Pretend you are a music judge who has to choose one of these bands to win the imaginary "Beginner band competition". Two 6th grade bands play the same "Pirates of the Caribbean" rendition, and you have to decide which one plays better. Listen to the bands below and decide who you choose, the 1st band or the 2nd? Which one does a better job with this piece and why? What can we do to play even better than these guys?
Here is the video we watched at the beginning of class last week. It is a performance of George Fredrick Handel's "Fireworks". The orchestra performing is using "period instruments". That means they are playing old instruments just like the ones being played during the period of George Fredrick Handel. Therefore, this recording sounds very close to the way it would have back in 1749 when it was first performed! Also, the first performance had fireworks exploding at the same time, which was a big deal in those days. Read more about this piece here: http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/399026/Music-for-the-Royal-Fireworks The song we are playing is just the first part of the whole piece, so you only need to listen to the first minute or so to get an idea of what our music will sound like. Unfortunately we don't have "period Instruments" to play on (unless Neal uses his one-valved bugle! :-) What do you think? What is the biggest difference between this orchestra and a modern-day orchestra that you see?
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April 2015
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