Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
It is common knowledge that every well-educated person should know, understand and appreciate music. However, no matter how well aware of various composers and genres people might be, many of us find it difficult to feel it. There are numerous examples of musicians who can technically perform a piece, but when you listen to them playing, you realize that you might as well listen to a robot. Only the emotion behind the melody gives music a truly human feel and makes it a universal human language that will be understood all over the world. Thus, it is extremely important not only to acquaint students with the famous composers and the peculiar features of their creative work but also to enable them to feel the emotions expressed by the composer and to teach them to analyze and interpret their own feelings aroused by a musical piece. Therefore, the aim of the following unit of lessons is to create an atmosphere of emotional involvement and provoke a wide range of emotions in each student.
The lessons below might be united by one theme (Happiness vs. Misery) and be conducted in one group of students every day during a week.
Lesson 1
LENGTH OF LESSON: 90 minutes
TYPE of CLASS
Listening to and Discussing a Piece of Classical Music
LEVEL
PRIOR KNOWLEDGE
Some background knowledge of classical music, the basics of the theory of music and the essential terminology might be helpful.
OBJECTIVES
Learning about Franz Lizst, a famous Hungarian composer, the striking features of his music; discussing the tonal peculiarities and the students’ emotions aroused by Années de pèlerinage deuxiéme année, Sonetto 104, S. 161 (from Yaroslav Senyshyn’s Volume “Reflections and Relationships”)
MATERIALS
The basic textbook, “Musical Overview: 1600-2000” by Linda Sheppard (Published Longbow Publishing Limited, 2009), pens/pencils, a laptop and loudspeakers.
PROCEDURES:
Greeting the students and discussing their current mood:
What are you feeling like today? Does your mood depend on today’s weather?
If you were to write a piece of music, would it be in Major or in Minor?
Introducing the composer.
Today we are going to speak about Franz Lizst, one of the most prominent Hungarian composers, who was also regarded a piano virtuoso. Franz Liszt was born on October 22, 1811, in Raiding, Hungary. His father taught him to play piano. At the age of six, young Liszt was considered a child prodigy; at the age of eight, he was composing music; and at the age of nine, he was performing in concerts.
One of Lizst’s teachers was Antonio Salieri, Mozart's old rival, who was so impressed by the boy’s talent that he trained him in composition free of charge. Lizst’s most impressive talent was his ability to improvise an original composition from any melody.
There is an interesting fact about Franz Lizst: he often donated to charity all the money he received at the concerts. For example, in 1842 after the Great Fire of Hamburg, his concerts helped to raise money to help the homeless.
His most famous achievement was the creation of the so called symphonic poem, a type of musical piece that illustrates a poem, a story or a painting. In a way, it unites music and drama.
As an adult, he gave concerts all over Europe. His musical legacy consists of more than 700 musical pieces.
(based on http://www.classical.net/music/comp.lst/liszt.php).
Introducing the piece of music.
Listen to the beginning of a piece performed by the famous pianist Yaroslav Senyshyn (1 min 10 sec.).
What is your first impression of the piece?
What feelings does it arouse in you?
Optimistic, tense, delightful, serene, calm, depressed, melancholic,
The piece is called “Années de pèlerinage deuxiéme année, Sonetto 104”. It is translated as “Years of Pilgrimage”. Why does the beginning sound so tense?
Listen to the next part of the piece (1.11-3.35). Has anything changed in the mood of the piece? Why? What does it have to do with the name of the piece?
Listen to the end of the piece (3.35-7.10). What makes this part different from the beginning? What is similar? Why?
How would you characterize the change of your feelings?
What do you think could have inspired Franz Lizst to write this piece of music?
Introducing the background information concerning the piece.
“Années de pèlerinage deuxiéme année” was composed in 1833 when Franz Lizst met Contesse Marie d'Agoult and fell in love with her. The composition expressed his overwhelming love for the woman and admiration of the Swiss countryside.
Now listen to the composition again and look at the photograph of the Swiss countryside. Do you think the composer managed to borrow some of its sounds and show its beauty and serenity?
(Swiss Countryside from Google pictures)
In which part of the composition do you seem to hear the sounds of nature?
Introducing the homework
HOMEWORK
Listen to the piece once again and write an essay about the inspiration that a composer can get from nature. In the textbook, read more about the composer.
Lesson 2
LENGTH OF LESSON: 90 minutes
TYPE of CLASS
Listening to and Discussing a Piece of Classical Music
LEVEL
PRIOR KNOWLEDGE
Some background knowledge of classical music, the basics of the theory of music and the essential terminology might be helpful.
OBJECTIVES
Learning about Cesar Franck, a famous Belgian composer, the striking features of his music; discussing the tonal peculiarities and the students’ emotions aroused by Sonata in A Major for Violin and Piano (from Yaroslav Senyshyn’s Volume “Relationships and Reflections”)
MATERIALS
The basic textbook, “Musical Overview: 1600-2000” by Linda Sheppard (Published Longbow Publishing Limited, 2009), pens/pencils, a laptop and loudspeakers.
PROCEDURES:
Greeting the students and discussing their current mood:
How would you characterize your feelings today? Was there anything in your life to provoke such feelings?
Listening to the essays about the influence of nature on the composers.
Introducing the composer.
Today we are going to speak about a very unusual composer who was admired by many contemporaries including Claude Debussy, Romain Rolland and others who called him a saint of music and emphasized the composer’s childishness that radiated from all his compositions. The name of this extraordinary composer is Cesar Franck. He was born in 1822 in Belgium and became famous in Paris in the middle of the 19th century. Franck Cesar’s creative work had a great impact on many French composers of that time, for example Claude Debussy and Maurice Ravel.
The most striking peculiarity of Franck’s creative work is the so called “cyclic form” that enables him to combine the principal themes into one piece by “recalling the theme” in later movements as if in a cycle.
Apart from being a pianist and a music professor, Franck also played the organ and he became organist and maître de chapelle at the newly consecrated church of Sainte-Clotilde.
His musical legacy includes twelve organ compositions and, thus, Franck is considered the greatest composer of organ music after Bach.
Introducing the piece of music.
In 1886, Franck composed Sonata in A Major for Violin and Piano as a wedding gift for the Belgian violinist Eugène Ysaÿe. It had great success. Ysaÿe played it in Brussels, in Paris, and took it on a tour, often with his brother Théo Ysaÿeat who played the piano.
Listen to Part I of the Sonata performed by the famous pianist Yaroslav Senyshyn. It is to be played “Allegretto ben moderato”, which means “fairly quickly, faster than Andante and usually slower than Allegro, at moderate speed”.
How important do you think it is to play this piece like that?
What is the general mood of this part?
What is your first impression of the piece?
What feelings does it arouse in you?
Merry, joyous, solemn, delightful, serene, calm, depressed, melancholic, mystic, powerful, ethereal.
What associations do you have with this music? Can it be an introduction to a fairy-tale? Think of the plot of this fairy-tale.
Listen to the next part of the Sonata. Has anything changed in the mood of the piece? Why? If it were a fairy-tale, what would happen in this part?
Listen to the two final pieces. What makes this part different from the beginning? What is similar? Why? Do you hear the repetition of any themes presented earlier?
Is the Sonata a reflection of the childish soul of its composer?
Introducing the homework
HOMEWORK
Listen to the Sonata once again and write a fairy-tale that would be a good illustration to the music. In the textbook, read more about the composer.
Lesson 3
LENGTH OF LESSON: 90 minutes
TYPE of CLASS
Listening To and Discussing a Piece of Classical Music
LEVEL
PRIOR KNOWLEDGE
Some background knowledge of classical music, the basics of the theory of music and the essential terminology might be helpful.
OBJECTIVES
Learning about Frederic Chopin, a famous Polish composer, the striking features of his music; discussing the tonal peculiarities and the students’ emotions aroused by Sonata No. 2 Op. 35 in B Flat Minor (from Yaroslav Senyshyn Live Volume II: Schubert Schumann Tschaikowsy Liszt).
MATERIALS
The basic textbook, “Explorations 1: A Music History Overview” by Janet Lopinski, Joe Ringhofer, and Peteris Zarins (Published by Frederick Harris Music, 2010), pens/pencils, a laptop and loudspeakers.
PROCEDURES:
Greeting the students and discussing their current mood:
How often do you start your day with a piece of music? What genre music is the best in the morning to wake you up, in the afternoon, to fill you with energy, in the evening, to calm you down?
Listening to the fairy-tales to the Sonata in A Major for Violin and Piano (HW).
Introducing the composer.
Today we are going to speak about a composer who is considered to be one of the most romantic composers and whom Heinrich Heine once called “the poet of sound”. That is Frederic Chopin. He was a great Polish composer and a virtuoso pianist of the Romantic era. He was born in Poland in 1810. Chopin’s talents were evident at a young age and he was often called a child prodigy and was compared to Mozart as he began composing at the age of seven. Chopin composed music for the solo piano. Many contemporaries admired his poetic genius and professional technique. Frederic Chopin was a close friend and the rival of Franz Liszt who was jealous of Chopin’s virtuoso technique.
Chopin’s Etudes have become a fundamental part of advanced piano repertoire.
Introducing the composition.
Today we are going to listen to Chopin’s Sonata No. 2 Op. 35 in B Flat Minor, which consists of three parts played in a different mood.
Listen to the first part of the Sonata and try to interpret the composer’s Italian remark (grave). What do you think it can mean? (slow and solemn)
How important do you think it is to play this piece like that?
What is the general mood of this part?
What is your first impression of the piece?
What feelings does it arouse in you?
Merry, joyous, solemn, delightful, serene, calm, depressed, melancholic, mystic, powerful, ethereal.
Listen to the second part of the Sonata and explain what makes its mood different. Does it sound scherzo, i.e. “light and humorous”?
The third part is called “Marche funebre” – a funeral march. What makes this melody sound tragic?
Why do you think the three parts of the Sonata are so different emotionally? What associations do you have with this music? Try to draw a parallel between these pieces and a human life.
Introducing the homework
HOMEWORK
In the textbook, read more about the composer.
Listen to Chopin’s Nocturne in F Major, Op.15 (from Yaroslav Senyshyn Live Volume II: Schubert Schumann Tschaikowsy Liszt) and compare the feelings it arouses with the poem “Twilight” by G.G. Byron:
TWILIGHT
It is an hour when from the boughs
The nightingale’s high note is heard;
It is an hour when lovers’ vows
Seem sweet in every whispered word;
And gentle winds and waters near,
Make music to the lonely ear.
Each flower the dews have lightly wet,
And in the sky the stars are met.
And on the wave is deeper blue,
And on the leaf the browner hue,
And in the heaven that clear obscure,
So softly dark, and darkly pure,
Which follows the decline of day,
As twilight melts beneath the moon away.
Lesson 4
LENGTH OF LESSON: 90 minutes
TYPE of CLASS
Listening To and Discussing a Piece of Classical Music
LEVEL
PRIOR KNOWLEDGE
Some background knowledge of classical music, the basics of the theory of music and the essential terminology might be helpful.
OBJECTIVES
Learning about Franz Schubert, a famous Austrian composer, the striking features of his music; discussing the tonal peculiarities and the students’ emotions aroused by Piano Sonata No.13 In A, D.664 (from Yaroslav Senyshyn Live Volume II: Schubert Schumann Tschaikowsy Liszt)
MATERIALS
The basic textbook, “Explorations 1: A Music History Overview” by Janet Lopinski, Joe Ringhofer, and Peteris Zarins (Published by Frederick Harris Music, 2010), pens/pencils, a laptop and loudspeakers.
PROCEDURES:
Greeting the students and discussing their current mood:
Do you often have dreams at night? What did you dream about last night?
Listening to the students’ commentaries on the poem and the Nocturne (HW).
Introducing the composer.
Today we are going to speak about a composer who is famous for bridging classical and romantic composition, Franz Peter Schubert. Franz Peter Schubert was born in 1797, in Austria, into a family of a schoolmaster, As is quite common among the famous composers of those times, he demonstrated his gift for music quite early. He was also an excellent singer and even was trained as a vocalist. Unfortunately, when his voice broke he had to give up singing and become a schoolteacher, which did not prevent him from composing music.
Schubert is famous as a prolific songwriter who composed music to the famous poems of Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, showing the world the possibility of representing literature in musical form. His legacy included also operas and operettas.
Introducing the composition.
Today we are going to listen to Franz Schubert’s Piano Sonata No.13 In A, D.664, which consists of three parts played in a different mood: Allegro Moderato, Andante, Allegro.
Listen to the three parts of the Sonata and try to explain why the composer chooses different moods.
How important do you think it is to play these pieces with different emotions?
What is the general mood of each part?
What feelings does each part arouse in you?
Tragic, sad, merry, triumphant, energetic, fast, joyous, solemn, delightful, serene, calm, depressed, melancholic, mystic, powerful, ethereal.
Why do you think the three parts of the Sonata are so different emotionally? What associations do you have with this music?
Once Franz Schubert said: “A mind that is too easy hides a heart that is too heavy.” How does this thought and the composition we have listened to characterize the composer?
Introducing the homework
HOMEWORK
In the textbook, read more about the composer.
Listen to Franz Schubert’s Piano Sonata No.13 In A, D.664 and Chopin’s Nocturne in F Major, Op.15 (from Yaroslav Senyshyn Live Volume II: Schubert Schumann Tschaikowsy Liszt) and compare the feelings these pieces arouse in you.
Lesson 5
LENGTH OF LESSON: 90 minutes
TYPE of CLASS
Listening To and Discussing a Piece of Classical Music
LEVEL
PRIOR KNOWLEDGE
Some background knowledge of classical music, the basics of the theory of music and the essential terminology might be helpful.
OBJECTIVES
Learning about Peter Tchaikowsky, a famous Russian composer, the striking features of his music; discussing the tonal peculiarities and the students’ emotions aroused by “The Seasons”, Op.37A: No.6 in G Minor, June. Barcarolle (from Yaroslav Senyshyn Live Volume II: Schubert Schumann Tschaikowsy Liszt).
MATERIALS
Pens/pencils, a laptop and loudspeakers.
PROCEDURES:
Greeting the students and discussing their current mood:
How does the season of the year change your mood?
Listening to the students comparing the two pieces of music (HW).
Introducing the composer.
Today we are going to speak about Pyotr Ilyitch Tchaikowsky, a famous Russian composer who is famous for creating the so called Russian style of classical music. His legacy included a great number of musical compositions: operas, ballets, symphonies and smaller pieces.
Pyotr Tchaikowsky was born on May 7, 1840 in Russia. Though he was trained as a lawyer, he took advanced classes in orchestration and soon became a teacher of harmony at the Moscow Conservatory. It was then that his career of a composer began. In spite of his great talent and enormous contribution in the Russian and world music, he was often deeply injured by his contemporaries.
Many Tchaikovsky’s compositions – among them The Nutcracker, the Piano Concerto #2 in G Major, the String Quartet #3 in E Flat minor, and the Trio in A minor for Violin, Cello, and Piano still remain popular.
The secret of his success lies in the melancholy combined with dance-like movements derived from folk music. Tchaikovsky was also a talented orchestrator. The melodic intensity and instrumental brilliance of his ballets and operas have never been outshone. Tchaikovsky was also skillful in expressing different moods and emotions in his music.
(based on http://www.classical.net/music/comp.lst/tchaikovsky.php)
Introducing the composition.
Today we are going to listen to “The Seasons”, Op.37A: No.6 in G Minor, June. Barcarolle. Barcarole is a song traditionally sung by Venetian gondoliers.
Listen to the piece and try to explain why the composer chooses Minor and not Major to describe June.
How important do you think it is to play the piece in Minor?
Is the melody always sad? Or does it change? Why?
What feelings does this composition arouse in you? What associations do you have with this music?
Tragic, sad, merry, triumphant, energetic, fast, joyous, solemn, delightful, serene, calm, depressed, melancholic, mystic, powerful, ethereal.
What do you think Venetian gondoliers would have sung about in a song like this?
Introducing the homework
HOMEWORK
Find more information about the composer and his most famous pieces.
Listen to “The Seasons”, Op.37A: No.6 in G Minor, June. Barcarolle again and write a story of a Venetian gondolier (from Yaroslav Senyshyn Live Volume II: Schubert Schumann Tschaikowsy Liszt).
Lesson 6
LENGTH OF LESSON: 90 minutes
TYPE of CLASS
Listening To and Discussing a Piece of Classical Music
LEVEL
PRIOR KNOWLEDGE
Some background knowledge of classical music, the basics of the theory of music and the essential terminology might be helpful.
OBJECTIVES
Learning about Peter Tchaikowsky, a famous Russian composer, the striking features of his music; discussing the tonal peculiarities and the students’ emotions aroused by “The Seasons”, Op.37A: No.6 October, Autumn Song (from Yaroslav Senyshyn Live Volume II: Schubert Schumann Tschaikowsy Liszt)
MATERIALS
Pens/pencils, a laptop and loudspeakers.
PROCEDURES:
Greeting the students and discussing their current mood:
What story would you tell people about yourself and your life? Would the musical piece be optimistic? Sad? Triumphant etc?
Listening to the students telling the stories of Gondoliers inspired by Tchaikowsky’s piece (HW).
Introducing the next composition.
Today we are going to listen to “The Seasons”, Op.37A: No.6 October, Autumn Song. Do you think it will be merry?
Look at the picture of autumn and say what you expect of the piece of music about October.
(October from Google pictures)
Listen to the Autumn Song and try to explain why the composer chooses to make it so sad. Is autumn always associated with unhappiness and depression? Why?
Would it be possible to play an autumn song in Major?
What feelings does the piece arouse in you?
Tragic, sad, merry, triumphant, energetic, fast, joyous, solemn, delightful, serene, calm, depressed, melancholic, mystic, powerful, ethereal.
What associations do you have with this music?
How does this composition we have listened to characterize the composer?
Introducing the homework
HOMEWORK
Listen to “The Seasons”, Op.37A: No.6 December, Christmas (from Yaroslav Senyshyn Live Volume II: Schubert Schumann Tschaikowsy Liszt) and compare the feelings all the parts of “The Seasons” arouse in you.
Lesson 7
LENGTH OF LESSON: 90 minutes
TYPE of CLASS
Listening To and Discussing a Piece of Classical Music
LEVEL
PRIOR KNOWLEDGE
Some background knowledge of classical music, the basics of the theory of music and the essential terminology might be helpful.
OBJECTIVES
Learning about Robert Schumann, a famous German composer, the striking features of his music; discussing the tonal peculiarities and the students’ emotions aroused by Robert Schumann’s piece called Papillons, Op. 2, No. 5 (from Yaroslav Senyshyn Live Volume II: Schubert Schumann Tschaikowsy Liszt)
MATERIALS
The basic textbook “The History of Music: Volume 2” by Emil Naumann (Published by Cambridge University Press, 2013), pens/pencils, a laptop and loudspeakers.
PROCEDURES:
Greeting the students and discussing their current mood:
How are you today? Do you feel that spring is in the air?
Listening to the students’ commentaries on “The Seasons” (HW).
Introducing the composer.
Today we are going to speak about a composer who is considered one of the most important figures in the Romantic era, Robert Schumann. Robert Schumann was born in 1810. The young man was a talented pianist and he even gave up his study of law to become a virtuoso pianist. His desire to become a concert pianist was so strong that he was obsessed with the development of his technique and injured his hand, which ruined all his dreams. Thus, he chose the career of a composer. Schumann composed music not only for the piano but also symphonies, operas, chamber and orchestral music. Besides, he also became a famous music critic.
His creed was as follows: music was composed to express the feelings, thoughts and impressions that a human got throughout his life. Many of his compositions were inspired by his beloved wife Clara and dedicated to her.
(based on http://www.classical.net/music/comp.lst/schumann.php)
Introducing the composition.
Today we are going to listen to Robert Schumann’s piano piece called “Papillons, Op. 2”, i.e. butterflies. He composed this piece as a musical illustration to a scene in Jean Paul's novel Die Flegeljahre. The fusion of literary ideas with musical ones is known as program music.
Before you listen, what do you expect of the piece with such a name? What will the tonal characteristics of the piece be?
Listen to the piece and say whether your expectations were correct.
Merry, playful, triumphant, energetic, delightful, serene, calm, depressed, melancholic, mystic, powerful, ethereal, fast, joyous, solemn,
How important do you think it is to play this piece with these emotions?
What feelings does each part arouse in you?
What associations do you have with this music? Can you imagine butterflies when you listen to the piece?
How does the composition characterize the composer? Does it serve as an illustration to his musical creed?
Introducing the homework
HOMEWORK
In the textbook, read more about the composer.
Write an essay on the following topic: “Music is a language that does not need any words”. Give examples from the pieces we have listened to and discussed.
Works Cited
Lopinski, Janet. Ringhofer, Joe. Zarins, Peteris. Explorations 1: A Music History Overview: Frederick Harris Music, 2010. Print.
Naumann, Emil.The History of Music. Volume 2: Cambridge University Press, 2013. Print.
Sheppard, Linda. Musical Overview: 1600-2000: Longbow Publishing Limited, 2009. Print.
Electronic sources
http://www.classical.net/music/comp.lst/liszt.php
Google pictures.
Sound recordings
Yaroslav Senyshyn Volume “Reflections and Relationships”. https://itunes.apple.com/ca/album/reflections-relationships/id736217710
Franck, Cesar. Sonata in A Major for Violin and Piano. Perf. by Yaroslav Senyshyn. Volume “Relationships and Reflections”.
Lizst, Franz. Années de pèlerinage deuxiéme année, Sonetto 104, S. 161. Perf. By Yaroslav Senyshyn. Volume “Reflections and Relationships”.
Yaroslav Senyshyn Live Volume II: Schubert Schumann Tschaikowsy Liszt. https://itunes.apple.com/ca/album/yaroslav-senyshyn-live-volume/id359333182
Chopin, Frederic. Nocturne in F Major, Op.15. Perf. by Yaroslav Senyshyn. Live Volume II: Schubert Schumann Tschaikowsy Liszt.
Chopin, Frederic. Sonata No. 2 Op. 35 in B Flat Minor. Perf. by Yaroslav Senyshyn. Live Volume II: Schubert Schumann Tschaikowsy Liszt.
Schubert, Franz. Piano Sonata No.13 In A, D.664. Perf. by Yaroslav Senyshyn. Live Volume II: Schubert Schumann Tschaikowsy Liszt.
Schumann, Robert. Papillons, Op. 2, No. 5. Perf. By Yaroslav Senyshyn. Live Volume II: Schubert Schumann Tschaikowsy Liszt
Tchaikowsky, Pyotr. “The Seasons”, Op.37A: No.6 in G Minor, June. Barcarolle. Perf. by Yaroslav Senyshyn. Live Volume II: Schubert Schumann Tschaikowsy Liszt.
Tchaikowsky, Pyotr. “The Seasons”, Op.37A: No.6 October, Autumn Song. Perf. by Yaroslav Senyshyn. Live Volume II: Schubert Schumann Tschaikowsy Liszt.
Tchaikowsky, Pyotr. “The Seasons”, Op.37A: No.6 December, Christmas. Perf. by Yaroslav Senyshyn. Live Volume II: Schubert Schumann Tschaikowsy Liszt.
