Classics up close – school concerts
February 2nd, 2010
Gill Ansell demonstrating instrument to children.
In a one hour program the engaging members of the New Zealand String Quartet introduce a range of musical ideas to a school audience, using audience participation, enjoyable games and lively explanations. All musical excerpts are from the classical string quartet repertoire. There is time for questions from the audience near the end. These programs are suited to a school audience aged 5-11.
Program content
Programs will draw on these modules to make an hour-long session.
Feed the Dog
- for string quartet and audience.
This lively jazz-influenced work by New Zealand composer Jonathan Besser was especially commissioned by the New Zealand String Quartet for performance to and with a school audience, using body and untuned percussion.
Talking instruments
A “talking” violin speaks with the other instruments. Audience participation leads into a section illustrating different kinds of conversations (and even an argument!) in music using a range of short musical examples.
Recognising moods and emotions in music
Audience participation: 6 children from the audience hold up posters which display cartoon characters illustrating specific moods – angry, sad, happy, tender, crazy and scary. Musical excerpts are used and the volunteers and the audience are asked to identify the mood of the music. This activity brilliantly illustrates the different ways people hear music and react to it – it is clear that there is no right answer to the question “what mood or feeling does this music convey?”
Where’s the Melody?
A lively and amusing team game based on the Trio from Beethoven Opus 59#2.
The audience is divided into four groups, each linked with one quartet instrument. They are introduced to the theme of the movement and during a performance must recognise when the melody comes in their instrument and demonstrate this by raising their hands.
Melody, Accompaniment and Textures
This module explores the background and foreground of the music, as in a painting. Students are asked to identify how many instruments are playing the tune at the same time and may be asked to count how many times the motive appears in a musical example.
Tags: Beethoven, Jonathan Besser
