Once upon a time, there was a string quartet who loved to play music together. The first violinist played legato, which meant he played smoothly and connected all the notes. The second violinist played staccato, which meant she played short and detached notes. The violist played pizzicato, which meant she plucked the strings instead of playing with the bow. And the cellist played vibrato, which added a beautiful wavering sound to his notes.

One day, they received an invitation to perform a piece from their libretto at the local theater. They practiced the song moderato, which meant at a moderate pace. But when they got on stage, they became so excited that they started playing presto, which meant very fast! Suddenly, the music became too fast for the libretto and the quartet got lost.

Just then, a fairy appeared and said "Play molto, play with much expression and feeling." And so they did, and the music became beautiful once again. They all played together, each adding their own special touch, and the audience was enchanted. From that day on, the quartet always remembered to play with molto expression and never got lost in the music again.

The end.

Reflections

1. What is the meaning of each musical term used in the story (legato, libretto, moderato, etc.)?
2. How did the fairy help the quartet play the music correctly?
3. Why was the audience enchanted by the quartet's performance at the end of the story?
4. Can you think of a time when you felt like you were lost in something, but then found your way again?
5. What do you think the fairy symbolizes in the story?