Building texture with a melodic ostinato
Lesson details
Learning outcome
I can accompany a major tonality song with a melodic ostinato.
Key learning points
- Folk songs can be accompanied or unaccompanied.
- An ostinato can be rhythmic or melodic.
- Adding an ostinato underneath a song adds another layer of sound to the texture of the piece.
- We need to consider the dynamic balance when adding accompaniments to songs.
Keywords
Beat - the playing or showing of the steady pulse, like the ticking of a clock
Texture - the combination of different layers of sounds
Melodic ostinato - a repeating musical pattern that uses notes of differing pitch
Accompaniment - a musical part that supports the main melody or chant
Major pentachord - the first five notes of the major scale: do, re, mi, fa, so
Common misconception
Playing loudly shows we are playing confidently.
We want to encourage pupils to understand the importance of balancing their sound and that playing or singing loudly does not mean it is more confident or more correct.
Teacher tip
The more time spent exploring the pitch of the ostinato with pitch actions, followed by hand signs, followed by singing and signing, the more successful pupils will be when given an instrument to play it on.
Equipment
Pitched percussion, notes F, A, C', e.g. percussion tubes, chime bars, glockenspiels, hand bells or xylophones.
Licence
Lesson video
Loading...
Prior knowledge starter quiz
4 Questions
Q1.Match the musical element to its definition.
the regular, steady heartbeat of the music
how loud or quiet the music is
the playing or showing of the steady pulse like the ticking of a clock
the combination of different layers of sounds
how high or low a note is
Q2.Partner songs are ...
Q3.The major pentachord has __________ notes.
Q4.Songs with a major tonality organise their notes around the central note, or tonic, ...
Assessment exit quiz
4 Questions
Q1.When we add many layers of sounds underneath a melody, we create a texture.
Q2.A melodic ostinato can be played as __________ to a folk song.
Q3.True or false? Folk songs are never accompanied.
Q4.What is an ostinato?
To help you plan your 4 music lesson on: Building texture with a melodic ostinato, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your 4 music lesson on: Building texture with a melodic ostinato, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs.
The starter quiz will activate and check your pupils' prior knowledge, with versions available both with and without answers in PDF format.
We use learning cycles to break down learning into key concepts or ideas linked to the learning outcome. Each learning cycle features explanations with checks for understanding and practice tasks with feedback. All of this is found in our slide decks, ready for you to download and edit. The practice tasks are also available as printable worksheets and some lessons have additional materials with extra material you might need for teaching the lesson.
The assessment exit quiz will test your pupils' understanding of the key learning points.
Our video is a tool for planning, showing how other teachers might teach the lesson, offering helpful tips, modelled explanations and inspiration for your own delivery in the classroom. Plus, you can set it as homework or revision for pupils and keep their learning on track by sharing an online pupil version of this lesson.
Explore more key stage 2 music lessons from the Start with playing: adding layers to major and minor songs unit, dive into the full primary music curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.