A Day In the Life of Jack the Cat – Compose using Do, Re, Mi, Fa, So

Students will be able to compose a short motif using known rhythms and pitches.

12 Bar Blues Composition

Explain, identify and apply the 12-bar blues chord sequence. Create a melody that fits over the 12-bar blues chord sequence.

‘A” Minor Study

Construct a natural minor scale, construct a harmonic minor scale, and construct a melodic minor scale. Identify the similarities and differences between natural, harmonic and melodic minor scales. Perform the three types of A minor scales on your instruments.

Changing the Mood

Identify between major and minor. Add solfege syllables and “la” based minor. Manipulate the melody in tone and rhythm to represent different moods. Connect composition to writing for movie music.

Balinese Baris Dance: Compose your own Gamelan!

Students will be able to perform, from memory, parts of the Balinese Baris Dance, discerning the differences in instruments from another foreign culture. Students will then be able to input notation on Noteflight Learn, save, and share their work. Lastly, students will compose their own 2-measure Gamelan piece inspired by the Baris Dance.

“Mock Band” – Composing in Teams

Have students collaborate on a short, simple composition assignment in teams of two, where one composes the melody and the other works on the lyrics. This is a great starter assignment if your students are still getting to know Noteflight; it encourages teamwork and gives a bit of framework so that the burden of creating from scratch isn’t an issue.

If you want your students to explore formatting options for score layout and adjust the size of their lyrics, title, or names, you can watch the video below for tips on how to adjust your text layout settings.