of our MEI Music Centres - new members are very welcome.
Learning to Play?
Develop your musical skills, technique and music theory knowledge with this selection of free video tips, lessons and guidance for a range of instruments and abilities.
MiSST at Home Andrew Lloyd Webber Programme
Courtesy of The Music in Secondary Schools Trust (MiSST)