Confetti Park Children's Workshop

Tag: feufollet

  • Music Medley: A Pirate’s High C’s

    Music Medley: A Pirate’s High C’s

    There be Pirates!
    Ahoy!!!! Welcome to Confetti Park, a magical place full of music and stories for children. Aye, You’ll hear lots of songs from the Mississippi delta and beyond as we hear an amazing variety of American music for scurvy buccaneers! This week we are celebrating International Talk Like a Pirate Day! It’s held on September 19… avast… that’s right around the corner!

    Here are some songs of the piratical nature for ye to enjoy:

    • Sensible Life of a Pirate – Imagination Movers
    • Talk Like a Pirate – Jake & the NeverLand Pirates
    • Watch out for the Pirates – Confetti Park Players
    • Down by the Bay – Andrew Best
    • A Sailor Went to Sea – Johnette Downing
    • Allons a Lafayette – Feufollet
    • The Big Blue Sea – Danny O’Flaherty and Khaetidawne Quirk
    • Sri Lanka Fisherman’s Chant – Katherine Dines

    In this episode, first we have that grand kids band, the Imagination Movers of New Orleans, with “Sensible Life of a Pirate.” And then a sensible lesson in Pirate talk for ya, as featured on that brigand show, Jake & the Never Land Pirates. How about those Confetti Park Players, the cutest pirates in all the land, with Watch out for the Pirates! (Enjoy this music video featuring the Confetti Park Players and the NOLA Pyrate Society, shot on location in Pirate’s Alley in the French quarters of New Orleans.)

    Sea Shanties

    Argh, Mateys I hope you enjoy the song about sailors, too, by Louisiana pied piper Johnette Downing, and the camp favorite “Down by the Bay” by Memphis children’s performer Andrew Best.

    Then we go dancing, “Allons a Lafayette,” by the Cajun band Feufollet, who started performing together as young buccaneers and are still traveling the high seas today. We also hear a song about that Big Blue Sea from Danny O’Flaherty, an Irishman who relocated to New Orleans (as many a good pirate will do), and then the beautiful “Sri Lanka Fisherman’s Chant,” performed by Katherine Dines, a fine fellow of the Children’s Music Network.

    This episode’s Storytime feature is a delightful piratical tale from Bill Harley, the “Ballad of Dirty Joe.”

    I hope ye join me again — yer Mate Katy Hobgood Ray — for more wonderful children’s music from Confetti Park…. and remember to look for the magic in every day!

    More about Confetti Park

    The Confetti Park radio show streams online and airs in cities across the United States, made available to all community radio stations on the Pacifica Network. Check to see if your local community radio station carries it, and ask! Support for Confetti Park comes from the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Foundation and Music Rising at Tulane University.

     

  • Music Medley: Worm in My Apple

    Music Medley: Worm in My Apple

    worm in appleThis medley of kids music shows the diversity of Louisiana musicians. Songs featured in this episode, in order:

    Summit of Sound – kids at the Renzi Center in Shreveport
    Mardi Gras – Mr. Michael’s Class of Young Audiences Raps
    Nobody Likes Fun More Than Me! – Don Hoffman and Bryan Wagar
    Big Hola – Imagination Movers
    Lollipop Tree – Judy Caplan Ginsburgh
    Lemonade, Crunchy Ice – Confetti Park Players
    The Clapping Song – Confetti Park Players
    Skunk in the Grave Yard – Sadie Strong
    Coconuts – Virginia Strong
    Bubblegum in a Dish – Belin Walker
    Days of the Week – Jason & Layla
    Allons a Lafayette – La bande Feufollet


    Also featured in this episode, a story called Alphonse and the Alligator by Black Guidry and a music memory from Carole Gauthier Lancon.

    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 launched on April 4, 2015 in New Orleans on WHIV FM and 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.

  • Watching Feufollet at the New Orleans Film Fest! #NOFF2016

    Watching Feufollet at the New Orleans Film Fest! #NOFF2016

    Feufollet at the New Orleans Film Fest
    Feufollet at the New Orleans Film Fest

    I was SO excited to watch my music video “Feufollet” on the Entergy Giant Screen! It was an official selection at the 2016 New Orleans Film Festival.  Look at this amazing company of Family Friendly Animated Shorts!

    The Boy Who Learned To Fly (Moonbot)
    Circles (Ma’agalim) (Uri Lotan)
    “Feufollet” (me!)
    Mosquito: The Bite of Passage (Teng Cheng, Brian Vincent Rhodes)
    Moom (Tonko House)
    Little Shimajiro (Isamu Hirabayashi)

    It was very cool to meet the other film makers, such as Limbert Fabian of Moonbot (The Boy Who Learned to Fly) and Brian Vincent Rhodes  (Mosquito: The Bite of Passage).  We took part in a Q&A after the film and fielded questions from a friendly, curious and supportive audience!

    How I wish I could have had the company of Santiago Germano and Gustavo Wenzel, the amazingly talented animators who created “Feufollet” (and Santiago illustrated The Little Mouse Santi). I hope I represented them well.

    I did have the marvelous company of some of the best friends and family in the world! Thanks to my husband Dave, son Louis, and to my brother Marc and sister-in-law Gina and to Annabel for coming to the fest with me!

    Family at the fest!
    All the way from Shreveport, my brother Marcus and sister-in law Gina. And my husband Dave, son Louis, and niece Annabel.

    And to my delight, just before the lights were lowered and the films began, some of my Confetti Park Players sprinted into the theatre…. It was a wonderful surprise!!!

    And here we are after the film showings.

    Some of the Confetti Park Players attend the New Orleans Film Festival.
    Some of the Confetti Park Players attend the New Orleans Film Festival.

    And now… for the film!

    “Feufollet” is an animated short produced by Confetti Park. This is the music video for the song featuring Katy Hobgood Ray & the Confetti Park Players, animated by Santiago Germano and Gustav Wenzel.

    “Feufollet” is performed by Katy Hobgood Ray & the Confetti Park Players, from the album “We’re Going to Confetti Park!” available on CD & digitally. It was recorded at Marigny Recording Studio by Matt Aguiluz and mastered by Bruce Barielle.

    Featuring: Rick G. Nelson, bass; Sarah Quintana, background vocals and fae giggles; Katy Ray, vocals; Tim Robertson, guitar; Dr. Sick, violin, musical saw, toy piano; Dylan Field Turner, broom and other percussion.

    [dt_sc_button type=”with-icon” link=”https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/were-going-to-confetti-park!/id1057427046″ size=”medium” target=”_blank”]Buy Track on iTunes[/dt_sc_button]

    [dt_sc_button type=”with-icon” link=”https://www.amazon.com/Were-Going-Confetti-Hobgood-Players/dp/B017X9VR70/ref=tmm_msc_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=” size=”medium” target=”_blank”]Buy Track on Amazon[/dt_sc_button]


    LYRICS:
    In a boat, in a swamp, in the darkness
    All around you is the night
    Creatures jumping, night birds calling
    When you see a flickering light

    You think it could be a lantern
    On some friendly neighbor’s trawl
    Or the porch light on a swamp house
    But it’s not friendly light at all

    Chorus:
    Don’t follow the Feufollet
    Don’t follow the Feufollet
    Lest you both should fade away

    Pawpaw gave a warning to me
    Don’t follow the Feufollet
    Don’t get tricked by those lights in the sky,
    They will lead you far astray

    The swamp has many dangers
    Use your wits, you’ll be OK
    Trust the rats, the snakes and the gators
    Before you trust the Feufollet

    How will I know it Pawpaw?
    What shall I do when I see?
    When those flickering lights start to call to you
    Do not follow, ma cherie.

    It’s a will o’ the wisp, a trickster
    Gives false comfort in the night
    Stay close to the course you know in your heart
    Or do not move ’til morning light.

  • Feufollet – the music video!

    Feufollet – the music video!


    I am so excited to debut this gorgeous animated music video for the song “Feufollet”! This features the brilliant artwork of Gustavo Wenzel and Santiago Germano. Santiago is the illustrator of The Little Mouse Santi, the first children’s book from Confetti Park. They have such a magical sensibility!

    I hope the music and the legend of the spooky Feufollet enchants listeners everywhere.

    – Katy Ray

    “Feufollet” is performed by Katy Hobgood Ray & the Confetti Park Players, from the album “We’re Going to Confetti Park!” available on CD & digitally. It was recorded at Marigny Recording Studio by Matt Aguiluz and mastered by Bruce Barielle.

    Featuring: Rick G. Nelson, bass; Sarah Quintana, background vocals and fae giggles; Katy Ray, vocals; Tim Robertson, guitar; Dr. Sick, violin, musical saw, toy piano; Dylan Field Turner, broom and other percussion.

    [dt_sc_button type=”with-icon” link=”https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/were-going-to-confetti-park!/id1057427046″ size=”medium” target=”_blank”]Buy Track on iTunes[/dt_sc_button]


    LYRICS:
    In a boat, in a swamp, in the darkness
    All around you is the night
    Creatures jumping, night birds calling
    When you see a flickering light

    You think it could be a lantern
    On some friendly neighbor’s trawl
    Or the porch light on a swamp house
    But it’s not friendly light at all

    Chorus:
    Don’t follow the Feufollet
    Don’t follow the Feufollet
    Lest you both should fade away

    Pawpaw gave a warning to me
    Don’t follow the Feufollet
    Don’t get tricked by those lights in the sky,
    They will lead you far astray

    The swamp has many dangers
    Use your wits, you’ll be OK
    Trust the rats, the snakes and the gators
    Before you trust the Feufollet

    How will I know it Pawpaw?
    What shall I do when I see?
    When those flickering lights start to call to you
    Do not follow, ma cherie.

    It’s a will o’ the wisp, a trickster
    Gives false comfort in the night
    Stay close to the course you know in your heart
    Or do not move ’til morning light.

     

  • A few curve balls, then we knocked it out of the Jazz Fest park!

    A few curve balls, then we knocked it out of the Jazz Fest park!

    The Confetti Park Players had their New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival debut on Saturday, April 23, 2016. And it was wonderful. But there were a few curve balls….

    The Confetti Park Players is a children’s chorus based in Algiers Point. We like to do fun, interesting collaborations with New Orleans musicians. We have been doing live performances since October 2014—our first public performance was at Charles Gillam’s Folk Art Fest in Algiers. Since then, we have performed at churches, nursing homes, parties, Euclid Records and Louisiana Music Factory, and French Quarter Festival! We’ve recorded at real recording studios (Marigny Recording Studio and Word of Mouth) and filmed music videos with pirates. Our debut CD came out in November 2015 (and won a Parents’ Choice Award!). Playing Jazz Fest is our latest exciting milestone.

    Preparing for stage performance
    Preparing for stage performance in a blue box

    The kids are amazing, and have been working so hard learning all the songs, choreographing dances, and brainstorming fun props. For months, we have been prepping for stage performance by practicing inside a box created by blue painters tape. The adult musicians started practicing with us throughout the month of April. We were ready—and as a special treat, I had (months ago) reserved a party bus to carry us from the West Bank to the Jazz Fest gates for the big day. Everything was ready to go….

    Friday—the day before the festival—I get a call from our dear bass player. He’s just been diagnosed with pneumonia! Oh no! We love our bass player, who’s a talented resident of Algiers. But time to scramble. Swooping in to save the day was Greg Schatz—a real pro and a friend to the Confetti Park Players. Greg plays all over our CD and even wrote one of our biggest crowd-pleasers, “Watch Out for the Pirates.” So the night before the fest, Greg and I learned all the songs together. Whew! Crisis averted.

    On Saturday, all the kids, parent chaperones, and West Bank musicians were to meet at 9 a.m. at a local church, where the party bus would pick us up. At 8:30 a.m, I get a phone call from the bus driver. His bus is broken down on Claiborne Avenue.

    Nothing to do but call all the parents (of 20 kids!) and tell them to find their own way to Jazz Fest. No point in wringing hands. I will admit that my heart was beating very hard and fast for long periods of time that morning, as I made all the necessary phone calls. But I really have some cool, laid-back and adaptive parents. They quickly coordinated among themselves to form carpools and hail cabs to the fest. We all met outside the gates and walked in as a mob. Thank you to those gatekeepers for being so flexible with us, as we were supposed to be on a bus, not on foot!

    Confetti Park Players a staff pick at the Jazz Fest CD tent
    Confetti Park Players are a staff pick at the Jazz Fest CD tent

    All that stress made the performance itself a breeze. The sound guys at the kids’ tent were great. The staff were kind and helpful and supportive. Everyone at Jazz Fest was truly excellent to work with. We had a terrific band in David Rosser (guitar), Dylan Field Turner (drums), Greg Schatz (bass), Mike Kaufmann (piano), Jim Thornton (trumpet), and Dr. Sick (musical saw, fiddle, toy piano and more toys). The most stressful thing about the show was making sure that every single kid in the audience got a pirate tattoo and a feufollet light…Our  parents helped pass out the goodies.

    Bonus surprise: the staff at the Right Place Rhythmporium made us a Staff Pick that day!

    The fest would have been unforgettable no matter what. Now, we have a fun story to tell about it, too. We sure hope we get asked back to Jazz Fest next year—it was a blast!

    Next up,  the Confetti Park Players are playing at Bayou Boogaloo on May 22 and the Creole Tomato Festival on June 11. More events at https://confettipark.com/events/

    Enjoy these videos from the big day.

  • Music Medley: Swamp Fire

    Music Medley: Swamp Fire

    Will-o'-the-wisp and Snake (colour litho); by Hendrich, Hermann (b.1856) (after); colour lithograph; Bibliotheque des Arts Decoratifs, Paris, France; Archives Charmet; German, out of copyright
    Will-o’-the-wisp and Snake by Hendrich, Hermann (b.1856)

    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 musical styles. Songs featured in this episode, in order:

    Also in this episode, a narration of The Fifolet by Johnette Downing, about the Louisiana swamp fire spirit, and a Music Memory from Tom Stagg.

    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!

    [dt_sc_button type=”with-icon” link=”https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/confetti-park/id979442391?mt=2″ size=”medium” target=”_blank”]Subscribe on iTunes[/dt_sc_button]

    The radio program version launched on April 4, 2015 in New Orleans on WHIV FM and 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.

     

  • Music Medley: Swamp Fire

    Music Medley: Swamp Fire

    Will-o'-the-wisp and Snake (colour litho); by Hendrich, Hermann (b.1856) (after); colour lithograph; Bibliotheque des Arts Decoratifs, Paris, France; Archives Charmet; German, out of copyright
    Will-o’-the-wisp and Snake by Hendrich, Hermann (b.1856)

    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 musical styles. Songs featured in this episode, in order:

    Also in this episode, a narration of The Fifolet by Johnette Downing, about the Louisiana swamp fire spirit, and a Music Memory from Tom Stagg.

    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!

    [dt_sc_button type=”with-icon” link=”https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/confetti-park/id979442391?mt=2″ size=”medium” target=”_blank”]Subscribe on iTunes[/dt_sc_button]

    The radio program version launched on April 4, 2015 in New Orleans on WHIV FM and 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.

     

  • Storytime: The Fifolet by Johnette Downing

    Storytime: The Fifolet by Johnette Downing

    The Fifolet by Johnette Downing
    The Fifolet by Johnette Downing

    In this edition of Confetti Park, we have a very special reading by Louisiana children’s author Johnette Downing. This is a narration of her new book, The Fifolet.

    The fifolet (or feufollet) is a very spooky Louisiana legend that appears frequently in Cajun and Houmas Indian folklore. The say that the fifolet are swamp spirits making lights deep in the swamps……  Great big eerie balls of light, that seem to float above the water, and beckon the watcher to follow! Interestingly, this kind of legend appears not just Louisiana culture, but around the world. (Ever heard of the will o’ the wisps in Europe or ghost lights in Japan?)

    Different explanations blame supernatural spirits, or mischievous elves and fairies, or even the lost souls  of pirates guarding lost treasures in the swamp. And some people say it’s nothing but phosphorescent swamp gas making the blue fire.

    In her book, which was illustrated by Jennifer Lindsley, Johnette Downing tells about the fifolet through the experience of fisherman Jean-Paul Pierre, who has his heart set on finding the fifolet’s buried treasure.

    “Through cypress trees and beards of moss, there is a fire spirit that you never want to cross. It will tease you and coax you and draw you near, but all the Cajuns know that you better beware.”

    Worth noting is that the music to this story was also written and performed by Johnette. The music is actually from a song about another swamp creature known in Louisiana: the loup garoup, featured on her CD From the Gumbo Pot.