Discussion/Written Assignment

What is Music Discussion and Written Assignment 3 2 1 Student understands Student understands Student struggles to and is able to discuss and is able to discuss understand/discuss desirable and desirable and desirable and undesirable music. undesirable music. undesirable music. Student is able to use Student uses Student fails to use detailed terminology terminology discussed terminology discussed discussed in class. in class. Student is in class. It is unclear Student is able to able to conclude that whether the student conclude that although there are was able to conclude although there are many different styles that each piece of many different styles of music, each piece music is still of music, each piece is still considered considered music. is still considered music. music.

Comments:

This assignment (see attached lesson plan) was designed for my Music Theory class. The purpose was to get the students to question and think critically about music. What is music? What makes music music? Do we like music just because it sounds good, or can we explain and discover the different elements in music? As a result of this discussion, the students went off individually and searched for two different pieces of music one that was desirable and undesirable to them. The students had to support their arguments by using terminology in class. By the end of the assignment, we came up with a class definition of music. This definition made us all agree that although we all have different tastes in music, we can study music and learn to appreciate it.