Composers of all ages

How impressive this group is!  I have fifth graders this week composing songs in C position.   As usual, I have been trying to use the same procedure that I have been implementing all year:  the gradual release of responsibility.  I have been working with these students for two weeks on playing songs in C position, and they have this position down well.  Some of them write the names of the notes in their music, which works well for them, some use the numbers, which doesn't work as well, but they have to figure that out for themselves.  Others have memorized the notes.

Now is the most difficult transition, to go from playing pieces to taking even just those ten notes and creating their own piece with them.  Also, trying to create it correctly on the paper is a challenge.  So I created a page with ten steps for creating your perfect composition, and I went through it with them slowly.  It has everything all planned out.

They looked like they were listening when I went through it.  Then, we created four of the sixteen measures together.  Now here we are today, and most of them have had to re-write their manuscript at least once, if not several times, but they are now all in the piano lab playing their pieces and practicing for our big concert at the end of the week!!

I still struggle sometimes with them wanting to create a piece at the piano, because they cannot successfully write down the notes if they are given carte blanche.  I want them to use the vocabulary that they know, that they have learned, (C position in this particular case) so they can re-create it and play it for the class.  That being said, now that they have done that, I have told them that for the rest of the time, they may create any piece they want, using the black notes, the white notes, chords, all the high and low ones at the end, and they won't have to write it down!  They were very excited about that! I look forward to our concert, which will include both the songs they wrote in C position and maybe also some of the songs they have just created out of whole cloth and memorized by practicing them - not having to stick with convention!  A good compromise has been struck for the first time in my teaching life!!  Have a great week everyone, and play the piano if you get a chance.  So many notes sound wonderful when you put them together no matter what you do!!

TEN STEPS TO A PERFECT COMPOSITION

1.  CHOOSE A PIECE OF COMPOSITION PAPER.

2.  WRITE A TREBLE CLEF AND A BASS CLEF, ADD BRACKET TO MAKE GRAND STAFF.

3. WRITE  4/4 TIME AFTER THE TREBLE AND BASS CLEF.

 USE QUARTER NOTES, HALF NOTES, WHOLE NOTES, IN YOUR COMPOSITION.

USE RESTS AND EIGHTH NOTES IF YOU WISH, AND IF YOU KNOW HOW TO PLAY  THEM.

4.  USE C POSITION NOTES: C-D-E-F-G IN RIGHT HAND (TREBLE CLEF) C-D-E-F-G IN LEFT HAND (BASS CLEF)

5.  BE SURE TO ADD A MEASURE LINE EVERY FOUR BEATS. MAKE SURE YOU HAVE AT LEAST SIXTEEN MEASURES WHEN THE COMPOSITION IS COMPLETE.  BEGIN AND END ON C!!  

6.  BE SURE YOUR STEMS ARE GOING THE CORRECT WAY.  DOWN ON THE LEFT ABOVE THE MIDDLE LINE, UP ON THE RIGHT BELOW THE MIDDLE LINE.

7.  BE SURE YOU ARE USING NOTES YOU KNOW HOW TO PLAY, SO YOU CAN PERFORM YOUR PIECE.

8.  IF YOUR LEFT HAND OR YOUR RIGHT HAND IS NOT PLAYING, YOU MUST ADD RESTS TO SHOW SILENCE IN ONE HAND OR ANOTHER.

9.  FINISH YOUR PIECE FIRST BEFORE YOU PLAY IT, THEN WHEN YOU PLAY IT YOU CAN CHANGE WHATEVER YOU WISH TO MAKE IT BETTER OR MORE INTERESTING.

10.  PLEASE ASK QUESTIONS IF THERE IS ANYTHING YOU DON’T UNDERSTAND!  ESSENTIAL FOR SUCCESS IN ANY PROJECT IS ASKING QUESTIONS OR ASKING FOR HELP!!  I AM HERE FOR YOUR SUCCESS!!!