Introducing the song

Pre-singing discussion connects students’ interest to the song content. Questions may include:

Have you ever seen a robin pulling worms out of the lawn?

How do you think they know where the worms are? Do they hear the worms? Do they feel the vibration with their feet? (Both would be amazing skills!)

What facts do you know about robins?

Do you have a favourite bird?

Score Study

Dotted quarter note/eighth note combinations.

The melody of A Robin’s Tale is written with dotted quarter note/eighth note combinations.

While the teacher sings the song, have the students listen and follow the score.

Find all the bars where there are dotted quarter note/eighth note combinations.

Have students tap or clap the rhythm of the song as the teacher sings one more time.

Have half the students sing the song and the other half tap the rhythm. Switch.

Phrases

Listen for phrases that are the same or almost the same. Finding these similar phrases helps when learning the melody of the song.

Major/minor tonality

The B section of A Robin’s Tale is written in a minor key for a few short bars. Find the bars that are written in the minor key. Where does the melody return to the major tonality?

Expressive Singing

Use good breath energy to sing the long, legato phrases.

Breath marks show where the singer will take a breath even thought the notes look like there is no spot to breathe. Take as much time as needed to take a comfortable breath.

How will you sing differently to create a contrast in the B section when the melody is written in the minor key?

Use clear diction so the story can be understood.

Add dynamics to create musical interest and highlight the lyrics as part of your expressive performance.

Pre-Song Activity - Create a sound composition

Close your eyes and listen.

• What sounds can you hear that are created by the things that are around you?
• Are any of the sounds created by you?
• Do any of the sounds sound like music to you?

Use sounds to make musical patterns. Use the sounds you heard when you were listening or create your own (e.g. tapping a pencil, clicking of computer keys, jingling earrings, etc.). Organizing sounds into patterns is making music!

Create a sound composition.

How will you write down the sounds you use in your composition? Pictures, words, symbols, etc. help you remember the sounds you are using so you can re-create your composition on another day, or give it to someone else to play.

Pre-song Discussion

Discuss sounds you might hear if you were outdoors.

• Are those sounds music?
• Do you have a favourite sound that you like to listen for when you are outdoors?

What are some things you might see if you were outdoors?            

• Are those things a symphony for the eyes?
• Do you have a favourite flower, or something you enjoy seeing when you are outdoors?
  

Music Vocabulary

Read the lyrics of Garden Symphony to discover what the composer was hearing and seeing. Do you know what all those things sound like and look like?

Sing the song together.

A symphony is a large piece of music for an orchestra.

The word symphony can also mean a beautiful blend of sights or sounds.

What other words are used to label music? (e.g. melody, tune, song, concerto, duet, solo, concert, performance, recital, etc.)

What other words are used to label art? (e.g. painting, collage, drawing, mural, sculpture, etc.)

Create a poster, a word wall or a dictionary of music words and/or art words.

Expressive Singing

There are many descriptive words in Garden Symphony.

• Use clear diction and expressive singing to make the story more interesting for your audience.

There are long phrases in Garden Symphony.

• Decide where you are going to take a breath to create the best long and lyrical phrases possible.

Score Study

Garden Symphony is created using simple rhythmic elements. Because of this simplicity, it makes a great rhythm sight-reading exercise.

How many different rhythm elements are there in the song?

      (Quarter note, eighth note, half note, dotted half note, quarter rest)

Clap or say the rhythm duration syllables that create the melody of this song.

• Clap the rhythm in canon with another student or the teacher.
• Create a simple ostinato using only 2 rhythm elements and divide the class with one group tapping the ostinato and one group clapping the rhythm.
• Use instruments to play the rhythm and ostinato patterns.  
  • Is it better to have the ostinato louder or the rhythm of the lyrics louder? Try it both ways and make musical decisions about what you think works best.