A World of Music TEACHER GUIDE: National Symphony Orchestra Young People's Concert

23572A_KC WoM Teachers_v2.qxd:23572A_KC WoM Teachers_v2

9/19/11

1:39 PM

F O R

National Symphony Orchestra Young People’s Concert Ankush Kumar Bahl Conductor

T E A C H E R S

A T R I P T H R O U G H T H E K E N N E D Y C E N T E R ’ S H A L L O F N AT I O N S

Page 1

23572A_KC WoM Teachers_v2.qxd:23572A_KC WoM Teachers_v2

9/19/11

1:40 PM

Dear Teacher: A World of Music promises to be a fun and informative experience for students and educators! Learn about the origins of classical music in western Europe, and introduce your students to the tools in the composer’s “toolbox.”

This Cuesheet performance guide offers three integrated resources that work together to help you prepare students for the concert:

1. The Guide for Students contains information about composers Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Edvard Grieg, Benjamin Britten, and Dmitri Shostakovich, the concert program, and a related activity.

2.

The CD provides Listening Activities and musical excerpts relating to four orchestral works from the program, as well as an introduction to the composer’s toolbox.

3. This Guide for Teachers shares ideas on how to bring the Cuesheet, the Listening Activities, and online resources to life in the classroom.

Enjoy the concert!

Carole J. Wysocki Director, NSO Education Program

2

Page 2

23572A_KC WoM Teachers_v2.qxd:23572A_KC WoM Teachers_v2

9/19/11

1:40 PM

Tips for Using This Guide Students (and their teachers!) will get more out of the NSO Young People’s Concert when they are prepared for the A World of Music program in advance. Here are some tips for using these resources:

Using the CD The CD contains Listening Activities designed for grades 3 and up. The activities may be presented by the classroom teacher or music specialist.

Many students will require at least two opportunities to engage with the content of the CD. We suggest this approach to the listening activities.

Engage Students > Play Track > Reflect > Repeat as needed > Go to the Next Track

General Tips ■

Listen for yourself. Spend some time alone with the CD and other resources. This prep time is invaluable as you bring these resources into the classroom.

■

Allow enough time. Some teachers introduce students to the material four weeks before the Concert.

■

Prepare not only for the music but for the event. For many students, this will be their first time at a concert with a full orchestra. They’ll be more comfortable if they know what to expect.

■

Most importantly, bring your own creativity to the process. Change these activities to fit your classroom and add your own variations.

The activities presented on the CD connect to the National Content Standards for music, and other subject areas such as social studies and language arts. For more about the standards, visit the ARTSEDGE Web site.

3

Page 3

23572A_KC WoM Teachers_v2.qxd:23572A_KC WoM Teachers_v2

9/19/11

1:42 PM

INTRODUCTION R AC

T

K

A World of Music (9:45)

1

Summary Students are introduced to the international language of classical music by the National Symphony Orchestra’s new Assistant Conductor, Ankush Kumar Bahl.

WAS

HI

N

G

During the concert, students learn about the basic tools used by composers and travel to the homelands of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Edvard Grieg, Benjamin Britten, and Dmitri Shostakovich. In Austria, students discover Mozart’s playful personality. They hear about Grieg’s fascination with a famous folktale in Norway.

Traveling on, students visit England and learn about Britten’s choice to write music that expresses emotion. Students then tour Russia, as they witness the hardships of wartime through Shostakovich’s music.

4

T

O

N,

d

DC

Page 4

23572A_KC WoM Teachers_v2.qxd:23572A_KC WoM Teachers_v2

N

OR

WAY

9/19/11

1:46 PM

R

U SS

IA

EN

GL

AND

AUST RIA

5

Page 5

23572A_KC WoM Teachers_v2.qxd:23572A_KC WoM Teachers_v2

9/19/11

1:46 PM

LISTENING TO… MOZART’S SYMPHONY NO. 29 T

K

R AC

2

Pitch Perfect (3:47)

Summary Students learn about Austrian composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and his use of pitch and intervals.

Before Direct students to Cuesheet page 4. Read with students how Mozart used high notes, low notes, and everything in between to create his melodies.

During While playing these tracks, connect students to the “Woofers and Tweeters” activity introduced in Cuesheet, which provides a gestural exercise for students to perform as they listen to Mozart’s use of pitch. This exercise reinforces lessons in pitch and intervals contained on the CD.

After Encourage students to share their understanding of high notes and low notes. Discuss the concept of intervals and how it applies in the music.

The excerpt of Mozart’s Symphony No. 29 is provided without prompts on Track 7.

6

Page 6

23572A_KC WoM Teachers_v2.qxd:23572A_KC WoM Teachers_v2

9/19/11

1:47 PM

LISTENING TO… GRIEG’S PEER GYNT T

K

R AC

3

Rock ‘n’ Troll Music (5:46)

Summary Students learn about composer Edvard Grieg and how he used rhythm and tempo to capture the folk stories of his native Norway.

Before Direct students to Cuesheet page 5. Read with students about a composer’s use of rhythm, steady beat, and tempo to create catchy melodies.

During While playing these tracks, connect students to the definition of accelerando introduced in Cuesheet page 3, which provides a context for the increasing tempo as they listen to Grieg’s work.

After Encourage students to share their understanding of steady beat, rhythm, and tempo.

Do students think Peer Gynt escaped the trolls or did they catch him?

The excerpt of Grieg’s “In the Hall of the Mountain King” is provided without prompts on Track 10.

7

Page 7

23572A_KC WoM Teachers_v2.qxd:23572A_KC WoM Teachers_v2

9/19/11

1:47 PM

LISTENING TO… BRITTEN’S SIMPLE SYMPHONY T

K

R AC

4

Tea and Sympathy (5:03)

Summary Students learn about British composer Benjamin Britten and how he used a minor key to express emotion and deep feelings in his music.

Before Direct students to Cuesheet page 6. Prior to listening, remind students of the difference between a major and a minor key. Explain that a minor key can make the music sound sad, strange, dramatic, or mysterious. Please note that the concept of major and minor keys has been simplified for basic classroom demonstration.

During Listen to the composer’s tools being used in Britten’s “Sentimental Saraband.” Have students identify the choices Britten made in his pitch and tempo, as well as use of the minor key, to express emotion.

After Lead a brief discussion allowing students to identify what made Britten’s “sad tune” seem sad. Did he choose “sad” instruments? A “sad” tempo? Was the music always sad, or did it “cheer up”?

The excerpt of Britten’s “Sentimental Saraband” is provided without prompts on Track 9.

8

Page 8

23572A_KC WoM Teachers_v2.qxd:23572A_KC WoM Teachers_v2

9/19/11

1:47 PM

LISTENING TO… S H O S TA KOV I C H ’ S S Y M P H O N Y N O . 1 0 T

K

R AC

5

Sound of War (5:30)

Summary Students learn how Russian composer Dmitri Shostakovich used musical dynamics to convey the imagery of war.

Before Direct students to Cuesheet page 7. Prior to listening, remind students that musical dynamics refer to the loudness or softness of the music.

Discuss how sudden shifts in volume, from soft to loud, loud to louder, and louder to softer, provide dramatic tools for the composer.

During Listen for the sounds of war in Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 10. Ask students to identify specific images with musical fragments. Have them consider the musical choices Shostakovich made in terms of pitch, rhythm, steady beat, minor keys, and dynamics.

After Lead a short reflection. Encourage students to describe what they “saw” and heard.

Discuss the tools Shostakovich used to create mood in the work.

The excerpt of Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 10 is provided without prompts on Track 8.

9

Page 9

23572A_KC WoM Teachers_v2.qxd:23572A_KC WoM Teachers_v2

9/19/11

1:48 PM

ASSESSMENT T

K

R AC

6

The Listening Game (3:45)

Summary Students will recap the learning from the CD tracks.

Before Explain to students that they will revisit the composers and destinations from the CD. Remind students of the basics that serve as clues to identify the music. The composer’s tools are identified as: pitch, rhythm, steady beat, tempo, minor key, and dynamics.

During Play the Listening Game on Track 6. Students are asked to identify the works based on listening to excerpts of the works by Mozart, Grieg, Britten, and Shostakovich.

After If time allows, ask winners to share specific “clues” that helped them to identify the music. It might have been the “story” or the subject of the music. It might have been the composer’s tools. Give bonus points if students use Italian words like accelerando, allegro, andante, or subito. The correct answers are: (1) Grieg, “In the Hall of the Mountain King”; (2) Britten’s “Sentimental Saraband”; (3) Mozart’s Symphony No. 29; and (4) Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 10.

The program of the NSO Young People’s Concert A World of Music is provided without listening prompts at the end of the CD.

10

Page 10

23572A_KC WoM Teachers_v2.qxd:23572A_KC WoM Teachers_v2

9/19/11

1:48 PM

Preparing for the Concert ■

Remind students that no eating or drinking is permitted in the Concert Hall.

■

Suggest students bring a light sweater or jacket in case the hall is cold.

When students arrive: ■

Encourage students to visit the restrooms in the lobby before the concert begins.

■

Remind students to sit still in their seats and not to reach between rows, kick the seat in front of them, or otherwise distract from anyone else’s concert experience.

■

The Concert Hall acoustics provide an opportunity to remind students to remain quiet during the performance— and to demonstrate how sound travels from musicians to audience.

PHOTO BY SCOT ABELMAN, CREATIVE COMMONS

Before you depart:

During the performance: ■

Students will know to clap hands and applaud the musicians when the conductor silences the orchestra and turns to acknowledge the audience.

11

Page 11

23572A_KC WoM Teachers_v2.qxd:23572A_KC WoM Teachers_v2

9/19/11

1:48 PM

The Concert Program At the concert, students will hear the following works: Bernstein

Fanfare for the Inauguration of JFK

Mozart

First Movement from Symphony No. 29 in A major, K 201 (excerpt)

Smetana

The Moldau (excerpt)

Bartok

Rumanian Dances, Nos. 1, 5, 6, and 7

Shostakovich

Allegro from Symphony No. 10 in E minor, Op. 93

Britten

“Sentimental Saraband” from Simple Symphony, Op. 4

Grieg

“In the Hall of the Mountain King” from Peer Gynt, Op. 23

Falla

Spanish Dance from La vida breve

Debussy

Claire de Lune (excerpt), Orchestrated by Ravel

Rossini

Overture to William Tell (excerpts)

Online Resources All selections performed at the A World of Music concert are provided online on the ARTSEDGE site. You’ll also find additional resources to prepare for the concert, including extra listening activities, and much more. www.artsedge.kennedy-center.org/students/kc-connections/a-world-of-music

12

Page 12