This week, many different classes explored making their own creative musical decisions.
PreK
Students continued to respond to what they heard by playing freeze dance to various selections. We also learned the Hokey Pokey. We have been working on keeping a steady beat by passing a clap around the circle. We also played an echo game with both frame drums and tall drums. Next week will involve singing some new songs.
K-1
Students learned a circle dance this week. We began to read and count rhythms. We also started to connect note letter names to bars on glockenspiel and xylophones. By the end of the week, we were able to play "Rain, Rain Go Away" as a class and add a drum beat to it. Next week will involve starting to read some notes with the helper letters taken away.
2-3
Students at this level did two group dances this week. We read and counted more complicated rhythms and began to discuss the names and lengths of different note types. We explored the notes C, D, and E on instruments and we were able to play "Mary Had A Little Lamb" by the end of the week. Next week will involve looking at some music with more than 3 notes!
4-5
Students in these grades also did two group dances. We were able to read and count rhythms as a class and as individuals. Then, we explored rhythms in the context of a song. We looked at two different songs involving C, D, and E and then volunteers created their own drum rhythms to go with the songs. At the end of class, we teamed up drums and glockenspiel to create our own melodies and rhythms. Next week will involve more student creativity as they work on making their own "remix" of familiar songs.
4-8 Band
The week began with playing Hot Cross Buns as a class. This song has become like a rite of passage for all beginning instrument students. With assistance from more experienced players, first year players became more confident with their first three notes. On Thursday, we discussed tuning both as setting up the instrument to get a good sound and how to adjust our sound while playing. Students worked in groups, creating their own 4 beat groove and thinking about what notes sound good together. Next week, we will work on another 3 note song (with beginners playing the melody and more advanced players having their own parts) and play some Band Karaoke by playing the notes we know along to recordings of popular songs.
Middle School Band
This class may one day be known as the "Wall of Sound". We have a class of strong players that are not afraid to be heard (and sometimes are asked to turn the amps down). We have become fairly comfortable with We Will Rock You. We worked hard on trying to fit different parts together for Eye of the Tiger and compared our rhythms to the original recording. Today, we listened to the opening of The Final Countdown and began to work on the opening rhythms. For this piece, percussion students have a driving beat, guitar and bass students outline each downbeat, while the wind players have the familiar melody (complete with fast sixteenth notes!). Next week, we will continue to work on Eye of the Tiger and Final Countdown and will probably look at another song on Thursday (Mr. Arell has had some requests, including the 6 minute long Bohemian Rhapsody...).
Middle School Chorus
Students in this class have been making so much progress! Our topic this week was dynamics (volume) in singing, particularly how to create a bigger sound and how to have good contrast between quiet and loud sections of a song. We began by learning about the way the body creates sound (air, creating space, and resonance). We then viewed some performances of contrast in singing for inspiration. We have worked on different vocal exercises to get better at controlling air, creating a tall tone by dropping our jaw and raising our soft palate, and feeling the buzzing (vibration) at the front of our face. We then learned about how to write and interpret dynamic markings on music. We worked together to write our own dynamics for Sweet Caroline before we sang it. Next week, we will work on some more full songs to practice dynamics.
Overall, it has been a great week with many exciting learning breakthroughs. In 4-8 Band, we discussed product vs. progress, which helps to keep me motivated in the learning process. Product is the final result or the current sound, whereas progress is always changing and (hopefully) improving. We may not play or sing a piece perfectly in the moment, but our second attempt gives us a chance to get better--and that's what learning is all about!
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