Review by Booklist Review
When Guido d'Arezzo, an Italian Benedictine monk in the eleventh century, wasn't studying music, he worked in the monastery's library. Learning music was hard, and it took d'Arezzo years to memorize and master complicated hymns and harmonies. What if music could be written down and read like words in a book, the monk wondered? This informational picture book reveals how d'Arezzo revolutionized music by taking the first syllable from each line of a hymn and creating corresponding notes--small squares that rose across the page like steps. Although fellow monks were dismissive, Bishop Theodald welcomed this new method and invited d'Arezzo to teach it to his cathedral singers. Gentle yet expressive illustrations pay tribute to these accomplishments with square patterns, illuminated manuscripts, and other cultural details from the time period. More fitting authors for this story couldn't be found, as Andrews is perhaps best known for her rendition of "Do-Re-Mi" in the film The Sound of Music and Hamilton is Andrews' daughter and longtime collaborator. They continue the uplifting tale with the eventual transition of Guido's square notes to oval shapes and changes to the Solfège scale's wording. An illustrated version of "Do-Re-Mi" follows, allowing children to learn it or sing along. Plentiful back matter, including notes on Rodgers and Hammerstein and d'Arezzo's abbey life, add fascinating details. Note-able, indeed!
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Musical theater tie-ins and a moving underdog story couch an introduction to music theory in this picture book about Benedictine monk Guido d'Arezzo (c. 990--1050). From his youth in a monastery school, Guido "heard music everywhere," from the chiming chapel bells to the "buzz and hum of bees and crickets." Pondering an easier way to teach, the maturing student, who wonders why music couldn't be written and read, invents a system of musical notation, only to clash with closed-minded teachers. By turns excited, heavyhearted, amazed, and grateful, Guido perseveres, and his "revolutionary ideas" spread throughout medieval Europe--reaching forward to today. Andrews and Hamilton's step-by-step prose, and Fedele's colored pencil, gouache, and watercolor illustrations of vibrant Italian landscapes and expressive, white-cued figures successfully combine to evoke strong emotions around Guido's eventual success. Back matter includes a creator's note and glossary. Ages 4--8. (Nov.)
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Review by Kirkus Book Review
Actor Andrews and her daughter Walton Hamilton offer an account of the 11th-century monk who invented Solfège, which in turn became the modern system of musical staff notation. Introducing Guido d'Arezzo as a small boy in Pomposa, Italy, the writers gracefully weave in details about his education in the monastery and the sounds that surrounded him. Finding it hard to memorize the hymns, he devised a notation system to make learning easier, using the six syllables that began the lines of a familiar hymn ("ut," "re," "mi," "fa," "sol," "la"). Though his teachers dismissed his ideas, he drew on them when he trained the choir at the cathedral of Arezzo, and his methods proved so successful he was invited to Rome by the pope. The book concludes by explaining that Guido's notes changed over time; "ut" became "do," and the seventh note, "ti," was added later. This leads smoothly into illustrated scenes of monastery life accompanied by the lyrics of the Rodgers and Hammerstein song made famous by Andrews' performance in the film version of their musical The Sound of Music. Fedele's playful art, done in watercolor, gouache, and colored pencil, expresses contrasting moods beautifully and adds context. Extensive backmatter makes this useful for an even older audience. Even libraries still owning Susan Roth's Do, Re, Mi (2007) will want this richer depiction. The characters present as White. (This book was reviewed digitally.) A charming collaboration that strikes just the right notes. (note about the song, glossary, details on Guido's life in the abbey, information on the Guidonian Hand, historical note) (Informational picture book. 6-10) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
