Mozart's Effect

Does listening to Mozart make you smarter? Well, the "Mozart Effect," as it's been called, has been studied and debated ever since the notion came out in the late 1990s. And while many agree that just simply listening to Mozart won't necessarily make you smarter, we feel that learning, studying, and listening to classical music is definitely a worthwhile experience. And Mozart's effect on music itself is his true legacy.

The song "Mozart's Effect" presents a medley of sorts that brings together snippets of five different Mozart compositions – the overture from The Marriage Of Figaro; Piano Sonata, No. 16 (first movement); Concerto For Flute And Harp (second movement); Eine Kleine Nachtmusik (first movement); and Symphony No. 40 in G minor (first movement). These titles are noted in the piano/vocal score so that you know where each piece is referenced. You could explore any or all of the works with your students and try to pick out the specific melodies used for this song. For that matter, you could listen to any of Mozart's over 600 major works and be astonished by his genius.

The melody is fairly easy to learn and is unison throughout. Our recorded accompaniment features a full orchestra complete with strings, woodwinds, brass, harp, timpani, and piano. It's very similar to the instrumentation found in many of Mozart's works.

Interested in studying other classical music composers? We have several to choose from: "The Chopin Etude" (Vol. 20, No. 4), "The Liszt Rhapsody" (Vol. 22, No. 1), "Mr. Debussy" (Vol. 23, No. 1), "A Lullaby For Brahms" (Vol. 27, No. 4), "Scott Joplin's Solace" (Vol. 29, No. 1), "Meet Clara Schumann" (Vol. 33, No. 4), and "Planet Holst" (Vol. 35, No. 1). We have also featured Mozart many times in Music K-8 magazine over the years: "Eine Kleine Kazoo Musik" (Vol. 6, No. 2), "Penguins Are Lousy Bowlers" (Vol. 16, No. 3), "A Little Recorder Music" (Vol. 16, No. 3), "Mozart's Symphony For Handbells And Triangles" (Vol. 32, No. 1), and "Mozart's Sleigh Ride" (Vol. 34, No. 2).