Loose Leaf Notes

-The following first appeared in The Floyd Press on December 7, 2017.

Kari Thomas Kovick’s new CD, “It’s You I Like,” delivers just the right mix of playful fun and positive messages to foster inner-resiliency in children. Produced by Ken Whitely –  a multi-instrumentalist, producer, composer and performer from Toronto –  the CD features Kovick’s melodious voice and the voices of children who attend her Heart of the Child music programs at The Floyd Country Store, Blue Mountain School and Floyd Elementary School.

The children’s voices were recorded at Luke Thomas’s (Kovick’s nephew) Music Road Studio in Floyd. Kovick traveled back and forth twice to record other parts of the CD at Whiteley’s studio in Toronto, where a symphony of instruments animated the songs with horns, train whistles, hand drums, swirling violins sound effects and more.

The CD cover was designed by Floyd’s Katie Lu Philips of Venture Out and incorporates self-portraits by Floyd Elementary and Blue Mountain School students.  The tracks open with Howdjadoo by Woody Guthrie and close with Calm Down, which could be described as a guided mediation for children. The majority of songs (18 in total) come from The Children’s Music Network, a community of musicians that celebrates the positive power of music in the lives of children by sharing songs, exchanging ideas and creating community.

Several of Kovick’s original songs are also featured in the collection, including “On and On,” which was written during the local recording of “Peace by Peace,” a CD collection of songs performed by Kovick and her students as a fundraiser for two local families with children fighting cancer. When one of the children died during project, Kovick expressed her grief through music. …  “Life comes up / Life lays low / and all the time between is when we grow / and as we grow/ this we know / it all goes on…”

There are interactive songs and a bossa nova-inspired number where the older children in Kovick’s music class sing verses. “… There’s so many ways to be smart … with your hands, your feet and your heart…”  The song “When I Feel Mad” rocks and rolls to the electric guitar of Dave Fason as Kovick and the children sing out. “…I stomp my feet … I might just shout … but I don’t have to hurt anyone to let my feelings out … I use my words and words are strong… I can tell somebody what is wrong…”

The CD’s title song, “It’s You I Like” by Fred Rogers, plays like a lullaby and showcases Kovick’s vocals, which are accompanied by the piano, played by Canadian studio musician John Sheard.  Producer Ken Whiteley provided instrumentation throughout the CD, including, guitar, mandolin, banjo, piano, ukulele, autoharp, bubble wrap, a red-backed boinger and more.

“Hey, whaddaya say we walk like bears. Let’s talk like bears … growl… Shall we take a train? … Here comes one…We missed it!”   “The Bear Missed the Train” is a jazzy uproar of horns, whistles and voices.  At Kovick’s recent CD Release Party at The Floyd Country Store, she performed “The Bear Missed the Train” with a group of children, stomping like bears and swinging like monkeys up and down the aisles of the venue, to the delight of the audience.

For the CD Release Party, Kovick enlisted the talents of local musicians, some of whom appeared on the CD, including her husband luthier/musician Michael Kovick.  Many of the children who sang on the CD also sang with Kovick at the Country Store event. A rug center stage on the dance floor provided a welcoming space for the young children who couldn’t resist getting in on the fun.

The CD Release Party was a celebration of song and community that not only showcased Kovick’s new CD, but also showcased her long standing easy rapport with the children of the community.  She’s been sharing her engaging music programs with local children for seventeen years. “These are everyone’s songs.  Every one of you is a star,” said Kovick at the Release Party, encouraging the audience to raise their voices in song.

Note: “It’s You I Like” is available at The Floyd Country Store, online at heartofthechildmusic.com and directly from Kari at her Friday morning Baby Beats and Joy Jammers classes at The Floyd Country Store.  Because the company that manufactured the CDs sent Kovick a off-color first batch, they re-did the CDs but let her keep the originals, which Kovick plans to use to send to places that are experiencing trauma. “If they are in a hurricane shelter or a city where something scary or sad has happened, I think our voices might connect them to the good feelings we have in our Floyd community when we make this kind of music together. I think it’s quite possible that our singing can help them feel better inside, and less alone,” she said.  – Colleen Redman  / Our World Tuesday