Overview:

Although music is abstract in nature, its concepts can be made concrete for young students. This class will focus on ways in which elementary students can gain skills and understanding of the elements of music by taking part in guided experiences.

Objectives:

Students will be able to:

• Identify the ways in which the elements of music can be introduced to younger students.
• Identify the age- and grade-appropriate music activities.
• Discover ways in which elementary students can respond (verbally and non-verbally) to music.
• Guide elementary students to move from percepts to concepts.
• Identify issues common to teaching music.

Styles and Ensembles

The diversity and availability of recordings have provided teachers with the means to expose students to a wide spectrum of musical styles. Vocalists, choirs, chamber music, opera, jazz combos, symphony orchestras, ethnic music, folk music, church music—all present opportunities for exploring and learning about the timbres of different instruments, the tone color possibilities of ensembles from varying cultures, and the characteristics of music in the greater world.

Older students who have mastered the most obvious characteristics of timbre can be exposed to the subtleties of changes in tone color inherent through differences in interpretation. The performer who brings printed black-and-white music notation to life through the color and expression of a live presentation incorporates the shadings of loud and soft, the tempo and deviations from the tempo, the nuances of phrasing, attacks, releases, and connection of notes. All make the difference between a live and radiant performance and one that lacks vitality. The methods musicians and conductors use to make these shades of timbre and expression cannot be indicated by the symbols of music, but they are important because they give personality to the performance.