Author: Confetti Park

  • Music Medley: Frog on a Lily Pad

    Music Medley: Frog on a Lily Pad

    Confetti Park is a community radio program out of New Orleans. We feature local storytellers and songs that kids love, songs created for kids, or created by kids, right here in Louisiana. This medley of kids music shows the diversity of Louisiana musicians. Songs featured in this episode, in order:

    Also featured in this episode, a story called Gumbo, Fried Cheese, The Saints, and Drew Brees, by Patricia Reese; a Music Memory from David Rosser; and several poems. Here is a poem of childhood by Peter Cooley, Louisiana poet laureate.

    And here are Confetti Park Players Eleanor and Manele Anika with their original poems.


    The Confetti Park hosted by Katy Hobgood Ray, features music and stories spun in Louisiana. It showcases songs that kids love, songs created for kids, and songs created by kids. Sparkling interviews, in-studio performances, delightful music medleys, jokes, local author storytime, and a little surprise lagniappe make for an entertaining show!

    Subscribe on iTunes

    Confetti Park is supported by the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Foundation, OffBeat magazine and Music Rising at Tulane University.

    Current broadcast schedule:

    Community radio stations, interested in carrying Confetti Park? Contact Katy Ray.

     

  • Polly Wolly Wee, the animated music video!

    Polly Wolly Wee, the animated music video!

    One of my favorite songs performed by the Confetti Park Players is “Polly Wolly Wee,” a.k.a. “The Frog Song.” You can hear the song on our first album, and now, you can watch an adorable stop-motion animated music video created by the kids! This was made at the wonderful Mini Art Center in Algiers Point.

    I first heard this cute folk song on a Lead Belly recording. Lead Belly is an important musical influence in my life. I grew up in Shreveport where there is a statue of Huddie Ledbetter standing in front of the public library downtown on Texas Street. I’m part of a group of Louisiana musicians who gather around his grave every October to sing his songs.  This October 2017 will be the 25th year we hold our informal gathering!!! (I joined up around 2000.)

    Lead Belly started singing to children later in his career, so of course I have plumbed his recordings since I myself have become a children’s musician. I have listened to a lot of Lead Belly, but I think I love the Smithsonian Folkways compilation Lead Belly Sings for Children most. His version of “Polly Wolly Wee” has such a pleasant vibe to it. When Lead Belly sings it, he does not have call and response on it,  but that’s what the song creates…. I just can’t help but respond to him and I’ve had a good time re-creating it with the Confetti Park Players!!!

     

  • Storytime: Diamonds in the Rough—1800s Memories of Minnie Carter

    Storytime: Diamonds in the Rough—1800s Memories of Minnie Carter

    Minnie Maude Carter Boston, born in Nathan, Ark., August 18, 1888.
    Minnie Maude Carter Boston, born in Nathan, Ark., August 18, 1888.

    A very long time ago, my great-grandmother Minnie Carter Boston shared for posterity some of her memories of life growing up in rural Arkansas in the late 1800s, in the piney woods and rolling hills. Her daughter-in-law (and my grandmother) Gypsy Damaris Petty Boston transcribed the memories while they lived in Shreveport, Louisiana.

    Arkansas is part of an eroded lamproite volcanic pipe, which has caused diamonds to rise to the surface. I don’t understand all the geological processes, but there really are diamonds to be found on the ground in Arkansas. There is even a mining field called Crater of Diamonds that is open to the public, where you can go with your shovel, bucket and screen kit and hunt for diamonds under the hot, hot sun. You keep what you find!

    The story goes that when Minnie was growing up, they regularly encountered the rough uncut stones in their yard, and never knew that they were playing with precious gemstones. So many people in the region were poor farmers and loggers—oh, the irony! How different their lives would have been had they recognized the diamonds in the rough (and knew where to trade them!).

    I Played with DiamondsMinnie Carter printed up her memories in a little book and called it I Played With Diamonds. In the forward, she dedicates it to her grandchildren:

    “This booklet has especially been written for you. You have the story of my childhood days in the first ten years of my life.”

    You won’t find this collection of family stories, childhood adventures, descriptions of country life or particular people on any library shelf (that I am aware of), but there are a few dozen copies out there. I have one, and to me, it is as precious as any diamond.

    Within it are essays with colorful titles such as “Bath Facilities,” “Hog Killing Time,” “An Ash Hopper and How to Make Soap,” and “My First and Last Dip of Snuff.” The book is delightful, sweet, entertaining, and shows the great warmth and love her family. It’s also a marvelous snapshot of a time before industrialization, telephones, television, and Internet. It seems so very long ago.

    Here is the opening of the book, narrated by New Orleans schoolteacher Catherine Golden. It is a description of the house that Minnie grew up in… it sets the scene for the stories that will follow, about the family, friends and neighbors of little Minnie Carter. The second segment is “My First Shopping Trip,” in which Minnie must trade an old hen to afford a birthday present.

    I hope you enjoy this booklet, which I will share in segments over time.

    P.S. Consider writing a memoir for your future grandchildren, by documenting the experiences of your childhood!

     

     

     

     

     

  • Music Medley: Royal Bees

    Music Medley: Royal Bees

    cartoon of queen beeConfetti Park is a community radio program out of New Orleans. We feature local storytellers and songs that kids love, songs created for kids, or created by kids, right here in Louisiana.

    This medley of kids music celebrates the mighty bee! The songs also showcase a diversity of Louisiana musical styles.
    Songs featured in this episode, in order:

    We’re Going to Confetti Park – Confetti Park Players
    Be My Honey Bee – Greg Schatz
    Busy Beeline –  Johnette Downing and the Original Dixieland Jazz Band
    Three Little Birds – Renzi Center Kids
    Bumble Bee – Ginger & the Bee and the Confetti Park Players
    Sugar “Shuga”  Bee – Papillon
    Animal Planet – a poem by Marcus Page
    How Doth the Little Busy Bee – Isaac Watts, narrated by Louis Ray
    Twenty Bees – Johnette Downing


    Also featured in this episode: A misadventure in beekeeping by Louisiana beekeeper Dan Hobgood for Confetti Park Storytime. He shares a true story from his childhood:

    Marcus Page shares a poem called “Animal Planet.”

    And Confetti Park Player Louis Ray narrates a poem about bees written by Isaac Watts.

     


    The Confetti Park hosted by Katy Hobgood Ray, features music and stories spun in Louisiana. It showcases songs that kids love, songs created for kids, and songs created by kids. Sparkling interviews, in-studio performances, delightful music medleys, jokes, local author storytime, and a little surprise lagniappe make for an entertaining show!

    Subscribe on iTunes

    The radio program version is supported by the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Foundation, OffBeat magazine and Music Rising at Tulane University.

    Current broadcast schedule:

    Community radio stations, interested in carrying Confetti Park? Contact Katy Ray.

     

  • A Christmas Music Medley from Louisiana: Snow & Tell

    A Christmas Music Medley from Louisiana: Snow & Tell

    Snow falls over streetcars in New Orleans. Photo by Sally Asher.
    A rare snow falls over Saint Charles Avenue streetcars in New Orleans. Photo by Sally Asher.

    Confetti Park is a community radio program out of New Orleans. We feature local storytellers and songs that kids love, songs created for kids, or created by kids, inspired by life here Louisiana. This is a special Christmas medley of songs that kids of all ages will love…. it certainly showcases the diversity of our Louisiana sound!

    Songs featured in this episode, in order:

    Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer –  Fats Domino
    Joke of the Day – Snow & Tell
    I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus – Hadley Castille & The Louisiana Cajun Band
    Zat You, Santa Claus? – Louis Armstrong
    Sleigh Ride – Debbie Davis & Matt Perrine
    Mele Kalikimaka – Debbie Davis & Matt Perrine
    Winter Wonderland – Linnzi Zaorski
    It Came Upon a Midnight Clear – Michael Doucet 

    Also featured in this episode, Rosemary the Garden Fairy teaches us about the beautiful amaryllis. We hear “A Christmas Song” composed and performed by Zoey of the Confetti Park Players, a music memory from Crystal Thomas, and the story JuJu Saves Christmas in da Bayou, narrated by author Michelle Hirstius.

  • Storytime: Juju saves Christmas in da Bayou by Michelle Hirstius

    Storytime: Juju saves Christmas in da Bayou by Michelle Hirstius

    Night Before Christmas - two versions
    Lucky Louisiana kids have many interesting takes on holiday classics…. and one that is beloved worldwide is the Cajun Night Before Christmas, adapted from the classic version (which dates back to the early 1800s) by James Rice in 1974.

    ‘Twas the night before Christmas, when all thro’ the house
    Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse;
    The stockings were hung by the chimney with care,
    In hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there;

    In the Cajun version, the story is told in Cajun dialect:

    Twas the night before Christmas an’ all t’ru de house,
    Dey don’t a ting pass Not even a mouse.
    De chirren been nezzle good snug on de flo’,
    An’ Mama pass de pepper t’ru de crack on de do’.

    In Trosclair’s eyewitness account, St. Nicholas drives a skiff which rises up over the swamps led by alligators instead of reindeer!

    “Ha, Gaston! Ha, Tiboy! Ha, Pierre an’ Alcee’! Gee, Ninette! Gee, Suzette! Celeste an’ Renee’!”

    JuJu saves Christmas in da BayouNow, the legend grows, thanks to the imagination of New Orleans children’s author and illustrator Michelle Hirstius.

    Michelle is the creator of the adorable series about JuJu, a good voodoo doll who brings good luck and fortune to those she encounters. In JuJu Saves Christmas in da Bayou, we learn the backstory of how Santa’s reindeer became gators.

    Every year Santa delivers presents to all the boys and girls, but this year Santa gets into a pickle! Juju the GOOD voodoo is there to help… see how Juju saves Christmas! 

     

    What fun! Thanks, Michelle, for sharing your Christmas tale with Confetti Park.

    Learn about all of JuJu’s adventures at http://www.michellehirstius.com/

     

  • Rosemary the Garden Fairy: The lovely, giving amaryllis

    Rosemary the Garden Fairy: The lovely, giving amaryllis

    Rosemary the Garden Fairy“Follow me to the garden! Let’s check out the magic of nature!”

    The amaryllis bulb is a wonderful thing to have inside your house in the wintertime. They grow large, brightly colored blooms, even when it’s freezing outside! and the blooms can last for months and months.

    They are EASY to grow. You can even grow amaryllis bulbs in nothing more than stones and water.

    The amaryllis bulb is a great holiday gift, because it is the gift that keeps on giving, again and again. It’s always a wonderful surprise to see what color your bulb will be.

    Red, pink, white, orange, or even striped!

     

  • Storytime: Coming Up Cajun by Carrie Delatte

    Storytime: Coming Up Cajun by Carrie Delatte

    Coming Up Cajun by Carrie DelatteIt’s Confetti Park Storytime! In this episode, author Carrie Delatte narrates her children’s book Coming Up Cajun, which is based on the true tales of two little boys growing up in the heart of Cajun Country.

    Full of nature, this sweet tale told in rhyming verse captures some of the wholesome outdoor activities, daily chores, and good times of Carrie’s own children.

    “From the green of the land, to the blue of the bayous, they made the best of their time in the splendour of a Southern youth,” says Carrie.

    The story is educational for how it captures all the activities that are part of daily life for kids growing up in the country, such as gathering eggs, trapping, fishing, hunting, loading bales of hay, tending livestock, paddling in their pirogues…. In addition, Coming Up Cajun is chock full of Cajun French vocabulary, and Carrie includes a handy glossary for readers’ benefit.

    Carrie DelatteBorn and raised in quaint Gheens, Louisiana, Carrie Delatte is the proud mother of four young children. She was brought up on a small farm off of Central Bayou Lafourche, and she enjoys southern living and the beauty of nature.

    Carrie was diagnosed at the age of seven with the neurological disorder known as Tourette’s Syndrome. Carrie has vowed to donate 10% of proceeds from each title she releases to the Tourette’s Association of America (formerly called the National Tourette’s Syndrome Association) to further assist in the search for a cure, research and educational purposes. Her one outlet from the daily life of a “ticcer” is her writing.

    Thank you so much, Carrie, for sharing your stories with Confetti Park!

  • Candy Land Ball books are being printed

    Candy Land Ball books are being printed

    Katy reads the proof of her new children's book, Candy Land Ball
    Katy reads the proof of her new children’s book, Candy Land Ball

    Friends!!!! We did it! Thank you so much! This morning I reached 100% of my goal to create my newest children’s book, Candy Land Ball. I am so grateful to all of you for your support.

    A few weeks ago, I received the proof for the book. They look great! The first shipment of Candy Land Ball books should be arriving any day, and I am having a wonderful time building gifts for the various perks my contributors selected. Everything is on track to be shipped out by the first week of December.

    I am so delighted that this book has come to life. It’s originally a song I wrote about the wonderful, magical kid’s ball sponsored by Confetti Kids, a neighborhood nonprofit organization that supports children’s parks and programming. The actual Confetti Park that inspired all of my daydreamy orchestrations for this website, radio show and podcast is the first park created by Confetti Kids!

    I’ve been volunteering for this organization for four years. So many of the children I teach in choir, and who play with my son, Louis, are children of Confetti Kids. I love this group, the parents I volunteer with, and the community we are building.

    I’m excited to have this book as a permanent dedication to this sweet moment in time, and I’m donating 10% of all transactions from the Indiegogo campaign to Confetti Kids, to go toward more park development for our community.

    Again, thank you for everything.
    Katy  

  • “Go for it!” Crystal Thomas shares a funny childhood music memory about gumption

    “Go for it!” Crystal Thomas shares a funny childhood music memory about gumption

    Crystal Thomas is a singer and a trombonist in Shreveport
    Crystal Thomas is a singer and a trombonist in Shreveport

    Crystal Thomas is a Shreveport-based songwriter, singer and trombonist who regularly performs around Louisiana. A performer of the blues and gospel, you can find her (if not in churches) at various clubs like Southern Soul Lounge and at the venerated Monday Night Blues Jam at Lee’s in Shreveport.

    In this episode of Confetti Park, Crystal shares a delightful story about how her desire to perform overcame her lack of musical know-how when she was just a child.

    “I was in the third grade and we had a Mother’s Day Program and they wanted everyone to participate. Being a music lover, I was like, ‘Well I’ll play the piano!’

    ‘I couldn’t play the piano….didn’t know how to play the piano! But my love for music…prompted me to getup to the piano, sit down and play. And everyone loved it. I think they applauded more because I had the gumption, the nerve…..I basically made up a song on the spot, in front of the entire school.’”

    Crystal goes on to explain that she believes her music memory can serve as an example for children to not be afraid to dream big.

    “Never be afraid to push and follow your dreams,” says Crystal. “Shoot for the stars, and wherever hard work takes you, apply yourself. You can achieve and accomplish anything.”

  • Rosemary the Garden Fairy: Grow a time-telling garden

    Rosemary the Garden Fairy: Grow a time-telling garden

    “Follow me to the garden! Let’s check out the magic of nature!”

    Rosemary the Garden Fairy shares gardening tips and natural lore with children.

    Did you know that some plants can tell time?

    A wonderful project would be for you to plant a time-telling garden, full of morning glories, four o’clocks, and moon flowers. You will see that your beautiful morning glories open their temper purple blue petals at dawn. The four o’clocks uncurl their bright pink faces in the afternoon, and guess when the moon flower blooms?

    Something amazing: these flowers can even be placed in a dark closet and still bloom at the right time for several days.

  • Validating a child’s talent can set them on a lifelong musical journey

    Validating a child’s talent can set them on a lifelong musical journey

    Judy Caplan Ginsburgh has been performing children's music since 1981.
    Judy Caplan Ginsburgh has been performing children’s music since 1981.

    In this episode of Confetti Park, we hear a special childhood memory from Judy Caplan Ginsburgh of Alexandria, Louisiana, an internationally recognized and multi-award winning performer, recording artist and educator.

    Judy sings as a cantorial soloist and travels throughout North America presenting concerts, residencies, educational keynotes and workshops. Judy works actively in both Jewish and non-Jewish settings and she has developed a number of interactive, educational performances and arts-in-education residencies for school-age children. She has been creating children’s music since 1981!

    Judy shares how important the validation of adults can be when it comes to nurturing a child’s natural talents and interests, and how an experience that  happened when she was just eight years old set her on a career in music!

    Says Judy: “We had a music teacher who came to our school maybe every other week, and she would do music with all the children in the school.

    At one point our local symphony here in Rapides parish needed a children’s chorus… and they auditioned people at our elementary school.

    I remember a gentleman coming, he listened to all of us, and we sang, I think, “Happy Birthday.” And we sang in groups of like five. And he walked in front of us and listened to us, and picked certain people to be in this children’s chorus.

    I was one of those that was picked, when I was about 8 years old, and at that moment, I knew that I was good. That my voice was good. Someone had validated me…..

    I’m still in touch with this gentleman, by the way, and I always tell him that he’s responsible for making sure that I went into music as my career.”

    Thank you, Judy, for sharing your childhood music memory with Confetti Park!

    Learn more about Judy at http://www.judymusic.com/ and check out this more in depth interview with Judy.