Year 10 - Music
Using film music to establish mood
Introduction to film music
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Unit Summary
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Lesson Summary
You will learn to explain the purposes of film music and create a simple piece of music to establish an appropriate mood.
Key Notes
- Film music is used in a variety of ways to support the action on screen.
- These include establishing the mood, setting the scene and creating tension and excitement.
- Using leitmotif to represent particular characters or ideas is another effective technique.
- Composers use the musical elements to create appropriate atmospheres, including careful use of tonality.
- We have composed a short piece of film music using a repeated ostinato.
Vocabulary To Learn
- leitmotif: a recurring musical idea that represents a specific character, place or idea
- tonality: the key that the music is in, such as major or minor
- ostinato: a repeated pattern that forms the basis of a composition
Common Mistakes To Avoid
- Using chords from within a minor key creates a dark mood.
3 Quick Questions (With Answers)
1. Explain the lesson in two key points.
Film music is used in a variety of ways to support the action on screen. These include establishing the mood, setting the scene and creating tension and excitement.
2. What does this key word mean in this lesson? 'leitmotif'
a recurring musical idea that represents a specific character, place or idea.
3. Correct this common mistake.
Mistake: Using chords from within a minor key creates a dark mood. Correction: It's more complex than that - it is important to carefully choose which chords within the key you emphasise to create a dark mood. Emphasising chord i and other minor chords helps to make it feel dark and ominous, rather than any chords from the key.
More Lessons In This Unit
Browse all guides in the Year 10 Music guide library.