IntroductionWelcome to Keyboard Magic. The electronic keyboard is a fun instrument to learn with all its different ‘voices’ (sounds), rhythm styles and accompaniments. Using this book, pupils will be playing and sounding like a rock band or club DJ before very long!
They will learn many keyboard-playing skills, including how to play melodies with their right hand and trigger accompaniments with their left hand. They will also explore different keyboard functions, like Fill, Intro and Sync start, to make their performances even more impressive.
This book is aimed at the complete beginner and you don’t need to be able to read music or have played any instruments before. The specially-designed notation is easy to follow and there are audio and video demos of all the pieces to support you. We have also included fun Body beats, warm-ups, games and Try this activities to help build the skills needed for the pieces, develop pupils’ general musicianship and encourage creativity.
You can use any keyboard with a range of voices and an auto-accompaniment function (single-finger and fingered chords) to play the pieces in Keyboard Magic. Suggestions for voices and styles to use are given for every piece; if your keyboard does not have a particular voice or style, select something similar. Likewise, if the functions of your keyboard work slightly differently to the instructions, have a play around and adapt as needed.
Keyboard Magic is ideal for whole class, whole year group or group instrumental teaching, and also suitable for individual teaching and self-learning. In a classroom setting, it is possible to teach with one pupil to a keyboard (each pupil learning both left-hand and right-hand parts), two pupils to a keyboard (taking a hand each), or even three to a keyboard (taking it in turns or sharing the left-hand part, for example).
All pieces use a fixed five-finger position for the right hand. Part 1 (Units 1–6) uses single-finger chords in the left hand and Part 2 (Units 7–10) introduces fingered chord shapes (using all three notes of a chord) for the left hand accompaniments. Each part concludes with a concert piece. These are longer pieces that showcase the key skills learnt.
The teacher’s edition offers online access to:
• video and audio demonstrations of the pieces
• teaching tips – offering additional information and ideas for supporting and extending the activities
• standard music notation for all pieces (for teachers and pupils who might prefer it)
• an e-book version for whiteboard display.
The pupil’s edition comes with audio demonstrations for home practice: ISBN 978-0-00-852522-4.
Take every opportunity to encourage pupils to explore their keyboard and get creative with their choices of voice and style. Good luck and enjoy your music-making!
Use the link below to access the printable scores, teaching tips and whiteboard eBook with audio and video demonstrations: collins.co.uk/keyboardmagicTB/download
First published 2022
Published by Collins, an imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers Ltd
The News Building
1 London Bridge Street, London SE1 9GF
HarperCollinsPublishers
1st Floor Watermarque Building Ringsend Road Dublin 4, Ireland www.collins.co.uk
2 KEYBOARD MAGIC
© 2022 HarperCollinsPublishers Ltd
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 ISBN: 978-0-00-852521-7
Printed by Ashford Colour Press. Cover design by Ken Vail Graphic Design. Cover keyboard graphic by lumyai l sweet/ Shutterstock.
Book Design by Fresh Lemon Australia. Edited by Emily Wilson.
Recorded by Christopher Hussey. Videos produced by Christopher Hussey.
™
™
™
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or used in any form or by any means – photographic, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or information storage and retrieval systems – without the prior permission in writing of the publishers. This book is produced from independently certified FSC™ paper to ensure responsible forest management.
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For more information visit: www.harpercollins.co.uk/green
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Keyboard notefinder
Electronic keyboards come in different sizes, but the notes are arranged in the same way.
The white notes are given the letter names A, B, C, D, E, F and G, and this pattern is repeated across the whole keyboard.
Notice that the black notes form a pattern – they are grouped in twos and threes.
Middle C is a note near the middle of your keyboard – if you are using a 61-note or 49-note keyboard, this will be the third C from the bottom.
notes get higher in pitch
Middle C 49-note 61-note 76-note 88-note (full size piano keyboard)
Explore
Count all the notes (black and white) on your keyboard. How many notes do you have?
Can you find Middle C on your keyboard?
Can you find another C higher than Middle C?
Can you find the next C down below Middle C?
Notefinder game
Challenge a friend to find and play a particular note, and then play a higher or lower note.
For example: “Can you find an E? Now can you find a B that is higher?”
4 KEYBOARD MAGIC
01 CDEFGABCDEFG ABCDEFG ABCDEFGABCDEFGABC
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Copycat game
KEYBOARD MAGIC 5 Body beats 1 and 2 Thunderstorm Count aloud • Count and stomp • Stomp and chant • Stomp, chant and clap
crunch Count aloud • Count and stomp • Stomp and chant • Stomp, chant and body percussion SINGLE-NOTE AND TWO-NOTE MELODIES WITH RHYTHMIC BACKING • RH FINGERS 2 AND 3 • VOICE • START/STOP • TEMPO • STYLE
The
beat
drum
counts
Choose
counts
call
response game
callers. UNIT 1 PART 1 SINGLE-FINGER CHORDS 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 Light - ning flash be - fore a roar - ing thun - der - clap. 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 “Snap”, go the croc - o - diles, “Snap”, they munch and crunch! pulse 02 03 04 01 02 R R R R L L L L R R R R L L L L 25217_Teacher_Book.indd 5 4/2/2022 11:57
Choose someone to clap the pulse or
it on a
throughout. Everyone else stomps lightly on
1 and 3.
a caller to say and clap the rhythm of a tasty crocodile meal during two groups of four
(for example, “U-ni-corn sand-wich-es”); everyone else claps back in the following two groups of four counts. Continue as a
and
with different
Explore
Switch Power on. Adjust Master volume to suitable level.
Fruit salad
Play
Choose any note on your keyboard and play the rhythm shown by the grey blocks using one finger of your right hand, chanting the lyrics in time.
Count aloud and clap the pulse • Clap the pulse and chant the lyrics Try
Explore
Learn how to select a voice. Can you find a Synth voice on your keyboard?
Press Start to hear a rhythmic backing, then Stop to end. Can you set the tempo to 80 beats per minute (bpm)?
Select a different rhythmic backing from your style bank. Can you find an 8-beat pop style?
Play
Using your Synth voice and 8-beat pop rhythm style, play Fruit salad:
• Press Start with your left hand (or left-hand player if sharing a keyboard)
• Count two groups of four beats aloud, then play the melody with your right hand (or right-hand player)
• Press Stop with your left hand (or left-hand player)
Create your own tropical fruit lyrics and compose a rhythm to play them with on your keyboard.
6 KEYBOARD MAGIC
UNIT 1
SINGLE-NOTE AND TWO-NOTE MELODIES WITH RHYTHMIC BACKING • RH FINGERS 2 AND 3 •
•
•
• STYLE 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 Ly - chee and
ki -
and
05 06 03 01 25217_Teacher_Book.indd 6 4/2/2022 11:57
this
VOICE
START/STOP
TEMPO
pine - ap - ple,
wi
man - go. two-beat note one-beat note three-beat note
KEYBOARD MAGIC 7 UNIT 1 Explore
Workout
•
3
•
you play Try this Explore your voice bank and choose your favourite for this song. RH fingers SINGLE-NOTE AND TWO-NOTE MELODIES WITH RHYTHMIC BACKING • RH FINGERS 2 AND 3 • VOICE • START/STOP • TEMPO • STYLE select style set tempo select voice practise speaking the rhythm first before playing start with finger 3 move to finger 2 back to finger 3 1 2 3 4 5 FUNK, 90 BPM SYNTH BASS 04 02 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 Get read - y, keep stead- y, up a - gain. squat down and Play
and
• Count
pressing Start (left
• Play the melody twice
• Press Stop
to end 07 25217_Teacher_Book.indd 7 4/2/2022 11:57
Choose any two neighbouring black notes or white notes on your keyboard. Using fingers 2 and 3, practise alternating between the pair of notes. Use finger 3 for the higher note and finger 2 for the lower note. Can you make up a little riff using these two notes?
Choose any two neighbouring white notes
Play them with your right-hand fingers 2 and
Select Synth bass voice
Practise playing the melody, chanting or singing as
Select Funk style
set tempo to 90 bpm:
two groups of four after
hand)
(right hand)
(left hand)
Secret agents
Choose two neighbouring white notes without a black note in between them. Select Power brass voice • Practise the melody using RH (right hand) fingers 2 and 3, chanting or singing as you play
Select style and set tempo, then play with rhythmic backing. Count two groups of four after pressing Start and play twice through before pressing Stop
Copycat game
Play the copycat game on page 5 again, but this time play the rhythm of your favourite food on your keyboard, using two neighbouring notes and RH fingers 2 and 3. Choose a style and try it with a rhythmic backing. Can you experiment with a faster or slower tempo?
Do you recognise the rhythm of Secret agents?
Try this
Create an ensemble performance of Secret agents in two or three parts. Part 1: Part 2: play the melody using these notes: play the rhythm on this note:
Try using other instruments for some parts, for example a glockenspiel or ukulele. you could even add Part 3 Part 2 2 3
8 KEYBOARD MAGIC UNIT 1 SINGLE-NOTE AND TWO-NOTE MELODIES WITH RHYTHMIC
•
FINGERS
AND 3 •
•
• TEMPO • STYLE
BACKING
RH
2
VOICE
START/STOP
8-BEAT
100 BPM POWER BRASS 05 03
ROCK,
1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4
ing se - ly, don’t or Spy - so cret - they munch crunch. finger 3 don’t play on these beats start with finger 2
09 08 10
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06 04