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NEW VICTORY® SCHOOL TOOL

SM resource guide 2008 / 09 Season

a project of the

INTRODUCTIONDear Teachers ................................................... 1The New Victory Theater .................................... 1Contact Us ........................................................ 1Using this Guide ............................................... 2Blueprint for Teaching and Learning in Theater .................................. 2NY State Learning Standards .............................. 2

BEFORE THE SHOWAbout the Company ........................................... 3About the Artists: Kev Marcus, Wil-b and DJ TK ... 3About the Show ................................................. 3Suggested Activity: Musical Inspiration ............... 4Before the Show Focus Questions ....................... 4

AFTER THE SHOWSuggested Activity: A Review from You! .............. 5Suggested Activity: What’s Your Hip-Hop Name? ....5After the Show Challenge Questions .................... 5

THEMES TO FOLLOWHIP-HOP AS NARRATIVE More About: Hip-Hop .......................................6 Timeline: The Evolution of Hip-Hop ............... 7-8 Suggested Activity: What Would You Add? .........8 Suggested Activity: Understanding Rhythm and Beat ......................................................9

BLENDING WESTERN MUSIC Suggested Activity Worksheet: Changes in Western Music ......................10-11 Suggested Activity: Mix and Match ..................12 Suggested Activity: Styles and Genres ..............12

HIP-HOP AND MUSICAL FORM Glossary: Musical Forms/Structures .................13 Suggested Activity: Outside the Box ................14 Suggested Activity: Student’s Delight ..............15 Challenge Questions .......................................15

REDUCE, REUSE, RECYCLE ............... 16

SOURCES CONSULTED AND FURTHER RESOURCES ........................ 17

To help preserve the environment, this New Vic SCHOOL TOOLSM resource guide has been printed with soy-based ink on paper that comes from well-managed forests, controlled sources and recycled wood or fiber. ®

TABLE OF CONTENTS

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DEAR TEACHERS,Welcome to the New Vic SCHOOL TOOLSM resource guide for Black Violin. These materials have been designed to expand your students’ engagement with and appreciation of this innovative and urban style of strings, hip-hop and funk.

We encourage you to delve into this vibrant, rich and diverse musical concert that fuses elements of classical, jazz, blues, R & B and hip-hop that will engage and inspire your class. Further exploration through the performing arts education activities suggested in this guide can enrich your students’ experience of the performance itself while further developing their understanding of music performance in all its forms.

Comments from you and your students are always welcome. We rely on feedback as a crucial component in our efforts to develop and extend our relationship with our audience.

Thank you,

Edie Demas Victoria Row-TrasterDirector of Education Curriculum and Publications ManagerThe New Victory Theater The New Victory Theater

THE NEW VICTORY THEATERThe New Victory Theater, a New 42nd Street® project, is New York City’s first and only theater for kids and families. The New Victory was also the first historic theater to reopen on 42nd Street (December 11, 1995) and has become one of the city’s most respected cultural institutions. With its dynamic mix of theatrical programming, this nonprofit theater “is credited with having pioneered a new, sophisticated vision of children’s entertainment” (Time Out New York). In addition, The New Victory offers daytime school performances, interactive family workshops and paid apprenticeships for high school and college students.

The New Victory has a rich and varied past that reflects the history of 42nd Street itself. Opened by Oscar Hammerstein in 1900, the theater presented plays for over 30 years, including one of Broadway’s longest-running hits, Abie’s Irish Rose (1923). In 1931, Billy Minsky transformed the theater into Broadway’s first burlesque house. A decade later the theater began to show movies, and in 1972 it became 42nd Street’s only XXX-rated movie house. In 1990, the Theater became one of seven historic theaters to come under public ownership as part of the City and State’s 42nd Street Development Project, and five years later — following a 16-month, $11.4 million renovation — The New 42nd Street opened the doors of The New Victory Theater.

The New Victory Theater Education Program receives generous support from:CIT, The Dana Foundation, Assemblyman Luis M. Diaz, Dyson Foundation, Charles Hayden Foundation, Muna and Basem Hishmeh Foundation, Inc., JPMorgan Chase Bank, J.C. Kellogg Foundation, The Edith and Herbert Lehman Foundation, Inc., The McGraw-Hill Companies, Murray L. and Belle C. Nathan Fund, New York City Department of Youth and Community Development, Assemblymember Daniel O’Donnell, New York City Council Speaker Christine Quinn and the New York City Council, Ira M. Resnick Foundation, Inc., Adolph and Ruth Schnurmacher Foundation, Inc., New York State Speaker Sheldon Silver and the New York State Assembly, The Harold and Mimi Steinberg Charitable Trust, Target and Anonymous.

The New Victory School Residency Programs are generously supported by a grant from JPMorgan Chase Bank.

Special thanks to Advanced Printing of New York for helping to make possible the printing of the New Victory® SCHOOL TOOLSM resource guides with 100% environmentally friendly products.

© The New 42nd Street Inc. The content of this New Victory SCHOOL TOOLSM resource guide may not be reproduced or distributed in whole or in part, in whatever such format and/or media (whether not known or hereafter developed), without the express written consent of The New 42nd Street Inc.

Show photos by Di Versatile, Inc. Title treatment by Tom Slaughter. Design by Mick Wieland.

CONTACT USPlease send comments and copies of student work to:EDUCATION DEPARTMENTThe New Victory Theaterc/o The New 42nd Street229 West 42nd Street, 10th FloorNew York, NY 10036-7299Or email: [email protected] New Vic SCHOOL TOOLSM resource guide was produced by the Education Department of The New Victory Theater. ©2008 The New 42nd Street, Inc.New 42nd Street® projects include: The New Victory Theater, The New 42nd Street Studios and The Duke on 42nd Street.

Edie Demas, PhDDirector of Education Courtney Boddie, Lindsey BullerAssistant Directors of EducationVictoria Row-TrasterCurriculum and Publications Manager Jonathan ShmidtEducation AssociateChristina ZagarinoEducation Department CoordinatorBlake McCartyNew Vic Studio AssistantJustin DayhoffEducation ApprenticeNew Victory Teaching Artists:Adrienne Kapstein, Allison Watrous, Anna Jones, Annie Montgomery, Bard Goodrich, Brad Raimondo, Carla Ching, Chad Beckim, Christina Gelsone, Carlo D’Amore, David DelGrosso, Dumeha Thompson, Heidi Stallings, Javier Cardona, James Miles, Jodi Dick, Josh Matthews, Krista Sutton, Kwame Pierce, Lauren Jost, Libya Pugh, Margot Fitzsimmons, McKenna Kerrigan, Michael Lopez, Michael Wiggins, Nanya Goodrich, Natalie Moore, Rachael Holmes, Sarah Petersiel, Seth Bloom, Signe Harriday, Skyler Sullivan, Spica Cheng Wobbe, Sobha K. Paredes, Steven McIntosh, Tamela Aldridge, Ted Sod, WT McRaeBOARD OF DIRECTORSOfficers:Marian S. Heiskell, Chairman Cora Cahan, PresidentShahara Ahmad-Llewellyn, Vice ChairFiona Howe Rudin, Vice Chair Charles A. Platt, Secretary Dorothy L. Alpert, TreasurerDirectors:Stacy Bash-Polley, Lynne Biggar, Phoebe Cates Kline, J. Walter Corcoran, Anne B. Ehrenkranz, Deborah Evangelakos, Lili Fable, Clare R. Gregorian, Henry Guettel, Jennifer A. Gundlach, Bill Irwin, Ming Cho Lee, Sarah Long Solomon, Crystal McCrary, Terrence McNally, Laura O’Donohue, Tina Ramirez, Rebecca Robertson, Charles Shorter, Marc A. Spilker, Edward F. Torres, Theodore R. Wagner, Carl Weisbrod, Betsy WestEx Officio:Kate D. Levin, Seth W. Pinsky, Dr. Mary Schmidt CampbellFor further information and to be included on our mailing list, please write or email the address above.

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THE NEW VICTORY 2008 / 09 SCHOOL TOOLSM resource guide

USING THIS GUIDE :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::This resource includes a range of information, questions, activities and worksheets that can stand alone or work as building blocks toward the creation of a complete unit of classroom work. Inside you will find a series of questions and activities designed to be used Before the Show and After the Show in order to help focus your students’ engagement with the performance and then to foster critical discussion after their experience. Following this section are materials geared around an investigation of the production through the Themes to Follow: Hip-Hop as Narrative, Clazzipopical-Blending Music and Hip-Hop and Musical Form.

Below you will find excerpts from the Blueprint for Teaching and Learning in Arts: Music and the NYS Learning Standards to aid in your planning. Again, these are to be viewed as starting points. Fundamentally, the New Vic SCHOOL TOOLsm resource guides have been created to be flexible in structure so that you can adapt and combine activities to suit your own needs, the needs of your students and the demands of the curriculum.

ARTS (A)

and Contributions of the Arts

LANGUAGE ARTS (LA) SOCIAL STUDIES (Soc)

Curriculum Connections: New York State Learning StandardsThe New Vic SCHOOL TOOLsm resource guide supports learning in the following areas:

General Music: Music LiteracyMaking use of a variety of styles and genres and the repertoire being studied, students will become musically literate. One piece of music can serve as a platform for including the different strands in the course of instruction and preparation for performance.

General Music: Music MakingThrough music making, students will develop musical skills, express themselves as thinking, feeling musicians, apply and utilize the elements of music, and use technology to facilitate expression. One piece of music can serve as a platform for including the different strands in the course of instruction and preparation for performance.

General Music: Making ConnectionsStudents will make connections to the music they are performing, creating, and improvising. One piece of music can serve as a platform for including the different strands in the course of instruction and preparation for performance.

Community and Cultural Resources: General/Vocal/Choral/Instrumental MusicStudents will gain knowledge and make use of community and cultural resources in order to support the music making (I), music literacy (II), connections (III), and careers (V) portions of the curriculum.

Careers in Music: General/Vocal/Choral/Instrumental MusicStudents will gain awareness of the variety of careers available in music; set goals and career plans with attention to personal, social, and professional values; and gain an appreciation of music as a source of personal enjoyment and lifelong learning.

Excerpt taken from Blueprint for Teaching and Learning in the Arts: Theater Grades Pre K-12, New York City Department of Education, www.schools.nyc.gov

Blueprint for Teaching and Learning in the Arts: MusicGrades Pre K-12 — New York City Department of Education

NYS LEARNING STANDARDS:::::::::::::::::::::: A, LA

(example)

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: BEFORE THE SHOW

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ABOUT THE COMPANYBlack Violin is a classically trained violin and viola duo originally from Miami, Florida. Kev Marcus and Wil-B, along with their DJ TK, perform arrangements of both classical and hip-hop pieces while adding their own sense of style.

The two Florida natives first met while attending the Dillard High School of Performing Arts in Fort Lauderdale, a school whose exceptional music programs served to nurture their already budding talents. Although, it was not until the two were exposed to the work of legendary violinist Stuff Smith that the seeds that would one day become Black Violin were truly planted.

Once formed, the group started with their rigorous touring schedule that would become a trademark of the group.

Black Violin’s primary goal is to give young people the same opportunities in music that they had. Kev and Wil have embarked on a campaign of social change working with youth orchestras and music programs to show children and teens that they are capable of expressing themselves in ways they have never dreamed.

ABOUT THE SHOW Improvisational elements create a unique performance targeted at all age ranges. The show’s format is concert style consisting of music being performed by DJ TK, Kev Marcus, and Wil-B. The concert fuses classical, jazz, R&B and hip-hop.

Stuff Smith was a jazz violinist from the first half of the 20th century famous for being one of the first violinists to use electric amplification. His final album was entitled “Black Violin,” inspiring the name for this new ensemble.

—Black Violin

ABOUT THE ARTISTS was born

in Florida, and began play-ing the violin at 9 years old. He participated in local orchestras and performing ensembles in addition to attending the Dillard High School for the Performing Arts. His influences as a

violin player have ranged from Bach, Brahms,

Mozart and Herbie Hancock to Nas, Mos Def, Jay-Z and Dr. Dre.

unintentionally became a viola player when he tried to join his school band, but instead was placed into the school string program. Wil-B’s musical abili-ties span multiple instruments from the viola to trumpet, drums and bass guitar. In addition to attending the Dillard High School for the Performing Arts in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, he has also performed with many pop or-chestras. His influences are Chaka Khan, Talib Kweli, George Benson and Jill Scott.


BEFORE THE SHOW ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

NYS LEARNING STANDARDSSuggested Activity:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: A, LA

MUSICAL INSPIRATIONBlack Violin is inspired by the hip-hop music they grew up listening to. Similarly, many artists incorporate the music that has come before them into their own work. This can include sampling computer generated beats and music, or using existing songs as inspiration.

TEACHER NOTE: For this activity, you will need a selection of songs for your students to get inspired by! Instrumental music often works best. Try to avoid music associated with specific movies or television shows as this will influence their brainstorming.

1. Break your students into small groups.

2. Listen to a piece of music and brainstorm whatever thoughts, ideas or feelings come to mind when listening to the music. The following prompts may help them organize your thoughts:

What images come into your mind?

What feelings does this piece evoke?

What adjectives can you use to describe this piece?

3. Each group should share their thoughts and ideas with each other. It may also be a good idea to write their thoughts on the board to share later in this activity.

4. the words and images from your brainstorm to construct the poem.

5. Finally, invite them to share their new poems with the class.

EXTENSION:If time allows, each group can have their own piece of music to inspire their poem. Invite them to compare the differences in their poems. Focus on how interpretations can be different, or what specific parts of the music inspired students to create their poem.

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KEYWORD:Lyrics–The set of words that accompany music, either by

speaking or singing.

Help your students gain more from the Before the Show section by focusing their attention with the following questions:

When you hear the word “hip-hop” what comes to your mind?

What kind of instruments do you expect to see playing hip-hop music?

Have you ever been to a concert? What was that like?

What does a violin sound like?

What kind of music does a violin play?

What do you expect the group Black Violin to sound like?

Do you play a musical instrument?

Focus Questions ::::::::


::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: AFTER THE SHOW

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NYS LEARNING STANDARDSSuggested Activity::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: LA

A REVIEW FROM YOU!This is your opportunity to really express your thoughts and opinions about the performance you got to see at the New Victory! Think about your experience and answer the following questions. Let’s review!

1. What performance did you see at the New Victory?

2. Which was your favorite musician? Why? Which was your favorite song? Why?

3. What was your favorite part of the performance?

4. Did you have a least favorite part of the performance? Why?

5. Were there any additional aspects of the show that stood out to you (e.g. lighting, music, instruments/equipment, and/or dancing)? What did you like most about those aspects of the show?

6. Overall did you enjoy your experience at The New Victory Theater? What did you like about being in the theater?

Please include Name, School, Age, Date and Title of the Performance.

Mail your review to:The New Victory Theater

Education Department229 West 42nd Street, 8th floor

New York, NY 10036

NYS LEARNING STANDARDSSuggested Activity:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: A, LA

WHAT’S YOUR HIP-HOP NAME?Black Violin got their name from early 20th century violinist Stuff Smith’s final jazz album also entitled “Black Violin.” There are many different ways to think about and construct a stage name, but here’s a fun formula to try!

1. Invite yours students to write down the title of the first CD they owned, or just a favorite album.

2. Next to that, ask them to write down the name of the first street they ever lived on. This can include numbers and letter as well, for example

“Blink 182.”

3. Write the formula below on the board and encourage them to combine the two words and they will have their new, unique artist name!

For Example, if they take Beyonce Knowles’ album called “At Last” and combine it with the street name Mulberry, it would be:

Last + Mulberry = Mulberry Last (you can even flip them around!)

Discuss these questions with your students to help them remember the show and focus on its themes:

Where you surprised by anything you heard in the show?

How does the “image” of hip-hop affect the way you viewed Black Violin?

In what ways was the hip-hop music in Black Violin similar or different to other artists’ styles of hip-hop?

Challenge Questions ::

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HIP-HOP AS NARRATIVETo most people, jazz, hip-hop, funk and classical are musical genres. But to the revolutionary music group Black Violin, they’re ingredients.Similar to the hip-hop icons they grew up listening to, Black Violin breaks all the rules, blending classical music with hip-hop to create something new.

Combining an array of musical styles and influences to produce a signature sound that is not quite maestro, not quite emcee, this group of two classically trained violinists and their DJ, are redefining the music world. With influences ranging from Shostakovich to Bach, Nas to Jay-Z.

In this theme, your students will learn about the genre of hip-hop, which is a huge inspiration for Black Violin’s music and style.

MORE ABOUT: HIP-HOP Hip-Hop is an art form originated in the Bronx during the mid 1970’s, as a means of self expression.

At block parties community members would rhyme over looped beats or tracks on a turntable. The rhymes emphasized the thoughts or feelings of the performers. The culture of hip-hop was expressed through multiple art forms like dance, music and graffiti art.

The Sugar Hill Gang released the first ever commercial rap recording in

or sold commercially. From this point on, hip-hop’s focus began to shift. Instead of a community based culture, the music could now reach out beyond the Bronx where it began. Because of this change, and as hip-hop culture developed, the lyrics became less community focused and songs changed from poetic to story-telling. They needed to be able to reach a much larger audience and narrative style lyrics provided a clearer and more understandable song.

Blueprint Focus:General Music: Music Literacy

General Music: Music Making

General Music: Making Connections

—Dimitriadis 180


:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::HIP-HOP AS NARRATIVE

SELECT TIMELINE: THE EVOLUTION OF HIP-HOP1925 Louis Armstrong releases

“Heebie Jeebies” and in-troduces scatting, a type of vocal improvisation, to the music scene (later in-fluencing the human beat box).

1930 Singers like Harry “The Hipster” Gibson and the Slim Gaillard begin to punctuate their music with nonsense words and sing in a half-talk (an early influence of rap music).

1973 DJ Kool Herc, father of hip-hop, a.k.a. Clive Campbell, deejays his first block party in the Bronx, New York City. He expands the breaks in the song by using two turntables with double copies of the record. The

“breakbeats” he rocks lay the foundation for the b-boys (Break-

boys—the dancers who rock out on the dance floor during these breaks.)

1976 The first DJ battle between Afrika Bambaataa and Disco King Mario is held at PS 123 in The Bronx.

1977 Jimmy D and JoJo form the Rock Steady Crew (a group of b-boys).

1979 The Sugar Hill Gang releases the single Rapper’s Delight, the first commercial rap record on Sugar Hill records.

1982 Afrika Bambaataa and the Soul Sonic Force releases “Planet Rock” on Tommy Boy Records in May, the first big techno-funk hit with Kraftwerk’s “Trans Euro Express” beat. It sells 620,000 copies in

The film Wild Style, co-created by Fab Five Freddy and directed by Charlie Ahearn, is released featuring the first full-length account of all four elements in hip-hop culture: Graffiti, DJ-ing, MCing and B-boying.

1986 Run DMC’s “Raising Hell” is the first rap album to go platinum, and the re-styling of “Walk This Way” with Aerosmith puts hip-hop music on the charts.

1987 White rappers The Beastie Boys’ debut “License to Ill” becomes the first rap album to go to number one.

Salt-N-Pepa’s hit “Push It,” establishes them as leading female artists in hip-hop music.

1988 DJ Jazzy Jeff and The Fresh Prince (Will Smith) win the first rap Grammy.

The Village Voice devotes a cover and a special section to hip-hop using the headline “Hip-Hop Nation.”

(continued on next page)

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PHOTOCOPY THIS PAGE!


HIP-HOP AS NARRATIVE :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

1990Baby” and “To the Extreme” are world wide smashes.

1992 Vibe magazine, the first magazine dedicated to hip-hop culture, begins publication.

1993 OutKast (Andew Benjamin and Antwan Patton from Atlanta, Georgia) release “Player’s Ball,” which rises to number one on the Billboard Rap Chart.

1995 Hip-Hop represents 6.7% of the entire music industry’s income.

1999 Lauryn Hill, member of The Fugees, becomes the first woman to receive ten Grammy nominations for her solo album The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill, and wins five including Album of the Year and Best New Artist.

2002 December marks the end of an era as Jam Master Jay is murdered in his Queens studio. Run D.M.C. announces their retirement

Hip-Hop makes up 13.8% of the entire music industry’s income.

2003 For the first time in the history of the

the top ten songs in the country are all by African-American artists.

2005 55% of the hip-hop consumer market is white males between the ages 25 – 45 with incomes $40,000 and up, signifying an expansion of the hip-hop market.

Black Violin wins the Grand Prize of the “Showtime at the Apollo” series. In the same year they open and perform with Mike Shinoda (Linkin Park), The Eagles, Stevie Nicks, Nas, 50 Cent, T-Pain, the NFL Kickoff with P Diddy and the Billboard Music Awards with Alicia Keys.

2006 Smithsonian announces plans to open a permanent exhibit, “Hip-Hop Won’t Stop: The Beat, The Rhymes, The Life” in 2011. The exhibit will include memorabilia from many of the pioneers of hip-hop culture.

2008 Black Violin releases their debut self-titled album.

They perform over 200 shows

in Germany and for the families of troops stationed in Iraq. They open for AKON and Fat Joe in South Africa

and Dubai, Common at The Paradisio in Amserdam, Wu-Tang in Prague and Jay-Z at Open-Air Festival in Zurich, Switzerland.

2009

CONTINUED: THE EVOLUTION OF HIP-HOP

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NYS LEARNING STANDARDSSuggested Activity::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: A, LA, Soc

WHAT WOULD YOU ADD?Hip-Hop culture and hip-hop music have a long and detailed history. The evolution of hip-hop has so much more to it than the timeline lists.

1. Either assign or have students pick out one year from the timeline.

2. Ask the students to research an event in the hip-hop music industry that is not currently on the timeline.

3. Have students share their research and why they chose to add that event with the class. What impact did this new event have on the industry?

4. Assemble the years collected from the students and post the new timeline created by the students.


:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::HIP-HOP AS NARRATIVENYS LEARNING STANDARDS

Suggested Activity:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: A

UNDERSTANDING RHYTHM AND BEATPLAYING WITH RHYTHM AND BEAT

Beat

Rhythm

Beat

Rhythm

Beat

Rhythm

KEYWORD:Rhythm–An

arrangement or pattern of notes within a beat.

Rhythm and beat are an essential part of all Western music, including

difficult. Try to think of the beat as the steady pulse in music while the rhythm is the way that everything else fits in it.

1. Copy and enlarge the Rhythm and Beat Chart above.

2. Count out the numbered sequence (i.e. 1, 2, 3, 4), and ask your students to clap whenever there is a dot in that corresponding square. For example, with the first beat, the students will clap along as you say 1, 2, 3, 4.

3. Once your students can do this, divide the class and while one half stays clapping the beat, the other claps the rhythm column when the dot corresponds to the right beat.

4. Repeat this with different beats and when students feel confident with everything encourage them to create their own rhythms and beats! They can do this by creating their own rhythm chart based on the one provided.

9


EXAM

PLE 1

EXAM

PLE 2

EXAM

PLE 3


Over time, music has continued to change and build on itself. The music that exists today, all over the world, exists because of that which came before it. That’s why all different kinds of music share many of the same characteristics.

Black Violin fuse elements of classical, jazz, blues, R&B and hip-hop and along with their DJ TK , they have mastered a soulful synergy which will enthrall lovers of both Bach and Beyonce.

NYS LEARNING STANDARDSSuggested Activity::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: A, Soc

WORKSHEET: CHANGES IN WESTERN MUSICAs previously mentioned, Black Violin fuses elements of many genres of music to create their unique sound. In this activity, your students will explore several different genres of music and discover more about the instruments associated with those genres.

1. Read through all of the genres, people and instruments on the chart.

2. After reading it, your challenge, either in groups or by yourselves, is to draw a line to connect the genres, musicians and instruments.

BLENDING WESTERN MUSIC




Community and Cultural Resources: General/Vocal/Choral/Instrumental Music

An era of music directly following the Baroque period which ended in the 1820s. The classical era was characterized by grace, elegance and control and is generally lighter and clearer than earlier music.

A set of musical ideas including improvisation that originated from African-American musical traditions of the 18th and 19th centuries. Jazz developed in the 1920’s and continues today.

Starting in the 1970s, Hip-hop refers to several African-American urban art forms.

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11

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::BLENDING WESTERN MUSIC

Parker was a jazz alto saxophonist in the 1940s and 1950s. He was influential in the development of the new jazz form of “bop.” His improvisations are legendary.

Mozart was a composer who lived in the 18th century. He not only wrote instrumental music, but he also composed operas as well that are still being performed today all over the world.

Born in New Orleans in the early 20th century, Armstrong became a visionary trumpet player, singer, and band leader. He became quite famous for his harsh and raspy voice and his use of scatting—or vocal improvisation using syllables

Born in 1969 and originally from Brooklyn, Jay-Z is one of the most successful rappers today. In pursuing a career in hip-hop, he created his own record label Roc-A-Fella Records. He has since released a number of albums and climbed to the top of the hip-hop charts.

Beethoven lived and composed at the end of the classical period. Beethoven is one of the most renowned composers of the 19th century. Despite becoming deaf later in life, he amazingly went onto to compose some of his greatest works.

Born 1971 in Portsmouth, Virginia, Elliott is a five-time Grammy Award-winning American rapper, singer, songwriter and record producer. With record sales of over seven million

albums certified platinum by the RIAA, including one double

A group made of two classically trained violin players and a DJ who bring hip-hop style music to the violin as well as fuse both hip-hop and classical music. They are also inspired by the improvisational aspects of jazz music, and named their group after a jazz musician’s final album (see page 3 for more information).

Originating from the phonograph or gramophone, which was the most common device for playing recorded sound from the 1870s through the 1980s. A turntable is a playback device where records or grooved recordings can be spun backwards in order to create a scratching sound, or a new way of creating electronic percussion often used under rapping.

Originally called al-ud, the Lute was brought to Spain by the Arabs and spread throughout Western Europe. During the 16th century, it became a household instrument played by plucking

shape is more pear-like and the strings have different pitches. It was used throughout 19th century musical developments.

As ensembles grew, guitar players wanted to find ways to make their instruments loud enough to be heard. In the 1920s and 1930s experiments began with electric amplification but non-acoustic electric guitars didn’t appear until the 1940s.



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BLENDING WESTERN MUSIC :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::


MIX AND MATCHWith so many different types of music in existence, it’s not surprising that composers and musicians like to combine different instruments, styles and genres to create new types of music.

1. Have your students choose two artists, instruments or genres from the music history chart in the previous activity.

2. Ask them to look online or use the school library to gather different information about their choices and add that information to the chart.

3. Then, invite your students to write a short paragraph about how they would fuse these two together to create and

engage in new types of music! Keep in mind instruments, style, etc. For example, Black Violin fuses together hip-hop and classical using violins and turntables with a DJ blending the sound of the two genres.

4. As an added bonus, encourage students to try to find a musical group or band that already exists and might be playing this style in New York City.


STYLES AND GENRESBlack Violin is influenced by many different styles and genres of music. In this activity, your students will have to opportunity to explore different genres and then mix them up to create something new and exciting.

1. Choose a recognizable piece of music that your students will know the lyrics to. For example, “The Star Spangled Banner” or

2. Invite the whole class to sing the chorus of the song through a few times.

3. Now, introduce different genres like Country, Jazz, Classical Opera, etc. and ask the students to sing that same chorus but in the style or variation of that new genre.

4. Repeat this with as many different styles and genres as you have time or ideas for!

5. Discuss what students did to change the genre. How did you make Rihanna’s ” sound more like a country song?

KEYWORD:Fusion–A blending

of different styles or genres of music.


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HIP-HOP AND MUSICAL FORM




Community and Cultural Resources: General/Vocal/Choral/Instrumental Music

Most music is built upon a basic structure. There are many different forms and structures, and they can be found in all styles and genres of music, some more commonly than others.

One basic way of understanding musical form comes from identifying differences in the parts or sections of a piece of music. When listening, we identify different parts by different letters. In more contemporary music like jazz, hip-hop, R & B and pop, we describe the first part of a tune, which is often the chorus or refrain, as the “A” part. When the melody or harmony changes, we call this new part the “B” part. Each time the music introduces something new or different, we give this part a new letter “C”, “D”, etc.

As classicaly trained musicians, Will-B and Kev Marcus studied and trained for many years to become the accomplished artists they are today. In this theme, your students will have the opportunity to learn more about the basic structure of music, and how they can use the appropriate vocabulary to give articulate responses to a live musical performance.

GLOSSARY: MUSICAL FORMS/STRUCTURES

Some common forms you may have heard of:

BINARY FORM – Musical structure built on an AA BB Form.

CANON – A type of structure where a theme or melody is introduced. After a certain length of time, the same melody, or a variation of it, is layered on top.

CONCERTO – A form of music that features a solo instrument with an orchestra or other ensemble.

HARMONY – The way that several pitches played/sung at the same time interact.

MELODY – A pattern or sequence of pitched notes.

RONDO FORM – Music that introduces a melody and returns to that same refrain after introducing different sections. (ABACADAE…)

SONG FORM – Music where the “A” section is repeated several times at the end. Pop music often takes this form.

TERTIARY FORM – A form of music that uses an ABA structure where the last repetition of the A is sometimes a little different. The term tertiary references the three sections of the piece.

THEME AND VARIATIONS – Musical structure that introduces and repeats a theme, then modifies/changes it slightly in a set of variation. (AA, a1, a2, a3…)

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HIP-HOP AND MUSICAL FORM ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::


OUTSIDE THE BOXWestern music is only one area of musical style and expression. Black Violin, hip-hop and many other genres, pull from other musical forms to inspire them. In this activity, your students will be asked to explore music from all over the world, as well as share their own knowledge of music from their own backgrounds and traditions.

1. Divide your class up into several small groups and assign different musical forms.

2. Encourage students to look beyond the scope of western music, for example, Indian “alap” or “raga,” Korean “pan sori,” West African call and response, etc.

3. Students should research where these musical forms are performed, how they were developed, who performs them, what kind of instruments or voices are used, and any other information they find interesting. What other musical forms do you already know?

4. Once they have chosen and researched their musical form, encourage students to use the glossary on page 13 to help them present their findings to the rest of the class. This may be a musical form they are already familiar, possibly from their own cultural background. Their task is to share their information with their classmates.

EXTENSION As a reflection to this activity, ask the students to research different types of careers in the music industry from composition to technology like mixing, recording and editing.

—Black Violin

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:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::HIP-HOP AND MUSICAL FORM

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NYS LEARNING STANDARDSSuggested Activity:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: A

STUDENT’S DELIGHTWhen laying down tracks for many hip-hop, pop, and other tunes, artists will often start with a stable and constant repeating rhythm called an ostinato. A clear example of this is “Billie Jean” by Michael Jackson, which starts with an ostinato using the electric bass.

In this activity, your students will need to create a repeating ostinato. Then, over their ostinato they will improvise a melody using a selection of syllables. If your students need help or would like an example of ways to improvise or use these syllables, try playing a recording of the Sugar Hill Gang’s “Rapper’s Delight.” Not only was this the first hip-hop song ever recorded, it’s full of great examples of improvisation using syllables:

—Sugar Hill Gang

1. First, have your students create the basic repeating rhythm (ostinato) that they will use. Have them use their desks or clap their hands to create the beats. They can also use the rhythm and beat chart on page 9 for ideas.

2. Provide them with the list of syllables below. Are there any other syllables they would like to add to the list?

Ba

Doo

Bop

Di

Bi

Pop

Da

Ga

De

Dat

Shoo

La

Ooo

Stop

Ski

3. Ask your students to make up and sing what they think is a classical melody using the syllables given as the words. If they need help with a “classical” melody, try playing a piece like Mozart’s Symphony No. 40 in G Minor (Movement I).

4. Now, have them repeat the process only this time change to a different genre, such as jazz or hip-hop. If they need help students can use the same syllables from their first melody.

5. After performing these new arrangements for the class, ask the students if anyone would like to take a solo. Have those students take turns making up or improvising a solo using the syllables. When improvising students should be making up a melody and arrangement of syllables as they go.

6. Once each group has shared their new arrangements for the class, ask the students to use the glossary on page 13 to help them respond and express how they feel about what they heard. Encourage them to listen critically and discuss how each performance evokes a personal response, without being judgmental or analytical.

Was it difficult to add a melody ? Why?

Do you feel like the syllables or language helped or limited your performance?

…Although we think of classical as any instrumental music that’s played by an orchestra, classical music actually refers to a specific era of instrumental composition from the mid 18th century to the early 19th century.

KEYWORD:Ostinato–A

constant repeating rhythm.

In both The New 42nd Street Studios and in The New Victory Theater, we’re doing everything we can to create an eco-friendly, energy-efficient environment. The New 42nd Street is proud to have received two awards from the Environ-mental Protection Agency: a 2003 Small Business Energy Smart Award and a 2004 Environmental Quality Award.

We let it shine with !ber optic lighting in The New Victory Theater’s ceiling dome and LED lighting on the New 42 Studios building façade.

In our restrooms, we use automatic turn-off switches (when unoccupied), low-"ow aerators on all faucets and recycled bathroom tissues and paper towels.

All of our printed materials (programs, The New Vic SCHOOL TOOLSM resource guide, brochures, "yers, etc) are made with paper from renewable sources and printed with soy-based inks.

And of course, we reduce, reuse and recycle copier paper, newspapers and magazines, cans and bottles, "uorescent tubes and batteries.

We use environmentally-friendly cleaning products and paint with low VOC (volatile organic compounds) to reduce the use of toxic chemicals.

We keep our cool with new roof insulation,solar re"ective !lm on windows and high-ef!ciency fan motors in our heating/air-conditioning system.

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SOURCES CONSULTED AND FURTHER RESOURCESBelow are some resources that will help you and your students further explore the ideas within this New Vic SCHOOL TOOLSM resource guide.


BLUEPRINT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNINGThe definitions for the theater keywords are adapted from the Blueprint for Teaching and Learning in the Arts: Music. www.schools.nyc.gov

USEFUL WEBSITESwww.blackviolin.netwww.grovemusic.com

SUGGESTED MUSICMichael Jackson, “Billie Jean”W.A. Mozart, “Symphony in G minor K 550 #40, I”Sugar Hill Gang, “Rapper’s Delight”

BOOKS Stanley Dance and Dan Morgenstern The World of Swing: An Oral History of Big Band JazzDerrick Darby and Tommie Shelby Hip Hop and Philosophy Rhyme 2 ReasonDavid Elliot Music Matters: A New Philosophy of Music EducationNelson George Hip Hop AmericaPeter Shapiro The Rough Guide to Hip-HopAlonzo Westbrook Hip Hoptionary.

ARTICLES Greg Dimitriadis Hip-Hop: From Live Performance to Mediated Narrative. Popular Music May, 1996: 15, 2.

—Mike Shinoda, Linkin Park

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