Composition

If you make any additions to your piece during half term please email the latest version to me so I can look at it before next lesson.

Chorale (Wednesday 6th November)

Complete Worksheet 07 (FP3) in Chorale Fingerprints Workbook

Applied (in after half term – Thursday 7th November)

Essay title: “Identify features of Wagner’s prelude to Tristan and Isolde that are particularly innovative”

In your introduction you should make some reference to the more general innovations of Wagner in respect of opera but the main body of the essay should concentrate on the prelude itself. As with all applied essays, we are mainly looking for clearly exemplified features. Don’t forget to discuss orchestration (see worksheet 3 from last week).

Instrumental

Answer the questions on the Debussy worksheet. Be ready to share these. Ext lesson.
Translate the French terms in your anthology (Debussy)

Composition

Submit first and second subject material (or equivalent) by the end of Friday 25th on Moodle please. Make sure you explain your music in the comment box please.

Half term composition task
Now you have got the main melodic ideas for your Sonatina you need to plan your development. It is a good idea to work on the development before returning to your recapitulation because this lets you set up any harmonic and thematic ideas in advance. Use this Structure Planner as a template.

1)    Work out how many roughly how many bars of music you need to make ca. 3 ½ minutes. Timing in seconds = Bars x Units per bar x (60 / MM speed of units per min.)

2)    Your development should be around a third of your piece so divide the answer from 1) by three to get the approximate number of bars that you will need.

3)    Complete a table like the ones given on the Handout, but in each column you should cite specific influences from Sonatas and Sonatinas from Moodle and beyond. You should refer to at least two different pieces.

 People not doing Sonatina, should produce a plan for their whole piece as above. You can use this Structure Planner as a template.

Chorale (Friday 9th November)

Complete Worksheet 07 (FP3) in Chorale Fingerprints Workbook

Applied (in after half term – Thursday 7th November)

Essay title: “Identify features of Wagner’s prelude to Tristan and Isolde that are particularly innovative”

In your introduction you should make some reference to the more general innovations of Wagner in respect of opera but the main body of the essay should concentrate on the prelude itself. As with all applied essays, we are mainly looking for clearly exemplified features. Don’t forget to discuss orchestration (see worksheet 3 from last week).

Instrumental

Answer the questions on the Debussy worksheet. Be ready to share these. Ext lesson.
Translate the French terms in your anthology (Debussy).
Write a report summarizing the main textures in Debussy’s Sarabande. Use the ideas discussed in class and turn into clear detailed paragraphs.

[this is the group that has TOM for composition]

Composition
Submit your finished theme on Moodle by the end of Friday

Over half term you should complete the relevant influences sheet (in for Wednesday 6th when we return) (Variations Planner/ AS Machines Planner)

Instrumental (Thursday 7th)

Essay: “Identify features of the Sarabande which are typical of the Neo-Classical style.”

Fill in the A3 essay planner sheet first. Before doing this please read the Edexcel notes on the Debussy (see on Moodle).

Complete the essay using the Submission sheet provided to mark your work (identifying points and examples as indicated)

You will need to show how Debussy mixes features borrowed from older styles with newer features.

Harmony

Finish Exercises 1-3 (mostly started in class)

Vocal

Not yet set. See last week.

[This is the group that has IAIN for composition]

Composition 

Over half term you should complete the relevant influences sheet (in for Friday 8th when we return)

Instrumental (Tuesday 5th)

Essay: “Identify features of the Sarabande which are typical of the Neo-Classical style.”

Fill in the A3 essay planner sheet first. Before doing this please read the Edexcel notes on the Debussy (see on Moodle).

Complete the essay using the Submission sheet provided to mark your work (identifying points and examples as indicated)

You will need to show how Debussy mixes features borrowed from older styles with newer features.

Harmony

No Half-term harmony homework

Vocal

Not yet set. See last week.

Composition (end of college day Monday 21st)

Submit all your work (several different Sibelius files if necessary) and a brief comment explaining what you have done since last week. Remember to submit the work at the end.

Please make some serious progress this week – I shall be comparing what you submit on Monday with what you submitted today.

Chorale (due in Thursday 24th Oct.)

No chorale lesson this week due to open day.

Applied (due in Thursday 24th)

Write an essay on the following title: “Identify features of the prelude to Wagner’s Tristan and Isolde  that help to convey the tension and yearning of the opera’s love story”

You should make sure that you read through your notes from class, in the source book and also the Edexcel notes (available on Moodle). You must please address the central topics that we have covered: 1) Endless melody and Leitmotif; 2) Yearning, unresolved harmonies and 3) the idea of the structure that is ‘one long-articulated impulse’. You need to decide which are more relevant to this particular question, aiming to make ten main points each of which should be illustrated with an example. You must submit a  Submission Sheet with this essay please.

Instrumental

Not yet set – see last week

[this is the group that has TOM for composition]

Composition
Please submit your revised theme by the end of the college day on TUESDAY 22nd. If you submit it earlier, however, I will give feedback over the weekend.

Please do the following:

1) Respond to any feedback you have from last week

2) Find a texture that you can adapt as the accompaniment for your theme – in the submission comments you must tell me which bars of which piece you are using.

3) Either add some secondary chords (see notes on Moodle) or one or two chromatic chords to make the harmony a bit more interesting.

Instrumental (Thursday 24th)

I am not setting a homework for instrumental this week.

Harmony

No harmony this week because there is no college on Friday.

Vocal

Not yet set. See last week.

[This is the group that has IAIN for composition]

Composition 

Not yet set. See last week.

Instrumental (Monday 21st)

I am not setting a homework for instrumental this week.

Harmony

Complete Ex. 1-3 (started in class)

Vocal

Not yet set. See last week.

[This is the group that has IAIN for composition]

Composition 

Write a 16-bar theme. You should include the melody line and a stave with chords.
It must:
i) have two distinctive motivic ideas that are repeated and transformed (rhythm and articulation as important as pitch)
ii) have two cadences (perhaps one after 8 bars and the other at the end)
iii) vary the harmonic rhythm at least a couple of times (i.e. not two chords per bar for the whole piece)

It might:
i) include a modulation to the dominant or relative minor
ii) incorporate a chromatic chord

OR
submit an alternative brief proposal plus a short sketch of around 16 bars

Instrumental (Monday 14th)

Write a short essay on the following title: “Compare the Holborne (Pavane only) and the Debussy in terms of their texture”

You should use the five standard comparison questions for texture on p. 18 of the Course Handbook, using the information that we gathered on the A3 comparison grid. As a guide, you need to write five short paragraphs in which you compare the two works according to the topics suggested by the questions. You therefore should make about five points with examples from each work.

Harmony

Nothing this week

Vocal

Not yet set

[this is the group that has TOM for composition]

Composition (end of college day on Tuesday 15th)

Write a 16-bar theme. You should include the melody line and a stave with chords.

It must:

• have two distinctive motivic ideas that are repeated and transformed (rhythm and articulation as important as pitch)
• have two cadences (perhaps one after 8 bars and the other at the end)
• vary the harmonic rhythm at least a couple of times (i.e. not two chords per bar for the whole thing

It might:

• include a modulation to the dominant or relative minor or something more adventurous at the second cadence
• incorporate a chromatic chord (see resources on Moodle)

OR submit an alternative brief proposal with about 16 bars of sketch

Please submit on the AS Moodle.

Instrumental (Thursday 17th)

Write a short essay on the following title: “Compare the Holborne (Pavane only) and the Debussy in terms of their texture”

You should use the five standard comparison questions for texture on p. 18 of the Course Handbook, using the information that we gathered on the A3 comparison grid. As a guide, you need to write five short paragraphs in which you compare the two works according to the topics suggested by the questions. You therefore should make about five points with examples from each work.

Harmony

Nothing this week

Vocal

Read the information about Howlin Wolf in your pack. Make sure you are familiar with the background to the song and also the basics of the piece i.e. Structure and main features