MUSIC THEORY
2008-2009
COURSE DESCRIPTION
Music Theory at La Quinta High School traces the development of Western Music, its elements and basic concepts from the ancient Greek and Roman civilizations through the 20th century. Students will learn about melody, rhythm and harmony as it progressed through the forms and styles of each musical era. Sight-reading, ear training, melodic and rhythmic dictation and keyboarding will be important components of this course. Students will also be required to listen to Classical music examples that reinforce the musical concepts that they are studying.
A special emphasis will be placed on developing essential listening skills needed to enhance all areas of study and communication.
MAJOR GOALS OF THE CLASS
- To help students understand how, when and why the basic elements
of music evolved.
- To gain an understanding of how music is created. The creative process:
composer - performer - listener will be emphasized.
- To give students the tools and knowledge that will enable them to read, write,
understand, and perform music of their own choosing.
- To enrich their learning experiences in and out of music classes by improving essential listening skills.
- To enable students to write and perform their own works.
6. To foster a love and excitement about understanding how music is put together,
empowering them to write and play their own pieces.
PERFORMANCE OBJECTIVES / ACTIVITES
READING
Students will read selected articles about the elements of music: rhythm, melody, texture, timbre, harmony, form and style.
AURAL ANALYSIS
Students will learn how the principles of composition are used to organize pieces that create interest on many levels. Students will listen to simple melodies and/or songs to recognize forms (AB; ABA; and RONDO). They will also be asked to write simple, unaccompanied melodies in each form. They will recognize major and minor, various scales and chord progressions and repetition and contrast.
MELODIC and RHYTHMIC DICTATION
While learning the essential elements about music, students will be required to write simple melodic dictation on the staffs and rhythmic dictation with the proper note and rest values. These are sequential and will increase in length and difficulty as the course progresses.
COMPOSITION
Students will write simple compositions after they have learned the basic skills of composition. For example, once students have mastered the grand staff and meter signs, students might be asked to compose a simple melody for a proverb or nursery rhyme. Pieces will become more sophisticated as the course progresses.
CLASS DISCUSSIONS
Students will discuss classical musical examples used to illustrate musical concepts and forms. They will also share their own compositions for suggestions or new ideas.
KEYBOARDING
Students will become comfortable using the piano keyboard. Using the classroom pianos and or individual keyboards, students will be able to find notes, octaves, and various intervals. This must be highly individualized due to the variety of background, skill level and training.
REQUIRED CONCERT ATTENDANCE
Students will be required to attend all concerts at La Quinta High School and at least one off campus program each semester. Free tickets are available to these concerts.
EVALUATION
TESTS and QUIZZES
Students will have frequents tests and quizzes in three different manners for each concept that is introduced: written explanation; aural recognition; and written notation. For example: Melody and Harmony:
-students will write about each and about their differences using a complete music vocabulary.
-students will listen to recorded examples and examples played by the teacher to identify melody and/or harmony.
-students will be required to notate melodic and harmonic examples on the grand staff.
JOURNAL
Students will be required to keep a listening journal to increase their listening repertoire of classical music. They will record forms, styles, texture, and tone color of each work.
INDIVIDUALS
Using a conservatory approach, each student will be required to meet with the teacher individually to measure sight-reading and sight-singing skills, matching pitches, tonal memory, interval recognition, and major/minor ear-training skills of chords and melodies. Students will also be required to exhibit simple keyboard skills such as playing chords and simple melodies, as well as progressions and scales. This will also measure their ability to read simple music and play it on an instrument. These individuals will take place at least twice each quarter.
RESOURCES
The LQHS Media Center
The Public Libraries
The Internet
My Personal Music Theory Library
Piano Lab at LQHS
COURSE OVERVIEW
TIME LINE:
Ancient Civilizations: 3,000 BC
Chinese, Egyptian, Greek, Arabic, Jewish
Pentatonic Scales - 2,000 BC
Greco-Roman: 450 AD
Pythagoras invents the interval
Middle Ages: 450 - 1450
Church Modes - predecessor of Tonality
Renaissance: 1450 - 1600
Use of Whole Steps and Half Steps in the Scale
Baroque: 1600 - 1750
Major and Minor Scales develop from Modes
Tonic and Dominant Relationships introduced
Figured Bass
Classical: 1750 - 1820
Romantic: 1820 - 1900
20th Century: 1900 - 2000
New Scales and Harmonies
Staff
5 Lines; 4 Spaces; 7 Alphabet Letters; 12 Tones
G - Treble Clef
F - Bass Clef
C - Alto and Tenor Clefs
Lines, Spaces, Ledger Lines
All Clefs
Signs and Symbols
Enharmonic Equivalents
Circle of Fifths
Key Signatures and Relative Minors
Notation and Rests
Measure Structure, Types, Repeat Signs
Scales
Major
Minor: natural / harmonic / melodic
Chromatic, Whole Tone, Pentatonic
Meters
Simple: 2/4, ¾, 4/4 and Compound: 6/8, 9/8, 12/8
Intervals
Perfect (P), Major (M) Minor (m) Diminished (o) Augmented (+)
Simple: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8
Compound: 9, 10, 11, 12, 13….
Tritone
Construction of Intervals Upward and Downward
Chord Construction
Major, Minor, Diminished and Augmented
Root
Inversions
Dominant 7th
Major 7th
Diminshed 7th
Half Diminshed
Sight-reading
Cumulative Development in Sight Singing
Ear Training
Melodic Dictation
Rhythmic Dictation
Tonal Memory
Major/Minor/Diminished/Augmented Aural Recognition
Keyboarding
Using the Resources at La Quinta, all students will get experience playing simple chord progressions ( I - IV - V7 - I) in the Major
and minor Keys of the Circle of 5ths.
Students will be able to recognize simple harmonic changes aurally and will
Learn to accompany themselves in simple folk melodies.
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