This week students have music Tuesday and Thursday.
Tuesday we will keep working on the two songs we started last week and we will discuss the things we discovered about the 60’s. We will begin talking about social and political events of the time.
Thursday we will learn a new piece and discuss all the details for the showcase and decide how we can divide duties. The girls are hard at work learning and being creative!
Welcome to 4th Quarter! It is going to be a busy few months. As much as I want to surprise you all with a fantastic show, I know students will need your help and support this quarter so here it is: we are preparing for an end of the year showcase featuring music from the 1960’s! Students will not only learn and perform 2-part music from this decade but will also plan and implement the event including costumes, artwork, and ambiance.
We will also be studying non-violent protest music from this time influenced by Vietnam and the Civil Rights Movement. This will include lyric analysis and shared inquiry discussions.
This week we will get the choir back up and singing! We are starting two songs (I will at least try to keep which ones secret!) and students will be doing some independent research on the culture of the 1960’s to prepare themselves for our big adventure.
Last week we finished final assessments for polyrhythms and the students made a small portfolio with all of the worksheets they completed this quarter, a self-assessment of learning targets and habits of scholarship, and a paragraph describing some ways that music are culture are related.
This week students will have music on Tuesday and they will be finishing Fiddler on the Roof. I have told students that they may bring a snack as long as the room stays clean! They all did great work this quarter!
This week students will be performing and teaching the class the polyrhythm that their group composed and notated. I am looking for development in the skill of playing independently within an ensemble as well as the ability to listen to one another in order to notate each part.
We will also be learning and playing the game Gumban Taryeong from Korea, which will be our most difficult to date due to the 6/8 meter, language, and complex moves ending in a tug-of-war!
Due to MCA testing students will only have music on Thursday this week. Students will however, come to music class on either Monday or Tuesday instead of PE to accommodate our needs to complete testing. I am planning on showing a movie during this time because the PE classes are not the same classes that I teach music. I am looking for an appropriate movie that is somewhat musical. Let me know of any suggestions you may have.
Last week students worked in groups to symbolically notate the polyrhythm their group composed. Thursday will be the last day for students to practice, notate, and discuss how they will be teaching the rest of the class their polyrhythm.
Last week students began improvising polyrhythms in groups of 4 to 5. Having students create and sustain their own rhythm demands good listening and focus while playing. This week students will continue to work ingroups to create a polyrhythm they would like to use for their project.
This week we will also be learning about and performing Latin perucussion music. I will introduce bongos, claves, maracas, and the guiro!
This week in music we will be learning another game from Thailand and discussing Thai music rituals, instruments, and types of music.
I will be introducing our next big project in class on Thursday! Students will be working in groups of 4-5 students to compose and notate their own polyrhythm that they will teach to the class. Students will begin by having one student keep a steady beat and another make up a rhythm that has windows (musical space) in it for others to add to. Students will then improvise complementary rhythms until they create rhythms they like together and would like to use. Once a group has finalized their polyrhythm they will work together to create a symbolized notation of the piece (not exact musical notation). Finally they will teach the class!
The helpful hints for playing rhythm complements we have discussed are:
* Leave space for others (windows in your music)
* Play different patterns than other players
* Play in the holes
* Play above or below
* Play different tone colors
Last week students went on a musical journey through the world! I was pleased with the presentations and enjoyed dancing from Ireland and Puerto Rico, instruments brought in from Ghana, a performance on the cello, and traditional clothing worn from Thailand and Oramia.
This week students are working on a new and challenging polyrhythm as well as improvising rhythmic completments. Students will also learn about Thailand through a chanting game!
This week in music students are presenting their research on world music! Students will present to the class: The name and location about their country, three interesting facts about their country, one interesting thing about the music from their country, instruments that are commonly used, the context in which music is performed (religious, entertainment, games, ceremonies, etc), and three ways the music relates to the culture.
We have been keeping a running list of things that music can tells us about a culture. Some of our ideas are: language, history, values, beliefs, religions, what the country has been through, festivals, ceremonies, instruments, materials and resources (metal flute/bamboo flute)
Students have been very excited about the presentations and have prepared PowerPoint presentations, posters, dances, as well as bringing in instruments and clothing from their countries! I will have video clips for most of the countries as well. It will be a fun and educational week!
Students will have music Tuesday and Thursday this week. Tuesday will be the last day for students to use laptops in class for research or preparing PowerPoint presentations. We will spend Thursday preparing anything else – note cards, posters, etc. Students will be presenting Monday, Wednesday, and Friday next week. I will have a presentation schedule on Thursday so students know which day they are presenting.
We will continue developing our ability to improvise and perform polyrhythms as an ensemble. We will be adding the element of singing while simultaneously playing through the practice of a song from Liberia.
