Peterson - 2015 IMEC
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2015 Illinois Music Education Conference
Appreciating Music Appreciation:
Strategies for Teaching All Students
Amber Dahlén Peterson, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Music,
Mazie Barnett Kilmer Chair for Strings Education
Southwestern College
amber.peterson@sckans.edu
Music Appreciation students offer a different challenge from typical band, orchestra, and
choir students. Their limited prior knowledge and experience can make connections to
the material difficult. Furthermore, cultural experiences might be assumed from the
teacher’s own upbringing (Everyone should recognize Beethoven’s 5th, right?), but such
assumptions, in addition to the “curse of expertise”, may impede students’ musical
comprehension. Strategies and activities developed by the researcher to better reach her
community college students will be shared, which can also be adapted to middle and high
school level students. Instructional topics for promoting lifelong music appreciation will
also be discussed.
A. Why do we teach Music Appreciation?
B. Who are our Music Appreciation students? (& how are they different from us?)
1. “The Other 80%”
2. Reasons they take Music Appreciation
C. What are some of the challenges of teaching Music Appreciation?
1. What should we teach?
2. What music should we teach?
3. Approaches
4. Curse of Expertise
5. Attitudes
D. What can we do to make Music Appreciation more meaningful for our students?
1. Instructional topics to promote lifelong music appreciation
2. Only “Good” Music?
3. Guided Listening
4. Discussion/Group Work
5. Sample Activities
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Sample Prompts for Music Appreciation Discussions
1. What roles does music currently play in your life?
2. On which of Copland’s music listening planes did you listen? Define the plane(s) you
indicated.
3. Describe your music listening habits in your personal life. Have your listening
preferences changed over the years? Do your teenage and current listening habits differ,
and what may have led to this?
4. What kind of music do you have in your personal collection? Is it mostly from specific
styles or artists? Is most of your owned music on Tapes, CDs, iTunes, etc? How does the
format of your collection affect the music you listen to?
5*. Why do you suppose 19th-century Americans showed so little interest in concert
music by American composers?
6*. Discuss the reasons for the rise, and then the decline of Tin Pan Alley.
7*. What characteristics do country blues, classic blues, and urban blues share? In what
ways do they differ?
8*. Do you think the radio stations in your area give adequate air time to Latin popular
music?
(*Ferris, 2013)
My Favorite Music
What is your favorite style of music? Who is your favorite performer of this style?
Locate an example on YouTube. In 1 paragraph, explain why you chose this style and
artist/group by describing different musical elements in the performance (Rhythm
(tempo, meter), Melody (pitch, intervals, contour, articulation), Harmony, Timbre
(instrumentation, voices, range, dynamics), Texture). Email your paragraph, including an
active YouTube link, to Dr. Peterson.
Topic
Length
Elements
Grammar &
Spelling
Link
0
Favorite style &
artist not
indicated.
Answer is not
minimum length.
1
2
Favorite style & artist
indicated.
Question answered in
at least 1 paragraph
(at least 5 completed
sentences).
2 or fewer
3 elements
4 elements are
elements are
are
described.
described.
described.
6+ minor errors
4-6 minor
0-3 minor errors.
or major mistakes errors.
throughout.
No active link
Active link included.
included.
3
-
All 5 elements
are described.
-
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6 Songs of Me
1. What was the first song you ever bought?
2. What song always gets you dancing?
3. What song takes you back to your childhood?
4. What is your perfect love song?
5. What song would you want at your funeral?
6. Time for the encore. One last song that makes you, you.
1. Go to http://www.sixsongsof.me/
2. Answer the 6 Questions on the website and save your answers. (You will need to save
your answers in order to get the answers for a & b.)
3. Email Dr. Peterson your answers (Song & Artist).
4. Include at least one reflective paragraph in your email, answering the following:
a. Which of your pieces were most frequently chosen by others? What
population most frequently chose it?
b. Which of your pieces was least frequently chosen by others? Why do you think
this was?
c. What patterns did you notice in your answers (artist, style, elements, etc.)?
d. Sometimes it is difficult to narrow down our response to a single song. For any
of the questions, what additional song(s) (and their artists) would you have
included if there were no limitations?
0
The answers to
the 6 Questions
were not
emailed.
1
Half of the song
or artist
information was
missing in the
email.
Length
The reflection is
not minimum
length.
-
Content
1 or fewer
reflective
questions were
answered
completely.
6+ minor errors
or major
mistakes
throughout.
2 reflective
questions were
answered
completely.
3
The
song/artist
information
was emailed
for all
questions.
The reflection is at least 1
paragraph (at
least 5
completed
sentences).
3 reflective
All reflective
questions were
questions were
answered
answered
completely.
completely.
4-6 minor
errors.
0-3 minor
errors.
6 Songs
Grammar &
Spelling
2
The songs were
emailed but
artist
information was
not included.
-
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Personal Pandora
1. Choose an artist/group from either your “My Favorite Music” “6 Songs of Me”
assignment.
2. Go to http://www.pandora.com/
3. Type this artist/group in as a New Station.
4. Listen to the first 5 pieces that Pandora plays for your station while completing the
tables below.
5. For 1 of the pieces, also fill out a Listening Journal.
Selected Artist/Group ______________________________________________________
Song #1
Title:
Artist(s):
CD:
Length:
Similar Artists Listed (3-4):
Familiar Song (Y/N):
Familiar Artist(s) (Y/N):
Opinion: 1
2
3
4
5
Television Soundtracks
1. Watch 1 hour of television, including commercials. This should be a television show
(or shows), rather than a movie.
Channel:
Day:
Time:
2. Complete the log of the music you hear, documenting diegetic and non-diegetic music
and any recognizable music. Use a timer to keep track of when different music is
occurring. Use additional paper if needed.
3. Write a reflective paragraph summarizing how you heard the music functioning during
the television shows. (See p.324-325.)
4. Write a reflective paragraph about how commercials used music. Did certain products
use certain tempos, instruments, songs you recognize, other elements? Do you think any
of the music was purposefully selected? Why? What is an example of a commercial you
thought was memorable because of its music? (This last question does not have to refer to
a commercial from this hour of television.)
Time
0-1:00
Show or Ad
Glee
Type of music
Diegetic
Why?
Characters singing
Familiar
Y
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Listening Journal
Title: __________________________________________ Date: ___________________
Composer: _____________________________________ Year: ___________________
Performer: ______________________________________________________________
o
o
o
o
o
o
Style: _________________________________________
If “Classical Music”, check the period:
Instruments:
String Orchestra
Middle Ages
Renaissance
Baroque
Classical
Romantic
Contemporary
Symphony Orchestra
o Woodwinds _______________________________________________________
o Brass ____________________________________________________________
o Percussion ________________________________________________________
o Strings ___________________________________________________________
o Keyboard _________________________________________________________
o Other ____________________________________________________________
Voices:
A capella
o Solo
o Choir
o Both
o Male
o Female
o Both
With Instrument(s)
Language: __________________________
Tempo (in English): _______________________
Texture: ______________________
Form: __________________________________
Meter: _______________________
Purpose:
Sacred
Familiar (Y/N):
Other Notes:
Secular
Other: _____________________________
Opinion: (No) 1
2
3
4
5 (Yes)
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Discography #1 – Bach, Vivaldi, Handel
1. Select one piece each composed by Bach, Vivaldi, and Handel and email the titles to
Dr. Peterson by Friday, February 7. (For multimovement works, select only one
movement and email this information as well.) You may find a recording in your own
music collection, on YouTube, or from other sources.
2. Complete a listening journal for each piece (3).
3. In the “Other Notes” section, identify the recording this performance appeared on (e.g.,
the name of the CD, when it was released) or the date and location of the performance.
4. Turn in completed listening journal on Thursday, February 13.
Song
Selection
Listening
Journal
Section 1
Listening
Journal
Section 2
Listening
Journal
Section 3
Listening
Journal
Section 4
Listening
Journal
Section 5
Other Notes
0
Song title not
emailed in advance.
Section not
attempted.
1
Song title emailed
in advance but
not by Friday.
Section partially
completed.
2
Song title emailed to
Dr. Peterson by
Friday.
Section complete.
Section not
attempted.
Section partially
completed.
Section complete.
Section not
attempted.
Section partially
completed.
Section complete.
Section not
attempted.
Section partially
completed.
Section complete.
Section not
attempted.
Section partially
completed.
Section complete.
Section not
attempted.
Section partially
completed.
Section complete.
Bach Score: ___________
Total Score: ___________
Vivaldi Score: ___________ Handel Score: ___________
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