670 Standard Essay 5

Standard 5: The teacher of PK-12 music has skills in selecting, analyzing,

interpreting, presenting, and evaluating music and music performance within
the context of music education.

As a music teacher, I must demonstrate the skills to select, analyze, interpret,

present, and evaluate music that my students and I perform. In the second
conducting course I took in college, we had to fill out sheets that showed us the
phrases, sub-phrases, measure numbers, instrument groups, solos, style,
difficult/uncommon rhythms, among other aspects that occur throughout a song.
The goal was to identify what was happening, where it was happening, and how it
made everything fit together to complete the song. For the final project of the
course, we had to conduct the top ensemble at the university, and demonstrate our
knowledge of the piece as well as put our own interpretations into the song. I
remember I took the song faster than everyone else because I didnt like the slower
tempos. I was able to show off that I knew the piece, and that I knew how to make it
work for the style I was going for. This is important because performance is
important. People want to be entertained when they listen to a concert, and in order
for a performance to be entertaining as well as authentic, it is important that the
educator, in this case me, knows the music I plan to perform with my students.
My students will benefit from my instruction because I take this aspect of
music education very seriously. It is unwise for a conductor to step in front of an
ensemble and not know what they are doing with a composition. When I know what
I am doing, my students will be able to learn from my instruction and begin to make
sense of how the music works. When I feel that my students are able to analyze
where a phrase ends and where the next one begins, I will ask them where those are
and how they fit together. Is it total difference in dynamics, a new instrument group,
new tempo, etc. When they have demonstrated a knowledge of how the song fits
together, we can add in their own interpretations to the song so that they can take
even more of an interest in what has become their own creation.
With my ability to select, analyze, interpret, present, and evaluate music, I
will know how to teach my students the music we play in our classroom, and teach
them a good foundation of how to go about learning music and grow as musicians.
 Artifact 1:

1. Danny Boy by Samuel Hazo. Published by MusicWorks in 2010. Cost to buy is

$60.00. It is a level 3 piece. It is a Ballad.

This piece is a ballad with many warm chords and emotion packed
suspensions (words in quotation marks were taken from the website). Even
though there arent a whole lot of tricky rhythms, each part is important for
setting the right color for the piece.

2. American Fanfare by Rick Kirby. Published by MusicWorks. It costs $65.00 to

buy. It is a level 4 piece.

This song is very fast and has some moments with some rich chords. There is a
lot of echoing/mimicking in the band. Once something is played in the main
voice, it is heard another time or two in other voices.

3. Into the Clouds by Richard Saucedo. Published by MusicWorks. It is a level 3

piece. It costs $55.00 to buy. It is an opener.

Into the Clouds is also a very fast and bright opener. The fanfare part of the
melody stays in the trumpets, and the ornamentation happens in the upper
woodwinds. I really like this piece because it has its challenges but is still a very
playable peace. Its very exciting and I like listening to it.

4. I Am by Andrew Boysen Jr. Published by Neil A Kjors Music Company. Cost to

buy is $75.00. It is a level 4 piece, It is a Ballad.

I Am is a more difficult piece to play due to its length and emotion needed to
make the song effective. I Am is in tribute to a band member who died in a car
crash while in high school. The opening tells the life the band member lived, the
middle section demonstrates uneasiness and ultimately leads up to what I have
imagined to be the car crash. The last section is very beautiful with the band
singing, and playing in remembrance of the band member who passed away. I
really like this song because its challenging and plays very heavily on emotions.

5. Instant Concert by Harold Walters. It was published by Rubank Publications.

It costs $60.00 to buy. It is a level 4 piece. It is a novelty piece.

Instant Concert is one song made up of 30 short popular melodies that are
continuously passed throughout the band. It is a very fun piece that can be
interpreted in many different ways, probably a different way for every director
who has conducted this song.
 6. First Suite in Eb by Gustav Holst. Published by Boosey and Hawkes. Cost
$115.00 to buy. Level 4 piece. Could be used as an opener or closer. It also
has multiple movements.

First Suite is one of the most popular songs in existence of wind bands. I believe
it is a passacaglia, where the melody gets transferred throughout the ensemble.
Its very good for high school playing because it can be altered to be an easier
piece or more difficult for better bands. I really like First Suite, especially
because of how it starts. The Tubas dont often have the main part, so its fun
when we do have the melody.

7. Second Suite in F by Gustav Holst. Published by Boosey and Hawkes. Costs

$85.00 to buy. It is a level 3.5, multi-movement piece.

Second Suite has multiple movements and gives each instrument an opportunity
to shine throughout the piece.

8. Old Scottish Melody by Charles A. Wiley. Published by TRN Music Publisher.

Costs $65.00 to buy. It is a level 3 piece. Best used as a closer.

Old Scottish Melody is a beautiful piece of music that is very emotional. Its even
more emotional for me because this is my schools senior song that we play as
the last song of the last concert of the year.

9. Radetzsky March by Johann Strauss. Published by Alfred Music Publishing. It

is a level 3 piece, and costs $68.00 to buy.

Radetzsky March is a different march than the typical American march. The song
gets quiet when we are used to big sections like Sousas dog fight sections.
This song isnt one of my favorite songs of all time, but I like it because it forces
the musicians to think differently than what they already know.

10. Solas Ane by Samuel Hazo. Published by MusicWorks. It is a level 4 piece.

Costs $68.00 to buy.

11. Solas Ane (which translates to Yesterdays Joy) is a fantastic piece by Samuel
Hazo. It has rhythmic complexity, but nothing overwhelming. I really like the big
moments in the piece when the drums come from nowhere and then play really
loud, and then the drums play loud but so does the melody. The drums and
melody have different parts but they work very well together.

Rationale: This is an assignment from my conducting class. We had to research

wind band literature pieces, and evaluate how it sounded musically and what
(broad idea) teachable concepts there are in each piece.
Artifact 2:

4. Glossary Definitions
Standards:

Re.3.I Identify and support interpretations of the expressive intent and meaning of
musical works, citing as evidence the treatment of the elements of music, contexts,
and (when appropriate) the setting of the text.

Objectives:

By the end of the lesson the students will be able to perform the Eb major scale
stylistically correct based on the term from the glossary being performed.

By the end of the lesson the students will complete a glossary term quiz with no
more than one error.

Warm-up:

- The teacher will have the students perform an Eb major scale, and will explain the
reason for the Eb scale is because that is what First Suite is in
- The teacher will have the students list the terms that indicate style that are
involved throughout the piece. The teacher will call on the students, and will ask the
students what they think the term means
- After a student has listed a term and the definition (assuming their definition is
correct; if they are incorrect the teacher will call on other students who might have
the correct answer), the teacher will conduct the scale in that style and the students
will perform the scale in that style

Sequence:

- The teacher will have the students choose a term and mention where it is in the
music
- The teacher will tell the students to play a few bars, in the proper style
- The teacher will ask the students if their playing matches the style
- If the style matched, the teacher will move on to the next term. If the style does not
match, the teacher will explain what will make the style match

Assessment:

The teacher will pass out a matching term-definition quiz. The questions will be
graded on right answers.

Terms:

Chaconne
Allegro Moderato

Legato

Stacc(ato)

Pesante

Maestoso

Vivace

March

Piu mosso

Meno mosso

Definitions:

A. Repeated short progression

B. Moderately Fast

C. Smooth and connected

D. Detached or separated

E. Heavy, with great weight

F. In a dignified or majestic fashion

G. Lively or brisk manner

H. A procession suited for a parade or marital affair

I. More motion

J. Less motion

Answer Key:

Vivace: G

Meno mosso: J
Legato: C

Maestoso: F

Piu mosso: I

Pesante: E

Stacc(ato): D

Chaconne: A

Allegro moderato: B

March: H

Rationale: This is a lesson from my secondary unit where we talk about style and
evaluate our performance to see if it matches the style of the terms listed in the
music. This helps the students learn the style to transfer that style into the song
when called for.