Cathy Bollinger

Singer-songwriter Cathy Bollinger has been working with children through music for more than 20 years. Beloved by her young audience, she holds songwriting workshops, practices music therapy and performs.

Bollinger responds to the requests she receives and is now available for freelance work, performances, teacher inservices, parent and homeschool workshops, and school performances. She has been commissioned to write and sing children’s music for a variety of projects, including:

• promotional song for the island of St. Thomas;
• promotional jingle for Piedmont Virginia Community College;
• songs and sounds to help Chinese students learn English;
• songs supporting children’s learning to read, write and build social skills;
• songs emphasizing sounds and words used specifically in speech therapy.

Bollinger received her Master of Arts in Creative Arts Therapy from Drexel University College of Medicine (formerly Hahnemann Medical School) in Pennsylvania, and can often be found in the classroom, singing with preschool and elementary audiences. Ready to Learn! is her ninth CD.

Cathy Bollinger lives in Charlottesville, Virginia, with her husband, Bob and children Will and Kate. Older son Ross is attending school in New York at the School of Visual Arts.

Email Cathy at cathy@rivannamusic.com

Elly Tucker

Elly has worked with children her entire adult life, She received her Masters in School Counseling from The University of Virginia. She served as County Extension Agent with the 4-H Program and then as an Elementary School Counselor and most recently as a Career Counselor at University of Virginia.

Elly now serves as Marketing Director for Rivanna Music and is committed to providing customers with great children’s music and easy access to information about the company’s products and services. Elly loves performing in local musical productions and community choirs.

Elly and her husband, Bill, live in Albemarle County VA with their son, Josh. Their daughter Dory is just beginning her Masters of Education at UVA.

Email Elly at elly@rivannamusic.com

Elly and Cathy began working together in 2004, on MY TURN YOUR TURN when Cathy contacted Elly for consultation on children’s developmental issues and social skills issues. They both really enjoy collaborating, and their work is infused with good humor as well as the understanding of the importance of using music to facilitate children’s learning of important concepts.

Cathy’s knowledge of music therapy mixed with Elly’s background in developmental issues with children, allowed them to recognize the importance of incorporating certain goals, in using music to help children learn various skills:

• Songs and rhymes are written in a friendly upbeat way,
• That they use repetition of sounds (alliteration) and words for supporting maximum reinforcement of concepts
• Use Multisensory Interactivites for learning in variety of ways.
• Utilize variety of styles and instrumentation for student with learning disabilities and for traditional learners.
• They provide clear images of concepts.
• That we make available written lyrics to visually reinforce key points.
• That the songs ask questions in a way that helps the child gain confidence.
• Repeat or re-word concepts and issues.
• Frequently offer variety of examples from real-life situations.
• Use music to teach and reinforce important ideas.
• Have practice exercises available for lessons, in case the student has problems with cerain concepts.
• Have students with learning disabilities vary their approach to learning using music
• Pace instruction carefully to ensure clarity, using variety of rhythms and instrumentation
• Provides and teaches memory associations (mnemonic strategies).
• Supports one modality of presentation by following it with instruction and then use another modality.
• Sings and speaks distinctly and at rates that a student with learning and processing difficulties can follow.
• Uses plenty of examples, musical and movement, in order to make topics more applicable.
• Presents concepts logically, one at a time
• Encourages students to work with others , if possible to increase social reinforcement
• Incorporates cross-age presentations and voices for modeling purposes

Contacting Rivanna Music:

email: info@rivannamusic.com

phone: 434-293-7531
toll free phone: 1-800-765-0195
fax: 434-297-1614

P.O. 6541
Charlottesville, VA 22906