1 Cavalites/Honors Cavalites Show Choir Syllabus CHS Music Department Contact Information: Parents may contact me by phone, email or visiting the school. Teacher: Mala Kennard Email Address: mala.kennard@ccsd.us Phone Number: (740) 702-2287 ext. 16791 Online: http://www.chillicothe.k12.oh.us/schools/chs/ CHS Vision Statement: Our vision is to be a caring learning center respected for its comprehensive excellence. CHS Mission Statement: Our mission is to prepare our students to serve their communities and to commit to life-long learning Course Description and Prerequisite(s) from Course Handbook: Cavalites 654 (semester) State Course #120400, Level III Prerequisite: Audition Elective Grade: 10-12 Graded Conventionally Credit: 1 Cavalites is a show choir that works to develop a close harmonic choral blend while being accompanied by CD tracks, piano or an instrumental combo (piano, drums, guitar, bass guitar and winds). The group learns choreography and staging to highlight the music. Cavalites perform at school concerts, series shows, civic events and competitions throughout the school year. Members of this group are also required to participate in OMEA solo and ensemble adjudicated events and are also encouraged to participate in another choral group. Students will be selected via an audition process which is held in the winter of the school year and may repeat the course upon completion of an additional audition. Students are required to purchase a uniform which will cost approximately $100 - $120. Honors Cavalites 657 (semester) State Course #120400, Level IV Prerequisite: Audition Elective Grade: 11-12 Weighted Credit: 1 Students who have been part of Cavalites for the semester may request to be part of the Honors Cavalites with additional requirements, including performances, a formal research project and other assignments worthy of being an honors credit. These students attend the same class period as the regular Cavalites students. Honors students will still purchase a uniform the same as the other members of the group.
2 Big Ideas/Purpose per Unit and Essential Questions/Concepts per Unit: Defined below for clarity are the Unit Titles, Big Ideas of every Unit taught during this course, and the Essential Questions to be answered to better understand the Big Ideas. A student s ability to grasp and answer the Essential Questions will define whether or not he or she adequately learns and can apply the skills found in Big Ideas. This will ultimately define whether or not a student scores well on assessments given for this course. The Common Core Standards can be found at http://www.corestandards.org/the-standards. 1st 9 Weeks o Unit I Title: Music Notation Big Idea #1: Music notation is a language that must be mastered in order to perform music successfully. Essential Question #1: What is a music staff and notation in both Treble and Bass clef? Essential Question #2: How do you recognize and write in notation all intervals, major, minor and perfect? Big Idea #2: A select choir students should be able to sing and understand Solfeggio syllables. Essential Question #1: Sing a Chromatic scale in Solfeggio demonstrating the understanding of whole and half steps? Essential Question #2: Demonstrate singing all major, minor and perfect intervals in Solfeggio? o Unit II Title: Popular Vocal & Dance Techniques Big Idea #1: Understand and demonstrate the use of the human body as a vocal instrument. Essential Question #1: How is the body used to form correct posture, breath and vocal production? Essential Question #2: What are the vocal ranges for each choral voice? Essential Question #3: When listening to a vocal performance, what notations are used to describe problems? Big Idea #2: Understand and demonstrate the use of basic dance steps that are used in all dance styles. Essential Question #1: What are the eight basic dance steps? Essential Question #2: What are the five major forms of dance styles used by show choirs? Essential Question #3: How do you adjust the eight basic dance steps to fit different styles of music? 2nd 9 Weeks o Unit III Title: Rhythm & Interpretation Marks Big Idea #1: Rhythmic values and time signatures must be understood to perform music successfully.
3 Essential Question #1: What are the notes and rests used in duple, triple, and quadruple meter for simple time? Essential Question #2: What are the notes and rests used in duple, triple, and quadruple meter for compound time? Essential Question #3: What is the use of a dot or tie in rhythm and explain how it affects the value of a note? Big Idea #2: Interpretation markings add interest and vitality to choral music. Essential Question #1: How do you recognize and define Dynamic markings and explain how they affect a choir s performance of the music? Essential Question #2: How do you recognize and define Tempo markings and explain how they affects a choir s performance of the music? o Unit IV Title: Popular Vocal & Dance Skills Big Idea #1: Learning the Broadway Belt is a key technique which translates to all styles of popular singing. Essential Question #1: What is a belting technique and how it is used by a vocalist? Essential Question #2: What do the terms vocal quality and intonation mean? Essential Question #3: How does a choir keep the sound in tune and blended while belting? Big Idea #2: Dancing as a choir requires precision, showmanship and staging. Essential Question #1: What are the four types of songs that create a successful show choir set? Essential Question #2: What is showmanship and explain how it relates to a show choir s performance? Essential Question #3: Define the word staging and explain what constitutes an effective plan? END OF COURSE EXAM 3rd 9 Weeks (Honors) o Unit V Title: Keys & Triads Big Idea #1: Key signatures are the basis of melodic formation. Essential Question #1: What is the circle of fifths and how does it form the key signatures of all major scales? Essential Question #2: What is the difference between major and minor keys and explain how they are related? Essential Question #3: How is Solfeggio used to sing each kind of scale? Big Idea #2: Triads are the basic harmonic formation in choral music.
4 Essential Question #1: What is the difference between triads and chords? Essential Question #2: What are the primary triads in major & minor keys? Essential Question #3: How are primary chords sung in Solfeggio? o Unit VI Title: Show Choir Performance Big Idea #1: Applying the concepts of an adjudication model will assure a successful show choir performance. (Model used is the Iowa High School Music Association Show Choir Evaluation Form) Essential Question #1: How does the application of tone and intonation skills help a large group achieve a blended and balanced tone? Essential Question #2: How does rhythmic accuracy in singing help rhythmic accuracy in dancing? Essential Question #3: How does showmanship and stylistic elements enhance a show choir performance? Big Idea #2: A show choir student should be able to critique a performance using concepts learned from the IHSMA show choir model. Essential Question #1: What are the levels of adjudication and explain each level with terminology used during this semester? Essential Question #2: After viewing a performance, how do you assign and justify a level of adjudication to a group? 4th 9 Weeks (Honors) o Unit VII Title: Intermediate Music Notation/Basics of Pop Music Big Idea #1: An understanding of chords and how they are formed help the student basic pop music chord structure. Essential Question #1: How do you build a chord on each step of the major scale? Essential Question #2: What is the definition of the term inversion? Essential Question #3: What are the secondary triads and the quality of each chord? Big Idea #2: Show Choir has its beginnings in American popular music. Essential Question #1: How are the songs of Tin Pan Alley and Minstrel shows blended into a style that became Broadway? Essential Question #2: How did the Revue style grow into what we now know as show choir? Essential Question #3: How has the show choir style grown out of the Broadway idiom? o Unit VIII Title: Jazz Choral Vocal Techniques
5 Big Idea #1: A jazz vocal sound has a much different quality than a popular vocal sound. Essential Question #1: How does the vocal mechanism adjust to create a jazz vocal sound? Essential Question #2: What are the vocal idioms used in jazz music? Essential Question #3: What does the term improvisation mean and how does a singer master the practice? Big Idea #2: Markings in popular choral and jazz vocal music in particular aid the singer in accurately performing the style. Essential Question #1: What are the popular music markings that are used to aid the singer interpret a jazz vocal sound? Essential Question #2: How do you compose a four measure phrase where jazz markings are used to create a jazz sound? END OF COURSE EXAM Textbook: All choral music learned this semester Supplemental Textbook(s): One-Minute Sight-Singing, Beginning/Intermediate Level, Ronald & Holly Shaw-Slabbinck, Neil A. Kjos, publisher, 2010 Course Expectations Course Material Grading: Unit Exams 50% Assessments (Including: Quizzes, Essays, Labs, and Projects) 30% Homework 10% Class work 10% End of Course Exam is 20% of a student s final grade. Grading Scale The grading scale for Chillicothe High School can be found in the student handbook. Late Work: Late work will be subject to the board adopted policy on assignments that are turned in late (to be reviewed in class). CHS TENTATIVE Course Schedule This is an overview of what will be covered in this course at CHS for this school year. Although, I would like to follow this plan verbatim this year s tentative schedule is subject to change (at the teacher s discretion). 80% of the materials for assessment will be taken from the current literature students study during the nine week period. 1st 9 Weeks
6 Beginning of the Year Pre-Assessment Exam Unit I Title: Music Notation Notation Worksheet Solfeggio Writing: Chromatic and Specific Intervals Week 2: Marking Notation concepts in current literature Peer Review: Sing Chromatic Scale and Specific Intervals A cappella in Solfeggio Week 3: Project: Compose a melody using notation concepts Audio Recording: Singing Chromatic Scale and Specific Intervals Unit I Summative Assessment Unit II Title: Popular Vocal & Dance Techniques Week 5: Posture, Vocal Production and Dance Steps Worksheet Video & Aural Critique: Vocal Production and Dance Styles Week 6: Video Recording: Vocal Production and Dance Steps Peer Review: Vocal Production and Dance Steps Weeks 7-8: Project: Create a Dance Routine & Mark Vocal Production Areas Video Recording: Vocal Production & Dance Steps Week 9: Unit II Summative Assessment 2nd 9 Weeks Unit III Title: Rhythm & Interpretation Marks Rhythm Worksheet Interpretation Markings Worksheet Week 2: Marking rhythms and interpretation markings in current literature Peer Review: Clapping & Counting Rhythms and Singing literature using Interpretation Markings Weeks 3-4: Audio Recording: Clapping & Counting Rhythms Audio Recording: Singing current literature using Interpretation Markings Unit III Summative Assessment Unit IV Title: Popular Vocal & Dance Skills Week 5: Belting Worksheet Building a show choir set Worksheet
7 Week 6-7: Project: Preparing a Song in your Belt Voice Video Critique: Listening to show choirs using a Belt voice Week 8: Peer Review: Singing their Belt voice song Project: Building a Show Choir show using literature from online sources Week 9: Unit IV Summative Assessment END OF COURSE EXAM 3rd 9 Weeks (Honors) Unit V Title: Keys & Triads Circle of Fifths (Major & Minor) Worksheet Chord Worksheet Week 2-3: Marking Keys and Chords in current literature Peer Review: Singing in Solfeggio Scales and Chord Structure Unit V Summative Assessment Unit VI Title: Show Choir Performance Week 5: Tone, Articulation & Rhythm Worksheet IHSMA Adjudication Form Worksheet Week 6-7: Peer Review: Tone, Rhythmic Accuracy & Articulation Video Critique: Using the IHSMA form to critique Week 8-9: Unit VI Summative Assessment 4th 9 Weeks (Honors) Unit VII Title: Intermediate Music Notation/Basics of Pop Music Chord and Inverted Chord Worksheet Popular Music History Worksheet Week 2: Marking chords and inversions markings in current literature Project: Singing a Song from a Popular Historical Era Weeks 3-4: Audio Recording: Singing chords progressions in SATB Quartets Peer Review: Singing a Song critique for historical accuracy Unit III Summative Assessment END OF COURSE EXAM Unit VIII Title: Jazz Choral Vocal Techniques
8 Jazz Vocal Worksheet Popular Music Markings Worksheet Week 2: Marking jazz vocal markings in current literature Project: SATB quartet singing in a jazz vocal style Weeks 3-4: Audio Recording: Singing solo the Jazz Vocal idioms Peer Review: Singing in SATB quartet critique for stylistic accuracy Unit VIII Summative Assessment Performance Based Section: Writing Assignments/Exams/Presentations/Technology One or more of the End of Unit Exams may be Performance Based. According to the Ohio Department of Education, Performance Based Assessments (PBA) provides authentic ways for students to demonstrate and apply their understanding of the content and skills within the standards. The performance based assessments will provide formative and summative information to inform instructional decisionmaking and help students move forward on their trajectory of learning. Some examples of Performance Based Assessments include but are not limited to portfolios, experiments, group projects, demonstrations, essays, and presentations.
9 CHS Cavalites/ Honors Cavalites Show Choir Course Syllabus After you have reviewed the preceding packet of information with your parent(s) or guardian(s), please sign this sheet and return it to me so that I can verify you understand what I expect out of each and every one of my students. Student Name (please print): Student Signature: Parent/Guardian Name (please print): Parent/Guardian Signature: Date: