A series of music lessons for
implementation in the classroom F-10.
Conditions of Use
The materials housed on this page are freely available for download and
educational use.
These resources were developed by Sydney Symphony with funding and
support from Australian Government Department of Education, Employment
and Workplace Relations and Education.
A series of five 30-40 minute lessons for easy implementation in the elective music classroom based upon
the Third movement of Symphony No 1 by Mahler. Written in the language of the Australian Curriculum in
the Arts they include each of the music learning areas: performing, composing and listening and identify the
key competencies reinforced in each activity.
Activity
Page
Focus activity
Matched to Content Descriptor
1
6
Listening
2
7
Aural skills and listening
3
8
Composing
4
9
Score analysis
5
10
Performance
Lesson Index
Lesson 1: Presents a series of focus listening questions for familiarisation with the main musical features of
the funeral procession music.
Lesson 2: Focuses upon how the elements are treated and includes a dictation task
Lesson 3: An arrangement activity based upon a nursery rhyme exploring Mahler’s use of canon,
countermelody and ostinati accompaniment
Lesson 4: Score analysis activity which compare the use of the elements of music in contrasting sections of
the movement.
Lesson 5: A class performance activity based upon an arrangement of major themes from this movement.
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Symphony no 1 Movement III (1889)
Mahler
Genre: Symphony
Musical Period: Romantic; 19th Century Music
Instrumentation:
Woodwind: Piccolo, 4 flutes, 4 oboes, cor anglais, 4 clarinets, Bass Clarinet, 4 bassoons
Brass: 7 horns, 5 trumpets, 4 trombones, tuba
Percussion: timpani, bass drum, cymbals, triangle, tam-tam
Strings: violin 1, violin 2, viola, cello, double bass, harp
Internet Link to Full score and recording:
http://imslp.org/wiki/Symphony_No.1_(Mahler,_Gustav)
Background
Composer Profile: Gustav Mahler (1860-1911)
Austrian composer Gustav Mahler was best known during his own lifetime as one of the leading orchestral
and operatic conductors of the day. He has since come to be acknowledged as among the most important
late-romantic composers, although his music was never completely accepted by the musical establishment
of Vienna while he was still alive. Mahler composed primarily symphonies and songs; however, his approach
to genre often blurred the lines between orchestral Lied, symphony, and symphonic poem.
Musical Characteristics of Symphony No 1
Movement I
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‘Tone painting’ in the Prelude
Extensive use of the interval of the 4th
Song Like melodies
Melodic ‘evolution’ of subjects
Thematic development by ‘varied repetition’
Movement II Scherzo
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2
Stamping figure built on the 4th
Landler style rhythm and melody
Song Like melodies
Melodic ‘evolution’ of subjects
Thematic development by ‘varied repetition’
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Movement II Trio
 Simple folk style
 Lyrical sentimental melody
Movement III
 Folk melody appears in canon and with a countersubject
 Contrasting themes
 Musical Parody
Movement IV
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Use of Prelude to set mood
Contrasting dynamics
Contrasting episodes, including use of ‘uninhibited sentiment’
Recurrence of theme from Movement I
Melodic evolution of subjects
Thematic development by varied repetition
Movement III, Funeral March
Mahler was inspired by a woodcut made by Moritz von Schwind in 1850 called The Hunters Funeral
Procession. This is artwork is based upon a fairy tale where animals are victorious over a hunter depicts
their funeral procession as they go to bury him. Mahler’s love of nature was so strong that this type of theme
would have really appealed to him and he would have seen it as an ironic example of justice being done.
The original Slovenian song was called The Animals Bury the Hunter and it was a humorous satirical song
which tells the story of the burial of a hunter and a funeral procession which was not composed of humans
but wild animals that appeared to derive great joy from the event. The symphony movement by Mahler picks
up on this irony by combining a funeral song with other jocular, satirical themes of the day,
Others also feel that Mahler was also making a comment about society by writing this satirical movement.
The woodcut is actually making a comment about the natural order of things in the forest and inverts the
power base which normally operated. The hunter is dominated by the hunter, the powerful and the
powerless have therefore switched positions, Therefore some believe Mahler was making a comment about
power structures in society and this is suggesting a temporary liberation of marginalized social groups. This
would have been a theme close to Mahler’s Jewish heart, and possibly explains why some of the themes
sound like Jewish street music themes.
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Focus Concepts
 Treatment of thematic material
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Canon and countermelody over a repeating bass line
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Techniques of orchestration
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Musical parody
By completing the activities contained in this kit, either as a member of a group or through individual work,
students will:
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Become familiar with the focus repertoire in preparation for a concert experience.
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Develop a deeper understanding of each work in terms of its musical features.
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Develop a deeper understanding of the work within the context of the time it was composed.
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Have participated in listening, analysing, composing and performing music through a series of
activities based upon the focus repertoire.
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Have practiced skills in notation, dictation and aural perception.
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Structure of Movement III
Mahler did not conform to the traditional structures in symphonic writing. He believed music was governed
by a law of eternal evolution – so everything
Bar
Structural Features
1-38
Section A: Funeral March
 Opens with a 2 bar intro (doh-soh) on timpani which continues as an ostinato
accompaniment.
 A solo bass enters, muted playing the familiar tune Frère Jacques nut in a minor key (D
minor)
 This theme is played as a round during which a counter theme appears in bar 19 played
by oboe solo
 The funeral march theme continues in canon with the counter theme continuing above it.
28-82
Section B: Street Dance Parody
 Into the solemn funeral march breaks an irreverent street dance shared between oboes
and trumpets at Bar 38
 After this comes an even more satirical street dance marked mit parodie (with parody)
played by clarinet and bassoons at bar 45
 The street dance themes merge with the funeral march theme and counter theme and the
section closes on a D pedal
83-112
Section C: Sentimental Song
 A sentimental song in G major taken from the fourth song in the Mahler Songs for a
Wayfarer cycle then is played by a small group of muted strings.
 The theme is varied and extended leading back to a G pedal and a return to the minor
tonality.
113-168
Section D: Return of the funeral March
 The funeral March theme and counter theme return, but with new motives.
 First are trumpets at bar 124,
 The countermelody in the clarinets ( bar 118) and flutes (bar 122) is marked keck (cheeky)
 Another incongruous street dance is introduced by the woodwind at bar 139 in the key of D
minor
 The street dance parodies, funeral march theme and counter themes are jumbled together
so that the funeral march also looses it’s dignity and can no longer be taken seriously.
 The movement concludes with the countermelody and final the timpani playing the fourths
ostinato which opened the movement.
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Activity 1: Listening
Movement 3
Bars 1-28
Listen to the opening 15 seconds of the Third Movement of Mahler symphony No 1 then answer the
following listening questions. You will need to play it a number of times.
1. What instrument plays on its own to open the movement?
2. It is playing a 2 note ostinato. The first note is D what is the second note?
3. After a short introduction another instrument enters playing a melody. What is this instrument?
4. Is this part played by the whole bass section or a single player?
5. The melody is in what key or tonality?
Now listen to Audio Cue 2
6. What are the next two instruments to enter?
7. What material do these to instruments play? What is the name given to this composition technique and
what is the result on the texture?
8. This music is called “funeral march”. How has Mahler manipulated the concepts of music (pitch,
rhythm, tempo, articulation and tone colour to) create the atmosphere of a funeral march?
9. A new melody enters (notated below) played by a woodwind heard in audio cue 3
a) What woodwind instrument plays this?
b) Mark the articulation on the score below
c) What do you think is the function or musical purpose of the new tune?
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Activity 2: Listening
In this activity the musical themes will be played and studied to determine how Mahler manipulated the
musical elements what make musical parody rather than a solemn funeral march. Refer to the listening
outline for answers)
1. Write out the tune of frère Jacques from dictation on the stave below
2. How does Mahler’s version of the theme compare to the traditional in his treatment of the following
elements:
a) Melody
b) Rhythm
c) Tonality
3. Describe Mahler’s treatment of this theme in the score in bars 9-18
4. Describe the accompaniment of the main theme in bars 1-18
5. A new 5 bar melody is introduced at bar 19. Notate this melody on the staff below
6. How does this contrast to the Frere Jacque theme?
7. What is the purpose of this theme?
8. As the music goes along Mahler adds things to the music which make it sound more of a parody than
macabre and serious. Identify two of these and describe how this is achieved.
9. Mahler mars his scores in great detail with many instructions. Make a list of the score markings that
occur between figures 5 and 7 and their meaning. Refer to a dictionary if necessary.
10. Despite the large number of instruments playing in Mahler’s orchestra, he always manages to make his
melodies clearly heard.
How does he do this?
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Activity 3: Composition
Mahler used the picture below as the inspiration behind his funeral march. However he is believed to have
said that it was not what was in the picture that was important, more the mood. Consequently the funeral
march he wrote was more of a parody than a sombre instrumental work.
Image source: http://media.keepingscore.org/mahler/photos/hunters_funeral_popup.jpg
1. Compose an ironic funeral march using Mahler Symphony No 1 as a model.
Your composition will have 3 distinct sections:
Funeral theme based upon a nursery rhyme
The melody with a countermelody
A parody of your funeral march
a) Use the well known tune This Old Man (below) or another nursery rhyme and give it the “Mahler
treatment” to turn it the theme for a funeral march.
b) Your composition needs to be an ensemble of at least four instruments
c) Write a simple counter melody that adds colour and irony to your part B
d) Create a simple accompaniment
e) Allocate your instruments to the parts, considering their range and sound.
f)
Complete the score with significant score markings and the information required to perform the work
g) Rehearse and perform
h) Compare each new composition to Mahler’s version – which were more successful and why?
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Activity 4: Score Reading
Score Excerpt 1- Figure 13 -16
Mahler did not conform to the traditional structures in symphonic writing. He believed music was governed
by a law of eternal evolution – so everything that repeats was changed in some way
These questions are based upon the recapitulation of the symphony’s third movement.
Revise the A section of the music (Activity 1) and then answer these questions. You may need to refer to
score excerpt 1 (page 15) to assist you.
1. What is the key at the start of this section?
How does this compare to the opening key of the movement?
2. What instruments are playing the opening ostinato which the timpani first introduced at the start of the
movement?
3. Which instruments play the minor key Frere Jacques melody when it enters?
4. Write out the top part of the first three bars of the bassoon entry after Figure 13 in treble clef
5. This melody is also treated as a canon. What is the distance this time between each entry?
6. What instrument is included in the recapitulation that you did not hear in the opening excerpt?
7. Mahler uses a very large orchestra in this symphony yet at all times the main thematic information can
be clearly heard. How does he achieve this?
8. How does Mahler give the aural impression that the sombre part of the funeral is moving away?
9. How are the tutti violins are instructed to play their notes three bars before 16 and what do they need to
do to achieve this? Describe the sound of this playing technique.
10. The key changes again at figure 16. What is it now?
How does Mahler clearly establish the new key from Fig 16?
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Activity 5: Performance
1. The score below is an arrangement of the Street Dance parody including the two important themes used
by Mahler from figure 5 to figure 8 in the score. Either learn to play it as a class, or enter parts into a
music program like sibelius or garageband and play it digitally if you do not have other people to perform
with.
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14
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Score Excerpt 1
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16
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ANSWERS
Lesson 1:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
Timpani
A a fourth below
Double bass
Single player
Minor ( D minor)
Include dictation
Bassoon and cello
The opening melody introduced by the bass
Slow stately tempo, low pitched instruments, minor key, mournful tone colour, use of the sad theme
in canon, sparse texture
10. a) Oboe, b) see the listening outline, c) countermelody and to create contrast
Activity 2:
Activity 4:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
E flat minor. A semitone higher than the opening D minor.
Timpani, harp cellos and basses
Flutes, clarinets, bassoons
This should look the same as the flute part.
2 bars
Harp
By making the melody a clearly discernible line against the texture, carefully choosing the register
for the tune and for the accompaniment, not having too many instruments playing when only one
instrument has the theme and doubling the melody with a number of instruments during full
orchestra sections.
8. The theme after figure 14 is only heard in fragments and new themes are starting to become more
prominent and the funeral theme is marked pp.
9. Col legno – to play with the wood of the bow instead of the hair. The sound is quite percussive and
the pitch is less evident than the rhythm.
10. Back into D minor. Made very clear by the tonic and dominant notes played in ostinati in the lower
strings.
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