Study Guides

Unit Summary

This unit explores the different sounds and feelings associated with major and minor tonality explicitly. The pupils sing a variety of songs, some in a major key and some in a minor key. They use pitched percussion instruments to add different accompaniments to these.

Lesson Summary

You will learn to sing new major and minor tonality folk songs with a sense of character.

Key Notes

• It is essential to warm up the voice before singing to keep it strong and healthy and to prevent injury.
• Performing with a sense of character and emotion brings a song to life.
• The same song can be sung with different character and feeling.
• Singing with different dynamics can change the character of a song.
• Many songs have a tonal centre, or tonality. Often, this can be described as major or minor.

Vocabulary To Learn

• warm-up: a sequence of exercises used to prepare the mind, body and voice for singing / playing instruments
• folk song: a song that originates from a particular country, culture or people that is usually passed down orally
• tonality: the organisation of notes around a central note, the tonic, which helps to shape the music's sound and character
• dynamics: how loud or quiet the music is

Common Mistakes To Avoid

• We only warm up before a singing performance.

3 Quick Questions (With Answers)

More Lessons In This Unit

• Building texture with a melodic ostinato Study Guide
• Building texture with a minor accompaniment Study Guide
• Folk songs and the major pentachord Study Guide
• Folk songs and the minor pentachord Study Guide
• Layering accompaniments under major and minor folk songs Study Guide