Lesson video

Hello, everyone.

It's me, Mrs. Steele, and I've got another music lesson for us today.

Today, we'll be learning all about performing together as a school community, and we've got lots of singing to do, so let's get going.

By the end of today's lesson, you will be able to choose appropriate dynamics and use your voice in different ways to create a powerful performance for an audience.

Here are the key words that we'll need in our learning together today.

Performance: a work that is presented to an audience.

Piano: a musical direction to place softly, at a quieter volume.

Forte: a musical direction to play strongly, at a louder volume.

And crescendo: a gradual increase in loudness or intensity.

And finally, audience: a group of people gathered together to listen to and to watch a performance.

Let's start as we always do, by warming up.

Warming up makes sure that we protect our voices from injury and makes sure that we can sing safely.

When we sing this song, we use our voices in lots of different ways, and this helps us get ready to sing together.

Join in with Warming Up My Voice.

(gentle piano music) ♪ I'm warming up my voice ♪ ♪ I'm warming up my voice ♪ ♪ I'm warming up my voice ♪ ♪ I'm warming up my voice ♪ ♪ High notes all in a row ♪ ♪ High notes all in a row ♪ ♪ Low notes down below ♪ ♪ Low notes down below ♪ ♪ Sing this like a cat ♪ ♪ Sing this like a cat ♪ ♪ Meow, meow.

Just like that ♪ ♪ Meow, meow.

Just like that ♪ ♪ Me-e-e-e-ow-w-w-w ♪ ♪ I'm warming up my voice ♪ ♪ I'm warming up my voice ♪ ♪ I'm warming up my voice ♪ ♪ I'm warming up my voice ♪ ♪ High notes all in a row ♪ ♪ High notes all in a row ♪ ♪ Low notes down below ♪ ♪ Low notes down below ♪ ♪ Sing this like a mouse ♪ ♪ Sing this like a mouse ♪ ♪ Eek, eek! Round the house ♪ ♪ Eek, eek! In my house ♪ ♪ Ee-ee-ee-ee, Ee-ee-ee-eek ♪ ♪ I'm warming up my voice ♪ ♪ I'm warming up my voice ♪ ♪ I'm warming up my voice ♪ ♪ I'm warming up my voice ♪ ♪ High notes all in a row ♪ ♪ High notes all in a row ♪ ♪ Low notes down below ♪ ♪ Low notes down below ♪ ♪ Sing this like a cow ♪ ♪ Sing this like a cow ♪ ♪ Moo, moo.

I know how ♪ ♪ Moo, moo.

I know how ♪ ♪ Moo-oo-oo-oo-oo-oo-oo-oo ♪ ♪ I'm warming up my voice ♪ ♪ I'm warming up my voice ♪ ♪ I'm warming up my voice ♪ ♪ I'm warming up my voice ♪ ♪ High notes only in a row ♪ ♪ High notes only in a row ♪ ♪ Low notes down below ♪ ♪ Low notes down below ♪ ♪ Sing this like a bee ♪ ♪ Sing this like a bee ♪ ♪ Buzz, buzz, just like me ♪ ♪ Buzz, buzz, just like me ♪ ♪ Bu-u-u-u-u-z-z-z-z ♪ (gentle piano music continues) These warmups will help our bodies and voices get ready to move and ready to sing.

Let's start off with Alive, Alert, Awake.

Here comes the video.

<v ->Join in with me on this warmup.

</v> The tempo gets faster, so follow carefully.

♪ I'm alive, alert, awake, enthusiastic ♪ ♪ I'm alive, alert, awake, enthusiastic ♪ ♪ I'm alive, alert, awake ♪ ♪ I'm awake, alert, alive ♪ ♪ I'm alive, alert, awake, enthusiastic ♪ ♪ I'm alive, alert, awake, enthusiastic ♪ ♪ I'm alive, alert, awake, enthusiastic ♪ ♪ I'm alive, alert, awake ♪ ♪ I'm awake, alert, alive ♪ ♪ I'm alive, alert, awake, enthusiastic ♪ ♪ I'm alive, alert, awake, enthusiastic ♪ ♪ I'm alive, alert, awake, enthusiastic ♪ ♪ I'm alive, alert, awake ♪ ♪ I'm awake, alert, alive ♪ ♪ I'm alive, alert, awake, enthusiastic ♪ ♪ I'm alive, alert, awake, enthusiastic ♪ ♪ I'm alive, alert, awake, enthusiastic ♪ ♪ I'm alive, alert, awake ♪ ♪ I'm awake, alert, alive ♪ ♪ I'm alive, alert, awake, enthusiastic ♪ <v ->Now, join in with Baby, One, Two, Three.

</v> Here it comes.

(bouncy piano music) ♪ Head and shoulders, baby ♪ ♪ One, two, three ♪ ♪ Head and shoulders, baby ♪ ♪ One, two, three ♪ ♪ Head and shoulders, head and shoulders ♪ ♪ Head and shoulders, baby ♪ ♪ One, two, three ♪ ♪ Shoulders, elbows, baby ♪ ♪ One, two, three ♪ ♪ Shoulders, elbows, baby ♪ ♪ One, two, three ♪ ♪ Shoulders, elbows, shoulders, elbows, ♪ ♪ Shoulders, elbows, baby ♪ ♪ One, two, three ♪ ♪ Elbows, knees, baby ♪ ♪ One, two, three ♪ ♪ Elbows, knees, baby ♪ ♪ One, two, three ♪ ♪ Elbows, knees, elbows, knees ♪ ♪ Elbows, knees, baby ♪ ♪ One, two, three ♪ ♪ Knees and toes, baby ♪ ♪ One, two, three ♪ ♪ Knees and toes, baby ♪ ♪ One, two, three ♪ ♪ Knees and toes, knees and toes ♪ ♪ Knees and toes, baby ♪ ♪ One, two, three ♪ And finally, watch this video to remember how to play Hi, Lo, Chickalo, then press pause to play it with a partner where you are.

♪ Hi, lo, chickalo, chickalo, chickalo ♪ ♪ Hi, lo, chickalo, chickalo, hi ♪ ♪ Lo, hi, chicka, hi, chicka, hi, chicka, hi ♪ ♪ Lo, hi, chicka, hi, chicka, hi, lo ♪ Are you ready to sing together? Does your voice feel warm? Are you looking and listening? And do you feel energized and ready to go? Great.

Let's get going.

The first part of our lesson today is called We Are All Singers.

In this unit, we've been exploring the many reasons why singing together is special.

For example, we know that singing together in our school community can help us feel a sense of togetherness and belonging.

Singing can help us feel calm and connected to others, and it reminds us that our voice is important.

And singing can make us feel powerful emotions.

Singing can have a powerful effect on an audience, too.

Both the singers and the audience might feel joyful, connected, emotional, united, or excited.

I wonder if you can think of a time when you've listened to a performance and felt any of those emotions.

We're going to create a performance of our songs We Are One and Sin Nje Nje Nje to share the joy of singing together with an audience.

You could create a recording to share it another time or sing to an audience live.

To get ready for our performance, let's practice breathing like a singer with this candle breathing exercise.

Remember our breathing top tip.

As you breathe in, imagine your tummy is a balloon.

Breathe in calmly and deeply to fill up your tummy balloon with air.

Remember to keep those shoulders down.

Here comes the video.

Join in with candle breathing.

<v ->Join in with this breathing warmup.

</v> Let's imagine we are blowing candles out on a birthday cake.

Take a deep breath in and then blow.

(inhales deeply, then exhales slowly) Let's try again.

(inhales deeply, then exhales slowly) <v ->All music starts and ends with silence,</v> so here's my performing top tip.

To create this magic moment before a performance, we pretend to cast a spell on the audience that are watching us.

To do this, we stand completely silent and completely still.

Let's practice this by joining in with Standing Tall.

Check that you're standing like a singer.

Stand together and imagine you are about to perform.

Can you cast a spell on the audience by standing completely silent and completely still? This helps the audience to know a performance is about to begin and makes them feel excited.

Join in with Standing Tall.

Remember to stand silent and still before you begin.

Here it comes.

This is an echo song.

You're going to copy me.

♪ Standing tall ♪ ♪ Standing tall ♪ ♪ Try not to fall ♪ ♪ Try not to fall ♪ ♪ Mouth open wide ♪ ♪ Mouth open wide ♪ ♪ Hands by your side ♪ ♪ Hands by your side ♪ ♪ Feet apart ♪ ♪ Feet apart ♪ ♪ Sing from your heart ♪ ♪ Sing from your heart ♪ ♪ Singing strong ♪ ♪ Singing strong ♪ ♪ To the end of the song ♪ ♪ 'Til the end of the song ♪ For our performance to have a powerful impact on our audience, we need to use our voices to capture the character of the song.

Our song Sin Nje Nje Nje has a bold character, so we know we can use our voices to create that bold character by singing forte, strong and confident, and making the words sound clear and crisp.

Remember our other singing top tips.

When we're singing forte, remember to sound confident and proud, but don't use a shouting voice.

Use a strong voice instead.

Imagine your voice is a ball, zooming away competently.

And, remember to put lots of energy into your lips and tongue.

Imagine you are fizzing with energy as you sing.

Let's put all of those top tips together and create a performance of Sin Nje Nje Nje as a class community.

You could perform it live to an audience or create a recording to share another day.

Remember to breathe like a singer, with your shoulders down and a tummy balloon, stand like a singer, cast a spell on the audience before you're about to begin by being still and silent, and to create that bold sound and character.

Here are the words that you'll need.

Here we go.

It is time to perform Sin Nje Nje Nje with a bold character.

Here's the music.

(energetic piano music) ♪ Sin nje nje nje ngemi thandazo ♪ ♪ Sin nje nje nje ngemi thandazo ♪ ♪ Ngemi thandazo, ngemi thandazo ♪ ♪ Ngemi thandazo, ngemi thandazo ♪ ♪ O mama bagudala babe thandaza ♪ ♪ O mama bagudala babe thandaza ♪ ♪ Babe thandaza, babe thandaza ♪ ♪ Babe thandaza, babe thandaza ♪ ♪ Sin nje nje nje ngemi thandazo ♪ ♪ Sin nje nje nje ngemi thandazo ♪ ♪ Ngemi thandazo, ngemi thandazo ♪ ♪ Ngemi thandazo, ngemi thandazo ♪ ♪ O mama bagudala babe thandaza ♪ ♪ O mama bagudala babe thandaza ♪ ♪ Babe thandaza, babe thandaza ♪ ♪ Babe thandaza, babe thandaza ♪ Let's add another exciting element to our performance: body percussion.

This can be a great way to create an exciting performance and could be an opportunity for an audience to join in, too, and feel a sense of togetherness.

Add some bold body percussion to your performance of Sin Nje Nje Nje.

You could choose two simple movements and repeat them over and over again, like the examples you see here.

♪ Sin nje nje nje ngemi thandazo ♪ And so on.

Press pause now to choose your two simple body percussion movements and practice them, then I'll show you the words and play the music.

Let's perform Sin Nje Nje Nje again, this time adding our body percussion.

Remember to sing forte and keep that bold character.

Here's the music again.

(energetic piano music) ♪ Sin nje nje nje ngemi thandazo ♪ ♪ Sin nje nje nje ngemi thandazo ♪ ♪ Ngemi thandazo, ngemi thandazo ♪ ♪ Ngemi thandazo, ngemi thandazo ♪ ♪ O mama bagudala babe thandaza ♪ ♪ O mama bagudala babe thandaza ♪ ♪ Babe thandaza, babe thandaza ♪ ♪ Babe thandaza, babe thandaza ♪ ♪ Sin nje nje nje ngemi thandazo ♪ ♪ Sin nje nje nje ngemi thandazo ♪ ♪ Ngemi thandazo, ngemi thandazo ♪ ♪ Ngemi thandazo, ngemi thandazo ♪ ♪ O mama bagudala babe thandaza ♪ ♪ O mama bagudala babe thandaza ♪ ♪ Babe thandaza, babe thandaza ♪ ♪ Babe thandaza, babe thandaza ♪ Hi, musicians.

Was your performance successful? And how do you know? Let's check.

Did your performance start and end with a magical silence? Did you breathe and stand like a singer? Did you sing forte, with a strong, confident voice? Were the words clear and crisp even in that tricky bit? And did you perform the body percussion together in time? Well done if you did those things.

I expect it was a great performance.

The next part of our lesson is called We Are All Performers.

Let's get ready for our performance of We Are One now.

We're going to listen to the song again.

Remember that the composer, Claire Alsop, wanted to write a song that shared the power of singing together.

We can share that message with an audience by performing the song.

As you listen, collect any words or phrases in the lyrics that are about togetherness.

For example, "our voices join".

You could write down your ideas on a whiteboard or on a sticky note.

Here comes the music for We Are One.

Jot down or remember in your head any words or phrases that are about being together.

(piano music) ♪ I'm just a small part of the world ♪ ♪ A traveler on the road ♪ ♪ Under the silvery moon ♪ ♪ On my own is not enough ♪ ♪ And the pathway can be rough ♪ ♪ Humming a lonely tune ♪ ♪ But when I'm walking with a friend ♪ ♪ Hand in hand, our voices blend ♪ ♪ As we journey through each day ♪ ♪ We find a way ♪ ♪ We find a way ♪ ♪ We find a way ♪ ♪ We are one ♪ ♪ One singing family ♪ ♪ Our voices join ♪ ♪ Singing in harmony ♪ ♪ Songs that shine ♪ ♪ Like a lighthouse through the storm ♪ ♪ When we sing ♪ ♪ We are one ♪ ♪ We are one ♪ ♪ One singing family ♪ ♪ Our voices join ♪ ♪ Singing in harmony ♪ ♪ Songs that shine ♪ ♪ Like a lighthouse through the storm ♪ ♪ When we sing ♪ ♪ We are one ♪ (piano music continues) ♪ We're just a small part of the world ♪ ♪ Travelers on the road ♪ ♪ Under the silvery moon ♪ ♪ On our own, it's not enough ♪ ♪ And the pathway can be rough ♪ ♪ Humming our lonely tunes ♪ ♪ But when we're walking with a friend ♪ ♪ Hand in hand, our voices blend ♪ ♪ As we journey through each day ♪ ♪ We find our way ♪ ♪ We find our way ♪ ♪ We find our way ♪ ♪ We are one ♪ ♪ One singing family ♪ ♪ Our voices join ♪ ♪ Singing in harmony ♪ ♪ Songs that shine ♪ ♪ Like a lighthouse through the storm ♪ ♪ When we sing ♪ ♪ We are one ♪ ♪ We are one ♪ ♪ One singing family ♪ ♪ Our voices join ♪ ♪ Singing in harmony ♪ ♪ Songs that shine ♪ ♪ Like a lighthouse through the storm ♪ ♪ When we sing ♪ ♪ We are one ♪ What words or phrases did you collect that capture the song's message about the power of singing together? Here are some of my examples.

Perhaps you found more.

Did you spot "our voices blend"? That's about being together.

"We are one", of course.

The idea of friends and harmony.

"Hand in hand", "one singing family", and "voices join".

Let's listen to the second verse of We Are One.

The lyrics in this verse are slightly different to the first verse.

Can you spot this small but important change? Here's the music.

♪ We're just a small part of the world ♪ ♪ Travelers on the road ♪ ♪ Under the silvery moon ♪ ♪ On our own, it's not enough ♪ ♪ And the pathway can be rough ♪ ♪ Humming our lonely tunes ♪ It's time for a check-in.

Why do you think the composer made this change to the lyrics in the second verse? Do you think it was to make the song sound more interesting, to make the song last longer for an audience, or do you think it was to highlight the song's message that our voices are stronger together? Press pause to talk about your answer.

Here comes the answer.

It was C, to highlight the song's message that our voices are stronger together.

We start off by saying, "I'm just a small traveler on the road." And then in the second verse, "We are small travelers on the road." We know that the character of our song We Are One could be described as gentle and hopeful.

So to create a powerful performance for an audience, we need to make sure that our voices capture the song's character.

Let's remind ourselves of the ways we captured gentle and hopeful moments in the song.

Then, we can include these in our performance and make it even better.

Remember that we started by singing piano, gently and softly, to capture the gentle character of the song's beginning.

Then, we created a hopeful moment with a crescendo in the chorus each time we hear it, with our strongest bit at "Songs that shine".

We imagined our voices were shining out like a lighthouse in that moment.

It's time for a quick check-in with our learning before we perform.

True or false? A crescendo is a gradual increase in loudness or intensity.

Is that true or false? Show me your thumbs.

Here comes the answer.

That's true.

Well done if you remembered that.

We're going to include a crescendo during each chorus.

Start piano, then imagine the sound slowly growing until our strongest moment at "Songs that shine".

Imagine your voice is shining out like a lighthouse, but remember to use a strong, confident voice, not a shouting voice.

It's the moment we've been waiting for.

It's time for our performance.

You could perform to your teacher, another class in your school, or record your performance to share with a different audience.

Remember all of our performance top tips.

Music starts and ends with silence, so cast a spell on the audience before you begin.

Remember to breathe like a singer, gradually fill up your tummy balloon with air and keep your shoulders down.

And remember to imagine you're fizzing with energy as you sing.

Make those words crisp and clear.

Even when we're singing gently, it's really important that our mouth is fizzing with energy, and that helps us tell the story to the audience.

Here comes the music for We Are One.

(piano music) (piano music continues) (piano music continues) (piano music continues) (piano music continues) (piano music crescendos) (piano music decrescendos) (piano music continues) (piano music crescendos) (piano music decrescendos) (piano music continues) (piano music continues) (piano music continues) (piano music continues) (piano music continues) (piano music crescendos) (piano music decrescendos) (piano music continues) (piano music crescendos) (piano music decrescendos and slows) Hello again.

Did you enjoy your performance? I wish I could have heard it.

What about it made you feel proud? And how do you think your performance made the audience feel? Do you think they understood the message of the song? You could press pause now to share your ideas about these important questions or you could think about your answers in your own thinking voice.

Here are Laura and Jacob's ideas.

They say, "We feel proud of the way we captured the song's character in our performance.

We remembered to sing piano at the beginning and to include the powerful crescendo.

Our words were crisp and clear for the audience to understand the song's message." We've come to the end of our lesson today, all about performing together as a school community.

Let's take a moment before we go to think about everything we've been learning.

We know that singing together can make both the performers and the audience feel joyful and connected.

And we know that to create a powerful performance, we should stand and breathe like a singer.

We know that all music starts and ends with silence, so it's important to make a magical silent moment at the beginning and end of every performance.

And we know that to create an effective performance for an audience, we can capture a song's character by using our voices in different ways.

For example, we can choose to sing forte or piano and we can add a crescendo.

What musical, beautiful singing, everyone.

I can't wait to see you again soon for another music lesson.

Bye-bye.

(silence) (silence continues).