World Music Lesson Plan Template

Topic: Klezmer Music

Objectives:

Examples:

 SWBAT identify 2 of the most popular solo instruments used in Klezmer music.
 SWBAT Maintain a steady pulse with improvised movement to the macro beat of a piece of
Klezmer music in time.
 SWBAT perform the bass line from Medyatsiner Waltz in time, with accurate pitches, in time, on
a mallet percussion instrument.
 SWBAT perform maintain a steady pulse throughout a musical example and improvise their own
32 beat rhytmic motive on a percussion instrument.
SWBAT demonstrate an understanding of the evolution of klezmer music and its purpose in
Jewish culture.

Materials:

1. Recordings
a. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iSU0UG4VSEI attentive
b. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YyNaFPUCYE0 engaged
c. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mh2Y1icTjps enative
d. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kmGDTSTd__4 creating
2. Sheet music for enactive
 3. Instruments
a. Percussion instrument (drums, claves, shakers, etc.)
b. Pitched percussions instruments.

Procedures:

1. Introduction:
a. Klezmer music is Jewish folk music.
b. Klezmer comes from the Yiddish words Kley which means vessel and Zemer meaning
melody.
c. Klezmer music was influenced by Turkish and Balkan Gypsy music.
d. Klezmer music was popullzrized by the musical, “Fiddler on the Roof.”
2. Attentive Listening
a. Students listening will be directed via a series of questions:
i. Is there a tempo change in the music?
ii. What instruments have the solo part on over the ensemble?
b. Students will listen through the piece once.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iSU0UG4VSEI
c. Students will follow the listening guide by raising their hand and answering the
questions aloud.
d. Students will be assesed by the answers they give verbally to the guided questions.
3. Engaged Listening
a. Students will engage with the music by moving to the macro beat of the music.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YyNaFPUCYE0
b. Students will gather in a circle. The teacher will start by clapping the macro beat and
the students will mimic the motion. The teacher will then point to the student to their
left signaling them to make up their own motion to the macro beat, all other students
are to mirror that motion. Students will continue to take turns leading the class in
motion until all have participated.
c. Students will be assessed by their ability to maintain time through the motion they
improvise.
4. Enactive Listening
a. Students will be replicating the Medyatsiner Waltz.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mh2Y1icTjps
b. Students will be performing ing on available pitched percussion instruments.
c. Students will be learning the bass line. Students will be given the sheet music and
separated into five groups. Each group will work on a specific system of the music. The
teacher will be available to helps groups who need it. After 10 minutes of practice, the
recording should be played allowing the students to run through their part with the
track.
d. The students will be assessed by their performance, in groups, of their assigned line of
music performed with the recording.
5. Creating Music
 a. Students will perform percussion accompaniment to a recording of Let’s Be Happy.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kmGDTSTd__4
b. The whole class will by playing the macro beat pattern fo the song while individuals take
turns improvising rhythms over them them.
c. The teacher will perform an improvised rhythm first to give them an example.
d. All students will have a percussion instrument. Drums, claves, shakers, tambourines,
etc. During the first time listening to the song, students will be asked to play their
percussion instruments on the macro beat of the song while the teacher demonstartes
imporvisation. After the first run through of the song, it will be played again. This
time, students will take turns improvising every 32 beats. While a single student is
improvising, the rest of the class will maintian the pulse on their instruments. The
teacher will help direct improvising students when to begin and end.
e. Students will be assessed by their ability to stay in time and create rhythm while
performing on their instrument.
6. Integrating (this can be moved to the beginning of procedures after the intro).
a. What, specifically, should students know about the culture and its impact on music?
i. Think of some specific guided questions that will involve students in discussion
about the culture (as opposed to just lecturing them with information).
1. What do you know about Jewish history?
2. What is the jewish faith based on?
3. Is there a jewish homeland?
4. What kind of celebrations do jewish people celebrate?
ii. Think about who is composing/performing/listening.
1. The music is performed by jewish musicians primarily at Jewish holidays
and celebrations.
2. The audience is normally comprised of other Jewish people, however, as
its popularity has risen, Klezmer music has become more popular in the
common culture.
iii. Has the music changed over time?
1. Klezmer music originated in the 18th century in Eastern Europe where it
was played primarily at celebrations and holidays.
2. Musicians were all male and trained by their fathers in the art form.
3. As Jewish people began to move so did their music, spreading out from
the Ottoman Empire.
4. Original instrumentation was comprised of two violins, a bass, a cello,
and noramlly a hammer dulcimer and flute.
5. In the 1880’s European Jews began to move to America and began
playing in American orchestras and bands.
6. As early sound recording started to arise, the clarinet and brass bass
instruments were added to project louder into early recording machines
resulting in a fuller sound.
7. As jazz began to boom, Klezmer muscians took those influnces and
infused klezmer music with swing and jazz motives.
 8. Female Klezmer musicians became integreted into ensembles in the
1970s.
iv. What does the music tell us about the culture? 1
1. The Jewish population has never had much of a chance to settle down.
2. Their music draws influence from Gypsy music, another nomadic
culture.

v.
1. Map of jewish emigration. (https://www.legacytree.com/blog/jewish-
research-tips-part-1-history-and-immigration)
vi. Students will be asked a series of questions at the end of the answer and will be
asked to raise their hands and respond.
1. Where is Klezmer music traditionally performed?
2. What religion is Klezmer music associated with?
3. What area of the world did Klezmer music originate?
4. Why did clarinets become more popular in Klezmer music?

Accommodations for Learners with Special Needs: (Describe how you would provide an accommodation
for at least one of your listening activities.)

1. If a student is unable to physically perform an improvised rhythm for the creating music portion,
they may write out a rhythm to be performed by a teacher or other student.

1
Slobin, Mark. Encyclopedia Britannica, https://www.britannica.com/art/klezmer-music, 2008