Friday, January 7, 2011

7th/8th Grade Homework

(6th Graders- your homework is the post below this.)
Your homework (Due Wednesday) is to write a comment, 3-6 sentences or so long, that would be a good introduction to a song we are singing. A good introduction tells the audience something about the song they would not know just from hearing it. Possible things to talk about in an introduction:

 -the composer's or lyricist's life
-the inspiration for the writing of the song
-interesting musical things in the song, like tricky rhythms, unusual harmony, word-painting, etc.
-interesting things in the lyrics, like alliteration, poem form, metaphor, etc.
-how we learned the song
-what you like about the song

Songs to choose from:
O Come, O Come, Emmanuel
J'entends
El Grillo
Vive L'amour


IF you are in Jr Districts- Break Forth
IF you are doing the Darfur Concert- Where is the Love

Post your answer in the COMMENTS. The first comment  is my example, so take a look at that if you need one.

Good luck!
Ms. A

27 comments:

  1. A Sample Introduction for Yellow Submarine (a song we're not doing, but a good example):

    The song Yellow Submarine was written and recorded by The Beatles in 1966. Paul McCartney wrote the song to sung by drummer Ringo Starr, who was not much of a singer, so needed a melody with a narrow range. When practicing, we sometimes pretended to be submarines to get the mood of the song. Enjoy the joyful mood and, if you are inspired, sing along!
    Jaime A.

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  2. Each of us in this smaller group of singers is about to audition for the Junior Districts Festival chorus, which will perform Saturday, March 5 after a full day and a half of rehearsal. Admittedly, part of the reason we all want to get in is that it's an excuse to miss school, but we like to sing too.
    "Break forth, O beauteous heavenly light" is a four-part chorale, but we'll just be singing the soprano and alto parts, which are for higher voices. The words to this song, originally in German, were penned by Johann Rist in 1641, and the melody was written at the same time by Johann Schop. Johann Sebastian Bach wrote the harmony part in 1734. That's three Johanns. Apparently Germans in the 17th and 18th centuries were dedicated recyclers.
    Like most music from its period, "Break forth" is religious; it celebrates the birth of Jesus Christ. At first it was a challenge to relate to music that's centuries old, but we eventually came to appreciate the piece for the way each part gets to sing the melody at different times.

    Jane M.

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  3. J'entends le Moulin, our next song, was written by Donald Patriquin. Patriquin was born on October 21, 1938, in Sherbrooke, Quebec, Canada. This song is sung in French, and J’entends le Moulin means "I hear the windmill" in French. The fun and jumpy rhythm of this song make it fun to sing and listen to. We hope you enjoy J'entends le Moulin!

    Break forth, O beauteous heavenly light is by Johann Sebastian Bach. It is the song that 7th and 8th graders who are auditioning for the Eastern Massachusetts Junior District Chorus will sing. Bach was born on March 31, 1685, and he died on July 28, 1750. The song has four parts, soprano, alto, tenor, and bass. Each part is fun to sing, but is a big challenge.

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  4. The French-Canadian folk song J'entends le Moulin was composed by Donald Patriquin in 1992. The words "J'entends le Moulin" mean "I hear the windmill". The french words tique tique taque imitate the sound of the
    turning sails of an old windmill when the wind blows. This song was challenging but fun to learn, for our French-speaking friends helped us pull through the fancy vocabulary. We hope you enjoy our version of J'entends le Moulin, just don't get tripped up in the lyrics!

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  5. The up beat, jumpy, El Grillo, is an Italian song about a cricket. This piece was composed by Josquin Des Prez, who wrote renaissance songs. Make sure you listen for how our singing goes back and forth, like we are singing to each other. Enjoy.

    -Gracie M.

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  6. "Where is the Love", a song written by the Black Eyed Peas and released in 2003, is inspired by many things, all having to do with the post 9/11 world. Terrorism; racism; bombs and weapons... so Where is the Love? This song relates greatly to Darfur and to the issues inside of Darfur- that's why we chose it.
    Enjoy.
    Noa D.

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  7. "Where is the Love", a song written by the Black Eyed Peas and released in 2003, is inspired by many things, all having to do with the post 9/11 world. Terrorism; racism; bombs and weapons... so Where is the Love? This song relates greatly to Darfur and to the issues inside of Darfur- that's why we chose it.
    Enjoy.
    Noa D.

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  8. The next song we will be singing is O Come, O Come,Emmanuel. Some of you may be wondering why we would be singing a song with religious context. We believe that this song isn't just for religious purposes,but shows that no matter who we are, we believe in SOMETHING, and are waiting for something. While practicing this song,we worked hard on capturing the feel and emotions of this song. We hope you enjoy O Come, O Come, Emmanuel.
    -Sarah B.

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  9. The song “El Grillo”, meaning “The Cricket”, is a Spanish tune written by Josquin Des Prez, a European composer from the Renaissance period. It is about a cricket that loves to sing all the time, whatever the occasion. This represents our chorus and how we love gathering together to sing various songs and have a great time, even if it is just for fun. “El Grillo” has a very upbeat tune, so you might find yourself tapping your feet as we sing. We hope you have as much fun listening to this song as we have singing it!
    --Lucine B.

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  10. The next song that we will be singing is come o come Emmanuel. This carol was originally written in latin during the 12 century. The author and composer of this peace remains unkown. In 1851 this peace was translated into english by John Mason Neale. Even though this song may seen spiritual we, the corous, sing it for another reason. This carol is a perfect example how everyone beleives in something. We very much enjoy this song and we hope u do to. Now lets sing O come o com Emmanuel
    -nick H

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  11. The next song we will be singing is J'entends le moulin. It is a French Canadian folk song. They number of groups singing in the song change from three to four or four to three. The groups are Soprano, Alto, Tenor, and Bass. We worked hard in our indivisual groups and all together. We all hope you enjoy J'entends le moulin.
    -Victoria Y.

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  12. The song El Grillo (in english, "the cricket") is by the Belgian composer Josquin Des Prez. The song is in Italian, but Josquin didn't speak Italian very well ("el" is not Italian). There is one point in the song where the tenors and altos sing something like a cricket. It was interesting rehearsing this piece, we were trying very hard to make it sound as light and chirpy as a cricket. We hope you enjoy the quartet and the rest of the chorus in El Grillo.
    -Julia A

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  13. The next song we will sing is El Grillo, which is Italian for the "cricket." This song was written by Josquin Des Prez, in 1505. Josquin des Prez was one of the most influential composers of western music and spent most of his life in Italy as a "music master." Listen to the song and try to pick out the harmony and melody. And now.....
    El grillo.
    Cole B.

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  14. J’entends Le Moulin arranged by Donald Patriguin , was born in Sherbrooke, Quebec, Canada. The song is written in French. We have had a little trouble practicing this as a chorus because, its in French . The words J’entends le Moulin translate to, I hear The Mill. This song is an extremely fun to sing, so I hope you enjoy.
    -Grace R-H

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  15. The next song we will sing is called J'entends le Moulin, arranged by Donald Patriquin. J'endtends le Moulin means I hear the mill, in french. As we perform this song, listen to the call and response between the sections. We hope you enjoy J'entends le Moulin.
    David B.

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  16. The first song we will sing is Lately or The Church of What Is, by Greg Greenway. Greenway is a local folk singer, who has not only been featured in the Boston Globe as "one of the strongest, and finest voices in folk music," but he was also on NPR's show Car Talk. Additionally, Greenway has performed in famous places, such as Carnegie Hall. As this song was not written for a chorus, we tried to keep it that way, by making the verses all into solos, while everyone sings the chorus during which you are allowed and encouraged to clap. If you didn't really understand that, just listen to this upbeat song, Lately.

    ~Julia F

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  17. The next song we will be singing is called "O Come, O Come Emannuel." This song is a Christian song that is manly sung durring the season of advent. This song was written in the 12 century in latin. Now enjoy O Come, O Come Emannuel.
    ~Mimi D.

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  18. Released in 2003,the catchy yet touching Grammy-nominated pop song by the Black-Eyed Peas stirred the hearts and sympathies of many. This band was struggling to sell albums and gain publicity, but not after Ron Fair suggested they performed a genre more suited to the audience the band was attempting to target. Although he is not credited in doing so, nor was he included in "Where Is the Love"'s music video, Justin Timberlake was also featured in this song. Some say that this song is a musical protest directed at the Iraq War, but all can agree that the message screams out to us, the people of the world, "Where is the love in this world? What ever happened to the values of humanity, and fairness, and equality? Instead of fighting amongst ourselves, shouldn't we be protecting and caring for another?"
    -Julia S.

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  19. For "Where is the Love/Let the Sunshine In" mashup

    Hello everybody! The next song you're about to hear is a mash-up, meaning a fusion of two songs, made up of "Where is the Love" by the Black Eyed Peas and "Let the Sunshine In from "HAiR: The American Tribal Love-Rock Musical with music by Galt MacDermot and lyrics by James Rado and Gerome Ragni. This was originally performed by myself and a group of eighth grade chorus members at a fundraiser to raise money for Darfur, and we chose to perform this piece because we find it to have a revolutionary message against violence and war, something which is relevant to the issues in the Darfur region of Africa. "Where is the Love," written in response to the 9/11 attacks, speaks against racial tension and gang violence, whereas "Let the Sunshine In" speaks against war and drafting soldiers. They both were written to convey anti-conflict messages, and with conflicts occurring all around the world, from African genocides to wars in Afghanistan to bullying in schools, these messages are relevant today; they are completely timeless. We hope you enjoy this performance.

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  20. The next song we will be singing is O Come, O Come, Emmanuel. O come, O come, Emmanuel is a translation of the Latin text("Veni, veni, Emmanuel"). This song is also a Christian song that is sung during Advent. I hope you enjoy O Come, O Come, Emmanuel!
    -Alexis L.

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  21. This is a song. It is good. Please enjoy.


    this works for all songs

    -Yaron

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  22. O come O come Emmanuel is a translation of a Latin song Veni Veni Emmanuel. It was written in the mid 19th century by John Mason Neale. The song is based on the Christian biblical prophecy from Isaiah 7:14. It is believed that it has traditional music stems from a 15th Century French processional for Franciscan nuns, but it may also have 8th Century Gregorian origins. The song is a traditional Advent hymn. The almost haunting melody and style adds a deep solemn feel to the piece. We hope you enjoy O Come O come Emmanuel.

    -Naomi D.-G.

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  23. The next amazing song is called Break Forth, O Beauteous Hevenly Light.Now the kids that are singing it did not have an audition or were asked to sing it (some of us were forced to)these kids are auditioning for Jr. Dictrics Festival Chorus and Ms. Alberts thought it would be a good idea for them to sing it infront of everyone. Instead of sining it infront of 3 people like the audition. Well... here is Break Forth, O Beauteos Heavenly Light, written by Johann Sebastian Bach, ENJOY!
    ~Robin Donohoe

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  24. J'entends le Moulins is a traditional French Canadian song, composed by Donald Patriquin. PAtriquin began composing at the age of 11. J'entends le moulin in english means, "I hear the windmills." This song is meant to be very fast, so please bare with us, as we try to keep up with the speed of the song. Please enjoy.
    Jackson B

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  25. Jelani A

    Where is the Love is a 21 century song written by Jaime Luis Gómez, Allan Pineda Lindo Jr, and William James Adams, Jr., better known by their stage names, Taboo, Apl.de.ap and Will.i.am, making up three parts of The hip-hop group The black eyed peas. The song is often described as an anti-war pacifist anthem, due to its lyrics. This was the group’s first song featuring Stacy “Fergie” Ferguson. It gained the group national recognition, and reminded people of the troubles we have in our world such as terrorism, gang violence, and racism. Please enjoy the song, and ask your self: Where is the love?

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  26. Where is the love is a very inspiring song. I really like the message this song sends about all the hatred and genocide occurring in this world. This song is written and performed by the Black Eyed Peas, and I like how they can have a good song with a nice beat and also have it send a great message. The other song in this mash-up is Let The Sunshine In. These are two very different songs that were hard to combine, so I like how at times the harmony is complicated and very pretty.
    I really hope you all love this performance!

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  27. Now I introduce the song Where is the Love by the Black Eyed Peas. This song has been combined with a piece from the movie Hair called Let the Sunshine In. The mash up between songs was created by Peter Diamond and will be sung by our 6th,7nth, and 8th grade section leaders as well as other volenteers. The singers have worked almost every school day working on this song and perfecting it in every way possible.

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