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- Year 8
Composing music that doesn't sound scary
I can compose a musical idea in C major which appropriately complements the beginning of a story.
- Year 8
Composing music that doesn't sound scary
I can compose a musical idea in C major which appropriately complements the beginning of a story.
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Lesson details
Key learning points
- Composing music using notes of the major scale can create music with a postive and cheerful feel.
- Appropriate use of other elements such as pitch, tempo and timbre can also help to create the desired mood.
- When composing using a major scale, the home note is important in defining the feel of that scale.
- Composin an ostinato in C major.
Keywords
Ostinato - a repeated pattern
Major scale - a set of notes that sound bright and cheerful; the C major scale uses all the white notes on the keyboard
Home note - the main note in any key, often the note that the music will finish on; in C major, C is the home note
Common misconception
Using all the white notes is C major will sound cheerful
It's important that the home note (in this case C) is used appropriately to reinforce the notes sounding like they are in C major.
To help you plan your year 8 music lesson on: Composing music that doesn't sound scary, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your year 8 music lesson on: Composing music that doesn't sound scary, 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.
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Explore more key stage 3 music lessons from the Atmospheric Music unit, dive into the full secondary music curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.
File needed for this lesson
- Scary Story - Narration Only 1.45 MB (MP3)
Download this file to use in the lesson.
Equipment
Keyboard instrument or other suitable instrument/DAW that can be used as a composition tool
Licence
Lesson video
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Prior knowledge starter quiz
6 Questions
Q1.Match each musical term to its meaning.
a repeating musical pattern
notes that are very close together, creating tension
short and detached notes
a long, sustained note played under changing harmony