Monday, October 29, 2012

Music: Pieces with a Purpose

The 4th and 5th graders have been working on a composer book this semester. So far we have discussed Dvorak and J.S. Bach. I especially loved seeing their surprise at hearing a piece they have heard on TV or in movies, Bach's Toccata and Fugue in D minor. Listen again, this will be on the end of the year listening exam. The students will get to reinforce this tune when they perform a portion of it next semester on KAZOO's!
This composition would have been composed for a specific purpose. We have already discussed J.S. Bach's prolific church music and how many musicians were employed simply to write music for a patron's enjoyment. Toccata and Fugue in D minor would fall under the "Money Purse" category and leads us into their next assignment.

A portion of their composer book has been sent home with them to complete for homework. They simply need to finish coloring, cutting out and pasting the portions for "Pieces with a Purpose" together to be installed in a part of their booklet they have been creating. If there is any confusion, here is a example below from their instruction sheet.