I. Curricular Framework

Concept:

Nature in the Arts

Essential Question:

What is the connection between nature and the study of music?

Bridge:

Color and Dynamic

Content:

"Hotaru Koi"

Outcomes:

II. Standards Aligned

III. Instruction and Assessment

1. Connect: Connecting to the Concept Experientially

Objective: Students will be made aware of and will experience the variety of natural sounds.

Activity: Using any recording equipment, students will be asked to record at least one sound that is found in Nature. Such sounds can range from that of a bird call to the sound trees make on a windy day. The students must then bring their recordings into class on a given date.

Assessment: Students will be able to provide a recording (or recordings) of carefully selected nature sounds.

2. Attend: Attending to the Connection

Objective: Students will hear the different nature sounds that were collected by their peers, and will share their findings with others in the class.

Activity: Students will be given a maximum of three minutes to play an excerpt from their recording(s). Each student, however, will not tell the class the maker of each sound. Rather, the class must try to guess the sound’s producer. If they are unsuccessful, the student may then reveal the creature or phenomenon that provides the sound. The teacher will engage the students in a high-level discussion of what was heard after all recordings have been played. This discussion should include topics such as dynamics, melody and range (if any), etc.

Assessment: Students will be able to critically discuss the sounds of Nature and will gain exposure to various nature sounds.

Assessment, Phase One, Level of Engagement, Fascination:

3. Image: Creating a Mental Picture

Objective: Students will visually depict their recorded nature sound(s).

Activity: Using some medium of fine are, the students will create a picture that represents what they hear in their own recordings. Teacher should make sure that students at least think about concepts such as color in relation to timbre or dynamic, angles and curves in relation to a melodic line (if one is present), etc.

Assessment: Students will be able to take sounds that were recorded and produce a visual representation of that or those sounds

Assessment, Phase Two, Seeing the Big Picture:

4. Inform: Receiving Facts & Knowledge

Objective: Students will hear a native speakers speak the words to “Hotaru Koi”.

Activity: The teacher will invite either a student or a special guest who speaks Japanese fluently to come to class. There, the guest will speak the text to “Hotaru Koi”, and will teach the students its correct pronunciation. If there is special significance in the concept of fireflies (as they relate to the Japanese culture), the guest should talk about its influence on history, art, music and any other aspects of the culture.

Assessment:Students will be able to recite the Japanese lyrics of “Hotaru Koi” with relative ease

Assessment, Phase Three, Success with Acquiring Knowledge:

5. Practice: Developing Skills

Objective: Students will learn “Hotaru Koi” and will add it to their repertoire.

Activity: Under the guidance of the director the choir will learn “Hotaru Koi” and eventually make it ‘their own’. Suggested guidelines for rehearsing this piece are as follows:
-Rhythmic patterns using consonants from the test (‘t’,‘ch’,‘mm’,‘ts’, etc.)
-Teacher will conduct as students recite the text (as they were taught by the special guest), this time in the rhythm as indicated by the music.)
-Using “doo”, students will sing the melody of the folksong/round. Teacher should ensure that pitches, though short are accurate and attacked cleanly.
-Students should sing the folksong/round in unison slowly using the text.
-When students are comfortable with the initial tempo, it should be increased by increments until the folksong is a more accurate tempo.
-Teacher should then explain the format/sequences of the round and students should be allowed to sing the tripartite round a few times at a slow tempo before the speed in increased.
-The teacher should then address dynamics, their placement and the overall make-up of the piece, reminding students that the piece is supposed to depict fireflies.

Assessment: Students will be able to sing the tripartite round that is “Hotaru Koi”, using the text and dynamics and the structure of the round to depict a field of fireflies.

Assessment, Phase Four, Success with Acquiring Skills:

6. Extend: Extending Learning to the Outside World

Objective: Students will translate the sounds made by their original recordings (and depicted by their works of art) into a musical piece.

Activity:Objective: Students will translate the sounds made by their original recordings (and depicted by their works of art) into a musical piece.

Activity: Students will create musical pieces that, in their opinion, represents sounds of Nature (that were previously recorded in Step 1). Students will have the opportunity to use Finale or Finale Notepad, if desired. The teacher should also remind students about the effectiveness of using various instruments in their musical pieces. Students will then share their musical pieces with others in the class, first playing their recordings and then playing their pieces.

Assessment: Students will analyze their recordings (made in Step 1) in order to select appropriate instrumentation to represent the various sounds musically, and it will be evident that each student paid careful attention to the dynamics, the timbre, and the overall mood of the sound/piece.
(that were previously recorded in Step 1). Students will have the opportunity to use Finale or Finale Notepad, if desired. The teacher should also remind students about the effectiveness of using various instruments in their musical pieces. Students will then share their musical pieces with others in the class, first playing their recordings and then playing their pieces.

Assessment: Students will analyze their recordings (made in Step 1) in order to select appropriate instrumentation to represent the various sounds musically, and it will be evident that each student paid careful attention to the dynamics, the timbre, and the overall mood of the sound/piece.

7. Refine: Refining the Extension

Objective: Students will analyze and evaluate another person’s (or other peoples’) depictions of sounds of Nature.

Activity: The teacher will play recordings that were crafted to represent the sound of various natural creatures or phenomenon. The excerpts should be taken from the following pieces:
“Rain” from Winter Into Spring (George Winston)
“De vilda svanama (The Wild Swans)” from Wings in the Night: Swedish Songs (Anne Sofie von Otter)
“River” from Watermark (Enya)
“Salamandrina” from Interim (Einsturzende Neubaruten)
The teacher should also supervise a discussion among the students that analyzes each musical piece for its effectiveness and accuracy in depicting a sound of Nature.

Assessment: Students will listen with a critical ear to pieces that depict Nature, but are from varying genres of music. The students will then have a high-level discussion about the pieces

8. Perform: Creative Manifestation of Material Learned

Objective: The students will perform “Hotaru Koi”, as well as their own compositions.

Activity: In a concert organized by the teacher and the students, the students will begin by performing their musical compositions for an audience. (The students should initially tell the audience the nature sound that they are depicting.) The final piece of the performance will be “Hotaru Koi”, sung by the students in a tripartite round.

Assessment: Students will prepare their compositions and will work with others in the class to prepare “Hotaru Koi”, and will produce a quality concert for the audience.

Assessment, Phase Five,Performance, Creative Use of Material Learned: