We can’t wait to see you on March 28th for the Inside the Orchestra for Homeschool Families activities and performance. We are so looking forward to sharing the joy of music with your young learners. Use this program packet to continue the musical learning at home before and after the performance. This packet lists the music that the orchestra will be performing. For each piece of music: • The title links to a video performance of the piece. • There is an “At-Home Learning” opportunity that relates to the piece of music or the way it will be presented at the performance. • There is biographical information about the conductor and the piece of music. For most pieces, we will be playing an excerpt and not the full work. We are so looking forward to seeing you in just a couple weeks! Musically,
Sara Hare Program Manager
Contents - click each section to be taken directly there. Repertoire List ..................................................................................................................................................................... 3 Symphony no. 5, Movement 1 – Ludwig van Beethoven ................................................................................................... 4 Eine Kleine Nachtmusik – Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart....................................................................................................... 5 Symphony no. 7, Movement 2 - Ludwig van Beethoven .................................................................................................... 5 The Four Seasons, Spring – Antonio Vivaldi........................................................................................................................ 6 Concerto Grosso – Arcangelo Corelli .................................................................................................................................. 6 Largo al Factotum – Gioacchino Rossini ............................................................................................................................. 7 La Llorona ............................................................................................................................................................................ 7 Concerto in C Major, movement 1 – Franz Joseph Haydn .................................................................................................. 8 Symphony no. 1, Movement 3 – Gustav Mahler ................................................................................................................ 8 Symphony no. 5, movement 4 – Ludwig van Beethoven.................................................................................................... 9
Repertoire List
Symphony no. 5 Movement 1 Eine Kleine Nachtmusik Symphony no. 7 Movement 2 The Four Seasons Spring Concerto Grosso Largo al Factotum La Llorona Concerto in C Major Symphony no. 5 Movement 4
Ludwig van Beethoven Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Ludwig van Beethoven Antonio Vivaldi Arcangelo Corelli Gioacchino Rossini Franz Joseph Haydn Ludwig van Beethoven
Symphony no. 5, Movement 1 – Ludwig van Beethoven At-Home Learning The 1st movement of Beethoven’s 5th Symphony is a great example of the use of a motif in classical music. A motif is a very short musical phrase that occurs over and over again throughout a piece. Composers will often vary the motif in different ways to make it more interesting as the music progresses. Symphony no. 5 contains the famous 4-note motif that Beethoven is so well known for. Some people call it the “fate motif” because they say it sounds like fate knocking on a door. 1) When listening to the first 27 seconds or so of the piece, how many times do you hear the motif played in various ways? (We counted at least 12!) 2) Another fun piece of music that uses motifs throughout is “Do Re Mi” from the Sound of Music. Listen to the way she repeats the same phrases and rhythms, each time singing them one stop higher (start at 40 seconds in this video). Do, Re, Mi, and Fa all are based on the same motif and Sol, La, and Ti are all based on a second motif. 3) Create your own motif. Sing a short little phrase- sing it over and over until you have it memorized. If you play an instrument or can read music, try playing it or writing it down on music paper. Once you know it really well, find little ways to change it and make it just slightly different. For example, you could: i. Sing it higher or lower ii. Make it twice as fast or twice as slow iii. Change the rhythm on one or two notes iv. If your motif has words, change a word or two
Biographical Information Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) Born in 1770, Ludwig van Beethoven was a German composer who greatly affected the course of classical music through his innovative revolutionary compositions. He altered the standard symphonic form, making his symphonies longer and larger. Beethoven also experimented with instrumentation in new ways, using never or rarely before used instruments, such as the trombone, and by expanding the size of the orchestra. He may be most famous for his nine symphonies, but he also wrote many other kinds of music: chamber and choral music, piano music and string quartets, and an opera. Beethoven went deaf at the end of his life and spent his last 10 years alive composing some of his most important works without being able to hear them. Symphony No. 5 - 1808 Written from 1804–1808, Symphony No. 5 is one of classical music’s most easily recognized works. It opens with a motif that is then used throughout much of the 31-minute piece. Music historians have said this theme represents “fate knocking at the door.” In 1801, Beethoven spoke publicly for the first time about his descent into deafness and said he would, “seize Fate by the throat; it shall not bend or crush me completely.” Though today it is often considered to be Beethoven’s greatest work, it remained only moderately popular during his lifetime, with people preferring and praising his third symphony and the second movement of his seventh symphony.
“Fate” Motif from Symphony no. 5
Eine Kleine Nachtmusik – Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart At-Home Learning Hear – Think – Wonder: If you’re unfamiliar with this educational strategy, you can read more about it here. By swapping out “see” with “hear,” this activity becomes perfect for music! Have your students listen to Eine Kleine Nachtmusik and write down what they hear, what that makes them think, and what that makes them wonder. For younger students, you may have to guide them through the prompts. Once you get to the final stage, wonder, use those questions and musings to do some research and learn more on your own!
Biographical Information Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791) One of the most important composers of the Classical Era of music, Mozart started composing and performing all around Europe by the age of 5. He composed more than 600 works, even though he died at the young age of 35. His operas, concerti, 41+ symphonies, and sonatas profoundly shaped and changed orchestra music. Towards the end of his life, he wrote his two operas, The Marriage of Figaro and Don Giovanni, which continue to be two of the most important operas today. Eine Kleine Nachtmusik - 1787 This German name means “A Little Serenade” though it is often less accurately translated directly as “A Little Night Music.” Mozart wrote this piece in the last few years of his life, while he was also composing his opera Don Giovanni. Most of Mozart’s serenades were composed on commission from a wealthy aristocrat, but the commissioner of this sonata is unknown, and the music wasn’t published until 40 years after his death.
Symphony no. 7, Movement 2 - Ludwig van Beethoven At-Home Learning Use the formal lesson plan on the next two pages all about opposites in music either in its entirety or adapt pieces to fit the needs of your learners.
Biographical Information Symphony No. 7 - 1812 Symphony no. 7 is approximately 35 minutes long in its entirety and was composed from 1811-1812. It was premiered at a charity concert for wounded soldiers and was met with immediate praise. The second, slower movement of this symphony was often performed as a separate piece during Beethoven’s life. In this symphony, Beethoven used rhythms and key relationships in innovative ways that were entirely new for composers at his time. The symphony is characterized by its vitality and exciting rhythms that propel listeners from its first notes to its last.
LESSON PLAN #2: Opposites in Orchestra Music Standards Reading, Writing & Communicating Standard: 1. Oral Expression & Listening Music Standard: 3. Theory of Music Music Standard: 4. Aesthetic Valuation of Music Phys. Ed. Standard: 1. Movement Competence & Understanding in Phys Ed. Lesson Goals/Objectives
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An understanding of the concept of opposites Be able to hear and identify contrasting moods in orchestra music Be able to use face, body, and voice to show contrasts in music
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Song samples (linked below) Computer/speakers to play song samples and videos
Materials
Lesson 1) Talk about the concept of opposites. Have students name opposite pairs. Some opposite pairs most relevant to orchestra music are: - High and low - Slow and fast - Loud and soft - Calm or energetic Just for fun, watch this cartoon song about opposites in music. 2) After you explore the concept of opposites, it’s time to see them in action in orchestra music. Play the pieces below (in their entirety or just snippets) to show contrasts in music. Fast and slow: Fast: Flight of the Bumblebee, Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov Slow: Adagio for Strings, Samuel Barber Soft and Loud: There can be big contrasts over the course of a single piece of music. These next excerpts are both from the same piece of music, the 1812 Overture by Pyotr Ilych Tchaikovsky. The soft section comes from the very beginning and the loud from the very end. Quiet: Beginning to 1:30 Loud: 12:55 to end Take it further by having the students come up with other opposite pairs to describe this piece. Some examples could be: - Calm and energetic - Slow and fast - Gentle and rough
Reinforcing Activities These make great brain breaks throughout the day
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Listening and Movement Have students use their bodies to show musical contrasts. Play the song samples above and have students move along with the music. Help them think critically the first time: should they move slow? Fast? Are they gentle movements or should their bodies move all around? What emotion could they portray on their face? Sing Along Pick a song to sing as a class (such as Twinkle Twinkle) and have students change how they sing it based on the adjective you call out (fast, sad, soft, etc.). Give individual children the chance to act as “leader” and call out adjectives for their classmates.
The Four Seasons, Spring – Antonio Vivaldi At-Home Learning Vivaldi is a composer for the baroque period of “classical” music. Instrumental music through the centuries has been broken down into distinct time periods. Music from each time period has similar characteristics and attributes. Learn the basics about the different eras of orchestra music here.
Biographical Information Antonio Vivaldi (1678-1741) Vivaldi is known as one of the most influential composers during the Baroque period of music, along with others such as Bach and Scarlatti. He composed a wide variety of music, from operas, to sacred worksand concerti for both wind and string instruments. He was also a virtuosic violinist, which inspired much of his music. He spent many years composing for the all-female music ensembles at the Opsedale della Pieta, which was a home for abandoned children. The Four Seasons, Spring - 1721 The Four Seasons is a series of violin concerti grossi and is one of Vivaldi’s best-known pieces. A concerto grosso (which is the singular of concerti grossi) is a piece of music that features a small group of soloists instead of a single soloist. In each movement, Vivaldi evokes different sounds from nature and characteristics of the season through interesting musical devices. In spring, he uses the viola to sound like a barking dog, violins that sound like fluttering birds, and the full string orchestra to sound like a spring rainstorm. These pieces are a very early example of program music, which is music that is meant to tell a story or “paint a picture”, as they were based on poems for each season.
Concerto Grosso – Arcangelo Corelli At-Home Learning At the performance, we’ll be joined by a dancer from the Hannah Kahn Dance Company during this piece who used the music to inspire her choreography. This Corelli concerto is very hard to find online, so you’ll have to wait for the per formance to hear it. In the meantime, listen to the second movement of Corelli's famous "Christmas Concerto" and have your students use it to inspire their own artwork. Have them make up a dance (and teach it to others!), write a story, paint a painting, or something similar that is inspired by what they hear.
Biographical Information Arcangelo Corelli (1653-1713) Corelli was an Italian composer from the Baroque period of classical music. He was key in helping to establish the genres of sonata and concerto and he helped form modern harmony and tonality, or how music sounds. His concerti are popular in Western culture and have been used in movies and as inspiration for modern composers. Concerto Grosso in c minor Scarlatti wrote many concerti grossi (the plural of concerto grosso). A concerto grosso is a piece of music that features multiple musicians or instruments as soloists with the orchestra – the name literally translates to “big concerto.” This concerto grosso features the string section.
Largo al Factotum – Gioacchino Rossini At-Home Learning Opera is music that tells a story. Have your students create their own story by writing lyrics along with some famous orchestra music. Choose whatever piece has a melody that you love, but we suggest The Blue Danube Waltz. On this video, start around the 1:30 mark and have your learners write lyrics until about the 2:15 mark or have them keep going until 2:46. You’re sure to get some fun stories with this piece of music.
Biographical Information Gioacchino Rossini Gioacchino Rossini is an Italian composer most famous for his operas. He wrote 39! Rossini, although a lazy student, showed an aptitude for music at an early age, and attended Bologna’s Philharmonic School where he learned numerous instruments and began his compositional career. Due to the wide success of his comic operas, Rossini is one of the rare composers that was quite famous during his lifetime. When Rossini died, he donated his estate, worth millions of Francs, to the Commune of Pesaro, his birth city, where a music conservatory was founded in his name. Largo al Factotum - 1816 Largo al Factotum is an aria from Mozart’s Opera “The Barber of Seville,” first performed in Rome in 1816. The Barber of Seville is a comic opera about an overzealous barber named Figaro who weasels himself into a complicated, yet hilarious, love triangle. Largo al Factotum is an aria sung by the town barber, Figaro, and is one of the most easily recognizable opera arias, with Figaro repeating his name over and over again.
La Llorona At-Home Learning La Llorona is a traditional Mexican folk song. Use our music of the world lesson plan on the next two pages to learn more about the folk songs and musical styles of cultures around the globe.
Biographical Information La Llorona La Llorona, translated into English as “The Weeping Woman,” is a Latin American folk story and song about the ghost of a woman who wanders the Earth looking for her children. This scary tale is often used as a fable to discourage kids from sneaking out at night – it is said that if you hear La Llorona’s weeping and cries then misfortune and danger will come your way. This is a very well-known story in Mexico and Latin American countries and has countless songs, movies, tv episodes and more inspired by the tale. The composer is unknown.
LESSON PLAN #3: Music Around the World Skill Level Standards Lesson Goals/Objectives
Duration Materials
Lesson
Intermediate #1: Expression of Music, #2: Creation of Music, #4: Aesthetic Valuation of Music · Students will discuss how music fits into their culture and others. · Students will be exposed to many types of music that they may have never heard before. · Students will recognize music from different cultures and understand that they should all be celebrated for their uniqueness. · Students will learn to sing Kye Kye Kule. Two or more 45 minute sessions Computer with speakers Music song samples (linked throughout)
1) Play Tarantella Napoletana for your students. Ask them what, if anything, it reminds them of? Are there any places or countries that come to mind when they hear this music? 2) Explain that a Tarantella is an upbeat Italian folk song primarily used for dancing. Describe folk song: a song that originates in traditional popular culture or that is written in such a style. Depending on the age of your students, you may want to take some time to explore the idea of culture and their own cultural identities. Once they grasp the idea of culture/cultural identity, you can explain that cultures or countries have songs that are important to them, and that these cultural songs tend to have similar sounds. Interdisciplinary tie-in- This could be a part of a much larger social studies conversation or unit on cultural identity, geography, etc. The song samples used can be changed to mirror the parts of the world the students are learning about in class. 4) Give examples of US folk songs. Or, choose folk songs from other countries that are more reflective of/relevant to your student population. Play some for your class. Examples of US folk songs are Down in the Valley, Clementine, etc. Use the Mama Lisa’s World website for reference. Ask students to raise their hand if they recognize the songs. See if students can think of other traditional songs from the USA. 5) Identify what makes these songs similar. Answers will vary depending on the examples used, but for the US folk songs they may include: - They are in a major key. - The stories center around characters who live on the prairie or farms. 7) Discuss how music from different cultures around the world sounds different and play them the song examples from China and France. Some prompts: - What makes these songs different than US folk songs? - What are some sounds that stand out to you? - How does this music make you feel?
- What does this music make you think of? Interdisciplinary tie-in - Geography/Social Studies: Locate the countries on a map. Talk about what languages they speak and what other things the countries are known for. 7) Teach your class the traditional folk song from Ghana, Kye Kye Kule. This song is a call and response song, meaning a leader starts and a group repeats, like an echo. This is a simple song that will give students a chance to actively learn about another culture. - This link has information regarding the meaning of the song, as well as some video examples. - Use the video found in this link as the musical accompaniment for your class. - This link shows students in action, including suggested hand movements. Going Further
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Discuss with your students that your classroom is its own environment with its own unique culture. Brainstorm what words you might use to describe your classroom’s culture. Using the videos above and this one as well as inspiration, have your students create words to the song that represents your classroom culture.
Concerto in C Major, movement 1 – Franz Joseph Haydn At-Home Learning This piece will feature a young student soloist along with the orchestra. For a student who has little or no experience on a musical instrument, the idea of being able to perform a concerto can seem like a daunting or impossible feat. But every established musician started in the exact same place! Check out this webpage with activities and tips to begin the process of learning to read sheet music.
Biographical Information Franz Joseph Haydn (1732-1809) Haydn is a classical composer and is one of the rare composers whose music was played all over Europe and enjoyed during his lifetime. He was a friend of Mozart and even tutored Beethoven. He taught himself music theory, which improved his composing abilities, growing his reputation and eventually leading to permanent positions on the courts of European royalty. Concerto in C Major Movement 1 As a pianist himself, Haydn wrote a number of “keyboard” concerti and sonata for the piano and harpsichord. This concerto is a common first concerto for piano students to memorize and perform.
Symphony no. 1, Movement 3 – Gustav Mahler At-Home Learning Mahler used the traditional “Frere Jacques” theme in this movement. This is a melody that is sung in different languages around the world. Visit this Mama Lisa's World webpage to hear it performed in many different languages and check out other portions of Mama Lisa’s world to hear more music from other cultures.
Biographical Information Gustav Mahler (1860-1911) Mahler was a conductor and composer during the late-Romantic period of music. During his lifetime, he was a wellknown and respected conductor, but his music wasn’t popular until later in the 20th century. He is now considered one of the most popular and brilliant composers of all time. His symphonies typically use very large orchestras with added instruments and his music is often inspired by the world and sounds he heard around him. He had a profound impact on composers in the late 20th century after the famous conductor and composer Leonard Bernstein brought his music back to popularity. Symphony no. 1, movement 3 - 1888 Though this symphony was originally composed in 1888, Mahler went back and re-wrote and added to the symphony many times until 1896. It is often nicknamed the “Titan” symphony, as that is what Mahler called it when he was first composing it. He conducted this symphony more than any of his later works. Today we will perform part of the 3rd movement. It is slow and stately and is meant to sound like the funeral procession of a hunter with a trail of animals following behind (a lot of Mahler’s music has darker themes – he lived a difficult life). The main theme of this movement is based on Frère Jacques, though he uses it in a minor key.
Symphony no. 5, movement 4 – Ludwig van Beethoven At-Home Learning Beethoven – perhaps the most well-known composer of them all. And for good reason! His music is beautiful, interesting, and brilliant. Take a listen to this ultimate Beethoven playlist to hear just a small portion of his amazing music!
Biographical Information Symphony no. 5, Movement 4 We will be performing the presto finale from the very end of the 4th movement. This ending seems to go on endlessly, as Beethoven ends the piece with 29 bars of C Major chords, bringing the audience and their ears back “home” after a very long and intense symphony.