February 24, 2014

February 24, 2014

Grade 7 Goals: Students will review the elements of music covered so far and begin learning about the element of tonality, which refers to the scale used in composition. In particular, students will be expected to demonstrate an understanding of the pentatonic scale through listening, composition and performance.

During the first class of the week, students will complete testing on "Big Raven" and begin to learn song 84. Then they will view the video "Howard Goodall on Penatonic Music" Chinese Pentatonic, and Chopin's Etude 10, op. 5, which introduces the 5-tone pentatonic scale. They will write out this scale on a new scale chart.

During the second class of the week, students will review songs 72 and 74, and learn song 84 which uses a pentatonic scale. They will begin learning to improvise simple pentatonic patterns which repeat called "ostinati" and will be assigned a composing activity using the pentatonic scale. Students should know measures 45-60 of Tempest.

Homework: practise the pentatonic scale, song 84 and Tempest.

Grade 8 Goals: Students will be working on learning to read, play and compose using rhythms in 6/8 time. (6/8 time means that every measure will contain 6 eighth notes or the equivalent instead of the typical 4 quarter notes)

During our first class of the week, students will receive written feedback/marks on their "Home" assignments. They will listen to a variety of musical examples which use a new type of metre, to gain an understanding of the "feeling" of compound metre. Using a variety of strategies, they will learn how to clap, count and notate patterns in 6/8 time. Students will receive a worksheet which they will need to complete for homework, and a copy of a new band piece, "The Last Voyage of Queen Annes' Revenge" which uses this metre..

During the second class of the week, students will take up the worksheet and check their understanding of the work covered. Students will learn a section of the new band piece, and will begin a 6/8 composing assignment.

Homework: Finish worksheet. Begin composing assignment and practise "Last Voyage".

Senior Band - please listen to the following recordings:

Whispering Winds 

Last Voyage of Queen Annes' Revenge