El Dorado High School/ T.

Harper Choir, Piano, Musical Theatre

Week 1, Day 1

A clef is a symbol that points out notes on the staff.

Circle the correct clef for your instrument or voice: (Can be more that one)

Treble Bass

Draw the correct clef for your instrument or voice on the staff. Label the lines and spaces with the letter names
of the notes.

How many words can you spell using notes on the staff? An example is done for you below. Use the blank
staves to spell as many words as you can using the correct clef for your instrument or voice. Remember, you
can only use the letters A-G!
 El Dorado High School, Harper, Piano, Choir, Musical Theatre
Week 1, Day 2

Use the rhythm charts at the back of this packet to complete this page.

Rhythm is the way that beats or sounds are arranged in music. Like music, language has rhythm. Look at this
chart that shows the names of foods written as musical rhythms:

1. Write your name as a rhythm and include the counting in numbers:

2. Write your favorite food as a rhythm and include the counting in numbers:

3. Write the names and favorite foods of the other people in your house and their favorite foods as
rhythms. Be sure to include the words and include the counting in numbers.

El Dorado HS Harper, Choir, Piano, Musical Theatre

Week 1, Day 3

1. Find a news story about how people are using music or making music together to deal
with current events.
2. Summarize the article or video. (5 - 7 sentences)

3. Why do you think that people continue to make music and art even in a time of crisis? (5-
7 sentences)
 4. Describe a time when music helped you to deal with a difficult situation. What kind of
music helped you? Why do you think it helped? Do you think there is a difference
between listening and actually making music during a difficult time?

El Dorado HS/Harper Choir, Piano, Musical Theatre

Week 1, Day 4

The blues is a style of music from the Southern United States. It was started by former African slaves from
spirituals, praise songs, and chants. The lyrics (words) are usually about sad or difficult times in life, but the
music can be upbeat and even sound happy. The blues have influenced all kinds of music, including pop and
rock. Some famous blues artists are B.B. King, Stevie Ray Vaughaun, and Bessie Smith.

The lyrics of the blues always follow the same pattern and each verse has three lines.

State the problem.

Restate the problem.
State half of the solution or consequence.
State the other half of the solution or consequence.

The end of the last line should rhyme with the end of the first line.

Here are some examples:

Sweet Home Chicago by Robert Johnson

Oh, baby don't you want to go?
Oh, baby don't you want to go?
Back to the land of California
To my sweet home Chicago

Evil Gal Blues by Dinah Washington

I'm an evil gal, don't you bother with me

Yes, I'm an evil gal, don't you bother with me
I'll empty your pockets
and fill you with misery

Using this format, write your own blues lyrics. If you have a device with internet, you can look up other
blues songs for inspiration and examples. You need at least four verses. You can use any subject matter or
lyrics you choose as long as it is appropriate.

El Dorado HS/Harper Choir, Piano, Musical Theatre

Week 2, Day 1

Use the rhythm charts at the back of this packet to complete this page.

A time signature tells us how many beats are in a measure and which kind of note receives one
count. The top number tells us how many beats are in each measure. For our work, we will
only be using time signatures with a 4 on the bottom. That means that the quarter note will
always get one beat.
 El Dorado HS/Harper Choir, Piano, Musical Theatre
Week 2, Day 3

Many famous composers were inspired by nature. For example, Antonin Dvorak used birdsong in his famous
New World Symphony. If you have a device and internet, you can look up this piece of music and other
examples for inspiration.

1. Go outside (pick a safe place, please). Close your eyes and take a few moments to notice the sounds
around you. You might hear the wind (or the noise that things make as they rustle in the wind), water,
animals, or even traffic depending on where you live.
2. How do you think musicians or composers might imitate these sounds using their voice or an
instrument?

3. Notice the rhythms of sounds in nature. For example, sometimes birds sing in repetitive rhythms or a
tree might tap a rhythm on the side of a building as it blows in the wind. What are some ryhthms you
have noticed in nature? Describe them and write the rhythm and counting.

4. Sometimes things in nature also have a melody, even if we don’t notice it at first. Even human speech
has a melody! What are some things in nature that you notice have a melody?

5. If you were to write a composition about the nature you observed today, what would you call it? Which
instruments or voices would you use and why? What other musical elements (tempo, articulation,
dynamics, etc) would you use to portray nature?

El Dorado HS/Harper Choir, Piano, Musical Theatre

Week 2, Day 4

1. Find a news story about a musician or actor who is helping with our current situation.
2. Summarize the article or video.
 3. Had you heard of this musician before you saw this news story? If so, what was your
opinion of them?

4. Did your opinion of this musician change after learning that they are trying to help?

5. Do you think musicians, celebrities, and other artists have a job that makes it easy for
them to help in situations like this? Why or why not?

6. Do you think that musicians, celebrities, and other artists have an obligation to help in
situations like this? Why or why not?

El Dorado HS/Harper Choir, Piano, Musical Theatre

Week 3, Day 1

Write rhythms to go with your blues lyrics from week one. Make sure to include the notation
as well as the words so that we know which words go with which rhythms!
 El Dorado HS/Harper Choir, Piano, Musical Theatre
Week 3, Day 2

Pretend that you are in charge of setting up a benefit concert for a cause that you feel needs
support. If you have a device and internet, check out some famous benefit concerts throughout
history, like Live Aid (it’s Freddie Mercury’s best live performance!)

1. Which cause would you choose to support and why?

2. If you could choose any musicians in the world to play at your benefit concert, who
would you choose? Why would you choose them?
 3. If you could choose any venue in the world for you concert, which would you choose and
why?

4. Design a program for your concert. Be sure to include the cause that the concert benefits,
the names of the musicians or groups and the songs they will be playing, the name of the
venue, the date and time, and the ticket price (include a price to view the concert in
person and a price to view the concert virtually through streaming.) Your program should
look as professional as possible.

El Dorado HS/Harper Choir, Piano, Musical Theatre

Week 3, Day 3

Listening Journal

You may use the glossary of musical terms at the back of this packet to complete this page.

Choose a song that you love by a musician or group that you love.

1. Describe the musical elements of the song:

A. Instruments or voices:

B. Tempo:
 C. Dynamics:

D. Tone:

2. Do you think that the musician or group is trying to convey a specific emotion? What is
it? Which musical elements support this?

3. Which musical elements do you notice first when you listen? Do you think that one is
more important than the others? Why or why not?

4. Why do you like this song and this musician or group? Which musical elements do you
think make you like it the most?

El Dorado HS/Harper Choir, Piano, Musical Theatre

Week 3, Day 4

Listening Journal

You may use the glossary of musical terms at the back of this packet to complete this page.

Ask a friend or family member to choose a song for you to listen to.

1. Before you listen, predict whether you will like this music. What makes you think that
you will or will not like it?

5. Describe the musical elements of the song:

E. Instruments or voices:

F. Tempo:
 G. Dynamics:

H. Tone:

6. Do you think that the musician or group is trying to convey a specific emotion? What is
it? Which musical elements support this?

7. Which musical elements do you notice first when you listen? Do you think that one is
more important than the others? Why or why not?

8. Was your prediction correct? Discuss why you did or did not like the song based on the
musical elements.

Rhythms:
 Musical Terms

Tempo:
Bpm=beats per minute, or the marking on the metronome.

 Larghissimo — very, very slow (20 bpm and below)

 Grave — slow and solemn (20–40 bpm)
 Lento — slowly (40–60 bpm)
 Largo — broadly (40–60 bpm)
 Larghetto — rather broadly (60–66 bpm)
 Adagio — slow and stately (literally, "at ease") (66–76 bpm)
 Adagietto — rather slow (70–80 bpm)
 Andante moderato — a bit slower than andante
 Andante — at a walking pace (76–108 bpm)
 Andantino – slightly faster than andante
 Moderato — moderately (108–120 bpm)
 Allegretto — moderately fast (but less so than allegro)
 Allegro moderato — moderately quick (112–124 bpm)
 Allegro — fast, quickly and bright (120–168 bpm)
 Vivace — lively and fast (≈140 bpm) (quicker than allegro)
 Vivacissimo — very fast and lively
 Allegrissimo — very fast
 Presto — very fast (168–200 bpm)
 Prestissimo — extremely fast (more than 200bpm)

Dynamics:

 p or piano, which means “soft”

 f or forte, which means “loud”
 mp, standing for mezzo-piano, which means “moderately soft”
 mf, standing for mezzo-forte, which means “moderately loud”
 pp, which stands for pianissimo and means “very soft”
 ff, which stands for fortissimo and means “very loud”
 crescendo (cresc.): gradually play louder

 diminuendo / decrescendo (dim. or decres.): gradually play softer