Welcome to Music Podcast

Susie Davies-Splitter
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My name is Susie Davies-Splitter and I have been teaching music to all ages in Early Childhood, schools and Universities over many years. With my husband, Phil, we run ‘Welcome to Music’ where we create music resources, have a membership community and present training and programs for kids and educators. Our goal is to help build confidence and creativity and enrich lives through the joy of music. Follow my journey as I have begun a new music teaching position this year in a local primary school just around the corner from our house in Melbourne, Australia for 5-11 year olds. I hope that this podcast can support and inspire you and maybe even make your job a little easier through sharing tips, chats, lesson plans, interviews and great quality music resources to use with your children. I use an inclusive, multi-modal, multi-sensory and Orff-based approach to help make the learning stick. Please enjoy the Welcome to Music teacher podcast and find us at welcometomusic.net

  1. Ep. 29 - Interview with Bill Henry, founder of the YouTube channel, Mr. Henry’s Music World – Part 2

    08/18/2025

    Ep. 29 - Interview with Bill Henry, founder of the YouTube channel, Mr. Henry’s Music World – Part 2

    Thanks for joining us for Episode 29 of the Welcome to Music Podcast! In this episode, Susie continues her chat with the incredibly creative and dedicated Bill Henry — known to many as Mr. Henry — a full-time elementary music educator based in the U.S. Bill shares how he balances his busy teaching schedule with a thriving creative life, rising at 4am each day to dedicate three solid hours to producing engaging music education content. Using tools like Logic Pro and Final Cut Pro, Bill crafts fun and educational videos for his popular YouTube channel, Mr. Henry’s Music World, and talks us through some of his personal favorites. We also dive into his top-rated Music Podcast for Kids — a brilliant resource for classroom use or for when you have a substitute teacher — as well as his recorder, ukulele, and piano programs designed specifically for young learners. This episode is full of practical inspiration for music teachers everywhere! To view the blog notes for this episode, click here!

    32 min
  2. Ep. 28 - Interview with Bill Henry, founder of the YouTube channel, Mr. Henry’s Music World – Part 1

    08/01/2025

    Ep. 28 - Interview with Bill Henry, founder of the YouTube channel, Mr. Henry’s Music World – Part 1

    Thanks for joining us for Episode 28 of the Welcome to Music Podcast! In this episode, Susie chats with the incredibly creative and dedicated Bill Henry — known to many as Mr. Henry — a full-time elementary music educator based in the U.S. Bill shares how he balances his busy teaching schedule with a thriving creative life, rising at 4am each day to dedicate three solid hours to producing engaging music education content. Using tools like Logic Pro and Final Cut Pro, Bill crafts fun and educational videos for his popular YouTube channel, Mr. Henry’s Music World, and talks us through some of his personal favorites. We also dive into his top-rated Music Podcast for Kids — a brilliant resource for classroom use or for when you have a substitute teacher — as well as his recorder, ukulele, and piano programs designed specifically for young learners. This episode is full of practical inspiration for music teachers everywhere! To view the blog notes for this episode, click here!

    34 min
  3. Ep. 27 - Interview with Stacy Werner, Education Director of Musicplay Online & Carey-Lyn Gould, CEO of Themes & Variations Inc.

    06/25/2025

    Ep. 27 - Interview with Stacy Werner, Education Director of Musicplay Online & Carey-Lyn Gould, CEO of Themes & Variations Inc.

    Thanks for joining us for Episode 27 of the Welcome to Music Podcast! In this episode, Susie chats with Stacy Werner (Education Director for Musicplay Online MPO) and Carey-Lyn Gould (CEO of Themes & Variations Inc.)  Join us for an inspiring conversation as Stacy and Carey-Lyn share their journey into MusicPlayOnline — the widely loved Canadian-American digital platform for elementary music educators — and how they stepped into leadership following the unexpected passing of founder Denise Gagne. They reflect on continuing Denise’s legacy, their commitment to music advocacy, the creation of the Denise Gagne Memorial Society Fund, and their vision for the future. You'll also hear about upcoming events, about MPO’s 10th Anniversary, and their favourite teaching resources. Don’t miss this heartfelt and insightful episode and receive a one-month FREE subscription to MusicPlayOnline (instructions on the blog notes - link below)!  To view the blog notes for this episode, click here!

    54 min
  4. Ep. 26 - Interview with Special Guest Bryson Tarbet

    06/12/2025

    Ep. 26 - Interview with Special Guest Bryson Tarbet

    Thanks for joining us for Episode 26 of the Welcome to Music Podcast! In this episode, Susie chats with Bryson Tarbet — passionate music educator, founder of That Music Teacher, and creator of the Elementary Music Summit in the USA. Bryson is dedicated to creating more accessible music classrooms, drawing on his own experience as a neurodiverse individual. Much of his work centres around supporting teachers through professional development and coaching, particularly in building systems that simplify lesson planning, unpack pedagogical concepts from repertoire, and bring more joy to both teaching and learning. This inspiring conversation follows Bryson’s professional journey and how it led him to working full-time in his business. He shares practical strategies for making classrooms more inclusive — from offering noise-cancelling headphones and fidgets, to being mindful of environmental factors like fluorescent lighting. Bryson also highlights valuable resources including the Purposeful Pathways series by Beth Ann Hepburn and Roger Sams, a lesson plan template, and a free Music Without Barriers Guide for inclusive teaching. Plus, he gives us a sneak peek into the upcoming Elementary Music Summit — a five-day online professional learning event for music educators happening in mid-July. And excitingly, Susie will be presenting a session at the Summit titled Sing It, Say It, Dance It, Play It — an Orff-based approach that integrates speech, song, story, body percussion, movement, and percussion instruments. More details coming soon! You won’t want to miss this inspiring and insightful episode — it’s full of practical ideas you can use right away in your music classroom.   Go to welcometomusicpodcast.net/ to listen to the podcast and find a summary as part of the blog. You can also find the podcast on Apple Music, Spotify and the streaming services. To view the blog notes for this episode, click here!

    59 min
  5. Ep. 25 - Call and Response Songs, Part 3

    06/02/2025

    Ep. 25 - Call and Response Songs, Part 3

    Join Susie for Episode 25 as she shares ‘Call and Response Songs – Part 3’ with three more fabulous pieces for a range of ages up to 12 years. Here we go Zoodio - A traditional African American street song, line and partner dance. Arranged and recorded by Susie and Phil and suitable for 5-10 yearsNdinani Na - A bright and simple African call and response song that originates from Zimbabwe, Africa. It has simple vocal harmonies, encourages vocal improvisation and has a percussion arrangement. Arranged and recorded by Susie and Phil and suitable for all agesTideo is a lively, engaging call-and-response, action song and dance with two different versions that can be adapted for various age groups. It combines singing, movement, and instrumental play, making it a versatile learning tool for rhythm, coordination, and musical expression. Arranged and recorded by Susie and Phil and suitable for 3-10 years A call and response song is where a leader sings the call, and the group answer with a response which is usually the same or may have 2 slightly different responses. The call is usually different and often improvised. This follows the ‘Suite of Songs’ journey which includes echo and cumulative songs, call and response songs and will be continued with partner songs and rounds. Songs that use these various techniques provide an inclusive setting allowing kids to have instant success, sing immediately (echo and call and response songs), easily dive into instant harmony with rounds and partner songs making singing in the classroom, in the choir and anywhere a great joy. Go to welcometomusicpodcast.net/ to listen to the podcast and find a summary as part of the blog. You can also find the podcast on Apple Music, Spotify and the streaming services.  To view the blog notes for this episode, click here!

    37 min
  6. Ep. 24 - Call and Response Songs, Part 2

    05/21/2025

    Ep. 24 - Call and Response Songs, Part 2

    Join Susie for Episode 24 as she shares ‘Call and Response Songs – Part 2’ with four more fabulous pieces for a range of ages up to 12 years: ‘Rise Sally Rise’ - a traditional African-American playground song‘Jaws’ – story song with actions inspired by Baby Shark‘Old McDonald had a Band’ – traditional song that encourages instrumental exploration‘Sing to the Heavens Above’ - uplifting gospel-style song by Susie & Phil A call and response song is where a leader sings the call, and the group answer with a response which is usually the same or may have 2 slightly different responses. The call is usually different and often improvised.This follows the ‘Suite of Songs’ journey which includes echo and cumulative songs, call and response songs and will be continued with partner songs and rounds. Songs that use these various techniques provide an inclusive setting allowing kids to have instant success, sing immediately (echo and call and response songs), easily dive into instant harmony with rounds and partner songs making singing in the classroom, in the choir and anywhere a great joy. Go to welcometomusicpodcast.net/ to listen to the podcast and find a summary as part of the blog. You can also find the podcast on Apple Music, Spotify and the streaming services.  For the blog & podcast notes for this episode, click here!

    31 min
  7. Ep. 23 - Call and Response Songs, Part 1

    05/06/2025

    Ep. 23 - Call and Response Songs, Part 1

    A huge welcome to Episode 23 of the Welcome to Music podcast – Call and Response Songs for the Primary/Elementary School. In this Episode 23 and the next 2 Episodes 24 & 25 (Parts 1-3), I will be continuing the ‘Suite of Songs’ journey. Episode 18 is ‘Echo Songs’ and Episodes 19 and 20 ‘Cumulative Songs’. Then the journey will continue with partner songs and rounds. Songs that use these various techniques provide an inclusive setting allowing kids to sing immediately (echo and call and response songs) and easily dive into instant harmony with rounds and partner songs. Cumulative songs also bring lots of fun into the classroom with songs building and becoming longer and more complex where memory, concentration and language skills are developed. A call and response song is where a leader sings the call, and the group answer with a response which is usually the same or may have 2 slightly different responses. The call is usually different and often improvised. All of these various song techniques that bring immediate engagement and success combine to make singing in the classroom, in the choir and anywhere a great joy.   Go to welcometomusicpodcast.net to listen to the podcast and find a summary as part of the blog. You can also find the podcast on Apple Music, Spotify and the streaming services. To access all the extras such as music notation, harmonies, ukulele, recorder and percussion parts, join our Welcome to Music Membership welcometomusic.podia.com To read the blog notes for this episode, click here.

    41 min
  8. Ep. 22 - Indigenous Music Perspectives, Part 2

    04/22/2025

    Ep. 22 - Indigenous Music Perspectives, Part 2

    A huge welcome to Episode 22 of the Welcome to Music podcast – a continuation of –Indigenous Music Perspectives – Part 2. If you haven’t already, make sure you listen to Episode 21 for Part 1, suitable for 4 – 12 years -- click here!   Go to welcometomusicpodcast.net/ to listen to the podcast and find a summary as part of the blog. You can also find the podcast on Apple Music, Spotify and the streaming services.  To be able to access a 2 hour video and receive a PD certificate that addresses the AITSL - Australian Professional Standards for Teachers plus all accompanying teacher notes, music notation, harmonies, percussion, recorder, ukulele and keyboard arrangements for four indigenous songs join our Welcome to Music Membership at welcometomusic.podia.com  For the blog & podcast notes for this episode, click here!

    37 min
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About

My name is Susie Davies-Splitter and I have been teaching music to all ages in Early Childhood, schools and Universities over many years. With my husband, Phil, we run ‘Welcome to Music’ where we create music resources, have a membership community and present training and programs for kids and educators. Our goal is to help build confidence and creativity and enrich lives through the joy of music. Follow my journey as I have begun a new music teaching position this year in a local primary school just around the corner from our house in Melbourne, Australia for 5-11 year olds. I hope that this podcast can support and inspire you and maybe even make your job a little easier through sharing tips, chats, lesson plans, interviews and great quality music resources to use with your children. I use an inclusive, multi-modal, multi-sensory and Orff-based approach to help make the learning stick. Please enjoy the Welcome to Music teacher podcast and find us at welcometomusic.net

Information

  • Creator
    Susie Davies-Splitter
  • Years Active
    2023 - 2025
  • Episodes
    30
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Copyright 2026 Welcome to Music Podcast
  • Show Website
    Welcome to Music Podcast