During her recent Father’s Day concert at Dundas Square in Toronto, children’s singer-songwriter Margot Glatt got kids into the summer spirit by getting them to play with imaginary beach balls, to the tune of her song Take Your Big Beach Ball.

Maggie G. is ecstatic about getting one of her songs on Picnic Playground a compilation of children’s songs.

“When you’re doing a show, [kids] like to be involved,” said Glatt, who goes by the stage name Maggie G. “You want to share that experience with them. It’s not an intellectual experience – it’s a shared fun experience.”    

Although Glatt grew up with a family who was heavily involved in the music business – her father was a promoter and her mother taught music to kids – she didn’t get into writing children’s music until after her first son was born.    

Her big break came when a friend asked her to write the lyrics for the   Safety Song for the Canada Safety Council’s Elmer the Safety Elephant. From there, she ended up working on the mid-’90s TV series, Little Star, about a crew of six puppets who travel through space and time aboard the smiling spaceship, Mimosa. The series can still be seen in Belgium and South Africa.

Glatt, who cites Aretha Franklin, Chaka Khan and American folksinger Pete Seeger – whom she met when she was three years old – as her influences, released her first children’s album, Around the House With Maggie G., in November 2008.    

Aidan Mason, the guitarist-singer she works with, co-wrote many of the songs on the CD.

Stéphane Deschamps, who worked with Glatt on Little Star, helped re-create some of the songs from the show for her 18-track album.    

Glatt is excited about the newly released Picnic Playground, a collection of songs by the children’s record label Putumayo Kids. Her song Let’s Bake Cookies is the only one by a Canadian on the CD.    

“I was ecstatic,” Glatt said about getting her song on the recording. So ecstatic, in fact, that she made a music video for the song that you can view on YouTube.

Something else that excites Glatt is having the opportunity to make music for children.    

“To be able to do it [create music] for kids is just really cool. I never actually thought I’d be up there on stage singing to kids, and it’s totally a thrill and a joy.”   

Glatt did not see herself as a performer as she had stage fright when she was a child. At the age of 12, given the option to visit Israel or have a bat mitzvah, Glatt chose Israel because the thought of singing in front of a congregation terrified her.    

While performing still makes her nervous, pretending that she is singing to her own children, Adrian and Morgan, helps to relieve the pressure, she said.    

“[Kids] don’t judge you for your vocal stylings. They are watching to see if you communicate with them. When you get up on a stage in front of kids, they already want to love you.”    

One of her greatest joys, performing and in everyday life, is making others happy. “Doing things that make people happy is definitely true of my character. If you can share your music and bring a smile, that’s a wonderful feeling,” Glatt said.    

“Music is my comfort food. It’s what I know, and it’s what I love,” she added.

You can listen to samples of Glatt’s album and get more information on her website www.maggiemusic.com. To buy Picnic Playground, visit www.putomayokids.com.