The phrase is started softly, increased
in volume gradually towards the
middle and then decreased little by
little towards the end.
3. The Untuned Singer
Every child is a potential singer but,
sometimes, we come across children
who, for one reason or another, do
not sing in exact tunes. These
children are not really monotones but
just untuned, like instruments which
are not tuned correctly. Untuned
children may belong to any of the
following kinds:
a. Those who have not yet learned to
sing high tones
b. Those who have not learned to
sing low tones
c. Those who have a poor tonal
sense
d. Those who cannot detect their
own mistakes in tone but can
distinguish differences in pitch
when this is produced by oth-ers,
either vocally or instrumentally
e. Those whose vocal muscles are
not yet fully coordinated and,
therefore, have not yet found their
singing voice
f. Those who are poor listeners and
are inattentive
g. Those who really have so little or
no singing experiences that they
cannot give accurate tones
h. Those who are physically
defective, perhaps deaf.
To remedy untuned singing, the cause
should first be deter mined. Then
remedial measures should follow.
Here are some things to remember
regarding the correction of untuned
singers:
a. The untuned children should
never be made to feel that they
are deficient to prevent their
embarrassment and subsequent
indifference to music.
b. The untuned singers should be
seated in front of or as near as
possible the good singers. The
untuned singer should not be
aware of the reason for the seating
arrangement.
c. The untuned singers should be
encouraged to participate in the
non-singing music activities of
the class. They may be deficient
in singing but may show musical
ability in other activities.
d. The untuned singer may be
encouraged to play musical ins-
truments.
e. Corrective exercises may be used
in the spirit of play, such as:
scaling games, imitation of
4. The Choral Ensemble and
Conducting
The choral ensemble is a source of
musical artistry just like an orchestra
or band. It is a means of developing
precision in singing and group
discipline. It gives the performers the
experience of enjoying working and
singing together to produce a
beautiful rendition of music.
The choral group may be made
physically attractive by means of
simple but impressive attire. The
singers should be arranged on the
stage so as to look orderly. Their
heights have to be considered to make
the group look attractive on the stage.
Of course, it is necessary to place the
sopranos on the left front of the
audience, the altos at the right front,
the tenors behind the tenors and the
basses behind the altos. This is a
standard arrangement but this may be
changed to suit the preferences of the
conductor. The chorus should be
trained to move in a businesslike but
graceful fashion when passing to and
from the stage
The conductor is the overall leader of
the chorus. He should be the object of
the uninterrupted attention of the
performers. The conductor
communicates with the performers
directly by means of his movements
and his facial expression. This means
that the performers should show
complete attention so that they are
always ready to do as the conductor
wishes. There is a direct
psychological relationship between
the conductor and the performers.
As regards the performance of the
music, the following criteria may be
observed.
a. Precision of the attacks and the
releases
b. A smooth and mellow tone
quality of singing
c. Exact intonation of the voices
d. Artistic interpretation of the
music
e. Beautiful blending of the voices
and proper balance of the
different parts
To be effective, the conductor needs
to possess the following qualities:
a. He should have a high degree of
musicianship to enable him to
understand well the music to be
performed and how to perform it.
b. He should have a creative
imagination to help him realize
the artistic characteristics of the
music he is to perform. A creative
imagination conceives beauty.
c. The conductor should have
qualities usually expected of a
leader, such as: poise or self-
confidence, sincerity and
enthusiasm, initiative, patience,
and humor, wit and a good
personality.
5. Preparing Children for
Part Singing
Some children are not prepared to
sing part songs and there-fore, are
unable to participate in choral
activities. Beginning with Grade 1,
the music teachers may be able to
help the children develop part singing
readiness by the use of the following
singing activities:
a. Singing dialog songs
b. Singing echo songs
c. Singing rounds - two-part or
three-part or four-part rounds
d. Singing songs with descants
A descant is a secondary melody
composed to go with the principal
melody. It is usually on a higher
register than the principal melody and
serves as some sort of obligation
e. Singing two songs of the same
harmonic progression together so
that one becomes a second
melody to the other.
f. Singing songs with chording, that
is, singing the bass do, sol, or fa
together with the song depending
on the harmonic character of the
song.
g. Singing songs with alhant: A
chant is a figure or phrase sung
repeatedly with the phrases of a
song. The chant is used, therefore,
with songs that have only one
harmony throughout.
B. Listening
1. The Need for Teaching
Children How to Listen
The world of music is unfolded to
children through varied experiences
in singing, playing instruments,
rhythm and dancing, and creative
activities. Children do not usually
develop with excellence along all
these lines, but it is hoped that each
one may find at least one phase of the
work which can provide enrichment
in his life not only in his childhood,
but also in adulthood. Perhaps only
few will develop into skillful
performers (singers, dancers, or com-
posers) but a good number, nay, all,
can become discriminating and
sensitive listeners. As a matter of faet,
it is through listening rather than
active participation or performance
that a big majority of the people
enjoy music.
Everywhere, music is available.
Aside from the live music that can be
heard in school programs, band
concerts, recitals, operas, etc.
2. Levels of Listening
Much music is heard in a rather
subconscious way. It may be heard as
an accompaniment to other activities,
which makes the music merely
accidental. This seems to be the
simplest way of listening and it is a
level where the music is heard
without thinking or without
consideration at all The pleasure of
this kind of listen. ing is immediate
and is derived only from the sounds.
Many a time, a radio is tuned in while
one is doing something - perhaps,
cooking, sewing or washing - and the
music is heard absent-mindedly. This
type of listening may be classified as
sensuous or sensual and it can be
clearly seen that it provides very little
growth if ever it does provide any.
This sensuous tve of listening seems
to be of common appeal to people.
but no music educator should allow
our children to remain at this low
level of listening.
The extreme opposite of the sensuous
level of listening is the purely musical
or technical plane. Listeners at this
level are usually those who have
attained an advanced degree of
technical skill in performing music
and, therefore, listening is done from
a highly critical and analytical point
of view. Such listeners listen to hear
the tonal patterns, to note the
rhythms, to evaluate the harmony and
style, to watch the tone colors, to
study the form, etc. They are
conscious of the accuracy of the beat,
the legatos or staccatos and
arpeggios, the dexterity and skill of
the performer, but they neglect the
spiritual aspect of their listening
through their feelings.
Music is an art, and as such, it
concerns primarily the expression of
feeling. Music must be a way of
developing one's innate sensitivity to
musical tendencies and feelings. Real
musical listening must involve
something beyond merely hearing - a
creative effort. The listener then must
attempt to hear the music inside, in
other words, to recreate it. This is
what we should endeavor to develop
in our children the recognition of the
factors of his enjovment of music
heard - thereby making music
listening a definite activity
demanding musical thinking.
3. Guided Listening
Listening to music is not merely a
skill: it is also an art. It is not only a
process of absorbing music but it
needs to be directed, practiced, and
learned. The children should be
encouraged to listen to and for
something in the music. Good
listening habits have to be developed
among children so that they may
reach their maximum hearing
capacity. This requires that all
listening activities in a music lesson
should be guided.
Guided listening is something more
than making the children listen after
announcing what they are to hear.
Guided listening is giving directions
or directing the conscious be heard.
ttention to what will
4. Types of Music for Listening
In general, the music we hear may be
classified into three kinds
a.Story Music
Music which tells a story belongs in
this category and it provides a most
interesting listening for children. The
story may be told by the singer
himself in the song, operetta, or
opera. The story may also be told by
a narrator to the accompaniment of
the music. Examples of story music
for children may be
The Littlest Angel
Cinderella
The Three Bears
Carnival of Animole Saint Saens
Hansel and Gretel
b.Program Music
Program music is descriptive. It may
describe places or scenes, events or
actions, and things or people.
Understanding program music
depends on the listener's ability to
create in his imagination the pictures
or events portrayed by the composer
in his music.
Program music may be exemplified
by such selections as:
Morning Moods - Grey
Claire de Lune - Debussy
The Cat and the Mouse - Copland In
the Hall of the Mountain - Grieg
Golliwog Cake Walk – Debussy
c. Pure or Absolute Music
Pure music makes no attempt to tell a
story nor describe.
It is just music written for its purely
esthetic value. Its purpose is "Beauty
for beauty's sake" and only that much
of music of the classic style, unlike
those of the romantic or modernistic
stvle, is pure music.
Examples of pure music have been
heard by us even from our
grandmothers. We are quite familiar
with some of them, like:
Hearts and Flowers
Meditation (Thais) _ Massenet
Nocturne - Santiago
Sonatas, fugues, locatos, scherzos,
concertos, ete. fall under this
classification.
5. Listening Activities for
Children
A. Passive Listening
While it is true that children, through
their rhythmic
activities, learn that music is
something nice to move with, it is not
right to leave them at the level where
they always have to do what the
music says. We do not wish our
children to do something conspicuous
anytime they hear music. They should
learn also that music speaks to them
although it may be inviting them to
do something, and so they should
listen quietly to it.
Passive listening is listening just for
the sheer enjoy. ment of contact with
lovely music. All that there is to it is
quietly absorbing what is heard.
There is no visible participation in
this kind of listening; neither is there
any conversation nor motivation
about the music. Passive listening is
done for the purpose of relieving
tensions, resting, and to experience
purely esthetic enjoyment. We picture
a person who does passive listening
as one who sits very relaxedly in an
easy chair and closes his eyes in quiet
absorption of the music he hears.
B. Active Listening
Active listening is directed, alert
listening. This may be in the form of
quiet listening for a particular
purpose, self-expression through
imaginative response, or self-
expression through physical activity.
1. Quiet listening may have any of
the following as objectives
which involve mental activities:
a Enjoyment of musical beauty
b Awareness of the mood
c Development of music memory
d Recognition of the story told by
the music ?
e Recognition of the themes in
the selection
f Recognition and appreciation of
tone color of different instrument
g Recognition of simple dance
and musical forms
h Appreciation of the composer
through his music
i Appreciation of the background
of the music through
glimpses of pertinent history and
literature and st lied art
j. Recognition of the musical styles
k. Recognition and appreciation
of the beauty of melody
l. Recognition and appreciation of
the harmonic content and beauty
m. Recognition of the inherent
characteristics of the music of
different countries
n. Recognition of the different
types of male and female voices and
their respective tone quality and
range
o. Listening to the story told or
narrated musically
p. Identification of the scene or
picture, events or ac-tions, and things
or people described by the music
1. Active listening may be done for
the purpose of developing self-
expression through:
(a) bodily response, as in clapping,
stepping, swaying,etc.
Free rhythms
Singing gamesMarching
rhythms with drums, sticks,
etc.Marching, easy dance
steps, and folk dances
Expression of simple meter
patterns, figura-tions,
phrasing, and design through
the rhythm bandClassical
dances
(b) imaginative response, as in:
pantomime and mimetics arts and
crafts
puppet shows and shadow plays
original stories and poems
6. Equipment
Listening opportunities abound both
inside and outside the school. We
have live music as those heard at
school programs, band concerts
during fiestas or other festive
occasions, recitals and con-certs, or
operas. There is also an abundance of
recorded music such as those we hear
from movies, phonographs, or
television
However, for purposes of guided
listening, the music teacher should
have a good phonograph and a variety
of records to suit the objective
desired. This should not prevent the
teacher, however, from utilizing live
music whenever this is available.
If the teacher is a capable and trained
performer, either in vocal or
instrumental music, he himself may
prove to be a rich source of
pleasurable listening for the children.
All listening lessons should be done
where no disturbances will distract
the children's attention. The acoustics
of the room should be conducive to
clear and pleasant hearing.
7. Techniques
a. The music teacher should always
introduce the music to be played.
Some facts about the composer,
circumstances about the
composition, or what the children
will hear in the music may be
given adequately to show that the
music teacher should gather as
much information about the music
and its composer before using it
in a listening lesson. There is no
sense in letting the children hear a
piece of music that the teacher
herself has not heard nor read
about.
However, all information beyond
those needed for the enhancement of
appreciation and enjoyment of the
music must be given. The purely
theoretical aspects should be kept at a
minimum especially in the lower
grades.
b. The selection used should be
played a few times if necessary so
that one thing may be attended to
at one playing.
c. All selections should be chosen
on the basis of the interest and
intellectual capacity of the
children involved.
d. Children mav not be patient
enough for long selections; there-
 fore, short and easy pieces should g. T develop the formation of
be chosen for them. musical taste through creative
e. Malodies that are easy to follow, listening to fine music
with well-marked rhythms and h. To develop intelligent music
clearly said lyrics, should be criticism through listening To
features of music to be used in develop the knowledge of proper
listening lessons. concert manners for preserving
f. Listening should not be isolated the atmosphere of dignity in the
as a special activity in the surroundings
classroom. Listening activities are i. To encourage a discriminating,
numerous and varied and can critical, and generative lis tening.
therefore permeate any music
lesson. C.Creative Work
g. Levels of appreciation are not
uniform throughout the children
Relatively important in pedagogical
in a group. What the teacher
terminology, particularly in the field
should be clear about is the goal
of arts, is the term creativity. Many
and values of the lesson rather
times we read the terms like a
than the visible manifestations of
"creative teacher
appreciation
" "creative response." "creative
h. A listening lesson may have more
activity." or just plain "creative"
than one obiective at a time
which terms we should be able to
interpret properly.
8. After all the aforementioned
discussion, it seema logical to
Primarily, a music teacher should
follow it up with objectives of
have a clear concept of what creative
the listening activities.
music really is. It is not just the old-
Following
fashioned simple-faceted idea of
are some
writing original music (composing) or
a. To develop good habits of
building or making toy instruments
listening intellectually and
but a much broader term involving
aestheticaly
experiences in singing, listening,
b. To awaken interest and to develop
rhythmic movement, and instrumental
the love and appreciation tor good
playing.
music
c. To acquaint the pupils with some
A school music program is known to
of the masterpieces of must. cal
have its five aspects - the singing
literature
area, the listening area, the playing
d. To train the pupils to be
area, the rhythmic area, and the
intelligent listeners
creative area. However, although
e. To develop music memory and a
these five areas of music learning
listening repertory
activities appear to be senarate
f. To provide music through
components of the music program.
listening for self-expression
creative music is not a separate
subdivision. In a program designed
for the promotion of musical growth,
creative responses should be evident
in all the music activities. The
creative phase should permeate as
well as coordinate the other four and
it must go on throughout the music
program all the while.

This principle of creativity, therefore,

involves both creative teaching (on
the part of the music teachers) and
creative response (on the part of the
learners)

Teaching Strategies
Some foreign teaching strategies have
caught the attention of Philippine
music educators. Some are partly
adopted to enrich previous traditional
practices

A. The Kodaly Method

Zoltan Kodaly, a Hungarian, believed
that music belonged to everyone and
that music education should be
designed to teach the spirit of singing
to all, should educate all to be
musically literate, should bring music
into everyday living for the home and
for leisure activites, and should
educate
concert audiences. Some features of the Kodaly method
are:
The Kodaly method has the following 1. The use of singing as the basis of
components: (a) system of rhythm musical training
duration symbols such as using 2. The use of folk music as learning
rhythm syllables ta, ti, ta-a, etc. to materials
indicate one-beat, one-half beat and 3. A highly organized sequence of
two-beat tones, respectively; use of steps according to the child's
the movable-do system; and the use development
of hand signs which indicate notes of
the scale, from do to high do. (Please The following are children's
see the illustration of Kodaly hand characteristics which are considered
signs.) in music teaching.
a. limited vocal range
b. Difficulty in singing half steps
c. Ease in singing
d. Use of so-mi which is considered
a universal chant
e. More ease in singing skips than
steps
4. Use of the following note groups
so-mi
la-so-mi
la-so-mi-do
la-ti-do-re-mi-so
After mastery of the pentatonic scale
major scale
minor scale (natural)
5. Use of walking to begin rhythmic
activities
6. The children can learn to play
instruments, if they wish to, but
they should master the use of the
voice first. They should be ready
to meet the technical problems of
an instrument through their
musical competency which will
enable them to play in a musical
manner with good tone and
intonation.
B. The Orff-Schulwerk
Method
The approach of Carl Orff (of
Munich) in music teaching is an
experiential method based on rhythm
and improvisation, building on what
the children themselves find natural,
e.g., strolling, skipping, running,
swaying, etc. and the minor third.
Orff devised simple rhythms and
chants to serve as the basis for
sequential development activities.
Speech patterns were taken from
chants, games, and vocal sounds in
the child's vocabulary. The patterns
were chanted, clapped, danced, and
sung.
His emphasis on rhythm led him to
the use of percussion instruments in
music education. He developed an
ensemble of percussion and string in-
instruments designed to create the
proper timbre for the music. The
instruments can be played even
without training.
The children do much imitation and
improvisation and are led to create
their own music from their inner
feelings and imitation of environment
sounds. Thus, they become sensitive
to sound and develop other sounds
from
The first melody to be used is the
downward minor third. Then they
learn the pentatonic scale.
The Orff-Schulwerk appeals to the
children because it involves creative
activities using singing, playing, and
natural movements.
The method uses children's speech as
the basis for musical development
Children learn musical concepts from
the texture, dynamics, pitch patterns
and rhythms of speech.
A few activities may be:
1. Warming up movements while
classic music is played
2. Playing rhythmic games
3. Using bodily movements with
music
4. Interpreting music with their own
movements
5. Mirror imitation by two children
6. Using instruments to follow a
rondo form
7. Using a movement canon to
follow a song
8. Rapping Pilipino poems or songs
C. The Dalcroze
Eurythmic Approach
Contrary to the traditional style of
"lifeless and theoretical"
interpretation of music which he
found mechanical and frustrating,
Emile Dalcroze thought up a novel
idea that musicianship begins with
and resides in the whole body. So he
trained the students to respond to
rhythmic problems by thinking of the
body as it relates to space, and as a
musical instrument that can perform
with any speed or intensity.
The method introduces musical
concepts of tempo, dynamics,
duration and rhythm through
movement with the help of piano
accompaniment. A few examples are:
1. For Tempo
a. Imitation of the movement of
mechanical devices using dif
ferent tempos
b. Walking to show different
emotions
2. For dynamics
A. Making big motions for loud
dynamics or small ones for soft
B. Using the crescendo and
decrescendo to interpret growing
of fading, as one imagines himself
to be the subject (e.g., a growing
plant or fading sunlight)
3. Duration
Using foot and arm movements
together to follow long or short
4. Rhythm
Showing simple rhythm patterns
through movements like clapping,
tapping, waving, tiptoeing, etc.
D. The Carabo-Cone Method
The Carabo-Cone Method provides a
sensory-motor approach in music.
foundation and "intellectual
stimulation for academic
achievement." It was observed by
psychologists Piaget and Bruner that
"the learning and thinking of children
are linked to the concrete, the seeable,
and the touchable." (Mark from
Carabo-Cone, 1969)
The grand staff and its notation
becomes an environment the image of
which the child sees everywhere in
various sizes, direction, etc. Constant
feedback from the physical is
produced in the mental. Through his
personal experience, the concepts of
varied directions (lower, higher,
below, etc.) are learned as well as
some mathematical concepts of
sequence and equal-ity.
Some ideas to explain this method
further are as follows:
1. Play in the method and the music
is the point.
2. Fun, familiarity and participation
are needed to unravel the music
symbols.
3. Singing and listening while
playing make the musical concept
 alive and ingrained in the
children's mind.
4. Perception and musical concepts
are developed from simple to
complex as the children
experience movement and touch,
and understand the musical
symbols.
5. Activities suggested by the
approach - use of cards with
symbols or words, drawings of
symbols, giant replicas.
Movements of dif ferent parts of
the body are done as play
activities.