Summon the Heroes!: National Symphony Orchestra Young People's Concert

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hroughout the ages, composers have celebrated the accomplishments of famous heroes through music. What does a hero “sound” like?

Get o dy t ! rea out d n fi

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

David and Alice Rubenstein are the Presenting Underwriters of the NSO. Performances for Young Audiences is made possible by

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t this concert, you’ll learn what it takes to be a hero—and how to know a hero when you see ( and hear) one.

Who Is a Hero?

Everyday heroes come from the real world. A hero can be an ordinary person who does something great and who is admired for brave deeds or remarkable ability. Sometimes, a nation comes together to honor its heroes. Other times, you choose a personal hero all for yourself.

Honoring our Heroes Many heroes are people who made history by their accomplishments including artists, leaders, athletes, and explorers. One example is Abraham Lincoln (1809– 1865), the 16th President of the United States. Lincoln led the nation through the Civil War, ended slavery, and worked to gain equality for all Americans. You’ll hear a selection from A Lincoln Portrait, a musical work written by American composer Aaron Copland (pronounced COPE-land) to honor Lincoln’s memory.

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Look Around!

There are everyday heroes all around us.

These are people who are willing to put the common good and needs of others before their own comfort. They could be soldiers, doctors, firefighters, teachers— even members of your family. At the concert, you’ll hear another work by Aaron Copland called “Fanfare for the Common Man.” (“Common man” is an expression for someone you might see every day.) When you hear Copland’s fanfare, you might be reminded of someone you know.

Up in the Sky! It’s a bird, it’s a plane, it’s…

Superheroes like Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman live in our imagination and are often ordinary people who are gifted with extraordinary abilities. They reflect our best values like justice, fairness, and decency, and inspire us to do good in the world. During the concert, you’ll hear a selection from composer John Williams’ musical score for the movie Superman.

Listen carefully and you’ll hear a superhero in flight!

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omposers are artists who write or “compo musical heroes and learn more about the ways

“Hey, it’s Beethoven.

He wrote the famous Fifth Symphony.

Da-da-dadum ! ”

“ Right!

And remember how he kept writing music even after he lost his hearing ?”

BEETHOVEN

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“George Theophilus Walker was the first African-American composer to win a Pulitzer Prize for classical music ! ”

W Did the S “And I’m going to be the second!”

ose” music. At the concert, you’ll meet some s composers bring the idea of heroism to life.

“His music sounds patriotic to me.”

“John Williams? dn’t he write e music for Star Wars? ”

“I think it’s all the horns and drums.”

“And Superman ! ”

“And for harry potter and the olympics ! ”

“ Wait, he was Russian, but Scheherazade comes from The Arabian Nights.”

“Composers can be inspired by things all over the world ! ”

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omposers use an orchestra to make big-soun

What Makes an Orchestra?

There are four sections, or families of instruments, that make up an orchestra. Each section has different qualities that composers use to give their music its heroic sound.

The woodwind section gathers the flutes, oboes, clarinets, and bassoons.

Woodwinds can carry the melody over the quietest and the loudest parts of a piece. Some think they come closer to the human singing voice than any of the other instruments.

The percussion section is home to drums, chimes, gongs, cymbals, and whistles.

These instruments are used to provide pounding rhythms, booming drum rolls, and driving energy.

The string section is made up of violins, violas, cellos, and basses.

Strings can sound soft and sweet, or soaring and majestic.

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The brass section includes horns, trumpets, trombones, and tuba. Brass instruments are important in the loud, exciting parts of the music.

They also can be used to create epic swells and sudden bursts of sound.

nding music—the kind that is perfect for heroes.

The Composer’s Tools n The tempo refers to the speed of the music.

Some songs are fast, some are slow.

Another tool is rhythm or the timing of the notes against the steady beat of the music. Composers figure out the rhythm of their melodies by choosing between long notes and short notes. Once you mix pitch and rhythm, you’ve written a melody!

DYNAMICS

KEYS

nC omposers might decide to change the tone of their tune by switching it from a major key to a minor key.

The difference helps determine the mood of the music.

TEMPO

MELODY

One tool is pitch which refers to the high notes and low notes. When composers work with pitch, they have many notes to choose from—the high notes, low notes, and all the notes in between. To travel from one note to another, composers might take small steps or giant leaps. They might even climb, crawl, fly, or drop to get from one note to another.

RHYTHM

Other tools the composer has include tempo, major and minor keys, and dynamics.

PITCH

In addition to instruments, every composer uses the same basic tools to write music.

n Dynamics refers to the volume of the music—how loud or soft the music sounds.

Through the Listening Activities and at the concert, you’ll learn more about these tools and how different composers used them to honor their heroes.

MUSICAL HEROICS Heroes are recognized for their courage, power, humanity, and compassion.

How can music describe those things? It’s all in the instruments!

What Makes a Hero?

Sounds Like a Hero

There are many characteristics that heroes have in common. These are just a few:

Think of a hero. It can be someone from history, a movie or story, or someone from your life. Which musical instrument or section of the orchestra would you use to announce your hero? Would you use a blaring trumpet? Create a powerful drumbeat? Or does your particular hero call for violins?

What quality did the hero have that made you choose each instrument? Would you put two or more instruments together?

Which ones, and why?

Courage – bravery or a strong heart Compassion – the ability to care Power – the ability to cause change and make things better

Humanity – an understanding of the human connection we all share

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efore the concert, your teacher will share musical selections from the program. Listen to the music and do the listening activities.

You’ll enjoy the concert more if you’re familiar with the music.

Things to Know about a Concert nA n orchestra is a group of musicians who play different instruments. There are over 100 members of the National Symphony Orchestra. Many of them will be playing at the concert! nT he conductor is a person who leads the orchestra.

Conductors use their right hand to tell the orchestra the tempo (speed) to play, and use their left hand to indicate the dynamics (loud or soft). Some use a slender white stick called a baton (buh-TAHN) as they conduct. At the concert, watch how the conductor communicates with the musicians. n After an orchestra is seated, the leader of the violins, known as the “first violinist” or “concertmaster,” bows to applause and takes his or her seat. This person then asks the principal oboist to sound an “A” note, to which the entire orchestra tunes. Watch for the first violinist at the beginning of the performance and clap to welcome him or her to the stage.

David M. Rubenstein Chairman Michael M. Kaiser President Darrell M. Ayers Vice President, Education

Christoph Eschenbach Music Director National Symphony Orchestra Young People’s Concerts are made possible in part by the generous support of The Morris and Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation and the U.S. Department of Education.

Additional support for Performances for Young Audiences is provided in part by The Clark Charitable Foundation; Mr. James V. Kimsey; The Macy*s Foundation; The Max and Victoria Dreyfus Foundation, Inc.; The Morris and Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation; Park Foundation, Inc.; Paul M. Angell Family Foundation; an endowment from the Ryna and Melvin Cohen Family Foundation; U.S. Department of Education; Verizon Foundation; Washington Gas; and by generous contributors to the Abe Fortas Memorial Fund, and by a major gift to the fund from the late Carolyn E. Agger, widow of Abe Fortas.

Major support for the Kennedy Center’s educational programs is provided by David and Alice Rubenstein through the Rubenstein Arts Access Program.

The contents of this Cuesheet do not necessarily represent the policy of the U.S. Department of Education, and you should not assume endorsement by the Federal Government.

Cuesheets are produced by ARTSEDGE, an education program of the Kennedy Center.

www.kennedy-center.org /artsedge Learn more about Education at the Kennedy Center at www.kennedy-center.org /education © 2012 The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts

For more about Summon the Heroes, go online at: http://goo.gl/R9rDc

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