Teaching Sequence

5 minutes – Introduction
20 minutes – Part A: Activating Prior Knowledge
20 minutes – Part B: Preparing the Fanfares
65 minutes – Part C: Putting it Together
10 minutes – Reflection

Work through this resource material in the following sequence:

Introduction

Step 1. Watch the 'Artology Orchestration' clip with the class:

Artology Orchestration (https://youtu.be/ErVRYdMDRNo)

Step 2. Ask students to turn to the person next to them, and recount the piece of advice shared in the clip that they found most valuable.

Part A: Activating Prior Knowledge

Step 1. Discuss with students what they learned in the Fanfare: Tone Colour lesson, where they identified the instruments of the orchestra that symbolise a mood or feeling (for instance flute = exciting, bassoon = eerie). Remind students of the sound of each instrument by asking them to share what they recall from the previous lesson. Note what they share on the whiteboard.

Step 2. Watch the Portland Youth Philharmonic demonstration of the sections of the orchestra. Have students make notes on the different moods each of the instruments (and instrument sections) portray on the Student Worksheet.

Introduction to the instruments of the orchestra (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sr-l2m8twX0)

Note: This step may have been completed at home in the flipped classroom style. If so, ask students to share their responses, as well as any further queries that they have.

Optional Exercise: Creating Instrumental Parts

Encourage students who may not be familiar with instrumentation to explore the pitch of different instruments, particularly those within the Youth Orchestra. Talk about why the flute is exciting (because it is a high pitch, it is airy and gives a light feel to the sound) and how the bass drum has a low sound, and therefore vibrates through our bodies and creates a scarier mood.
Once students have a grasp of this, they will be better prepared to select their instruments and create instrumental parts.

Part B: Preparing the Fanfares

Step 1. Use the following website to show students what an orchestrated score looks like with four or more instruments together: Reading a Score. Alternatively, there may be some band scores within the school’s music department that students can explore.

While viewing the scores, point out the following to students:

placement of title
composer name
key signature
time signature
order of instruments
consistency of bar numbers across the page
alignment of notes across instruments

Step 2. Invite students to get out the melodies/rhythms, etc. that they created in previous Fanfare lessons. Instruct them to write down which instruments they think will best suit their piece. Next, invite students to evaluate their choices in writing on the Student Worksheet. They are prompted with the following:

Describe how you intend for your composition to sound. (For instance: happy, sad, scary, exciting, dramatic.)
Think about the melody. Which instrument/s are best to show the feeling you want your composition to convey?
Think about counter-melodies or harmonies. Which instruments would sound best?
Think about rhythms. Which instrument/s are going to be best to use for this?
Are there any elements of the piece that are designed to be scary, sudden or impulsive? Which instrument/s could have this effect?

Hot tip: When students are choosing which instrument to play the melody, remind them that some instruments can be drowned out by stronger, louder ones. For example, the flute and clarinet may not be heard over a trumpet or saxophone playing a counter-melody. Recommend that students have the melody played in multiple parts, or by multiple instruments (preferably in the same family of instruments) so that it is the strongest and clearest part of the fanfare.

Advise students that when they write the countermelody for their fanfare they should use a dynamic symbol that is lower in volume than that of the melody. This will help the melody to stand out over the counter melody.

Step 3. Invite volunteers to share their responses, then allow the class time to make any amendments if they gain new ideas during the sharing session.

Part C: Putting it Together

Step 1. Different composers have different methods for the actual process of orchestration. This worksheet provides one method. Other composers may choose to write in the bass line before writing in countermelodies or harmony notes.

Here is the Australian Youth Orchestra instrumentation list, students should choose instruments from this list for their final composition:

1 flute, 1 oboe, 1 clarinet or saxophone, 1 bassoon, 2 trumpets (Bb or C), 2 french horns, 1 trombone, strings (8 violin 1, 6 violin 2, 4 viola, 3 cello, 2 bass), timpani (sizes 32, 29, 26 & 23), percussion (no more than 2 players), electronics or recorded sound.

Percussion List: 2 bongos, bell tree, bass drum, castanets, snare drum, suspended cymbals (China, standard), glockenspiel, marimba, tambourine, tenor drum, triangle, tom-toms (Please note: 2 players only)

If you have any queries regarding instrumentation in particular percussion and electronics (electronics would be accommodated in the final recording process), give Artology a call.

If you have access to notation software and enough devices for students to utilise this software on a one-to-one basis, model how to input notes and set up the score by projecting the program for the class to see. Then, invite students to use their devices to input their compositions into the software using the instruments they chose in Part B. The software will transpose the instruments.

If you are manually writing the music on manuscript paper, there are a few things to remember:

Students may not be able to write for transposing instruments (i.e.: those instruments that produce a different pitch than is indicated in the music written).
In light of the above, encourage students to stick to C instruments (Flute, Piccolo, Bassoon, Oboe, Trombone, Tuba, Piano, Harp, Drums and Percussion).
If students have listed transposing instruments in their planning on their worksheets, guide them to a suitable C instrument alternative.
Instruct the students on the order of instruments down the page (highest to lowest, etc). Students can refer to the examples here (Reading a Score). Alternatively, C instruments would be listed in this order.

1 Piccolo	6 Tuba
2 Flute	7 Drums
3 Oboe	8 Percussion
4 Bassoon	9 Harp
5 Trombone	10 Piano

Step 2. Advise students to put their piece together by following the instructions on the Student Worksheet:

Set out the manuscript, starting with the highest sounding instruments and working down to the lower sounding instruments.
Put in the key signature and time signature.
Write the melody in first on the stave for the instrument to play the melody. If the melody changes between instruments, write it in each one. Aim to have the whole melody written down before moving on.
Consider if your melody could benefit, in some or all areas, from being played by more than one instrument. If you really want it to stand out, loud and clear, consider Instrument Doubling; this means having the melody in two or more instruments at the same time, playing together.
Add in harmonies and counter-melodies. Remember to finish one line of music at a time (i.e.: first harmony, then second harmony, etc.). If using notation software, listen to the whole piece each time a new harmony/counter-melody is entered. This will help to identify any clashes in notes, or wrong sounds, and can be easily fixed. Waiting until the end can make it difficult to locate where the problem note is.
Add in any bass notes such as trombone, tuba or piano bass, then add any chords. Check how it sounds before moving on.
Finish with percussion parts. If you are using notation software, you will be able to hear how it sounds as you go. If you are writing this by hand on manuscript paper, have a friend or the teacher check this for you, preferably as you go and not at the end.
Listen to your melody again and decide if it needs to be strengthened by instrument doubling. Do you need to put the melody into more instruments so that the sound is clearer and louder? This can quite often be the case if the flute or clarinet has the melody by themselves; it may not be loud enough to be heard over the percussion section.

Step 3. While students are on task, wander around the classroom and listen to their pieces in order to help identify any challenges they may be facing (for instance: clashes of notes, incorrect alignment of rhythms, etc.) and work with students to resolve them.

Step 4. Encourage students to review their work by showing a classmate, asking for feedback and making any amendments.

Step 5. Invite students to ask themselves the following questions (also on the Student Worksheet):

Do you like the way your piece sounds?
Does your piece convey the feeling you wanted it to? (For instance: sad, happy, excited.)

If students answer no to either of the questions, encourage them to go back to the planning notes and see what could change, or identify anything that they may have left out during the notation process.

Step 6. Encourage students to consider the following:

Articulations and Other Markings
Encourage students to use articulation marks and phrases, as well as performance markings, to enhance their fanfare. By placing these extra markings into their pieces, students will give their music a sense of character. It will also help the musicians understand how it is to be played.

These can include (but are not limited to) the following ideas:

Dynamics

Articulations

Tempo

Presto	Extremely fast
Vivace	Quick and lively
Allegro	Fast and cheerful
Morderato	Moderate speed
Andante	Walking pace
Adagio	Slow and relaxed
Lento	Slow
Largo	Very Slow

Style
Students should consider if the music is to be played Straight (standard performance of notes) or if it is to be Swung (gives the piece a Jazz feel). If it is to be Swung, students need to write this at the top of the music, above the first bar.

Reflection

Invite students to consider the following questions to reflect on their learning:

I used to think that writing music was…
Now I think that writing music is ……
The thing I enjoyed most about orchestrating my Fanfare was ….

Differentiated Learning

Extension: Challenge students to incorporate at least one instrument from each instrument family into their piece. Encourage students manually transpose a Bb instrument in their Fanfare (such as a clarinet).

Provisions for Learning Support: Keep instrumentation to a minimum for students who may struggle with this task. Pair students of lower ability with students of higher ability if there is an opportunity to do so, or as a group to work with the teacher. Suggest that students keep instrumentation for their piece simple, or give them a pre-structured instrumentation sheet to put their melodies and rhythms onto.

Teacher Reflection

Fanfare Competition - Orchestrating Your Composition

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