Music - MYP 4 and 5 - Samuel Wright - Hodder 2020

exploration: Scales as
Music
formulas
Take turns with a partner playing though the scales in
1
3.14 and discuss the ‘sounds’ they make. Which
Figure
With a partner, notate different scales starting on
2
notes. All you have to do is count the steps to
different
is TTSTTTS, with natural minor TSTTSTT (or
Major
and WhWWhWW)
WWhWWWh
Combining
ACTIVITY:
for a solo instrument
elements
thinking skills: Applying existing
Creative
to generate new ideas, products
knowledge
1 What do you notice about the bass line (notes
2 What is interesting about the combination of
this activity you have practised skills that are
In
using Criterion B: Developing skills and
assessed
■
ATL
■
BELLS, PEDALS AND PATTERNS
or processes
‘Elegy’ is a classical guitar work by Štĕpán Rak
(b. 1945). Rak is a composer and professor of guitar
scale is simply a string of notes that ascends and
A
in a particular pattern. You will need a starting
descends
at the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague.
His works have a distinct approach to rhythm
and then you either step up one space (semitone /
note,
or two spaces (tone / whole tone) to the next
half-step)
and melody that stems from his Czech heritage.
of the scale. There are actual formulas that you can
note
and drawing a keyboard is the best way to visualise
use,
The opening three measures of ‘Elegy’ are in
Figure 3.15.
how this stepping process works.
with stems going down)?
rhythms in both the bass and top parts (fingers
of music would have this sound or ?
tone-colour
types
tend to play the notes with stems going up)?
You should see straight away Rak’s repetition of
one single low note (called a
make sure they have the right formula.
with groupings
pedal) of three triplets on top (the numbers and circled
numbers are finger and string directions). Being
able to take the building blocks of music and
compare them with vastly different works is a skill
many professional musicians do on a daily basis.
As a final task, try to perform these measures on
classroom instruments in pairs. Could you complete
the piece by improvising the next few measures,
building on the pattern in Figure 3.15?
◆■ Assessment opportunities
Figure 3.14 Major and minor scale formulas:
■
Criterion D: Responding.
Figure 3.15 ‘Elegy’ by Št pán Rak measures 1–3
ĕ
■
3 When does music change direction? 67