Creative Music Class - Blog

Ringtones

4/6/2019

Introduce the topic: “We are going to compose cellphone ringtones”.
Listen to some well-known ringtones (select a few from your cellphone). Below I selected a few from my iPhone. Listen and discuss, e.g.:
Play the ringtone, have students identify the instrument, pattern, rhythm, melody and/or any other descriptors:
Ascending: ascending major scale on xylophone
Bell Tower: classic bell/chime melody
Marimba: short, catchy pattern on marimba
Piano riff: five melody notes on piano
Timba: drumming pattern, no melody
Xylophone: short melody, catchy rhythm on xylophone

Display the notation and practice one or two of the ringtones OR
Listen to the ringtones and try to notate the ringtone with your students.
End this explorative phase with quick Q & A: how long are the little
melodies? How many instruments are used per melody? Etc.

This lesson can be introduced in two ways:
1. Provide a sample ringtone to develop
  Students use a given ringtone, e.g. “Marimba” or “Timba” to inspire the composition of a “variation” ringtone. They use a given instrument, select the notes for a melody, select note values made into one or two rhythms, and through explorative play and improvisation come up with a short 5 – 10 tone ringtone. Depending on the age group and ability, these compositions may simply be recorded or otherwise notated.
2. Guided composition of a new ringtone
  Provide a rubric. Students generate a completely new ringtone based on the parameters. Teachers, generate the rubric based on your curriculum; note values you’re studying in class, note names you’re learning, etc.
  Ringtones are 30 seconds max.
  Ringtones “loop”: make sure beginnings and endings match to link.

Tale Tiles

2/20/2019

Students compose a piece of music directed by a set of graphic notation sound tiles which they will use to write a short narrative or poem and perform as multimedia orchestrated work for narration, sound effects, instrumental parts and/or images.

Step 1
Introduce the tile. Discuss how symbols on the tile may be interpreted. E.g.

Notice that sound has pitch: top of the tile would be high pitched. Diagonal lines downwards can suggest pitch drop. So this tile could be performed starting on a high pitched “ah” and dropping the voice to a very low pitch.
Notice that sound has volume. The larger letters and funnel shape suggests loud, the smaller letter and narrowing funnel shape suggests a decrescendo in sound.
Notice that the tile has a top and bottom (for high and low), and left and right (for sound progression).
Step 2
This lesson can be introduced in two ways:

Provide ready-made sound tiles
Students use the tiles to generate a story. They order the set of tiles in any order, associate an event, time or place to the tile, generate and hone the narrative, decide on the performance of the graphic notation tile (voice, instrument, sound maker) and assemble the composition for narration, voice, instruments and sound effects.
Provide the narrative
Provide a short narrative or poem. Students generate a set of sound tiles to indicate sound happenings in the story. Produce the tiles, order the tiles, perform the narrative and voice, instruments and sound effects.

Leitmotif Composition Lesson

10/10/2018

What is a Leitmotif?
For example: explore, look and listen to the following contemporary style leitmotifs:

The theme for the shark in the movie “Jaws” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZvCI-gNK_y4
The theme for Darth Vader in the movie “Star Wars” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-bzWSJG93P8
The theme for Harry Potter in the Harry Potter movies https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Htaj3o3JD8I

For example: Listen to the leitmotif associated with Jaws

Class Discussion
Compare an image (projected), the nature of the character (protagonist/antagonist) and the theme music and identify:
- What mood must be created? Happy/sad/scary/threatening/haunting, etc.
- What are the features of the character? Strong/mystical/magical/threatening, etc.
- What are the qualities in the music that represents the character?
  Pitch/register/chords/rhythms/tempo, etc.
1. What do you notice about the leitmotif associated with Jaws?
2. How does it inform the viewer?
3. How long is the leitmotif?
4. How many notes are used to create this effect?
5. Is it a successful leitmotif? Why?
6. What is the timbre (tone color) of the leitmotif? What instrument is used to make this
  leitmotif? How is the selection of tone color (instrument) important?

Compose
Short 2-8 note motifs similar to the "Jaws" leitmotif.
- Choose a character from a book, text, play or movie.
- Identify his/her/its characteristics
- Compose a rhythm only or melodic leitmotif.

Perform
_ Project the image of your character
- Perform the matching leitmotif

Professional Development in South Carolina

9/30/2018

I spent a lovely week in Spartanburg, South Carolina earlier this month working with teachers at an elementary school: two full days of professional development with the focus on integrating music and literacy followed by classroom demonstrations. Amazing team, well-organized, very receptive faculty - thank you for the invite! I trust I left you all with some ideas, a broader scope for integrating creative activities into the curriculum and a renewed enthusiasm for arts integration.

New publication launch

7/7/2018

Music Composition for Teens and Pre-Teens

Now available on amazon.com, $24.99

This book is written to provide lesson plans or exploratory activities for the music teacher who wishes to incorporate meaningful, creative compositional exercises in the general music classroom, the music appreciation classroom, or the piano studio.
The purpose of the book is to provide inspiration, additional ideas, creative activities, and contemporary techniques for the innovative teacher.
Photocopiable pages are provided.
All lesson plans include Exploratory, Composition and Performance sets.
The lesson plans are written as general guides for the teacher and are not grade specific.
All lessons can be adapted to suit multiple age and ability levels.
Teachers are encouraged to adapt lessons: include own materials, connect to concepts
studied in the curricula, and utilize additional resources.
Lesson features include
- Standard notation: pitch, staff notation, letter names, rests, note values and basic theory such as measures, bar lines, time signatures, etc., are covered.
- Graphic notation: Twentieth-Century techniques, graphic notation, alternative music symbols, found sound, body percussion, electronic sounds, and digital techniques are included.
- Compositional techniques: repetition, sequence, motif, phrase, 4-measure phrase, form, augmentation, diminution, inversion, etc., are explored.
- Technology: ringtones on phones, composition apps, computer software, online tone- generators, voice memo apps, video, and slide show presentations are included.
- Multi-media: Compositions include speaking parts, drama, images, slide shows, story, technology, live or recorded performance, spatial components, etc.
- Harmony: several lessons include chordal work (mainly the primary chords I, IV and V) to start establishing the idea of harmonic progression.
- Graphic Organizers: Most lessons include graphic organizers either to serve as work charts for the student groups, to clarify listening analysis or the format of the composition, or simply to plot out initial ideas for a composition. Teachers are encouraged to pursue multiple forms of organizing initial, pre-composition ideas, e.g., Venn-diagrams, flow charts, bullet points, etc.
- Novelty: Student engagement is at its peak when novelty and variety are present. To this end many lessons have included fun, surprise and novelty elements.

Snap-Tap-Clap Piano

6/1/2018

The Virtual Choir

4/9/2018

Interesting idea to spark some composition ideas for our high schoolers:

The Virtual Choir is a global phenomenon, creating a user-generated choir that brings together singers from around the world and their love of music in a new way through the use of technology. Singers record and upload their videos from locations all over the world. Each one of the videos is then synchronised and combined into one single performance to create the Virtual Choir.
Singers record and upload their videos from locations all over the world. Each one of the videos is then synchronised and combined into one single performance to create the Virtual Choir.
It began in 2009 as a simple experiment in social media.
The Virtual Choir has been like a drop of water on the surface of a still lake, rippling the musical and online landscape to reach millions. Now with more than fifteen million views, the VC phenomenon has reached all corners of the world, inspiring more and more singers to join each year. The VC has grown from 185 singers in VC1 to an amazing 8,409 videos for VC4 from 101 countries.
The VC videos have featured on worldwide TV (ABC in the US and BBC in the UK) and as installations across the globe including the Millennium Bridge, London as part of the 2012 Olympics, the opening of the Titanic Belfast 100-year anniversary exhibition as well as at the closing plenary of Davos World Economic Forum at 2013. The VC has also been seen on the main stage of the revered TED conference, the Paley Center in New York, the Kennedy Center in Washington DC at events for Google, UNICEF and the United Nations amongst others.
At TED 2013, Eric conducted a real-time Live Virtual Choir, performing live from 28 countries around the globe, alongside a 100 person-strong choir on stage, streamed live through Skype.
Later in 2013, Eric teamed-up with Disney to produce a song, “Glow”, written especially for World of Color – Winter Dreams show which premiered at Disney California Adventure® Park, California. 1473 singers, representing all 50 American States, submitted recordings, most of which were chosen, to be part of the World of Color Honor Choir.
The first-ever Virtual Youth Choir launched in 2014 featuring 2,292 young singers from 80 countries across the world. The film, in partnership with UNICEF, the world’s leading children’s organisation, premiered at the opening ceremony of the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games.

https://ericwhitacre.com/the-virtual-choir/about

Sound Maps

3/9/2018

Sound maps are digital geographical maps that emphasize the acoustic/sonic representation of a specific location. Sound maps associate or link landmarks (e.g. streets, building, parks, etc.) and soundscapes. The purpose is to represent a specific place in sound rather that visuals.

Great music composition project for your high schoolers!

Compose a Digital Sound Map with your students
The most straightforward method is mapping and embedding sound files on an existing map program e.g. Google Maps or Mapme. Try https://mapme.com/
Note: I found mapme.com the simplest online mapmaker and very user friendly. You are able to upload images and video on the free version. Audio requires a subscription. Record your sound as video with black screen to circumvent the subscription.

New titles at sheetmusicplus.com

1/31/2018

New, fun piano solos for intermediate students now available at www.sheetmusicplus.com

Alabama Music Educators Statewide Conference

1/2/2018

Join us for music professional development at the Alabama Conference, January 18-20, 2018. I am presenting on Thursday, January 18th at 3:30 p.m. Would love to see you there. Stop by and get your free publication.

3:30-4:30 PM Sheraton Forum 2 A-B
Composition in the 21st Century Classroom - Dr. Adriana Janse van Rensburg, Clinician
How do I teach composition? I never had composition instruction at college! I don’t compose! This session will provide a way forward through hands-on activities, ideas, inspiration, and a “how to” guide for introducing or expanding composition in the classroom. Twentieth Century techniques, Media Poems, technology, graphic notation, soundscapes, triad-melody technique, multimedia projects, traditional notation, Aleatoric music, Video Fun, iPads, and more will be explored.