Passport. A Rockapella Holiday Rockapella. Teacher s Resource Guide. s 4- just imagine. l Ye. Generous support for Schooltime provided, in part, by

Transcription

1 Passport TO CULTURE Teacher s Resource Guide SCH oolt ime Performance oo Sch s e i r e S a l Ye r e Grad 09 8 s 4- Photo: Ross Leung A Rockapella Holiday Rockapella just imagine Generous support for Schooltime provided, in part, by

2 just imagine Arts Education and You The New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC) Arts Education Department presents the 12th season of the Verizon Passport to Culture SchoolTime Performance Series. With Passport to Culture, Verizon and NJPAC open up a world of culture to you and your students, offering the best in live performance from a wide diversity of traditions and disciplines. At NJPAC s state-of-the-art facility in Newark, with support from Verizon, the SchoolTime Performance Series enriches the lives of New Jersey s students and teachers by inviting them to see, feel, and hear the joy of artistic expression. The exciting roster of productions features outstanding New Jersey companies as well as performers of national and international renown. Meet-the-artist sessions and NJPAC tours are available to expand the arts adventure. The Verizon Passport to Culture SchoolTime Performance Series is one of many current arts education offerings at NJPAC. Others include: Professional Development Workshops that support the use of the arts to enhance classroom curriculum Arts Academy school residency programs in dance, theater and literature, and Early Learning Through the Arts the NJ Wolf Trap Program After-school residencies with United Way agencies In association with statewide arts organizations, educational institutions, and generous funders, the Arts Education Department sponsors the following arts training programs: Wachovia Jazz for Teens The All-State Concerts The Star-Ledger Scholarship for the Performing Arts The Jeffery Carollo Music Scholarship Summer Youth Performance Workshop Young Artist Institute NJPAC/New Jersey Youth Theater Summer Musical Program Students have the opportunity to audition for admission to NJPAC s arts training programs during NJPAC s annual Young Artist Talent Search. CONTENTS On Stage 3 In the Spotlight 4 Music Talk 5 Singing the Praises of Vocal Music Before and After Activities 7 Teaching Science Through Music Delving Deeper Detailed information on these programs is available online at njpac.org. Click on Education. The Teacher s Resource Guide and additional activities and resources for each production in the Verizon Passport to Culture SchoolTime Series are also online. Click on Education, then on Performances. Scroll down to Download Teacher Guide in Adobe Acrobat PDF format and select desired guide. Permission is granted to copy this Teacher s Resource Guide for classes attending the Verizon Passport to Culture SchoolTime Performance Series. All other rights reserved. To Teachers and Parents The resource guide accompanying each performance is designed to maximize students enjoyment and appreciation of the performing arts; to extend the impact of the performance by providing discussion ideas, activities, and further reading that promote learning across the curriculum; to promote arts literacy by expanding students knowledge of music, dance, and theater; to illustrate that the arts are a legacy reflecting the traditional values, customs, beliefs, expressions, and reflections of a culture; to use the arts to teach about the cultures of other people and to celebrate students own heritage through self-expression; to reinforce the New Jersey Department of Education s Core Curriculum Content Standards in the arts. 2

3 On Stage Rockapella The members of Rockapella are critically acclaimed masters of a cappella, the art of singing without instrumental accompaniment. Since the 1980s, they have been making musical magic by taking elements of rock, jazz and rhythm & blues and blending them together in a truly singular style. A contributing factor to Rockapella s global appeal has been the ensemble s ability to employ the element of surprise, thereby always keeping fans delighted and on the edge of their seats. Tapping into a seemingly bottomless well of creativity, Rockapella never performs the same show twice. What is consistent at every show is a varied repertoire of original songs and cover tunes, versatile voices and an uncanny knack for connecting with the audience. This five-man powerhouse of vocal talent sweeps through sold-out venues across the country year round. With an ever-expanding fan base, they are known as the Kings of Contemporary A Cappella. The song selections for A Rockapella Holiday capture the heart of the season with Rockapella-cized arrangements celebrating Kwanzaa, Hannukah and Christmas as well as classic favorites. Included in the group s crowd-pleasing, spirited NJPAC performance are: Matunda Ya Kwanzaa - a new, original Rockapella song honoring the annual celebration of African culture; The Dreidel Song - a Hannukah favorite like you ve never heard it sung before; Angels We Have Heard On High - a new, funky version of the traditional, beloved Christmas carol; Little Mary Snowflake - a New York City holiday classic and one of many originals that help define the warm edge that makes Rockapella s holiday concerts so unique; and The Chipmunk Song described by Rockapella as That s my jam, homey! Rockapella s combination of tight ensemble singing and virtuosic solo voices is notable. The unique personality of each member s voice creates the flawless blend of the group s sound as well as diversity and excitement in the solos. Pushing the limits of the first instrument the human voice group members evoke a spectrum of sounds from musical instruments to insects in motion. They also play with changes in tempo, dynamics and mood, and their vocal versatility enables them to tell an eclectic mix of musical stories. Rockapella performances engender a genuine sense of community. The group draws its energy and inspiration as much from the connection they create with the audience as they do from each other. The audience is not a passive spectator but an important collaborator in setting the tone of the show. 3

4 In the Spotlight Rockapella started out as a group of four young Brown University alumni brought together by the sheer love of performing. The ensemble s membership fluctuated in the early years. Then, in 1992, ever-innovative Rockapella added a full-time mouth drummer or vocal percussionist to the group. Since then, this vocal quintet, whose sound had become an infectious blend of soul, rock, R&B and jazz, has performed throughout the country and appeared widely on radio and television. John K. Brown (baritone) began singing in church at the age of nine and never stopped. He grew up in Louisville, KY and attended performing arts schools up through college, graduating from the New World School in Miami. After seeing Ben Vereen in the musical Pippin, he said, Mom, that s what I want to do! Since then, he has performed across the country, on Broadway and Off Broadway, and has shared the stage with greats such as Phil Collins, Tina Turner and Julie Andrews. Kevin Wright (tenor) has a smooth tenor voice that lights up Rockapella s upper range sound. Kevin grew up in Winter Haven, FL where he sang his first solo in church at the age of two. Before joining Rockapella, he co-starred with George Wendt, Cleo Laine, Lauryn Hill, Betty Buckley, and others on and off Broadway and on tour. George Baldi (bass) hails from Philadelphia, PA. His rich, soulful voice, remarkable solo range and top-notch musicianship are a great fit for the group. Rockapella found him when he was performing at Universal Studios theme park in Osaka, Japan. Before joining Rockapella, George was a member of Boyz II Men. Jeff Thacher (vocal percussion) started his musical life playing classical piano and French horn and then added choral and musical theater experience. A graduate of Boston s renowned Berklee College of Music, Jeff joined Rockapella after working in the recording, radio and television industries. Scott Leonard (high tenor) grew up in Indianapolis, IN. He was a voice major at the University of Tampa. Scott sang in rock groups for Disney in both Orlando and Tokyo for two years and released two solo albums in Japan. Scott s soaring vocals and songwriting prowess have played major roles in shaping Rockapella s characteristic sound. 4 Scott Leonard Kevin Wright John K. Brown George Baldi Jeff Thacher

5 Music Talk Rockapella arrangement - a new adaptation and orchestration of an already existing musical piece. baritone - middle vocal register for a male singer. bass - lowest vocal register for a male singer. call-and-response - a musical conversation, often highly repetitive, in which a lead voice or instrument is answered or echoed by other voices or instruments. chord - three or more tones having a harmonic relation to each other, and played or sounded together. chorus - the part of a song or piece of music that is repeated at intervals. cover - a reinterpretation of a song previously recorded by another artist in which the arrangement, instrumentation, tempo, and/or lyrics may be altered. dynamics - the interplay between loudness and softness, and smoothness and choppiness of notes that are played or sung. falsetto - a male voice in an upper register beyond its normal range. harmony - the combination of certain musical intervals or chords that relate to each other and sound pleasing. improvisation - performing or composing music extemporaneously. melody - an organized succession of single musical notes arranged in a related and recognizable pattern. meter - the basic recurrent rhythmical pattern of note values, accents and beats per measure in music. polyrhythms - two or more different rhythms played or sung simultaneously. register - the range between the lowest and the highest tone capable of being produced by a voice or instrument. repertoire - all of the plays, dances, or musical works available for a performance by an individual or group at a given time. rhythm - a regular pattern produced by the length of strong and weak musical sounds at a particular speed or tempo. solo - a performance by one person that may or may not be accompanied by supporting voices or instruments. technique - skill displayed in the basic elements of playing or singing music. tempo - the speed at which music is played or sung. tenor - highest vocal register for a male singer. vocal percussion - the use of the voice and mouth to mimic sounds created by the beating or striking of a musical instrument, or the clapping, tapping, or snapping of one s fingers. 5

6 Did You Know? Singing the Praises of Vocal Music Vocal music is among the oldest and most universal art forms. Since ancient times, cultures around the world have revered the human voice s ability to soothe, ruffle and rouse the mind, the body and the soul. This ability originated and evolved without dependence upon instrumental accompaniment. Musically, the voice can stand alone. Drawing its power as well as its mass appeal from the singular nature of the human voice, contemporary a cappella has many musical antecedents as an American pop culture phenomenon. In the late 19 th and early 20 th centuries, barbershops were an important gathering place for men of all ages in Euro-American communities. Barbershops were the site of heated socio-political discussions as well as musical fun and games. As clients waited for their shave and haircut, they would improvise to popular songs and the term barbershop singing was coined. The more formalized barbershop quartet usually all male became an increasingly popular source of entertainment among Euro-Americans. These ensembles were noted for their close harmonies, unconventional vocal arrangements and spirited improvisation all done without instrumental accompaniment. Each member of the quartet sang a specific part: one person sang the lead melody supported by the tenor who sang the harmony line above the melody, the bass who sang the harmony line below the melody and the baritone who sang the harmony line between the tenor and the bass parts. In the 1920s and 1930s, at the height of Prohibition and the Great Depression, the formal barbershop quartet as well as community barbershop singing declined in popularity. Rooted in the African-derived musical styles of jazz and rhythm and blues, doowop music became a popular a cappella music craze in the 1940s and 1950s in urban centers. Like barbershop quartets, doo-wop groups emerged as a community phenomenon with creative arrangements 6 fayetteconcerts.org The Platters, a popular and influencial singing group of the 1950s and early 1960s. and vocal improvisation characterizing the style. However, these four-to-five-member groups took to the streets, preferring busy corners and back porches to test their musical ideas. The lead singer, falsetto/ first tenor, second tenor, baritone, and bass voices all worked together to create rich harmonies. A signature technique of doo-wop groups was the use of the voice primarily as an instrument. The bass singer mimicked bass lines and a tenor sang saxophone lines while the lead singer, often singing in his silkiest falsetto voice, entertained listeners with lyrical adventures in love. Unique to doo-wop music was its use of invented lyrics, consisting of assorted, strung-together syllables like doobedoo-be, sh-boom, sh-boom and doh-beh-doh-doh-doh. This trademark echoed the current improvisational scatsinging of jazz vocalists of the bebop era. As the commercial success of doo-wop groups grew, minimal instrumentation was used to enhance their sound. Groups like The Impressions, The Platters, Frank Valli & The Four Seasons, and The Drifters made musical history in the doo-wop style. Singular in its widespread appeal across color lines in the segregated 1950s, doowop grew to become part of the musical matrix along with jazz, rhythm & blues, country, and gospel that spawned the emergence of rock & roll in the late 1950s and 1960s. In the 1980s, evolving a cappella groups like Rockapella, Take 6, The Bobs, and The Nylons honored their hybrid musical roots while developing even stronger, more musically diverse branches of Christian, rhythm and blues, pop/rock, and jazz a cappella. These ensembles contributed to the resurgent popularity of a cappella music, paving the way for chart topping boy bands like Boyz II Men and N Sync to add to the ever-evolving conversation. Although not adhering to a purely a cappella sound, such bands have been influenced by a cappella roots, as evidenced by their harmonies, vocal arrangements and repertoire. Rockapella artfully waters these musical roots while harvesting new possibilities for contemporary a cappella ensembles by further popularizing vocal percussion as a distinct voice part or making unusual meters swing.

7 In the Classroom Before the Performance 1. To help students to explore a cappella sound-making, select one student to lead the group in a call-and-response exercise. Have the students create a steady beat by marching in place. Invite the leader to experiment with making sounds from a category, e.g., animals, modes of transportation, household machines, while keeping the steady beat established by the group. As the leader calls with his/ her sound, the group repeats it, imitating the call. After the group has explored mimicry of sounds, invite another student to lead the call. This time, however, one student at a time will respond and, instead of repeating the call exactly, he/she will make one change to the leader s call. This will introduce the group slowly to improvisation. As the students become more comfortable, they may change the call completely when giving their response, while staying within the theme or category of sounds established by the leader. Progressively, the students may be encouraged to improvise more freely and experiment with improvising two or three variations at a time to see what range of sounds and rhythms is created. (1.2)* After the Performance 1. Have the students brainstorm their responses to the concert onto a word wall. Invite each student to characterize what he/she saw, heard and felt during the concert using one noun, one verb and one adjective until the word wall is filled with their impressions via these parts of speech. Ask the students to write one sentence (or story, poem, etc.) about their theater experience using the word wall for vocabulary and content ideas. Then, have the students draw pictures that further elaborate their response. (1.1, 1.3, 1.4) Teaching Science Through Music (K-8) By Timothy & Katrina Macht Music originates as sound, and all sound is produced by vibration. Inside our larynx (voice box) are two folds of tough elastic tissue called vocal cords, which can either hang in a relaxed state or be stretched tightly. Air is constantly flowing in and out of our lungs and through the voice box and vocal cords. When we are not making sound, the vocal cords are relaxed. For sound to be made, the brain sends a signal to the muscles to pull the cords tightly, so there is only a narrow opening between them as the air passes through, thus causing vibrations. Stretching the cords makes them vibrate faster and produce sound of a higher pitch. If the cords are further apart, the sound produced will be lower. To turn the spoken word into singing, a sustained flow of air is required. The length of air flow is determined by the strength of the diaphragm. When we breathe, the diaphragm pulls the base of the chest down. When air is being forced out, the diaphragm controls the rate and volume. Sounds are louder when the diaphragm pushes greater amounts of air more quickly over stretched vocal cords. When the air flow is less and pushed out more slowly, causing little vibration, sounds are softer. Singers learn early in their training to breathe from the diaphragm, not the chest. The diaphragm holds a large amount of air, taken in one quick breath. Once trained properly, the diaphragm allows a singer to go for long periods without taking a breath, giving the performer the ability to hold a note or string words together in a musical phrase. NJ Core Curriculum Content Science Standards state that all students will gain an understanding of natural laws as they apply to motion, forces and energy transformations. For exercises that support the Standard and investigate the human body as a sound producing musical instrument, see the website pages of additional activities and resources that accompany this guide. Go to njpac. org. Click on Education, then on Performances, then on Curriculum materials. Scroll down to Download Teacher Guide in Adobe PDF format and select desired guide. Timothy Macht is an actor with extensive stage and commercial credits. When not performing, he works as a public speaking instructor and coach. Katrina Macht is a fifth grade teacher in the Bridgewater-Raritan School District and the Director of Outreach for Professional Resources in Science & Mathematics (PRISM) at Montclair State University. The Teaching Science Through the Arts content of this guide is made possible through the generous support of Roche. *Number(s) indicate the NJ Core Curriculum Content Standard(s) supported by the activity. Additional Before and After activities can be found online at njpac.org. Click on Education, then on Performances. Scroll down to Download Teacher Guide in Adobe Acrobat PDF format and select desired guide. 7

8 Delving Deeper Books Hoffer, Charles R. Introduction to Music Education. Waveland Press, Kastin, David. Hear America Singing:An Introduction to Popular Music. Prentice Hall, Selected Recordings by Rockapella Live in Japan. Shakariki Records, Comfort & Joy. Amerigo Records, Smilin. Amerigo Records, In Concert. J-Bird Records, Rockapella 2. J-Bird Records, Christmas. J-Bird Records, Don t Tell Me You Do. J-Bird Records, Websites: rockapella.com Official website of Rockapella with biographical information, discography, performance schedule, music clips, and photos. casa.org The Contemporary A Cappella Society s website with information about its services and links to other a cappella sites. Additional resources can be found online at njpac.org. Click on Education, then on Performances, then on Curriculum Materials. Scroll down to Download Teacher Guide in Adobe Acrobat PDF format and select desired guide. Acknowledgments as of 07/22/08 NJPAC Arts Education programs are made possible by the generosity of: Bank of America, Allen & Joan Bildner & The Bildner Family Foundation, The Arts Education Endowment Fund in Honor of Raymond G. Chambers, Leon & Toby Cooperman, The William Randolph Hearst Foundations, The Horizon Foundation for New Jersey, Johnson & Johnson, Lehman Brothers Inc., McCrane Foundation, Merck, Albert & Katharine Merck, The Prudential Foundation, Richmond County Savings Foundation, David & Marian Rocker, The Sagner Family Foundation, Schering-Plough, The Star-Ledger/Samuel I. Newhouse Foundation, The Turrell Fund, Verizon, The Victoria Foundation, Wachovia, and, The Women s Association of NJPAC. Additional support is provided by: Advance Realty Foundation, The Atlantic Philanthropies, The Frank & Lydia Bergen Foundation, Bloomberg, The Bodman Foundation, The Citi Foundation, The Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, Veronica Goldberg Foundation, Independence Community Foundation, Meg & Howard Jacobs, Kraft Foods, The MCJ Amelior Foundation, Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation, New Jersey Cultural Trust, The New Jersey State Council on the Arts, New Jersey Department of State, National Endowment for the Arts, Pechter Foundation, Pennsylvania Performing Arts on Tour, PSE&G, E. Franklin Robbins Charitable Trust, Roche, SanofiAventis, The United Way of Essex & West Hudson, Andrew Vagelos, The Edward W. & Stella C. Van Houten Memorial Fund, and The Blanche M. & George L. Watts Mountainside Community Foundation. For even more arts integration resources, please go to Thinkfinity.org, the Verizon Foundation s signature digital learning platform, designed to improve educational and literacy achievement. Arthur Ryan....Chairman Lawrence P. Goldman.....President & Chief Executive Officer Sandra Bowie.....Vice President for Arts Education Sanaz Hojreh......Assistant Vice President for Arts Education Donna Bost-White.....Director for Arts Education/Special Projects Jeffrey Griglak Director for Arts Training Verushka Spirito......Associate Director for Performances Ambrose Liu......Associate Director for Residencies Caitlin Evans Jones.... Associate Director for Residencies Faye Competello......Associate Director for Arts Training Mary Whithed Program Coordinator for Residencies Marie Thompson......Arts Education Sales Associate and Program Administrator Joanna Gibson...Manager of Wachovia Jazz for Teens Mary Louise Johnston & Laura Ingoglia......Editors of Teacher s Resource Guides 8 One Center Street Newark, New Jersey Administration: Arts Education Hotline: artseducation@njpac.org NJPAC wishes to thank Rockapella for assistance with this guide. Writers: Marshell Kumahor Laura Ingoglia Editor: Laura Ingoglia Design: Pierre Sardain, 66 Creative, Inc. NJPAC Guest Reader: Debra L. Volz Curriculum Review Committee: Judith Israel Amy Tenzer Copyright 2008 New Jersey Performing Arts Center All Rights Reserved