Learning Activity

Why Are Musical Works Chosen to Appear on a Concert Program?

Subject Area

Arts Education

Grade(s)

8

Overview

The directors of musical ensembles select music to perform at their concerts for a variety of reasons. They might choose pieces that appeal to audiences with a common interest, they might choose pieces that offer similar or contrasting listening experiences, the pieces may develop the audience's musical understandings, or the pieces may share a common purpose. There are many reasons that music pieces are selected. In this activity, the students will explore concert programs of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra.

This activity was created as a result of the Arts COS Resource Development Summit.

Arts Education (2017) Grade(s): 8 - Music

AE17.MU.8.16

Compare how the elements of music and expressive qualities relate to the structure within music programming.

Unpacked Content

UP:AE17.MU.8.16

Vocabulary

Rhythm
  • Tension and release
  • Phrase
  • Notation (standard, iconic, technological)
Melody
  • Tension and release
  • Phrase
  • Notation (standard, iconic, technological)
Harmony
  • Texture
  • Tension and release
  • Sequence
  • Notation (standard, iconic, technological)
Form
  • Arrangement
  • Song structure
  • Expanded forms
  • Introduction
  • Transition
  • Coda
  • Style
  • Genre
  • Structure
Expression
  • Timbre
  • Balance
Other
  • Sound sources (instruments, voices, found sounds, & technology)
  • Age-appropriate audience and performer etiquettes

Essential Questions

EU: Response to music is informed by analyzing context (social, cultural, and historical) and how creators and performers manipulate the elements of music.
EQ: How does understanding the structure and context of music inform a response?

Skills Examples

Performing
  • Perform a program of music that is for a specific purpose, interest, or experience and explain your choices.
  • Perform music from a variety of cultures, styles, historical time periods, or genres and discuss how personal interpretation and the composer's use of the elements of music influence expressive intent.
  • Compare and contrast the context of music selected for performance.
Creating
  • Compare and contrast the context of three or more pieces of music created by self or peers and explain how the elements of music and expressive qualities were used in each piece.
  • Compare and contrast how the elements of music and expressive qualities are used in multiple pieces from the same time period and/or culture, and/or genre to create meaning and expression.
Reading/ Writing
  • Analyze music using standard notation and appropriate vocabulary.
  • Compare and contrast how the elements of music and expressive qualities are used within music selected for performance to contribute to the overall structure and intent.
    • Cite specific examples and use appropriate vocabulary.
  • Analyze music of a variety of cultures, styles, historical time periods, and/or genres and compare the context and/or intent of the pieces.
  • Compare common terms and how they are used in various pieces to demonstrate intent.
Responding/ Evaluating
  • Compare and contrast programs of music for connections to history and culture.
  • Develop personal criteria based on personal knowledge and skills for including music in performance programs.
  • Develop personal criteria based on the elements of music for including music in performance programs.
  • Demonstrate (lecture, presentation, journal, etc.) how personal knowledge and experience contribute to enjoyment of music.
  • Identify how criteria based on the elements of music support personal preference for specific musical works.
  • Develop a rubric to evaluate musical performances and/or musical works based on personally developed criteria.

Anchor Standards

Anchor Standard 7: Perceive and analyze artistic work.

Phase

Before/Engage
Learning Objectives

Learning Objectives

Students will:

  • identify and describe musical elements that are used as expressive devices across various selections in a concert program.
  • offer explanations and predict the emotional impact of expressive elements on a concert audience.
  • provide reasons that support the inclusion of music selections on a concert program.

Activity Details

Opening Strategy

  • The teacher will ask students if they have ever attended a music concert.
  • The teacher will ask students if they ever wondered why some pieces were performed on the concert while others were not performed.

Core Strategy

  • The students will locate the program calendar of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra (or other music ensembles) on the Internet.
  • The students will browse through a variety of programs.
  • The teacher will organize the students into small groups.
  • In each group, the students will select one music program that is of interest to them.
  • The students will listen to excerpts of the pieces on YouTube or another streaming site.
  • The students will compare and contrast three or more pieces of music found on the program.
  • The students will identify three musical elements across the program which served as the primary expressive devices.
  • The students will write brief descriptions of how these elements were used and provide explanations of their emotional or affective impact on the concert audience.
  • The students will hypothesize the rationales for combining these pieces on a concert program.

Closing Strategy

  • The student groups will share their findings and identify common themes in concert programming.

 

Assessment Strategies

Assessment Strategies

The teacher will evaluate whether:

  • the students identified three musical elements that were used as expressive devices.
  • the students provided brief descriptions of how these elements were used.
  • the students provided explanations of the emotional impact these elements may have had on the concert audience.
  • the students provided a rationale for combining these pieces on a concert program.

The teacher can use a pass/fail, holistic rubric, or analytic rubric to evaluate these criteria.

Variation Tips

If individual devices are not available, the teacher can lead the students through this activity using a single computer, projector, and sound system.

Background and Preparation

Background / Preparation

Students must have access to the Internet on individual devices (computers, iPads, etc.)

Students will need earbuds to listen to music examples.

Digital Tools / Resources

Calendar for the Detroit Symphony Orchestra
https://www.dso.org/CalendarView.aspx

Approved Date

Owner (Author)

mzelenak
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