Online listening KS3/4 activities Simon Rushby Introduction This resource brings together five listening activities for students to do at home, to widen their listening experience. They have been written to help students in years 8, 9 and 10 to improve their genearal wider listening experience and skills. The hope is that, in the current challenging times, these activities can support teachers as off-the- shelf resources that can be sent straight out to students as needed. Each activity comes with a set of Simon Rushby is a freelance listening questions, a little context and some ideas further listening or composing activities. ‘Mark it musician, writer and education yourself’ answers are provided at the end of the resource. consultant, and was a director A Spotify playlist containing all the tracks, including further of music and senior leader in listening suggestions, can be found here (https://open.spotify.com/ secondary schools for more playlist/44GK40n0yw9GWx6qyzKosK?si=FwbIJqmiRNy6fEap9UuKIQ). I’ve also supplied than 25 years. He is the author YouTube links for those that prefer, though any references to timings apply to the Spotify versions. of a number of music education The activities are each set out across two pages, so that they can be isolated and sent out or books and resources, an ABRSM uploaded to students. The aim is that this resource provides something that teachers can immediately examiner, and a songwriter, use in this busy, challenging time and provides useful activities for students that will help them improve composer and performer. their listening experience. www.musicteachermagazine.co.uk MUSIC TEACHER F June 2020 F 1 Online listening activities KS3/4 King Kong: main title – Max Steiner (reconstructed by John Morgan) Context King Kong is a 1933 feature film that tells the story of a giant gorilla-like creature brought to New York from a distant island as a theatre attraction. Spooked by camera flashguns, Kong breaks free and runs rampage around the city, finally being brought down from the top of the Empire State Building by the gunfire from four planes. Fay Wray played Ann Darrow, the object of Kong’s affection, whom he carries around New York while on his rampage. With the movie genre still in its infancy, King Kong was groundbreaking in its use of stop-motion animation to bring the monster to life. It also had a music score by Max Steiner, one of the first composers to write for the movies, and seen by many as a pioneer of film music. Steiner went on to score films such as Gone with the Wind and Casablanca. Listen to the track on the Spotify playlist, or here (www.youtube.com/watch?v=wTdOjpGhvPs). Listening activities Instruments and sonority 1 Write down as many percussion instruments as you can hear in the opening 12 seconds of the track. 2 Describe the music played by the violins in the opening 28 seconds of the track. 3 In the opening section, which family of instruments would you say has most of the melodic parts? 4 In the section from 1:23 to 2:09, which family of instruments has the melodic parts? 5 Which instrument can be heard playing a moving, broken-chord accompaniment? Atmosphere and mood How does Steiner set the mood, through this music, for a film about a giant monster that appears to fall in love? Think about the contrast between tense, dramatic music and calm, reflective music, and write your ideas under the following headings. Use of melody, harmony and tonality: Use of rhythm and tempo: Use of instruments and texture: www.musicteachermagazine.co.uk MUSIC TEACHER F June 2020 F 2 Online listening activities KS3/4 Composing idea Compose a short piece of ‘theme music’ for a movie set in space. Think first about the atmosphere you want to create – is it a magical journey through space, or a movie featuring battles between spaceships? Maybe the travellers visit a strange new planet? Try using just one or two instruments or sounds for your piece, concentrating on contrasts of pitch, rhythm, texture and harmony to create your atmosphere. Suggestions for further listening Ɂ John Williams: Star Wars main title (1977) (www.youtube.com/watch?v=_D0ZQPqeJkk) Ɂ Danny Elfman: Planet of the Apes (2001) (www.youtube.com/watch?v=GsmAGSZBTsM) Ɂ Richard Strauss: Also sprach Zarathustra opening (used in the film2001: A Space Odyssey, 1968) (www.youtube.com/watch?v=e-QFj59PON4) Ɂ Bear McCreary: Outlander – the ‘Skye Boat Song’ (music from the TV series) (www.youtube.com/ watch?v=ledHVF1ZtDI) Ɂ Bear McCreary: Godzilla: King of the Monsters (2019) (www.youtube.com/ watch?v=cD0FeOrK6rk) Suggestions for follow-up work The use of Richard Strauss’s Also sprach Zarathustra in 2001: A Space Odyssey is just one of many examples of classical music used for famous film scenes or sequences. The following classical works appear in famous film scenes – can you find out which? Ɂ Rachmaninov: Piano Concerto No. 2 in C minor Ɂ Dukas: The Sorceror’s Apprentice Ɂ Puccini: Turandot Ɂ Tchaikovsky: Swan Lake Ɂ Debussy: Clair de lune www.musicteachermagazine.co.uk MUSIC TEACHER F June 2020 F 3 Online listening activities KS3/4 Chopin: Prelude in B minor, Op. 28 No. 6 Context Polish composer Frédéric Chopin (1810-49) wrote almost exclusively for the piano, and many of his compositions were short pieces that defined the Romantic style. These pieces were often given names to describe them – Nocturne for emotive, reflective pieces; Étude for study pieces aimed at aspects of piano technique; Waltz or Mazurka for dance-like pieces, and Prelude for short pieces, perhaps intended for the beginning of a recital or to be played as a set. Chopin’s Op. 28 is a collection of 24 preludes, one in each major and minor key, which were written during the late 1830s, partly at his home in Paris and partly in Valldemossa, Majorca, where he spent the winter of 1838-9 to avoid the damp Parisian weather. Chopin suffered from bad health, which was sadly made worse by the draughty monastery he stayed in at Valldemossa. The B minor Prelude, No. 6 in the collection, was performed on an organ at the composer’s funeral. Most of its melodic material is played by the left hand. Listen to the track on the Spotify playlist or here (www.youtube.com/watch?v=_FiZ5zvAITs). Listening activities Use of the piano The YouTube video shows a top-down view of this piece being played on the piano. Watch it and write answers to the following questions: 1 The left hand carries most of the melodic material. How would you describe these left-hand melodies? Think about the way they rise and fall, whether they move in step or leap, and their rhythm. 2 How could you describe the material played by the right hand? Does it contrast much, or is it the same all the way through? 3 What could you say about the range of the piano keyboard used in this piece? Structure 1 Listen to the melody played at the beginning of the piece. Where do you hear this melody repeated? How is it changed when it repeats? Atmosphere and mood 1 This piece was played at Chopin’s funeral. In addition to the minor key, what other musical characteristics give this piece a sad, melancholy mood? Think about aspects of rhythm and tempo, melodic rise and fall, dynamics and other aspects of musical expression. 2 How does the piece end? Do you think this ending is effective? Give reasons for your answer. www.musicteachermagazine.co.uk MUSIC TEACHER F June 2020 F 4 Online listening activities KS3/4 Composing ideas Compose a short piece called ‘Prelude’ for an instrument of your choice – it could be a piano, or maybe an unaccompanied instrument like violin or flute, or perhaps guitar. Think about the mood you want to portray, and how you are going to do this. Perhaps you will concentrate on simple melodies, a repetitive rhythm or chords. Will you pick a major or minor key? How will you ensure your piece has a strong structure – maybe by repeating your ideas with just small contrasting sections? Ideally, your piece needs to be only between one and two minutes in length. Suggestions for further listening Ɂ Chopin: any of the other Preludes from Op. 28 – the best-known ones are Nos 4 in E minor, 7 in A major, 15 in D flat major (the ‘Raindrop’) and 20 in C minor. This last Prelude was the inspiration for the Barry Manilow and Take That hit song ‘Could It Be Magic’ (www.youtube.com/ watch?v=SqXYIteAfNs) (the individual preludes are indexed in the comments). Ɂ Barry Manilow/Take That: ‘Could It Be Magic’ (www.youtube.com/watch?v=HXH6Gf6YhJQ) (Manilow precedes the song with part of the Chopin C minor Prelude). Ɂ Rachmaninov: Prelude in C sharp minor, Op.3 No.2 (www.youtube.com/watch?v=sCtixpIWBto). Suggestions for follow-up work ‘Could It Be Magic’ is not the only pop song with a classical influence. There are many examples of songwriters and artists admitting to a little help from composers who went before them. Listen to any of these examples and see if you can hear the similarities – in each case, is it the melody, the rhythm or the harmony that is common to both pieces of music? Ɂ Little Mix: ‘Little Me’ and Fauré: Pavane Ɂ Billy Joel: ‘This Night’ and Beethoven: Piano Sonata No. 8 in C minor Op.13 (second movement) Ɂ Eric Carmen or Celine Dion: ‘All By Myself’ and Rachmaninov: Piano Concerto No.