Dirait-on

From the Les Chansons des Roses song cycle

Music by Morten Lauridsen

Poetry by Rainier Maria Rilke

Grade level: 3

Unit Goals:

1. Students will perform the piece with accurate style, interpretation, and French diction.

2. Students will understand proper phrasing techniques, harmonic structure, and melodic line.

3. Students will learn the historical background of the piece and its composer and poet.

4. Students will engage in activities for melody, rhythm, harmony, phrasing, form, and diction.

5. Students will complete a Webquest group assignment, based on a rubric.

6. Students will evaluate their own performance.

National Standards Achieved in Unit:

Standard 1: Singing, along and with others, a varied repertoire of music.

• This unit is made for a high school choir and so this standard is addressed everyday.
• Students sing using lyrics, solfege, “la, la, la” and their own notation.
• Emphasis is put on sight-reading

Standard 2: Performing on instruments, along and with others, a varied repertoire of music.

• In the choral classroom, the instruments used are hands and feet. Activities for rhythm and tempo incorporate clapping and marching in place or around the room.
• A lesson on rubato and includes the use of Boomwhackers. Students are put into groups and play their boomwhacker when they see the matching color on the music. This activity helps with pitch, listening, rhythm, and teamwork.

Standard 3: Improvising melodies, variations and accompaniments.

• Students are given the opportunity to perform a section of the piece with their own interpretation of musical elements. This is incorporated into a lesson on phrasing.

Standard 4: Composing and arranging music within specific guidelines.

• One of the options available in the webquest is for the students to compose their own short piece based on a poem by Rilke. The composition may include voice and piano or instrumentation.

Standard 5: Reading and notating music.

• As with standard 1, this is a standard that is achieved in every lesson.
• Students read and interpret the musical elements found in the Dirait-on score.
• Students notate the melodic lines using solfege on a worksheet, which also serves as a student guide.
• In a lesson on form, students develop their own notation for this piece.

Standard 6: Listening to, analyzing, and describing music.

• Students listen to a professional recording of the piece performed by the Cambridge Singers and take notes over musical elements observed.
• Students experiment with various tempos and rubato markings in piece and discuss appropriateness.
• Students identify measures in the score that contain dissonances between two choral lines or between a line and the piano accompaniment.
• Students listen to a recording of themselves and describe what is heard.

Standard 7: Evaluating music and music performances.

• Students listen to a recording of the piece by the Cambridge Singers and then a personal recording of Dirait-on directly following. They fill out a compare/contrast worksheet over diction, phrasing, and other musical elements.

Standard 8: Understanding relationships between music, the other arts, and disciplines outside the arts.

• A task in the webquest includes selecting a poem by Rilke and connecting it to a piece or art, literature, or musical composition.
• Students observe a piece of art brought by the teacher and relate it to the melodic line of the piece.

Standard 9: Understanding music in relation to history and culture.

• Students research biographies of the composer and poet behind the piece of music.

Lesson Plans:

Dirait-on by Morten Lauridsen

Lesson #1 Objectives:

• Students will analyze a musical recording.
• Students will know the composer, librettist, and translation for Dirait-on.
• Students will read through Dirait-on.

Materials Needed:

• CD player and recording
  Composer biography and translation

Procedure:

•  Warm-up: To turn the student’s brains on, they will warm up with “Lollipop Tree” and Building Chords.
•  Teacher plays a recording of Dirait-on performed by the Cambridge Singers. Students listen and take notes over what they hear (language, tempo, dynamics, accompaniment, parts/voicing, etc.)
• Sight-reading:-have everyone sing the melody at measure 5 to 12. Then sing melody from 13-20. Both are on La-Go back and read through the whole piece (it may be a train-wreck, but is good practice for the students!)
• Teacher hands out information on composer and poet of piece. Discuss translation of words. Show picture of rose.

Lesson #2 Objectives:

• Students will learn the two melodies associated with the piece.
• Students will complete a worksheet using solfege notation

Materials Needed:

• Overhead projector

• Solfege Worksheet

• Warm-up interval board

Procedure:

1. Warm up: Students watch as teacher points to numbers on board (1-8). Students sing intervals in relation to numbers (1 represents do, 2 is re, 3 is mi, etc.)
2. Group Activity: Students get into groups of two or three. They fill out a worksheet which contains the two melodies found in Dirait-on, writing the solfege underneath the staff. Teacher places filled out sheet on overhead to review answers as a class.
3. Segment melody: 4 measures are played by the piano; students repeat with solfege.
4. Section Work: Section leaders take group and read through their line for the entire piece, using solfege
5. The whole group joins back together and we read through again using solfege the first time, and then on “la”.

Lesson #3 Objectives:

•  Students will keep time with a metronome, following various tempos.
• Students will analyze there own tempo markings and present ideas through Boomwhackers
  

Materials Needed:

• metronome or Dr. Beat

• Boomwhackers

Procedure:

1. Warm up: Building Chords with emphasis placed on dissonances between parts.
2. Rhythm activities:

• Students listen to and watch a metronome held by the teacher, marching in place with a steady beat as the tempo speeds up or slows down.
• Students clap the rhythm up on the board (it is the rhythm of melody 1).
• Students clap the rhythm along with the metronome. The teacher speeds up a bit or slows down depending on phrasing desired.
• Brief talk about rubato in the piece

3. Boomwhacker Activity: Students divide into groups of 5 (There are five notes, therefore five different pitches of Boomwhackers). Each group decides on tempo and rubato for the section of music on board and is encouraged to be creative. Groups take turns playing boomwhackers in front of the class.
4. Class Evaluation: After all groups have played, class discusses different options presented and which is the best for this particular piece.
5. Sing through piece on “la”, adding elements of rubato at cadences

Lesson #4: Objectives:

•  Students will analyze phrasing within a piece of music.
• Students will perform in octets

Procedure:

1. Warm up:
   • Ma-Me-Mi-Mo-Mu following various rubato by the teacher
   • Chord Builder
2. Rehearse piece: Singing on la, listening for wrong notes
3. Octet Singing
   • Students are called to the front in groups of 8 (2 from each section).
   • Each group sings through the piece using the phrasing they marked.
   • Discussion over proper markings.

Lesson #5: Objectives:

•  Students will identify dissonances within the piece of music.
• Students will learn the correct French diction.

Materials Needed:

• French Diction Worksheet

• Audio recording device

Procedure:

1. Warm up:
   • Building Chords with emphasis placed on dissonances between parts.
   • Sing in unison on a pitch, through French vowels on that pitch and then moving up and down a major scale, repeating the vowels.
2. Group Work:
   • Within sections, students identify dissonances between their line and the other three
   • As a class we combine all found so that every student is aware of when a dissonance is occurring.
3. Diction:
   • Review sheet on proper French vowels.
   • Listen and repeat: Teacher speaks a line while students listen and follow along on sheet. They repeat back as a class, listening to the vowels and paying attention to embouchure shape.
4. Sing-through and recording:
   • Ensemble sings through the piece while it is being recorded to use in tomorrow’s rehearsal.

Lesson #6: Objectives:

•  Students will analyze their own performance in comparison to a professional recording.
• Students will perform in octets in the front of the classroom.

Materials Needed:

• CD player

Procedure:

1. Warm up:
   • French Vowels
   • Melodies 1 and 2 using solfege as review of intervals
2. Recording Comparisons:
   • Listen to Cambridge singers recording, followed by own recording made during previous rehearsal
   • Compare and contrast phrasing, releases, diction, dynamics, and other musical elements
3. Rehearse piece: paying attention to details noticed in comparing recordings.
4. Practice Assessment: Octets
   • Students are called to the front in groups of 8 (2 from each section).
   • Each group sings through the piece as practice getting up in front of whole ensemble.
   • Explain that later in the week they will be graded on ability to sing in the octet.

Lesson 7: Objectives:

•  Students will sing in octets.
• Students will create a notation system in groups of 2-3.

Materials Needed:

• Video Recorder

• Notation System Worksheet

• Posterboard, staff paper

Procedure:

1. Warm up: Sing through entire piece
2. Octets:
   • Students sing in front of the ensemble, 2 from each section.
   • Teacher video records singing and walks around group, listening to each individual voice as they sing.
3. Notation System
   • Hand-out activity instructions and go over as a class
   • Students divide into groups of 2-3 and brainstorm ideas (they can include using colors, themed objects, and on or of a traditional staff.
   • Grid paper will be provided but it can also be done on a poster.
   • Review historical information of piece to increase ideas for activity.

Vocal Music Performance - Individual : Dirait-on octet

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Teacher Name: ____________________________________


Student Name:     ________________________________________

CATEGORY	5	4	3	2
Pitch	Virtually no errors. Pitch is very accurate.	An occasional isolated error, but most of the time pitch is accurate and secure.	Some accurate pitches, but there are frequent and/or repeated errors.	Very few accurate or secure pitches.
Tone Quality	Tone is consistently focused, clear, and centered throughout the range of the voice.	Tone is focused, clear and centered through the normal singing range. Extremes in range sometimes cause tone to be less controlled. Tone quality typically does not detract from the performance.	Tone is often focused, clear and centered, but sometimes the tone is uncontrolled in the normal singing range. Extremes in range are usually uncontrolled. Occasionally the tone quality detracts from overall performance.	The tone is often not focused, clear or centered regardless of the range, significanltly detracting from the overall performance.
Dynamics	Dynamic levels are obvious, consistent, and an accurate intrepretation of the style of music being sung.	Dynamic levels are typically accurate and consistent.	Dynamic levels fluctuate but can be discerned.	Attention to dynamic levels is not obvious.
Phrasing	Phrasing is always consistent and sensitive to the style of music being sung.	Phrasing is usually consistent and sensitive to the style of music being sung.	Phrasing is usually consistent and occasionally sensitive to the style of music being sung	Phrasing is rarely consistent and/or rarely sensitive to musical style.
Diction	Student articulates eclearly and the text of the music is understandable.	Student articulates the words somewhat clearly and the text can be understood most of the time.	Student is sometimes articulating the words but the text is oftn not decernable.	Student rarely articulates the words and the text is not decernable.
Expression and Style	Performs with a creative nuance and style in response to the score and limited coaching.	Typically performs with nuance and style that is indicated in the score or which is suggested by instructor or peer.	Sometimes performs with nuance and style that is indicated in the score or which is suggested by instructor or peer.	Rarely demonstrates expression and style. Just plays the notes.