Week 1

Unit 1 – Hans Pfitzner, German

Level 1-4

Welcome to your first day of school! I wanted to give you one important reminder before you begin. Many of your lessons below have an internet link for you to click on. When you go to the different internet pages for your lessons, please DO NOT click on anything else on that page except what the directions tell you to. DO NOT click on any advertisements or games. DO NOT click on anything that takes you to a different website. Just stay focused on your lesson and then close that window and you should be right back here for the next lesson. Okay?

1. If you didn’t get here through My EP Assignments, I suggest you go there and create an account.
   • This is a once-a-week course. It will appear on your My EP lesson page on days ending in 1 and 6.
2. Hans Pfitzner was born in Moscow to German parents in 1869. Listen to Das Christ-Elflein: Overture (1906).
3. Listen carefully to find what’s unique about the music so you can recognize it.
4. This is the end of your work for this course for today. You are allowed to move at your own pace (this is homeschooling), but it’s intended you complete one lesson each week.

Level 5-8

Welcome to your first day of school! I wanted to give you one important reminder before you begin. Many of your lessons below have an internet link for you to click on. When you go to the different internet pages for your lessons, please DO NOT click on anything else on that page except what the directions tell you to. DO NOT click on any advertisements or games. DO NOT click on anything that takes you to a different website. Just stay focused on your lesson and then close that window and you should be right back here for the next lesson. Okay?

1. If you didn’t get here through My EP Assignments, I suggest you go there and create an account.
   • This is a once-a-week course. It will appear on your My EP lesson page on days ending in 1 and 6.
2. Read Hans Pfitzner’s biography
3. Listen to Das Christ-Elflein: Overture (1906)
4. This is the end of your work for this course for today. You are allowed to move at your own pace (this is homeschooling), but it’s intended you complete one lesson each week.

Week 2* (Note that an asterisk * indicates that there is a worksheet on this day)

1. *Print out the modern history music timeline.
   • The worksheets for this course can be printed as they come up, or can be printed as a packet. They are included in the history theme printables packet and workbook.
2. Listen to Das Christ-Elflein (1906, rev.1917) The title is in German and means “The Little Elf of Christ.”
3. Cut out Pfitzner’s timeline piece and write in it. (You read about him last week. Write something you learned about him or a song he wrote.) Attach it to your timeline. (You can put this on the same timeline you are using for your history pieces or start a separate timeline.)
4. (*)If you are not using Modern History, you will need to print out these Timeline Decade Pages. You can put them in a notebook or on the wall. They are for your timeline pieces.

Week 3

1. Listen to Das Herz: Liebesmelodie (1930-31). The title is in German and means “The Heart: a Love Melody.”
2. In your notebook, write words that describe the music. At the top of the page write the composer, opera title and year and today’s date.

Week 4

Unit 2 – Piotr Tchaikovsky, Russian

1. Read about Tchaikovsky, listen to his bio, and write about him in his timeline piece. Place it on the 1890s page.

Week 5

1. Listen to this show about ballet with Tchaikovsky’s music playing.

Week 6

1. Listen to this music from the Nutcracker. What do you picture the dancers doing? Now watch them!

Week 7

Unit 3 – Sergei Rachmaninoff, Russian

Level 1-4

1. Read about Rachmaninoff.
2. Cut out his timeline piece and fill it in. Place it on 1900s page.

Level 5-8

1. Read Rachmaninoff’s biography
2. Cut out his timeline piece and fill it in. Place it on the 1900s page.

Week 8

1. Listen to Rachmaninoff, The Bells, 3rd movement
2. Write down two words that describe it.

Week 9

1. Listen to Rachmaninoff, Piano Concerto No. 2
2. What color is this music? or what image? What does this music describe? What feeling does it bring?

Week 10

Unit 4, – Maurice Ravel, French

Level 1-4

1. Maurice Ravel was a French composer. He was born in 1875 in Ciboure, France. He wanted to be a pilot in WWI but his health was poor.
2. Look at this map of France with Ciboure marked. What country is it very close to?
3. Cut out Ravel’s timeline piece and write inside of it. Attach it to your timeline on the 1910s page.

Level 5-8

1. Read about Maurice Ravel.
2. Cut out Ravel’s timeline piece and write inside of it. Just write on one side. Use the other side for writing down descriptions of his music later. Place it on the 1910s page.

Week 11

1. Watch and listen to this piano composition by Ravel. This part of the piece is called “Night Moths.”
2. Write at least one word in your Ravel timeline piece that describes this piece.

Week 12

1. Listen to “Bolero” by Ravel.
2. Write at least one word in your Ravel timeline piece that describes this piece.

Week 13

Unit 5 – 1920s

1. Read about Big Bands, just the introduction at the top of the page.
2. Then listen to music by Duke Ellington. Choose a song or two to listen to from this page.
3. Cut out the Duke Ellington timeline piece. Write 1920s, Big Bands inside and the piece of music you listened to. Place on the 1920s page of your timeline.

Week 14

1. Listen to “The Stars and Stripes Forever” by Sousa. This is an American patriotic song. What are the stars and stripes? (hint)
2. This is a song you should recognize if you are American. If you aren’t American, ask your parents about patriotic songs from your country that you should recognize.

Week 15

Unit 6 – 1930s

1. Listen to two songs from the 1930s.
   • Minnie the Moocher – Cab Calloway
   • Ten Cents a Dance – Ruth Etting
2. Cut out your jukebox timeline piece and write inside a song you listened to and who sang it. Place it on the 1930s page.

Unit 7 – 1940s

Week 16

1. Listen to two songs from the WWII era.
2. Cut out the WWII timeline piece and write inside a song you listened to and who sang it. Place it on the 1940s page.

Week 17

Unit 8 – Music

1. Explore the different types of instruments. You don’t need to click on all of them. Click on one from each family. If there is one you don’t know, click on that.
2. Draw a picture of an instrument you hadn’t known about before and write its name and family on the paper. “Family” is the type of instrument it is, such as brass.

Week 18

1. Play with composition. Click on “Compose Your Own Music.” Switch it to advanced.
2. How do your choices change the music?

Week 19

Level 1-4

1. Go back and listen to parts of the composers’ music. They are listed below.
   • The Stars and Stripes Forever by Sousa
   • Bolero by Ravel
   • Piano Concerto No.2 by Rachmaninoff
   • from The Nutcracker by Tchaikovsky
   • Das Herz: Liebesmelodie by Pfitzner (Means “The Heart: A Love Melody”)
2. Try and find ways to recognize which music belongs to which composer.
3. Take notes.

Level 5-8

1. Go back and listen to parts of the composers’ music. They are listed below.
2. Try and find ways to recognize which music belongs to which composer.
   • The Stars and Stripes Forever by Sousa
   • Bolero by Ravel
   • Piano Concerto No.2 by Rachmaninoff
   • from The Nutcracker by Tchaikovsky
   • Das Herz: Liebesmelodie by Pfitzner (Means “The Heart: A Love Melody”)
3. Take notes on each piece: the composer, the title, what’s distinct in the music.

Week 20

Level 1-4

1. Ask someone to play part of one piece by each composer and see if you can identify who was the composer.
   • The Stars and Stripes Forever by Sousa
   • Night Moths by Ravel
   • Piano Concerto No.2 by Rachmaninoff
   • from The Nutcracker by Tchaikovsky
   • Das Herz: Liebesmelodie by Pfitzner (Means “The Heart: A Love Melody”)

Level 5-8

1. Ask someone to play part of one piece by each composer and see if you can identify who was the composer and what piece of music it is.
   • The Stars and Stripes Forever by Sousa
   • Bolero by Ravel
   • Piano Concerto No.2 by Rachmaninoff
   • from The Nutcracker by Tchaikovsky
   • Das Herz: Liebesmelodie by Pfitzner (Means “The Heart: A Love Melody”)

Week 21

Level 1-4

1. Today you are going to practice keeping a steady beat.
2. Click on each song/rhyme on the page and clap along to the steady beat. There are five.

Level 5-8*

1. *Print this music instrument worksheet.
2. Use this website to answer the questions and fill in the worksheet.
   • Check your answers.

Week 22

Level 1-4

1. Can you keep the beat?
   • Clap along or say “down” for each beat. You are keeping a steady beat if you do the right number of claps during the break and then are clapping when the next one comes up.
2. Give it a second try. Did you do better the second time?

Level 5-8

1. *Print this musical instrument worksheet.
2. Use this website to answer the questions and fill in the worksheets.
   • Check your answers.

Week 23

Level 1-4

1. What would you say is the mood of these songs? You don’t have to listen to the full song, just enough to make an identification.
   • calm
   • happy
   • sad
   • energetic
   • dreamy
2. One, two, three, four, five, six

Level 5-8

1. *Print this musical instrument worksheet.
2. Use this website to answer the questions and fill in the worksheet.

Week 24

Level 1-4

1. Learn about the orchestra.

Level 5-8

1. *Print this musical instrument worksheet.
2. Use these websites on instruments to answer the questions and fill in the worksheets.
   • instrument parts
   • instruments
   • You can also search an instrument if you are still unsure.
   • Check your answers.

Week 25

Level 1-4

1. Take the instrument quiz.
2. Can you do it? The key is knowing what family the instrument belongs to.

Level 5-8

1. Can you find the right rhythm to play the song?

Week 26

Unit 9 – Igor Stravinsky, Russian

Level 1-4

1. Read about Igor Stravinsky and listen to his bio.
2. Write about him on his timeline piece. Place it on the 1950s page.

Level 5-8

1. Read about Igor Stravinsky.
2. Write about him on his timeline piece. Place it on the 1950s page.

Week 27

1. Listen to Stravinsky’s Firebird. Make it full screen.
2. How would you describe this music?

Week 28

1. Listen to clips of Stravinsky’s music from the ballet Petrushka. (Find them on the right. You can click on the play button for each one. You can listen to all four.) How would you describe Stravinsky’s music? Paint a picture on paper or with words of the image his music creates. What color is his music? What can you picture happening while that music was playing? (If you like, here’s a link to watch the ballet, Petrushka. This is part 1.)

Week 29

1. Listen to the excerpts of Stravinsky’s music. Tell someone what you listened to and describe the music to someone. Was it fast, slow, loud, soft, strong, peaceful…?

Week 30

Unit 10 – Aaron Copland, American

1. Read about Aaron Copland and listen to his bio.
2. Listen to Fanfare for the Common Man while you work. Do you recognize it?
3. Do your Aaron Copland timeline piece.

Week 31

1. Listen to all or a portion of Appalachian Spring by Copeland. You could start at 11:00. How would you describe it?

Week 32

1. Listen to Rodeo by Copeland. Click the top one on the list “Buckaroo.” (You could watch the video below on mute while listening to this music.)
2. Here’s a little video of a rodeo. Does the music fit?

Unit 11 – The Stage with Rogers and Hammerstein

Unit 12 – Film with John Williams