Ralph Vaughan Williams The Lark Ascending Primary

slide1. Ralph Vaughan Williams The Lark Ascending

Primary classroom lesson plan Written by
Rachel Leach<br>
slide2. Lesson outcomes After this lesson, pupils will be able to:
• listen and reflect on a piece of orchestral music
• invent their own musical motifs and structure them into a piece
• perform as an ensemble
• learn musical language appropriate to the task Copyright : Words - Rachel Leach, Design - BBC 2<br>
slide3. Curriculum checklist Learners will:
• play and perform in ensemble contexts, using voices and playing musical instruments
• improvise and compose music for a range of purposes using the interrelated dimensions of music
• listen with attention to detail and recall sounds with increasing aural memory Copyright : Words - Rachel Leach, Design - BBC 3<br>
slide4. Glossary of music terms Copyright : Words - Rachel Leach, Design - BBC 4<br>
slide5. Lesson 1
Watching and listening Copyright Rachel Leach & BBC<br>
slide6. LESSON 1 Copyright : Words - Rachel Leach, Design - BBC 6 Background – the composer Ralph Vaughan Williams (1872 - 1958)
English composer
Born into a wealthy, well-connected family and had the best education money could buy
Was a collector of folk songs<br>
slide7. LESSON 1 Copyright : Words - Rachel Leach, Design - BBC 7 Background – the music The Lark Ascending
Written in 1914, inspired by a poem of the same name
Describes a lark flying, gliding and soaring through the air, looking down at the fields below
Is often voted the nation’s favourite classical piece by radio audiences<br>
slide8. LESSON 1 Copyright : Words - Rachel Leach, Design - BBC 8 Watch the orchestral performance<br>
slide9. LESSON 2 Copyright : Words - Rachel Leach, Design - BBC 9 Reflect a) Did you like the music?
b) How did it make you feel?
c) If you could float off anywhere, where would you go?
d) What would you see down below?<br>
slide10. LESSON 2 Copyright : Words - Rachel Leach, Design - BBC 10 Make a list • 1 colour (what colour does the music make you think of?)
• 1 emotion (how does the music make you feel?)
• 1 adjective (describe the music or the lark)
• 1 movement word (describe how the lark travels)
• 1 place (where is the lark flying over?)
• 1 thing/ noun (what can the lark see from the sky?)<br>
slide11. LESSON 2 Copyright : Words - Rachel Leach, Design - BBC 11 Write your own poem!<br>
slide12. Lesson 2
The lark ascends Copyright Rachel Leach & BBC<br>
slide13. LESSON 2 Copyright : Words - Rachel Leach, Design - BBC 13 A shimmer<br>
slide14. LESSON 2 Copyright : Words - Rachel Leach, Design - BBC 14 Create your own shimmer<br>
slide15. LESSON 2 Copyright : Words - Rachel Leach, Design - BBC 15 The solo tune<br>
slide16. LESSON 2 Copyright : Words - Rachel Leach, Design - BBC 16 Create your own piece<br>
slide17. Lesson 3
The lark’s tune Copyright Rachel Leach & BBC<br>
slide18. LESSON 3 Copyright : Words - Rachel Leach, Design - BBC 18 Sing along!<br>
slide19. LESSON 3 Copyright : Words - Rachel Leach, Design - BBC 19 Create your own class version • Play the melody on xylophones/ orchestral instruments
• Play the bassline on bass xylophones or bass bars if you have them. The bass notes can also be highlighted by chime bars/ glockenspiels
• Add a strong drumbeat on the first note of each bar
• Add your unpitched shimmer
• Think about how many times to repeat the tune, how to start and stop and what to do in between repeats.<br>
slide20. Lesson 4
The lark’s song Copyright Rachel Leach & BBC<br>
slide21. LESSON 3 Copyright : Words - Rachel Leach, Design - BBC 21 Can you make your own birdsong? • short and loud
• the same every time
• played neatly<br>
slide22. LESSON 3 Copyright : Words - Rachel Leach, Design - BBC 22 Follow the conductor<br>
slide23. LESSON 3 Copyright : Words - Rachel Leach, Design - BBC 23 Recap • Shimmer and solo piece (the lark ascending)
• Vaughan Williams' tune (the lark’s tune)
• Birdsong (the lark’s song)<br>
slide24. Lesson 5
The lark’s journey Copyright Rachel Leach & BBC<br>
slide25. LESSON 5 Copyright : Words - Rachel Leach, Design - BBC 25 Recap • Shimmer and solo piece (the lark ascending)
• Vaughan Williams' tune (the lark’s tune)
• Birdsong (the lark’s song)<br>
slide26. LESSON 5 Copyright : Words - Rachel Leach, Design - BBC 26 Let’s use instruments!<br>
slide27. LESSON 5 Copyright : Words - Rachel Leach, Design - BBC 27 Structure your piece<br>
slide28. Lesson 6
The lark’s descent and performance time! Copyright Rachel Leach & BBC<br>
slide29. LESSON 6 Copyright : Words - Rachel Leach, Design - BBC 29 Let’s use instruments!<br>
slide30. LESSON 6 Copyright : Words - Rachel Leach, Design - BBC 30 The ending (or coda) Should the lark:

fly away?
descend back to earth?
or something else?<br>
slide31. LESSON 6 Copyright : Words - Rachel Leach, Design - BBC 31 Tell the story!<br>
slide32. Copyright : Words - Rachel Leach, Design - BBC 32 Taking it further – cross-curricular activities LISTENING: Birdsong features in many famous pieces. Listen to Beethoven’s 6th Symphony, Movement 2 (ending), The Birds by Respighi or French composer Olivier Messiaen’s Oiseaux Exotiques and draw the birds that you hear.
 
ARTWORK: Vaughan Williams' lark looks down on the world from up high. What would the world around your school look like to the lark? Draw the school and its surroundings from the sky
 
LITERACY: Turn your poems into stories or even songs<br>