SUMMER 2009

That’s what we say in Chicago, anyway.  Hope the weather is a bit more predictable where you are, or is that a thing of the past?  We survived early summer storms and are now enduring a blistering heat…. but it’s not snowing, so…

In a week I’ll be in Nantucket to vist with my good friend Mollie and her family and make some music on the island!  I am very much looking forward to running into old friends, making new friends in my toddler music classes, and meeting all the new babies from the past year.  You can check out my Nantucket schedule by visiting the website for NCMC, the organization that is sponsoring my visit (http://www.nantucketschoolofmusic.org/files/SUMMER_PROGRAMS_2009.pdf).

I hope to promote “Songs In the Key of Chai” in a bigger way this fall and will begin working on “Come and Make a Circle 3.”  If you haven’t heard, “Songs In the Key of Chai” is oldish, newish and mostly Jewish songsfor all families released at the very end of 2008.  Daughter Hope painted the front cover; younger daughter Hannah took the photo of me on the back cover; husband Jay co-wrote the exquisite song I Should Like (The Gaze of God).  The recording is dedicated to the memory of my parents and in honor of my stepmother, Margot.  I like to think of it as the kind of CD with songs that remind you of and make you feel good about the things you hold dear — family, faith, tolerance, peace-making, and the joy of celebrating holidays with those you love.  Let me know what you think — it is a very personal album. 

I’ve got a handful of concerts in and around Chicago this summer and a bunch of birthday parties where I’ll do my best to get everyone, and I mean everyone, singing and dancing.  (How else can we expect our children to sing and dance?)  My family is off to the glorious beaches of North Caroline in August and Hope will be traveling to Copenhagen for her fall semester, lucky girl.  In September I’ll be back at my regular weekday teaching gigs and full of gratitude for the work.  

I will have some open times on Thursdays for “Cryin’ Out Loud Music Classes,” so if you’re a new mom and have 6 or 7 friends with babies looking to have a good time, give me a call to book an 8- or 10-week session IN YOUR LIVING ROOM!  That’s right, you do the phone work and I’ll do the leg work getting to you with instruments, scarves, and assorted other fun things to keep everyone busy and entertained.  (That’s a particularly sweet deal during the winter, don’t you think?)

More to come….

Hello friends! I just wanted everyone to know about this campaign to protect the hearing of young children. I took the pledge. Won’t you take it too? Click on the badge for more information.

I’ve collected every Jewish (and almost Jewish) song I’ve ever recorded PLUS six new songs. Family favorites inlcude “Joshua Fit the Battle,” “Tumbalalaika,” “Zum Gali Gali” and “Fine Finkelstein.” There are songs for Hanukah (”One Little Hanukah Candle” and “In the Window”), Shabbat (”Shabbat Shalom Call & Response” and “Shehechianu”) and even Yom Kippur (”I’m Sorry”), in addition to songs about important values we all hold dear (”I’ve Got Peace In My Fingers” and “Eili Eili”). I’ve also included one of my all-time favorite songs, “I Should Like,” composed by my husband Jay Rehak and our dear friend Mollie Glazer.

Proceeds from Songs In The Key of Chai will support the Lakeview Family Center’s Capital Campaign in their effort to build a state of the art preschool in the heart of the Chicago. My daughters attended this preschool and I have taught music there for over fifteen years and have loved every minute of it! Thanks to Jean, Debbie and the beautiful children from the Center who join me on several of the new tunes.

You can order Songs In The Key of Chai today with a credit card at this website. Orders will go out December 8, 2008. Beginning in January, the album will also be available through CD Baby, Amazon.com and Apple iTunes.

Wishing you peace, good health, laughter, and all the blessings of the season…

Susan

November 12, 2008

Jay and I have been having a blast making home movies for many of my songs and then tracking their “hits” on YouTube, GodTube and TeacherTube.  Very cool.  Here are the links for the videos we’ve posted so far:

One Potato, Two Potato    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b3GnUbND2K0

The Month Song    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C9O0_GhNvCc

I’ve Got Peace In My Fingers    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5UhXG2Sk1l8

Five Little Turkeys    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KJL4BHQsqf4

Give Me a Little Beso    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z1-7xfT69u0

November 5, 2008

Change for the better, don’t you think?

What a great morning to wake up in Chicago, in this country, in the world!  So proud to be a part of the positive, progressive change in our government.  Congratulations, America!

Interested in an alternative “Pledge”?  My husband Jay wrote a poem a few years ago entitled “I Pledge Allegiance to the Earth” for which I recently composed music.  If you’re interested in hearing it and seeing me perform it in one of our home movies, click on this link:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tzJoEWsMXsY.  Let us know what you think!

I’ll entertain children and adults for 45 minutes with both traditional and original songs that will delight revelers of all ages.  Call me to check availability at 773-271-5568 or email me at ssalidor@aol.com.  Booking includes a free Susan salidor CD!  (Ask about discounted CDs for party favors.)

How about a family concert?  With the holidays approaching, I’ll come and sing songs of the season with you and those you hold dear.  Home concerts are a great gift to your family and I’m happy to create the perfect show based on your requests if I can.  I have a few weekend dates left in November and December, so call soon.

Hello Friends,

As I sit here typing a brand new greeting at the start of a brand new school year, I am reflecting on the last few months since my last update.  In spite of some personal sadness, my family and I were able to make our annual pilgrimage to Ocean Isle Beach in beautiful North Carolina in August.  We have been enjoying the warm waters of the Atlantic for over 15 years, and even though the erosion has changed the shape of our island, nothing seems to keep us from relishing those long summer days swimming in the ocean, catching a sea turtle hatching, kayaking in the Intercoastal Waterways, or spotting pelicans, herons, alligators and foxes.  Ocean Isle Beach is a little bit of paradise that we cherish.

In early July my father passed away after a long illness.  Jay and Hannah were determined to take me to one of my favorite places, Nantucket, to “recuperate” after the memorial service.  Our friends Mollie and Skip once again hosted our family and even though my work was canceled for the year, we were able to enjoy a week of beauty, fun and exercise on that ‘faraway isle’ off the coast of Massachusetts.    I very much look forward to a visit in the spring (!) and another next summer for the usual round of toddler music classes and concerts with Mollie. 

The fall season is filled with cantoring opportunities as well as as concerts, music classes and birthday parties throughout the Chicago area.  I hope to see you at one of these events!  Also, I am about to begin work in earnest on a new CD I’ve been promising for the last year.  Check back in a month or so to read about its progress — I’ve got lots of new songs and want to share them with you!

Hope to see some of you at the Children’s Music Network conference the weekend of September 19-21, 2008 in Zion, IL.  If you don’t know about this organization, google them on the web and become a member so you can be a part of an invaluable list serve.

YouTube Videos:  Next time you are visiting YouTube search for my name and see what my hubby Jay has been creating:  Home movies to my original songs!  You’ll find “Give Me a Little Beso,” “The Month Song,” “Tap Your Toe and Follow Me,” and by the time you read this, “One Potato, Two Potato” (the silliest of them all) will be posted.  Let us know what you think.  We are having a blast making them and hope you enjoy them. 

Adult Music and Voices In Wartime:  I’ve recently recorded “Eli Eli” by the poet/WWII freedom fighter Hannah Senesh for the site Voices In Wartime (http://blog.voicesinwartime.org/2008/09/eli-eli-by-hannah-szenes.html).  You’ll want to visit this important website to deepen your understanding of the toll war takes on the men and women we ask to fight in our name.  It is an honor to be associated with these voices of suffering, compassion and resistance during the current insanity that has befallen our great country.  Let me know what you think.

I hope to make music with you soon!

Susan S.xo

My husband Jay is making slide shows to accompany some of my original tunes (search for “Susan Salidor” on YouTube and you can view Give Me a Little Beso and a live clip from my 2007 Hanukah show) and needs pictures of people (preferably you and your family members) kissing!   Please send your pictures to me at ssalidor@aol.com with your permission to use them and Jay will continue to create new versions of Beso.  Thanks!

  Kristen & Andrew

For many years, I taught first grade, and we would sing the songs on your “By Heart” CD over and over again! My all time favorite song on that CD is “What Is Peace to You?” Each year our class would make a wonderful class book on “What is Peace to You?” with the children writing about their personal ideas on peace. We’d sing along with your CD and incorporate the children’s ideas into your song just as those little voices sing out on your recorded version. Since 2001, I have faithfully sung your song of peace with many, many children. Your song is like a promise that brings hope to all of our lives! Thank you for your great gifts and for touching so many lives with such meaningful messages! May every child’s heart, mind, and spirit be blessed with a Susan Salidor song!

—Norma O.B., Connecticut teacher
October 2007

Fall 2007

Dear friends,

It’s not every day that I receive a letter like the one above, but in the world of music, young children and the people who love them, sentiments like these are a happy part of my job. I am grateful every day for my work and the children who gift me with their innocence, intelligence, and eagerness to sing, dance and make a joyful sound.

It’s not me, of course, that makes these children wonderful to be around. It’s the nature of childhood and all things sweet and loving. I recently returned from a Children’s Music Network conference in Albany, NY and it turns out that all of the 150+ participants shared similar experiences. We all receive hugs and sloppy kisses on a daily basis from our young students. Parents often credit us with making their children “musical” — a complete fiction, but it’s nice to hear anyway. Children are born singers and dancers and experimenters. Those of us who teach, entertain and record for young children are mere conduits between the children and the music.

The Children’s Music Network, for those of you who don’t know, is a national organization of teachers, performers, and composers who share songs, compare teaching strategies, offer up all sorts of advice from writing material to performing material to recording it to promoting it—you get the picture.

The highlight of the annual conference is the Round Robin during which anybody who wishes to may share a song, traditional or original. This event goes on for hours and hours (no kidding) and is a complete joy to be a part of. If you are in any way involved in the world of children’s music, you’ll want to find out more about the Children’s Music Network. Check out the website at CMNonline.org. Membership is affordable and admits you to the always entertaining and informative list serve.

This fall we saw our firstborn, Hope, off to Oberlin College in Ohio. Her father, sister and I are doing well, but we all miss her a lot. Hope seems happy, and I think she has found a good match for her academic and creative talents.

The 2007-2008 year has me teaching in many private and public venues in and around Chicago with trips to Springfield (IL), Grand Rapids (MI), Memphis (TN), and downstate Illinois for various concerts and teacher music workshops. I hope to return to Nantucket (MA) in the summer for my 11th year to make music with my dear friend Mollie Glazer, now director of the Nantucket School of Music (NCMC)—congratulations, Mollie!

I’d love to come and make music in your neighborhood, so drop me an email (ssalidor@aol.com) or give me a call (773)271-5568 and let’s work something out.

Thanks for visiting my website. If there is a way to improve it, don’t hesitate to write me.

Look for a new children’s CD in 2008 with lots of new original songs and a few covers of traditional favorites, too.

The first 100 people who order CDs from my website will receive a brand new CD produced by members of the Children’s Music Network entitled “Free Prize Inside.” This CD features 15 children’s music artists and is not for sale anywhere. The Children’s Music Network is an organization devoted to all things involving children, music, social justice and education. Check it out at www.cmnonline.org.

Come and Make a Circle 2 is a Parents’ Choice Award Winner for 2006! Read the review and see all the winners of this prestigious award at the Parents’ Choice website. CMC2 has also won a NAPPA award.