Art and music appreciation is a part of education that is easy to implement, and which will reap rewards far beyond the years of K-12. Ambleside Online and other curriculums inspired by Charlotte Mason provide detailed selections of some of the most important and beautiful works in Western musical canon.
In addition to such selections, our family attempts to incorporate Chinese music. I have no training in music myself, and knew nothing of traditional Chinese music prior to homeschooling my own children. This is my fumbling attempt to enjoy and share with my children a taste of Chinese music.
This list will be updated irregularly as we expand our own education. Unlike lists of Western music organized by composers, I have decided in my limited knowledge to organize by genre or instruments. The most recent music we incorporated will be at the top of the list, and as you scroll down will be music that we have done in the past. I have attempted to link to videos that we used, but since things change quickly I cannot guarantee that links stay current.
Last updated August 2025.
鼓 Drum (Youtube playlist)
- 龍騰虎躍
- 牛鬥虎
- 赤壁戰鼓
- 赤煉組曲
- 飛沫 SHI-BU-KI (This is actually a Japanese piece, but was too impressive to pass up)
古箏 Guzheng (Wikipedia)
笛子 Chinese Flute (Wikipedia) (Youtube playlist)
- 鷓鴣飛 Flying Partridges
- 今昔 Today and Yesterday
- 小放牛 Little Cowherd
- 江南春 South Yangtze in the Spring Time
- 梅花三弄 Plum Blossoms, Three Varieties
- 歡樂歌 Song of Joy
中樂團 交響曲 Chinese orchestra music (Wikipedia)
(I purchased a CD on Amazon)
- 春江花月夜 Moonlight Over Spring River
- 花好月圓 Full Moon and Blossoming Flower
- 二泉映月 Reflection of the Moon on the Water
- 秦.兵馬俑幻想曲 The Terra Cotta Warriors Fantasia
- 十面埋伏 Ambush from All Sides
- 梁山伯與祝英台 The Butterfly Lovers
琵琶 Pipa (Wikipedia)
(I purchased a digital album on Amazon, but all music should be easily available on Youtube.)
- 夕陽簫鼓
- 昭君出塞
- 大浪淘沙
- 陳杏元和番 (Optional replacement: 十面埋伏)
- 飛花點翠
- 霸王卸甲
琴 Guqin (Wikipedia)
- 流水 Flowing Water (link) (See story of music here. Earliest existing score dates from the Ming Dynasty, 1425.)
- 梅花三弄 Plum Blossoms, Three Variations (link)
- 陽關三疊 Three Refrains of Farewell at Yang Pass (link)
- 漁樵問答 Dialogue of Fisherman and Woodsman (link)
- 胡笳十八拍 Eighteen Tunes of a Nomad Flute (link)
- 廣陵散 (link)
- (Optional) 平沙落雁 Wild Geese Landing on the Sand
- (Optional) 陽春白雪 White Snow in Spring Sunshine
江南絲竹 Jiangnan Music (turn of the 20th century) (Wikipedia)