The next unit for stage 4 music classes will be Instruments of the Orchestra. The topic will focus on identifying instrument families, and analysing pieces from composers that have had a major influence on the course of orchestral music. As a companion to the topic, students will be working on this booklet. The booklet will available on from the resources page of this website.

Yes, it has been a while, but we’ve got some fresh stuff ready for the website.

As promised, a section of the website is being devoted to storing the paperwork – you know, blue sheets, homework and the like. Click here to browse through the resources.

I will be presenting “Summertime” by George Gershwin. The version you’ll hear is by jazz trumpeter and composer, Miles Davis. As discussed in class, I will analyse the piece using the concepts of music.

Duration:

• The time signature is 4/4, meaning four crotchet beats to every bar.
• The rhythmic development is stable; there is some syncopation in the trumpet, but most backing instruments play steadily, especially the drums.
• The tempo is static; it stays at a moderate tempo throughout, about 110 beats per minute.

Pitch:

• The piece starts with the main theme, played by the trumpet. After this section, the trumpet uses a similar range, but the melody is improvised.
• There is a repetitive supportive harmony played by the orchestra. There is a ‘call and response’ between the orchestra and the trumpet.
• The trumpet and the orchestra counter-melody move have a smooth melodic contour; they don’t leap too much.
• Tonally, the piece is in a minor key.

Structure:

• The form includes the main theme, then is repeated, but with improvisations. Also known as a ‘Theme and Variations’ form.
• There isn’t much variation between the different parts of the form, aside from additional layers being added in the orchestra when the main melody is improvised.

Texture:

• The texture is quite thick for most of the piece.
• Some additional layers are added to the orchestra when the trumpet is improvised.
• The texture is varied by the trumpet appearing and disappearing throughout the piece.
• The texture is homophonic: One line of melody with chordal accompaniment.

Dynamics and Expressive Techniques

• The dynamics and expressive techniques of the harmony remains relatively static throughout; it mainly stays at a moderately soft level: mezzo piano.
• The dynamics and expressive techniques of the main melody (trumpet) vary throughout.
• Dynamically, it varies within some phrase from quite soft (piano), to quite loud (forte), and it also features many accented notes: notes that a surprisingly loud and sudden.
• Some of the expressive techniques featured are glissando (sliding between notes) and there are also great variations between detached notes (staccato) and smooth passages (legato).

Tone Colour:

• The performing media is the solo trumpet, supported by a jazz orchestra, or ‘big band’ featuring woodwinds, strings and drum kit.
• The trumpet is muted, which gives the sound a harsh and nasal quality at times.
• The orchestra features predominantly smooth and silky sounds.

Most of the information that I used for this analysis was gained from this incredibly helpful eBook. I suggest you use it too.

Creating your own blog. It’s really easy. The “blog” is short for weblog – basically on online diary. The blog is hosted on your own website, with your own URL.

First of all go to the edublogs website. You will see the page below.

Click on the “Free!” logo. It’s big and green. This will take you through the steps to creating your own free blog.

The next page looks like this:

Your Dashboard and Posting Content

And so on. It takes you through a few steps that are prompted, so all you have to do is follow the instructions. You don’t need an email address, but if you don’t, make sure you write down your password somewhere, because they won’t be able to send it to you if you forget.

When you finally get your own blog happening, you will need to add content through “posts”.

How Your Website Looks

This will be the most important part of the blog. This is what the viewer sees when they go to your website. Another important thing is to change the theme so your website looks different from the others. Go to “Themes” under the appearance tab.

Phew! Is that enough info for now? I think so. What your blog needs more than anything is time. Just get in there and play around with it. It won’t take you long to learn the ins and outs. Happy blogging!

Just kidding. The half yearly music exam is nothing to be scared of, but it does help to know you stuff! Here are some tips:

Get to know some  musical definitions. Things like tempo, duration, beat and rhythm will be covered in the test.

Memorising the different types of notes and their lengths is a great idea. Revising this rhythm worksheet will ensure that there won’t be any nasty surprises during the exam.

If you need any more rhythmic inspiration, check out this video.

You will have to listen to a few songs and identify the instruments you hear. Try testing yourself out on this one. It’s great practice for your exam! Enjoy.

Structure - How is it used in the song you are listening to. Find out more about structure.

You also have to answer questions about texture.

Towards the end of the exam you will need to answer some questions on note recognition. What are the notes in treble AND bass clef, and the different types of notes – crotchets, quavers, minims etc.  Check out this website and you’ll be an expert before you know it. Nice!

If you know your way around the musical concepts. You know: pitch, texture, dynamics and expressive techniques, duration, structure and… um… tone colour!

That’s it for now. Best of luck.