We've talked about how you use music to express yourself, but what else can it do? Read this article, listen to the song, and consider how music is used to influence peoples' opinions on very important matters!
Click here to find the article and music about "Ebola in Town"!
Tuesday, September 9, 2014
Monday, November 25, 2013
WW2 Unit, The Music of Nazi Germany
Our 7th graders have just finished their WW2 Unit, conlcuding with a USO Dance this past Saturday! But, what music was promoted by Nazi Germany? According to Hitler and Goebbels (Hitler's second in command), the three master composers that represented good German music were Ludwig van Beethoven, Richard Wagner, and Anton Bruckner. All three composers lived prior to the 20th century, before Hitler's time.
Listen to these clips and comment below, answering the purple questions asked of you.
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) believed that "strength is the morality of the man who stands out from the rest." Hitler identified with Beethoven as possessing that heroic German spirit. Beethoven was so loved by the German people that his legacy of music was unrivaled by any other composer. Listen to Beethoven's 9th Symphony. You may recognize it as "Ode to Joy", a source of great praise to God.
Richard Wagner (1818-1883) was Hitler's favorite composer. During World War I, it is reported, he carried Wagner's music from Tristanin his knapsack. Often Hitler had Wagner's music performed at party rallies and functions. Wagner's music was uncompromisingly serious, and intensely Teutonic (of Germanic origin). It was not only Wagner's music that 'struck a chord' with Hitler, but also his political views. Wagner wrote a violently antisemitic booklet in the 1850s called Das Judebthum in die Musik (Judaism in Music) insisting the Jews poisoned public taste in the arts. He founded the Bayreuth festival, which in the 1930s and 1940s was used by the Nazi party as a propaganda tool against the Jews.
Listen to the "Ride of the Valkyries". This is part of an opera, where at this point, the curtain rises to reveal a mountain peak where four Valkyrie sisters (characters in Norse mythology, female figures who get to decide which soldiers die in battle, and which live) have gathered in preparation for the transportation of fallen heroes to Valhalla (the eternal home for fallen soldiers). The familiar tune is carried by the orchestra while, onstage, Valkyries are singing their battle cry. (Hollywood has used this melody in several movie scores)
Students who have studied Nazi Germany, why do you think Hitler would have preferred Wagner as a composer representing Nazi values?
Listen to these clips and comment below, answering the purple questions asked of you.
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) believed that "strength is the morality of the man who stands out from the rest." Hitler identified with Beethoven as possessing that heroic German spirit. Beethoven was so loved by the German people that his legacy of music was unrivaled by any other composer. Listen to Beethoven's 9th Symphony. You may recognize it as "Ode to Joy", a source of great praise to God.
Do you think this piece represents Beethoven's quote above? What musical components help accomplish this?
Richard Wagner (1818-1883) was Hitler's favorite composer. During World War I, it is reported, he carried Wagner's music from Tristanin his knapsack. Often Hitler had Wagner's music performed at party rallies and functions. Wagner's music was uncompromisingly serious, and intensely Teutonic (of Germanic origin). It was not only Wagner's music that 'struck a chord' with Hitler, but also his political views. Wagner wrote a violently antisemitic booklet in the 1850s called Das Judebthum in die Musik (Judaism in Music) insisting the Jews poisoned public taste in the arts. He founded the Bayreuth festival, which in the 1930s and 1940s was used by the Nazi party as a propaganda tool against the Jews.
Listen to the "Ride of the Valkyries". This is part of an opera, where at this point, the curtain rises to reveal a mountain peak where four Valkyrie sisters (characters in Norse mythology, female figures who get to decide which soldiers die in battle, and which live) have gathered in preparation for the transportation of fallen heroes to Valhalla (the eternal home for fallen soldiers). The familiar tune is carried by the orchestra while, onstage, Valkyries are singing their battle cry. (Hollywood has used this melody in several movie scores)
Students who have studied Nazi Germany, why do you think Hitler would have preferred Wagner as a composer representing Nazi values?
Leonardo Da Vinci's wacky piano is heard for the first time, after 500 years!
From the Sydney Morning Herald:
Leonardo Da Vinci's wacky piano is heard for the first time, after 500 years
Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/music/leonardo-da-vincis-wacky-piano-is-heard-for-the-first-time-after-500-years-20131118-2xpqs.html#ixzz2lg311N3x
A bizarre instrument combining a piano and cello has finally been played to an audience more than 500 years after it was dreamt up Leonardo da Vinci.
Da Vinci, the Italian Renaissance genius who painted the Mona Lisa, invented the ‘‘viola organista’’ - which looks like a baby grand piano – but never built it, experts say.
The viola organista has now come to life, thanks to a Polish concert pianist with a flair for instrument-making and the patience and passion to interpret da Vinci’s plans.
Full of steel strings and spinning wheels, Slawomir Zubrzycki’s creation is a musical and mechanical work of art.
This instrument has the characteristics of three we know: the harpsichord, the organ and the viola da gamba,’’ Zubrzycki said as he debuted the instrument at the Academy of Music in the southern Polish city of Krakow...
Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/music/leonardo-da-vincis-wacky-piano-is-heard-for-the-first-time-after-500-years-20131118-2xpqs.html#ixzz2lg2g709J
Wednesday, September 18, 2013
O Sifuni Mungu
Here is the video to help you prepare for the Thanksgiving concert. Have fun!
Click here to go to Lyrics Video!
Click here to go to Lyrics Video!
Monday, May 13, 2013
Thursday, April 25, 2013
Nationalist Music--Music that represents America
On Wednesday, we
listened to 2 pieces by Aaron Copland that were supposed to represent
America. “Appalachian Springs” paints a
picture of the American landscape and pioneer spirit, and “Fanfare for the
Common Man” represented the ideals of the American Dream. Do you think he accomplishes this in his
music? Why or why not? Use the comment section below to answer this question.
Monday, February 18, 2013
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