A is for Apple ... and Amazing Music for Kids

Aug. 23 and Aug. 25, Keeth Apgar and the Harmonic Pocket presents “A Is For Apple”
Keeth Apgar, his wife Nala Walla, and their touring ensemble offer “Kindie” shows for children ages 2 to 8. This is their first appearance in Northern California.

We reached Apgar earlier this week to talk about music and young children. He and his wife live on an island in Puget Sound with their 2-year-old son, who accompanies them on tour. Apgar, 37, grew up on Long Island and studied ethnomusicology at the University of Mary Washington in Virginia. Nalla Walla, 41, grew up in Queens, went to Dartmouth College and did graduate work at the University of Washington and Gaia University. She’s both a writer and a dancer.

For years, Apgar sang in bars and clubs. And still does. He and Nala Walla fell into the Kindie gig by accident. In 2004, he went to a next-door neighbor to borrow a tool and was asked if he could fill in at a musical event for preschool kids at a nearby school. He agreed on the spot, although neither he nor his wife, then partner, had much experience performing for small children.

Asked how he chooses music genres for small children Apgar replied that he has a completely open mind. “All jazz is kid music. The Beatles. Bob Marley. My approach has been to present thoughtful songs with imaginative lyrics. Obviously, we don’t sing the blues or about sex. But at the same time I try to give kids more credit than the culture does and there’s no question they catch a lot more than we think. And so our shows are multilayered; and I have to say, the material is not trite. In fact, parents should enjoy it as much as kids.”

Apgar went on to explain his approach.

“In general, I know when songs should or shouldn’t go on an album. Mostly, it has less to do with language and more to do with subject and message. But the truth is, when it comes to a subject like death, for example, I haven’t decided how to handle that. Recently, I lost a good friend. My son and I have been talking about that. He’s 2-and-a-half. Just today we were flipping through a book and came upon a picture of a dog that died. “Like Al,” I said. “You know how we can’t see Al anymore.” And he understood.

“I haven’t come up with a song that would be right for a young audience on that subject, but I think it’s an important one and I think it can be done.”

Apgar refers to other songs he’s created that deal with emotional pain and controversial issues. He wrote a song, “One Tree Said,” about forest clear-cutting.

“Living in the northwest we end up going to communities where the economy is, or was, based on logging and is now severely depressed. And we still sing this song, but I often wonder, ‘Who in the room is the lumberjack’s wife? Am I going to go out to the car afterwards and find our tires slit?’ But our purpose is never to argue. We’re not there to rub their faces in misery, and if I feel like we’re getting to a place where people might feel uncomfortable, we pull back.”

Apgar adds that part of the group’s identity is tied to various ‘green messages.’ Since 2006 all their recordings have been produced using solar electricity. They’re always drawing distinctions between natural foods and packaged foods. “It’s all about generating interest in the natural world and encouraging the imagination.”

Regarding imagination, Apgar has a particular animus against not only video games but also shrink-wrapped toys. “Video games are an easy target, but also any of those beeping toys with bad music. That’s painful to me. I’ve told my family, ‘Don’t bring that stuff here. We’re not going to keep it.’ I’m not real strict about a lot of things but that’s something I’m unwilling to do. So much of this culture takes away the space to be creative and allow children to make up their own stories or music.”

Which brought to mind this story:

“We live in a semirural area and one day we needed some sand and so all this sand was dumped in my yard. A big sand pile, which has become the belly button, the navel, of this neighborhood. Kids ages 1 to about 11 just seem to gravitate to it. They come and there’s a few boards and bricks, there’s a shovel and some toy trucks, dump trucks, and every day these kids are out there making things: roads and tunnels and houses. They might go get a big rock out of the garage. This is what I’m witnessing. From a pile of sand. Just a pile of dirt and some old rocks and boards and there you go, endless cheap fun that connects them to the natural world and their imaginations.”

Friday, Aug. 23, 5:30 p.m., Outer Space, 359 State St., Los Altos, 5:30 p.m., free. More info: http://outerspacelosaltos.com, (650) 383-5469.

Sunday, Aug. 25, 11 a.m., Mill Valley Public Library, 375 Throckmorton Ave., Mill Valley, free. More information: www.millvalleylibrary.org, (415) 389-4292 x4741.