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What is Music?: What is a musical phrase?

Sometimes we come across musical phrases that catch on like wildfire. With every repetition, these phrases take on more meaning. Listen closely for this jazz lick that has appeared in many forms throughout music history. What other popular musical phrases can you think of? What meanings do they carry, and what could you ...

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Musical fractions

Break down a song by counting how long the notes are in action! Learn about patterns in rhythms and musical notes, and discover the role of fractions in denoting whole, half and quarter notes and creating distinct sounds.

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What is Music?: What makes the music of Star Wars so iconic?

Star Wars begins with the biggest B-flat chord you’ve ever heard! John Williams’s fanfare is so iconic that people usually recognise what they’re watching without even looking at the screen. So, what informs the music and makes it so powerful? What techniques can you apply in your own compositions?

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Lights out!

Host Paul Rissmann describes a scene where Mussorgsky finds himself all of a sudden in the dark. How does the music add to the scariness of this story?

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What is Music?: What are the musical features of a news theme?

Music that introduces the news has to be not only dramatic and exciting but also neutral. It has to introduce war and disasters, as well as weddings and elections. It turns out, the music we associate with the news worldwide often originates from movies! So, what does an effective news theme often include? How would you ...

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BTN: A journey into world music

From Japanese drumming to African choirs, there is a wide world of music to be enjoyed beyond mainstream pop music in Australia. Music from one culture will often sound very different to music from another, using varied musical styles and instruments. Come along on a musical journey and explore the increasingly popular ...

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What is Music?: What makes an effective AFL club song?

AFL songs are among the most widely recognised and popular pieces of music in Australia, sung proudly year after year. Would it surprise you to find out they’re rarely original? Discover the early 20th-century origins of most of Australia’s football chants and the stylistic features that make them so effective in energising ...

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What a colourful exhibition!

As the orchestra plays a piece of music called "The Ballet of the Chickens in their Shells", lots of artworks are flashed up on the screen.These pictures were sent in for the concert from schools around Australia. If the music inspries you, perhaps you could make your own artwork.

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Introducing the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra's woodwind section

What do the instruments in the woodwind section of the orchestra have in common? Can you make a list of all the instruments in this section? Some of them might be familiar, but some of them might be new to you. Choose one of the instruments that's new to you and do some research to find out more about it.

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Discover the most powerful section of the orchestra!

Can you name the four instruments that make up the brass section of the orchestra? Like musicians in the woodwind section, the brass players power their instruments with air. But how do they do this differently?

Online

Composing as inspired by Gordon Hamilton SNAP

This set of resources focuses on composition. Students listen to and analyse the orchestral work, SNAP, by Australian composer Gordon Hamilton. They develop their own skills in composition and perform and record their own piece. A video features conductor Richard Gill AO exploring the work SNAP with musicians from the ...

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Colourful melodies

This resource explores making and organising sounds to compose a simple musical composition. Through making a rainbow water xylophone, students will learn how sound waves travel and how different pitches are produced.

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Vivid Sydney – 77 Million Paintings

A series of video interviews with Nick Robertson about Brian Eno's '77 Million Paintings' installation, which was part of an exhibition in Vivid Sydney 2009. The resource includes clips of the installation.

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ME3PO – creative arts with aliens

An alien-themed creative arts resource exploring music, visual arts and drama. Students discover futuristic sounds, create art and act like an alien.

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World rhythms: tabla

This is a teaching and learning activity to construct and play a tabla or tube-la (double drum). The activity provides a brief history of the tabla, information about the materials needed to make it, time required, assessment strategies, the construction process, how to play the instrument and extension ideas. Tabla artefacts ...

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Dinosaur dig

Students learn about the world of dinosaurs through creative arts. They explore elements of dance to develop coordination skills through movement and actions, as well as music and drama to create characters. They also create a dinosaur themed artwork.

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The Conversation: Australian music - what is it?

This resource contains a series of articles giving a broad overview of Australian music including its development, examples of genres and artists, interviews and its influence on Australian culture. It can be used to develop a broad understanding Australian music and the influences that have impacted on its development.

Online

What is a Symphony Orchestra?

This set of resources introduces students to the instruments in a symphony orchestra and supports development of skills in aural identification of instrumental timbre. Conductor Richard Gill AO and musicians from the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra introduce woodwind, brass, string and percussion instruments in a video resource. ...

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Vocal Ease MORE (Module 1)

Vocal Ease MORE (Module 1) is an updated sequel to the original Vocal Ease resource which was created around 20 years ago to support classroom music education. This new version focuses on building knowledge and skills in vocal music in the K-6 classroom. It features five original pieces, additional audio tracks and curriculum ...

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Jogja hip-hop reaches birthplace of hip-hop

This is an article about the impact and influence of hip-hop music on the youth of Yogyakarta in Java, Indonesia. The author highlights the strengths of a globalised hip-hop culture to nurture young Indonesian artists who incorporate Javanese colloquial language into their lyrics. There is also a video clip of performance ...