Lesson video

Hello, and welcome to today's music lesson.

I'm Miss Mantle, and I'm gonna be your teacher for today.

Let's get started.

And the outcome for today's lesson is, I can play Korobeiniki with a melody and accompaniment.

Here are the key words for today's lesson.

Accompaniment.

That's a part in the music that supports the melody.

A semibreve.

A note that lasts for four beats.

Crotchet.

A note that lasts for one beat.

Rhythmic drive.

A feeling of energy created by rhythms. Today's lesson on playing a folk melody in two parts is in two parts.

So the first part is playing a simple accompaniment to Korobeiniki.

And the second part is playing a rhythmic accompaniment to Korobeiniki.

Let's get started with part one.

So listen to these two versions of Korobeiniki.

What's the difference between them? Listen to version one.

(Korobeiniki music) (Korobeiniki music continues) (Korobeiniki music continues) And version two.

(Korobeiniki music) (Korobeiniki music continues) (Korobeiniki music continues) So the melody is identical in both versions.

The difference is in the accompaniment.

So that's the parts that support the melody.

Did you hear the differences between the two? The accompaniment in folk dance varies from song to song.

However, there are some typical features of these accompaniments that many folk traditions use.

The roles of the accompaniment are to play the harmony.

That's the chords and the bass notes.

To create rhythmic drive.

That's a feeling of energy that encourages people to dance.

To play repeated rhythms that are easy to dance to.

Have a listen to the accompaniment in this song.

Can you identify which instrument is playing the chords, playing the bass notes, and creating a feeling of rhythmic drive? Have a listen to the song.

(Korobeiniki music) (Korobeiniki music continues) (Korobeiniki music continues) What did you think? What instrument was playing the chords? It was the acoustic guitar.

And the bass notes? Well done if you've got the double bass.

And creating that feeling of rhythmic drive? It's a drum kit with tambourine, along with the acoustic guitar and double bass.

So now we're gonna have a look at adding the left-hand accompaniment.

Watch this demonstration video.

<v Narrator>Firstly,</v> I'm gonna practice my left-hand accompaniment on its own.

I need to find the A position with my left hand, which means pinky on A, and then my other four fingers in those positions there with my thumb on E.

The three notes I'm gonna be using are E with my thumb, (note playing) D with my first finger, (note playing) and then A with my pinky.

(note playing) Those are my three notes.

And if we look at the notation, we'll see the pattern goes as follows.

We start on E, (note playing) and then A, (note playing) and then E, (note playing) and then A.

(note playing) Now the second line we start on D.

(note playing) And then A.

(note playing) And then E.

(note playing) And then A.

(note playing) So that's our pattern.

And for each note, we're holding it for a semibreve.

So that's for four beats.

Once I'm really confident with that pattern, I've got a feeling for the muscle memory, and I've learned the order of the notes, then I'm gonna slowly start to add the left hand, one section at a time.

So I'm just gonna try the first two bars really slowly with both hands together.

Let's find my position.

So I've got my right hand A position up here.

Left hand A position an octave lower.

And I'm starting both notes together on beat one.

Here we go for the first two bars.

One, two, three, four.

(keyboard music) So that's my first two bars.

And I will practice that till I'm really confident.

I could even do it much slower than that to begin as well.

Then I'm gonna try my next two bars, so bar three and bar four.

Here we go.

One, two, three, four.

(keyboard music) Once I've mastered those, I'm gonna put together the first four bars for the first line of music.

Here we go.

One, two, three, four.

(keyboard music) Now I'm gonna move on to the second line, and I'm gonna follow the same process.

Remember here, my right hand moves up to the D position.

My left hand stays where it is, but I am gonna be using that note D now, at the start of the second line.

Let's try the first half of the second line really slow.

One, two, three, four.

(keyboard music) I will try it again.

One, two, three, four.

(keyboard music) That's probably the trickiest section 'cause there's that move between positions in the right hand.

Then I'm gonna finish off with the last two bars.

(keyboard music) So I'll build it up section by section, and now I'm gonna string it all together.

Here we go.

Two, three, four.

(keyboard music) (keyboard music continues) And because I have that repeat mark at the end as well, I then go and play it again.

So repeating and playing it twice in total.

<v ->So for the left-hand bass notes,</v> we need to find that A position with our left hand one octave below the right-hand melody.

Find the notes E using your thumb, D, using your second finger, and A, using your fifth finger in the left hand.

And play each note in the pattern as a semibreve.

So that's a four beat note.

So if you notice that A position, whereas in the right hand, it was our thumb that was on the A, in her left hand, it's going to be the fifth finger, the little finger that's on the A.

So remember, we're gonna start each note on beat one, at the same time as a note in the right hand.

And you might need to practice getting both hands to work together on the keyboard.

Keep your left hand in the A position for the whole performance, you don't need to move it.

Practice the left-hand accompaniment on its own first.

It's always good to practice a new bit of a music separately first.

Let's do a check for understanding.

How many beats does a semibreve last for? Is it one, two, three, or four? What do you think? Well done if you've got four.

A semibreve lasts for four beats.

Which of these does an accompaniment do? You can choose all the answers that you think apply.

So is it A, plays the melody? B, creates rhythmic drive.

C, plays chords.

D, plays bass notes.

Which ones do you think? Well done if you chose B, C, and D.

The accompaniment creates rhythmic drive, plays chords, and plays bass notes.

So let's move on to Task A.

We're going to learn the semibreve accompaniment part to Korobeiniki, and put both parts together.

So the success criteria for this is going to be that each bass note starts on beat one, and lasts for four beats.

Your left hand stays in the A position an octave below the right hand, and uses fingers one on the E, two on the D, and five on the A.

You've got good posture with relaxed shoulders and curved fingers on the keyboard.

And that you practice this at a slow, consistent tempo.

Here's the music.

You can see the notes and the finger positions, and your left-hand notes are written out there as well.

So pause the video, and practice your accompaniment.

Let's listen to this performance of Korobeiniki with the accompaniment.

Using the success criteria, identify two aspects of it that are successful, and one that can be improved.

So have a listen to this performance.

(Korobeiniki music) (Korobeiniki music continues) What did you think? So for the successful aspects, you could have had accurate pitches in the melody and accompaniment.

The bass notes start on beat one, and last for four beats.

Both parts played in the correct octaves, or positions.

The tempo is fairly slow.

To improve it, you could have said, there were hesitations when the left hand changes bass notes, affecting the fluency.

The performer could practice the moves between the bass notes slowly to make these more fluent.

Let's move on to part two of our lesson, playing a rhythmic accompaniment to Korobeiniki.

One of the key roles of the accompaniment in folk dance is to create rhythmic drive.

That's a feeling of energy.

Which of these accompaniments feels the most energetic, and why? Have a listen to the first one.

(Korobeiniki music) (Korobeiniki music continues) (Korobeiniki music continues) The second.

(Korobeiniki music) (Korobeiniki music continues) (Korobeiniki music continues) And the third.

(Korobeiniki music) (Korobeiniki music continues) (Korobeiniki music continues) Which did you think is the most energetic? It was the second example.

Because it uses fast, repeated rhythms with a note on every beat.

The simplest way to add rhythmic drive to the accompaniment is to use repeated crotchets.

So instead of holding each note for four beats, instead we play the note four times in each bar, and you can watch a video to see this demonstrated.

<v Narrator>This time I'm gonna add some rhythmic drive</v> in the accompaniment by using repeated crotchets.

Using exactly the same notes, but this time, instead of holding them for semibreves, that's for the long four beat notes, we're gonna play them four times for each note, for each bar.

So it's again, practice that left hand first on its own.

Let's find the A position.

I've got E.

(note playing) D, (note playing) and A.

(note playing) And I'm gonna follow the left hand notes through, playing them for four crotchets each.

Here we go.

One, two, three, four.

(keyboard music) (keyboard music continues) So that's my left hand practice that I want to try and get really fluent and confident before I try adding the right hand in.

Then I'm gonna slowly add the right hand.

And just like before, I'm gonna practice it a couple of bars at a time.

So let's try the first two bars, with those crotchets in the left hand.

I'm gonna take a super slow tempo.

Find my A position from my right hand up here.

Here we go.

One, two, three, four.

(keyboard music) And I'm gonna practice each two bar section like that.

So now let's look at bars three and four.

(keyboard music) And I'm gonna follow it all the way through, following that process.

Now, one thing to pay attention to in particular is the bars where we have dotted crotchets in the melody, because that's where your left hand will be playing a note on its own.

So it's just look for example at bar two, which is this one in the melody.

(keyboard music) Just watch how the left hand notes fit with the right hand melody.

One, two, three, four.

(keyboard music) You'll notice that second crotchet in the left hand plays on its own so it's not changing at the same time as the right hand note.

Watch one more time.

One, two, three, four.

(keyboard music) So you may want to practice the bars with dotted crotchets.

So that's bars two, three, five, six, and seven, slowly on their own.

'Cause those are the more complicated bars to get the rhythms correct for.

I'm gonna play you it now once all the way through with the rhythmic drive with the crotchets in the left hand.

Here we go.

One, two, three, four.

(keyboard music) (keyboard music continues) And again.

(keyboard music) (keyboard music continues) So that's got those crotchets in the left hand.

It's nice and fluent.

I've practiced those harder parts individually, and I've also practiced the left hand on its own first, and then I've slowly put it together, section by section.

<v ->So remember to practice the left hand on its own first.

</v> Keep your left hand in the A position an octave below the right hand.

Practice in small sections at a slow tempo.

And then practice the more complex bars on their own, likely to be those with the dotted crotchets in the melody and where the right hand has to change position.

Let's do a check for understanding.

What is rhythmic drive? Is it A, a type of rhythm? B, a change in tempo.

C, a feeling of energy.

Or D, an exciting melody.

Have a think.

Well done if you've got C.

It's a feeling of energy.

How many crotchets fit in one bar in Korobeiniki? Well done if you've got four.

So let's do Task B.

You're gonna refine your performance of Korobeiniki.

Your success criteria are refine your performance of the melody with the semibreve accompaniment.

Or if you think you can, you can add rhythmic drive to the accompaniment by playing repeated crotchets in the left hand.

It's a little bit harder.

You want to check that both parts are fluid and accurate, and you use good piano technique, and it's played at a consistent tempo.

So here's your music.

Pause the video, and practice playing both parts.

How did you get on? Reflect on the development of your keyboard playing.

Identify your strengths and areas for improvement.

Use these questions to help you.

Do you consistently play with relaxed shoulders and wrists and curved fingers? Do you always place your hand in the correct positions, and use all five fingers? Do you practice at a slow tempo? Does your tempo stay consistent when you perform? Do you always practice pieces in short sections to begin? Have you managed to play with a left hand accompaniment? Reflect on those questions, and maybe write down your answers.

Let's summarize today's lesson on playing a folk melody in two parts.

Folk dances often have highly rhythmic accompaniment parts, which makes them effective for dancing.

These will often use repeated rhythms that create rhythmic drive, which is a feeling of energy.

In Korobeiniki, we can create a simple accompaniment using the bass notes, A, D, and E.

By choosing a suitable rhythm, we can create the rhythmic drive typical of many folk dances.

I hope you've enjoyed today's lesson.