Tuesday, August 11, 2009

Using Music on the Web in Education (Incompetech)

I saved to my hard drive "Padanaya Blokov" from Incompetech. It is electro-folk. It is 1 minute or 2 long. It's tempo is fast, but each instrument can be heard quite clearly. I would be interested to learn just which instruments are being played. It sounds like a northern European piece, more likely from Russia or its surrounds.

For music especially, I could have learners identify the country of origin and the instruments. Are the instruments traditional, or not? If not, how has the composer achieved such an authentic sound? I could have learners play this piece on authentic instruments (if we can get them), or play it with similar sounding instruments. Learners can have a go at writing the music as they hear it. This music is an example to learners of one cultural musical taste. Is it distinctly Russian (or whatever country it is from)? Where does this music fit in to that culture? Is it a common sound?

I would use this piece of music, too, if my learners are studying cultures other than their own. It would be a small part of a bigger plan like a unit. It would fit nicely into history, or some kind of social studies.

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