Classical Music Playlists for your Homeschool: September

Want to incorporate classical music appreciation as a weekly component in your homeschool schedule? Come check out my kid-friendly, easy-on-the-parents Music Curriculum. You can try a free sample lesson HERE.

This post is part of a series designed to help get great classical music in your kids’ ears. I like to think of music seasonally, just like food. Sure you can eat a watermelon in January, but will it be good? The sense of waiting and rotating is part of what makes seasonal produce delicious. Music can be the same, which is why I encourage using these monthly playlists. A little infusion of new music each month keeps things fresh and lively. You enjoy it for a time, and then you enjoy moving on. Find the September list on Spotify here or use the Youtube links below. 

Autumn from The Four Seasons // Vivaldi

I absolutely love The Four Seasons. We have talked about these pieces all year long: Winter, Spring, and Summer. The 3rd movement of Autumn brings to mind a traditional hunting scene. Picture Mary Crawley on horseback, dashing through the countryside. That’s the feel. Head HERE for more!

This is the most famous work from Johann Strauss II, whose father was also a famous composer – but a pretty bad dad. (We talked about him back in June.) The Beautiful Blue Danube is the most famous work from Strauss II. It will likely sound very familiar to you. Getting your dancing shoes out – it’s time to waltz!

Now for a triple play. Gustav Holst’s The Planets is a seven-movement orchestral suite, first performed 99 years ago this month. I have selected my three favorites for our list: Mars, Venus, and Jupiter. Jupiter is my favorite of the favorites, but all three of these are fun and quite different from one another. Curious about why seven? Well, I guess he didn’t need to write one for Earth, and Pluto wasn’t discovered until 1930. (And, turns out, isn’t a planet anyway.) More HERE. 

Claude Debussy was a French Impressionist composer. I compare him to the other Claude, Claude Monet the painter. If Water Lilies made music, it might sound like this. Delicate, gauzy, and slightly sleep inducing. But in a good way. Head HERE for subject integration ideas!

Now for a jarring segue: Clair de Lune to O Fortuna. This piece is one of the most famous on earth because of its constant use in pop culture. It will sound completely familiar to you. My students love this piece. And why not? It is dramatic, over-the-top, and a complete blast. Lesson HERE!

George Bizet’s Carmen is one of the most famous operas of all time, and the Habanera is another familiar melody you will probably recognize. I love to show my students moments of classical-music-in-the-wild…aka, when pieces of classical music show up in unexpected places. HERE is a great one for this melody!

Or, for all of us English speakers: A Little Night Music. I am not sure how I have come to September without including this one on a playlist. Arguably the most famous piece of classical music ever, it is Mozart’s version of party music. A light little tune intended for nothing more than entertaining the people. The pop music of its day!

And finally, another true favorite of mine. How often am I allowed to say that? It’s really true this time! This is your go-to piece when you need to take a little five-minute retreat for yourself (or from yourself?). Put some headphones on, take some deep breaths, and save yourself $100 at the spa. It’s most often played on the violin, but I linked Yo-Yo Ma’s version on the cello, because BEAUTY. The Spotify list has both the violin and the cello versions – see which one you like better! You can head HERE for a lesson on how to make this come alive for your kids.