FOR TEACHERS National Symphony Orchestra Young People s Concert 2014-15 Ankush Kumar Bahl, conductor Marissa Regni, NSO violinist and host
Dear Teacher: Exploring Extremes delivers a fun-filled and informative experience for students and educators. We hope to excite your students as we explore music s extremes from high notes and low notes to how big or small instruments (and their sounds!) can be. Plus, we ll pay special attention to the extremely talented violin, and introduce your students to different ways of listening to music. This Cuesheet performance guide offers three integrated resources that work together to help you prepare students for the concert: 1. The Guide for Students contains information about the concert program and related activities. 2. The CD provides Listening Activities relating to select works from the program, as well as musical excerpts from the rest of the concert. 3. This Guide for Teachers shares ideas on how to bring the Cuesheet, the Listening Activities, and online resources to life in the classroom. Enjoy the concert! Carole J. Wysocki Director, NSO Education Program 2
Tips for Using This Guide Students (and their teachers) will get more out of the NSO Young People s Concert when they are prepared for the Exploring Extremes program in advance. Here are some tips for using these resources: Using the CD The CD contains Listening Activities designed for grades 3 and up. The activities may be presented by the classroom teacher or music specialist. Many students will require at least two opportunities to engage with the content of the CD. We suggest this approach to the Listening Activities. Engage Students > Play Track > Reflect > Repeat as Needed > Go to the Next Track General Tips n Listen for yourself. Spend some time alone with the CD and other resources. This prep time is invaluable as you bring these resources into the classroom. n Allow enough lead time. Some teachers introduce students to the material weeks before the concert. n Prepare not only for the music but for the event. For many students, this will be their first time at a concert with a full orchestra. They ll be more comfortable if they know what to expect. n Most importantly, bring your own creativity to the process. Change these activities to fit your classroom and add your own variations. The activities presented on the CD connect to the National Content Standards for music, and other subject areas such as science and language arts. For more about the standards, visit the ARTSEDGE Web site at www.kennedy-center.org/artsedge. 3
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Introduction (4:20) Summary Students are introduced to the concept of musical extremes and opposites, and how a composer uses these special tools to make their music sound dramatic and powerful. Specifically, students will learn about tempo, pitch, size, and musical dynamics. TRACK 1 During the concert, students will hear an excerpt from German composer Ludwig van Beethoven s Symphony No. 4 with his exploration of musical opposites, Armenian composer Aram Khachaturian s stirring (and speedy) Sabre Dance from the ballet Gayane, Richard Strauss musical climb up a mountain in An Alpine Symphony, and Austrian composer Gustav Mahler s thoughtful and emotional Symphonies No. 2 and No. 5. They will also hear music by other composers including Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Joseph Haydn, Johannes Brahms, among others. The concert program will end with a rousing rendition of American composer John Philip Sousa s Stars and Stripes Forever March. 5
TRACK 2 Fast-Slow, High-Low (10:37) Summary Students are introduced to two pairs of musical extremes that a composer chooses from his toolbox to create music tempo and pitch through the music of Aram Khachaturian s wild Sabre Dance. Before Direct students to page 3 of Cuesheet. Read how tempo or the speed of music, can run from extremely fast to extremely slow and how pitch, or the high notes, low notes, and all notes in-between, make up the melody of the music. Have students prepare supplies (pencil and paper) for the pitch Listening Activity. During While playing these music excerpts, encourage students to listen for the extremes in tempo and pitch in Khachaturian s music. Have students read page 3 of Cuesheet to understand the different ways notes can move when determining pitch. Remind students that pitch travels in leaps, simple steps, or slides. After Encourage students to share their understanding of tempo and pitch. Discuss where they may have heard Khachaturian s Sabre Dance prior to the concert. 6
Big and Small Meet the Orchestra (8:43) Summary Students will learn about the third extreme composers consider size referring to both an instrument s size and that of an orchestra. Students will also be introduced to the four families or sections of an orchestra. Students focus on Richard Strauss An Alpine Symphony. TRACK 3 Before Direct students to pages 4 5 of Cuesheet. Read about the size of a full orchestra, a soloist, how a violin creates sound, and the four families of the orchestra: string, woodwind, brass, and percussion. Prior to listening, tell students how Strauss composition tells a story, paints a picture, and creates emotion. During Ask students to listen for the four orchestral families during Strauss An Alpine Symphony. Encourage students to listen for how the music tells the story of a mountain climber s adventurous day and how his journey takes him from early morning to night through a wicked storm. After Encourage students to share their understanding of instrumentation and extremes in size. Ask students if they heard the storm s wind and falling snow? Are they able to articulate the emotions they had while listening to the piece? Optional Activity: Direct students in the building of their own thunder machines. 7
TRACK 4 Loud and Quiet The Deal with Dynamics (11:34) Summary Students learn that composers use musical dynamics or extremes in volume to create music. By listening to Gustav Mahler s Symphonies No. 2 and No. 5, students also experience the role extreme dynamics plays in expressing big emotions and ideas. Before Direct students to page 6 of Cuesheet. Read about composer Gustav Mahler and his interest in exploring serious ideas and emotions in his music. Introduce students to the Italian words composers use to describe dynamics. During Remind students to listen for the sudden bursts or reductions of volume and what they think and feel during these moments. Ask students to imagine Mahler s concerns about life and death when listening to Symphony No. 2 and about longing and heartache during Symphony No. 5. After Encourage students to share their thoughts and feelings about each piece of music. Discuss what other big topics composers might want to tackle in their music? 8
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TRACK 5 Stars and Stripes and Everything We ve Learned (7:59) Summary Students review all four of the musical extremes featured on this CD through John Philip Sousa s Stars and Stripes Forever March. Before Direct students to page 7 of Cuesheet. Read about Sousa s exploration of extremes, including tempo, pitch, size, and musical dynamics. During While playing this track, ask students to listen and identify the musical extremes from the composer s toolbox. Alert students to the use of the piccolo that plays a large part in this piece. After Encourage students to share their listening experiences during Stars and Stripes Forever March. 10 Excerpts from the program of the NSO Young People s Concert Exploring Extremes are provided without listening prompts at the end of the CD.
Preparing for the Concert Before you depart: n Remind students that no eating or drinking is permitted in the Concert Hall. n Suggest students bring a light sweater or jacket in case the hall is cold. When students arrive: n Encourage students to visit the restrooms in the lobby before the concert begins. n Remind students to sit still in their seats and not to reach between rows, kick the seat in front of them, or otherwise distract from anyone else s concert experience. n The Concert Hall acoustics provide an opportunity to remind students to remain quiet during the performance and to demonstrate how extreme sounds travel from musicians to audience. During the performance: n Students will know to clap hands and applaud the musicians when the conductor silences the orchestra and turns to acknowledge the audience. 11
The Concert Program At the concert, students will hear the following works: Beethoven Mahler Mahler Tchaikovsky Khachaturian Haydn Symphony No. 4, first movement (excerpt) Symphony No. 2, first movement (excerpt) Symphony No. 5, Adagietto (excerpt) Suite No. 4 Mozartiana third movement Sabre Dance from the ballet Gayane (excerpt) Symphony No. 94, Andante ( Surprise ) R. Strauss An Alpine Symphony (excerpt) Brahms Sousa Più Andante of Symphony No. 1 in C minor, Op. 68 (excerpt) The Stars and Stripes Forever March (excerpt) Online Resources On the ArtsEdge site, you ll find additional resources to help you explore extremes and prepare for the concert, and much more. Visit: artsedge.kennedy-center.org/ students/kc-connections