GENERAL MUSIC PERIODS 2,3,6
OBJECTIVE: INTRODUCTION TO GUITAR
1. NO QUOTE instead: COMPOSER REPORT ON TCHAIKOVSKY
.....a. Filled in and discussed the final portion of the 3rd section and
.....b. Wrote up and discussed section 4
2. GUITAR
.....a. Compared violin to guitar
..........1)Similarities
..........2)Differences
.....b. Different types of guitars
.....c. Fingering
...........1)Finger numbers:
..............a)Left index: 1
..............b)Left middle: 2
..............c)Left ring: 3
..............d)Left pinky: 4
...........2)Finger placement:
..............a)Pad of finger firmly pressed down onto the string
..............b)Finger often needs to be curved or contorted in a direction which enables it not to touch a neighboring string by
accident
..............c)Finger pad is placed near to but not on top of a fret
.....d. Strings
...........1)String names thickest to thinnest (EADGBE)
...........2)String numbers thinnest to thickest: thinnest is 1; thickest is 6
.....e. Melody versus Chordal guitar playing
..........1)Definition and demonstration of a chord on the guitar
..........2)How to read a chord diagram
..........3)Modified Chords
.............a. C chord modified
.............b. G7 chord modified
.....f. Guitar care and maintenance
BEGINNING VIOLIN PERIOD 5
OBJECTIVE: LEARNING TWINKLE/PREPARATION FOR NOTE READING
1. TUNE
2. WARM-UP
.....a. Silent Bow Rocking for arm levels
.....b. Open string bowings 4x separate bows UH then LH
.....c. Open string bowings DOWN-DOWN/UP-UP (2x each string)
..........1)DOWN-DOWN
..............a)using the WB (whole bow) playing at the LH for the first DOWN (frog to middle)
..............b)then stopping and then restarting in the same direction DOWN using the UH (middle to tip)
..........2)UP-UP
...............a)using the WB playing at the UH for the first UP (tip to middle)
...............b)then stopping and then restarting in the same direction UP using the LH (middle to frog)
.....d. SHIFTING
...........1)Playing an ascending major scale on one string using FULL shifting (finger and thumb move together at the same
time)
...........2)Start with an open string (DO) add ist finger (RE) then slowly slide the first finger and thumb into the MI, then to
FA, etc.
...........3)At first the slides (shifts) should sound "slurpy" in order to hear as the proper note approaches; using this approach
the finger is able to be controlled to stop at the right pitch and not over shoot it (go higher than it should be)
...........4)A note that is a little to low or flat can be artistically corrected during the playing process but notes that are too high
or sharp cannot.
ADVANCED VIOLIN PERIOD 4:
OBJECTIVE: Teaching counting through subdivision of the beat/introducing the counting of sycopated passages
1. TUNE
2. "A Year Without Rain"
.....a. RHYTHMS
..........1)Using the concept of subdivision, students had previously mathematically analyzed where the beats were played and
underlined the start of each rhythmic note
..........2)Using a chart (with the same information that the students had previously done on their own papers) the class
counted out loud 8 beats per measure clapping on the underlined notes.
..........3)The last step was redone again only this time with the recorded music added
..........4)Students were instructed to try to continue despite any mistakes to establish continuity
..........5)Hand claps were then replaced by snare pads and sticks
The objective was to try to make difficult rhythmic passages more understandable by breaking them down into smaller mathematical units. Often rhythmic passages in music are learned by constant repetition and consequential memorization. However, an intellectual understanding of the counting process is also essential for students not only to play more musically, but to help them learn the passages more accurately and in less time.
