TeacherÕs Guide to:

Ave Maria

 

By Franz Schubert

Arr. Frank Ticheli

 

Grade 3

Manhattan Beach Music

 

Created by Amanda Jolly

Kansas State University

 

Dr. Frederick Burrack

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Learning goals for this piece include the following:

 

1. To the student, a basic background about Franz Schubert, the original composer of Ave Maria.

            Standard 9

2. To give the student a good idea of the history of the Catholic Church in connection with one of the most famous cathedrals in the world, Notre Dame.

            Standard 8 and 9

3. To give the student a firm understanding of the different rhythmic elements used in this piece and how those rhythms are associated with the melodic and harmonic structure.

            Standard 5 and 6

4. The student should be able to recognize where the melody is located in the piece and who is playing it.

            Standard 6

5. The student should be able to represent the melodic shape by drawing the general form of the melody.

            Standard 5, 6, and 7

6. The student should recognize the two types of cadences discussed below and be able to compose three simple melodies using the information provided.

            Standard 3, 4, 5, and 6

7. The student should notate the form given to them in their music.

            Standard 7

8. The student is expected to prepare the material in the ÒPractice GuideÓ section, and be able to successfully complete a playing test.

            Standard 2 and 5

9. Help develop the studentsÕ aesthetic awareness of the piece by visually and orally stating what and how it makes them feel.

            Standard 8

10. The student should correctly define the terms given to them in the ÒTerminologyÓ section and know where those terms occur in their music.

            Standard 6

 

 

 

 

Unit 1: Composer information

            Frank Ticheli was born on January 21, 1958. He is an American composer, most notably known for his concert band works, some of which are quickly becoming standards in the repertoire. He currently lives in Los Angeles, CA, where he is Professor of Composition at University of Southern CaliforniaÕs Thornton School of Music. He earned his Bachelor of Music degree in Composition from Southern Methodist University and his masterÕs and doctoral degrees from the University of Michigan. Other well-known works for concert band composed by Ticheli include Sanctuary, Amazing Grace, and Joy.

 

Unit 2: Composition

            Ave Maria is a Catholic prayer, sung in Latin, as a hymn to Virgin Mary. The prayer itself has existed since the mid 1400Õs. Franz Schubert, a Romantic composer, wrote the most well-known musical setting of the hymn in 1825. The original text for SchubertÕs piece, called The Hymn to the Virgin, is a German translation which comes from Sir Walter ScottÕs poem The Lady in the Lake. In ScottÕs poem, Ellen Douglas, the daughter of powerful Highland clan leader Lord Douglas, sings this prayer to the Virgin before a battle with ScotlandÕs King James V, asking for her protection. Ticheli transcribed this piece from the piano and vocal score to a concert band setting in 2004. This piece is characterized by the easily recognized melody, with the underlying triplet accompaniment. Those parts with the melody need to let the melody Òsing outÓ over the ensemble. Dynamics are used to represent movement and not necessarily volume; however, the fortes in the piece need to be observed for the sake of contrast.

 

Melodic and harmonic content:

            The melody begins in measure 5-16 in the alto sax 1 and French horn part. The melody itself consists of short, two bar motives, but the underlying harmonic movement from measures 5-9 of tonic to dominant with a deceptive cadence in measure 7 and then dominant to tonic again in measure 8-9, suggests longer four bar phrases. The second four measure phrase, beginning in measure 10, modulates with a V/vi chord (D7) to g minor, but returns to the dominant chord of F at the end of measure 16.

            From measures 16-22, the melody is established in the flutes and oboes over the tonal center of F, which is technically the dominant chord in the piece. However, harmonic movement between the dominant and the Bb chord in second inversion disguises the feeling of a real tonic, leaving this part of the music harmonically unstable. In measures 21-22, the alto saxes and French horns join the flutes and oboes in playing the melody, and completely take over in measures 23-24. This section ends with a half cadence and moves back to the home key of Bb major in measures 25-26.

            The interlude between measures 27-30 features the clarinets outlining triads, with a pedal tone Bb in the trombones. The harmonic motion roughly outlines a I-IV-v/V-I progression, with the inner voices descending chromatically back to the tonic in measure 31.

            The return of the A section happens in measures 31-42, with the same basic melodic and harmonic structure as in measures 5-16. The 1st clarinets take over the melody from the alto saxes and join the French horns with the melody in measure 36.

            Measures 43-50 bring about the return of the B section, which is the same as measures 17-25. This time, flute and clarinet soloists have the melody, with the same pedal tone of F providing the harmonic movement underneath. The tutti section begins at measure 47 and is carried out until measure 50, where we return to the tonic key of Bb.

            The melody briefly returns for three measures in the French horns, from 51-53. The harmonic movement at this point is a basic I-V-I progression. The coda occurs from measures 54-59. All parts progress through a brief, three note motive that goes from the major Bb tonic chord to a minor Bb chord, progressing chromatically through passing tones to a IV chord, then a secondary dominant chord and finally back to the tonic chord of Bb. The clarinets again outline triads, providing the final melodic push to the end of the piece.

 

Rhythmic content:

            The rhythmic content of this piece is fairly straightforward, without many hidden complexities. The dotted half notes in the melody should grow in intensity towards the 8th notes. Likewise, the dotted quarter notes leading into the 16th notes or triplets in measures 8, 10, 12, 14, etc. should also grow into the moving notes, with precise rhythmic accuracy. Care should be taken that a difference is made between the duple and triple feel that occurs throughout the piece. Alto saxes and French horns have to watch the grace notes in measure 15-the first 8th note triplet is shortened to a 16th triplet, with the following grace notes played as 32nd notes.

            The dotted rhythms played beginning in measure 17 need to be very accurate, with the 8th and 16th note being precise. This will allow the following triplets to be exposed as a contrasting style. The grace note in measure 21 will be played as a 16th notes triplet, along with the first triplet in beat 4.

            The musical interlude in measures 27-30 are made up of running triplets, with an 8th rest on beat 1. Students need to be aware of the rest and carefully observe it, so as not to rush the following triplets.

            Measure 31 brings about the return of the A section, with the same rhythmic situations as before. Everything stated earlier about measures 5-16 also applies to this section, from measures 31-42. Care should be taken in measure 36 to bring out the duple versus the triple feel between the melody (clarinets, French horns, and bassoons) with the running triplets in the 2nd and 3rd clarinet parts.

            Beginning in measure 43, the dotted 8th/16th rhythms return, along with the contrasting triplets. This continues until measure 50.

            Measures 51-end consist of more triplets, with the 8th rest on the strong beats. Again, it is essential that these rests are observed precisely, so the following triplets will be in time.

 

 

 

Formal Analysis of content:

            Introduction 1-4

            Melody A, measures 5-16, made up of three contrasting phrases

            Melody B, measures 17-25, made up of two contrasting phrases, the 2nd being a      variation of the first.

            Melody AÕ is a shortened, 2-bar phrase which repeats the first phrase of the             original melody.

            Measures 27-31 is an interlude

            Melody A reoccurs from measures 31-42

            Melody B occurs from 43-50

            Melody AÕ is again a shortened two bar phrase from measures 51-53.

            Coda occurs from measures 54-59.

 

Textural and Timbral content:

            Melody A- written in a homophonic style where all parts support the melody. The texture is thick and rich, and instruments should have a dark, open quality to their tone.

            Melody B-written more rhythmically with more of a pulsating eighth note feel. The texture thins out at the beginning of melody B, and the brighter instrumentation allows for the rhythmic differences of duple versus triple to be highlighted, as well as the harmonic instability. As melody B moves back to the recapitulation of melody A, the texture thickens back to the original homophonic structure.

 

Explanation of Activities and the Answer Key to the Student Guide

 

Composer Information: Students should take the initiative to find the information about the composer. I included only a very brief overview of Franz Schubert and then provided a reliable website for them to go do their own research. The questions provided are only a few of the many possibilities. You, as the teacher, have the option of adding whatever you feel is necessary information for them to know.

 

1. Austrian, 1797

2. Romantic, 1815-1910

3. Lieder

4. Violin, his father

5. Unfinished Symphony

 

Composition Information: This information I took from the program notes provided by Frank Ticheli at the beginning of the piece. Depending on how you want to structure your unit, you could copy this information for each student or post in on a bulletin board. Since this is a band transcription of a vocal piece in a foreign language, students need to know what is being said. One of the activities in the WebQuest had the students finding the English translation of the piece.

 

Historical Background/Cultural Context: See the teacherÕs guide of the WebQuest for a complete explanation. Click here for the link.

 

Rhythm: The rhythms in this piece are fairly straightforward and are not too complex. One of the few potential rhythmic problems I foresee involves the 16th grace notes in the triplet patterns. I chose to isolate this particular rhythm and turn it into a 3/8 measure on the rhythm sheet before returning it to the original time signature of 4/4. This is probably something you would want to discuss as a class the first time, unless you have a very advanced group of students who understand the concept of why you wrote the rhythm in 3/8 time and 4/4 time.

 

Melody: The nice thing about breaking apart the rhythms is that students can easily recognize rhythmic patterns that accompany the melody.

 

The answer to question 1 in the student unit is choice A, of course. While the dotted rhythms do occur later on, I was referring specifically to the opening melodic statement in measure 5.

 

The answer to question 2 assumes that you have played through the piece at least once, and have briefly discussed the instrumentation of the melody. The answer to this question is the French horns and alto saxophones.

 

Answers to question 3 will vary from student to student, somewhat. In general, make sure that students indicate that Melody A is heading towards the final V-I cadence in measure 15 and 16. For Melody B, students should recognize that the high point occurs around measure 21.

 

Harmony: This section is pretty well explained in the student section. Again, you can add as much information about harmonic progressions as you feel is necessary. In the interest of time, I chose to focus on the concept of cadences.

 

1. Bb-F-Bb

2. Bb-Eb-F-Bb

3. Bb-F-G-Eb-F-Bb

 

The melodies that students choose to compose will vary widely. Just make sure that the beginning of each measure begins with the note in the chord progression. The idea is that after students compose their basic melodies, you can add a simple accompaniment to a few chosen melodies to demonstrate the chord progressions of their melodies.

 

Style/Texture/Timbre: Here students are given basically the same information included in the score analysis. Student should write in their parts what the form of the piece is.

 

Practice Guide: Again, since this piece is not too complex, a huge practice guide was not needed. I included the triplet rhythms found throughout the accompaniment as well as the dotted rhythms. As a class, it would be helpful to work on the style of these two rhythms-for example, the triplets should be played lightly, almost with a bouncing feeling, whereas the dotted rhythms should emphasize the long-short-long-short feeling. It would also be helpful to utilize Bach chorales in your warm-up, so students can become accustomed to listening for a melodic line, the countermelody, and moving notes.

 

Visual Examples: Part of our job as music educators is to help develop our studentsÕ aesthetic awareness. This piece is a good ÒlisteningÓ piece-students should be able to sit back, close their eyes, and describe how the music makes them feel. Have students pick three words or so, then have them pick a picture to represent each of their chosen words.

 

Terminology to know: This is one of the most important aspects of music that is often overlooked. Students should be able to define musical terms, in the same way they are expected to define vocabulary words for English. Here are the following definitions for the words.

 

Cantabile- ÒSingableÓ-in a singing or vocal style

Dolce- Sweetly

Legato- Slurred; a direction to play the passage in a smooth and connected manner, with      no break between the notes

Espressivo-With expression

Tutti- Everyone-indicates the return of the ensemble, usually after a solo passage

Ritardando- Growing slower and slower

A tempo- Return of the original tempo

Lightly- Not accented, flows easily

Lieder- German art song

 

Students should identify where these terms occur in their individual parts in order to correctly play them.

 

Resources:

Ave Maria arr. Frank Ticheli, published by Manhattan Beach Music

 

http://www.manhattanbeachmusic.com/audio/ave-maria.mov- recording of Ave Maria

 

 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Franz_Schubert- reliable information on Franz Schubert

 

Pocket Manuel of Musical Terms, published by Schirmer Trade Books, edited by Theodore Baker.

 

Assessment: In addition to the WebQuest Rubric and the answer key given above, here is an additional rubric that can be used to help grade the Student Guide. The rubric includes a spot for a written test to be added to your assessments. Since teachers generally like to develop their own tests, there is not a sample test included in this teacherÕs guide. Including the WebQuest, which is worth 50 points, the entire unit is worth 100 points.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Student Guide over Ave Maria

 

CATEGORY

Excellent

Average

Poor/Incomplete

Student Guide

Student guide has been thoroughly completed. The student has put time and effort into understanding all of the concepts being taught in the guide. (20-25 points)

Student guide has been partially completed. Student appears to have difficulty understanding some of the more advanced concepts being presented. (15-19 points)

Large portions of the student guide are left undone. Student appears to have trouble understanding all of the concepts being taught. (14 or below)

WebQuest

Student satisfactorily completed the WebQuest according to the rubric given on the website.

Student partially completed the WebQuest, according to the rubric given on the website.

Student did not complete the WebQuest, according the given rubric on the website.

Playing tests

Student plays correct notes and rhythms. Correct articulations are present and the student demonstrates an understanding of the style of the piece. (10 points)

Most of the correct notes and rhythms are present. Some of the articulations are present, and student demonstrates some understanding of stylistic content. (7-9 points)

Majority of the correct notes and rhythms missing. No understanding of the style is demonstrated. (6 or below)

Written test

Student demonstrates an advanced level of comprehension of all the skills taught during this unit. (14-15 points)

Student demonstrates basic level of comprehension of skills taught during this unit. (11-13)

Student does not demonstrate a level of understanding of skills taught in this unit. (10 or below)