Musicogram
A musicogram is a kind of score or scheme of a composition , represented by symbols. It is used to convey classical music in music lessons at primary and secondary levels. The musicogram was developed by the Belgian music teacher and composer Jos Wuytack . The term, which first appeared in 1965, he derived from the Greek: musikè (music) and gramma (writing, painting, directory).
definition
In contrast to a score , a musicogram is reduced to the main aspects, which are easy to perceive when listening. The symbols are essentially limited to colors, geometric figures, instruments and some dynamic characters. The arrangement of the instruments in the musicogram corresponds to that in an orchestral score. Only those instruments are shown that can be heard well. The symbols to represent the orchestral instruments are also an invention of Wuytack.
An important principle of the musicogram is that musical content is never represented with concrete drawings, e.g. B. Pictures of birds in motifs of the flute. This is an essential difference to the simple "musicogramas" mentioned at the beginning of the article.
Jos Wuytack and Paul Schollaert published a detailed psychological and pedagogical justification of the musicogram and a description of the associated method of “active listening to music” in 1972. This was followed by collections of musicograms for musical works from different epochs. Exact methodological instructions for teachers as well as school notebooks are contained in the collections that have been published under the title “Audición musical activa”.
Musical aspects of a musicogram
Form
Recognizing the shape is the main concern of the musicogram. Form is understood as the structure of a piece, which arises from the interplay of similarities and contrasts between topics, phrases and motifs. It is postulated: Individual parts get their meaning in their relationship to the whole. Once the listener has grasped the form of a piece of music, he can understand the work. However, while listening to music, the shape is difficult to perceive. Music is an art in time and its blueprint is only revealed to the musically trained ear and after frequent listening. The graphical representation in the musicogram is a visual aid to capture what is heard. It shows the structure of a piece: How many different topics appear, in what order? If the topics are very different, so are the colors. If they are similar, the colors contrast little. Perceptible variations of a theme are represented by lines, dots, etc.
Metric
The bars are precisely reproduced in the form of a horizontal line. In this way, the music you are listening to can be followed on the musicogram by striking the beat.
The melody
The topics are represented by colored rectangles. This immediately gives you an overall impression of the composer's idea. If a topic appears to be minimally varied, it is not important to reflect this. It is crucial that the children recognize this issue immediately. The arcs above the rectangles illustrate the tension arcs of the phrases. Non-thematic melody parts that are easy to hear are represented by lines. Melody courses are not shown in the musicogram.
Harmony and polyphony
Harmonic aspects, e.g. B. simple accompanying forms such as tonic dominant, drone, a lying note, if at all, are represented by dots and lines. Polyphonic aspects such as imitation or canon are represented by figures and colors. In principle, harmony and polyphony are rarely discussed because the audience in the mainstream school does not have the necessary experience.
Dynamism and Expression
The usual symbols are then in the musicogram when the contrast is very clear.
instrumentation
The timbre played a decisive role for the composers of the Romantic period, so that the instrumentation took on a meaning comparable to melody, rhythm or harmony. The timbre of an instrument helps children to recognize a melody if it is assigned to a certain instrument (or a group). The timbre also helps to recognize polyphonic elements. An example: a pizzicato from the double bass is overlaid by a melody in legato from the violins. At the same time this melody is cut through by the glissandi of the flutes. But the horns play syncope.
How is a musicogram worked out? - The method of "active listening to music"
First of all, the individual topics of a piece are actively worked out. In the case of John Playford's counter-dance, this is done by dancing; in the march of the Nutcracker Suite by Tchaikovsky, by rhythmic speaking and movement. Singing and playing instruments also play a role in the development of other musicograms. After the topic has been worked out, the entire piece is recreated.
In the second step, the children hear the piece of music without seeing the musicogram. They actively participate by speaking, dancing, singing or making music on the relevant topics.
In the third phase, the themes are followed on the musicogram while the piece of music is playing. First, the teacher shows with the beat, then the students follow the topics independently while they hear the piece.
Music pedagogical relevance of "active listening to music"
Active listening to music with musicograms represents a new contribution to music education. On the one hand, with this approach, Wuytack corresponds to Carl Orff's postulate to let children actively experience music in music lessons, because Orff demands: “Elementary music is never music alone, it is connected with movement, dance and language, it is music that you have to do yourself, in which you are involved not as a listener but as a player ”.
On the other hand, working with musicograms corresponds to the requirement for competence orientation with regard to conveying cultural values and basic musical qualifications:
- The children grasp the structure of a piece of music. In the unity of the work they experience the diversity of the composition.
- The recreation of a piece of music, which is done with the musicogram before listening, promotes the feeling for form, rhythm and dynamics.
A comparative study shows the effectiveness of teaching the work with musicograms: children in Australia, Belgium and Portugal took music lessons with the same teacher in which the march from Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker Suite was heard. They were then asked about the musical parameters of form, instrumentation and tempo. In the classes that worked with the musicogram, significantly more children answered correctly. When asked how they liked the music, slightly more children who had taken part in a musicogram class answered positively.
Literature (selection)
Books
- Wuytack, Jos / Schollaert, Paul: Actief muziek beluisteren. Leuven 1972.
- Wuytack, Jos / Schollaert, Paul: Audicion Musicale Active. Leuven 1974.
- Wuytack, Jos: Musicalia I - Musicogrammes (28 musicograms, 1982) and Musicalia II - Musicogrammes (30 musicograms, 1984). Uitgeverij de Garve, Brugge.
- Wuytack, Jos / Boal-Palheiros, Graça: Audición musical activa. Porto: Associação Wuytack de Pedagogia Musical, 1996. (Student booklet and teacher manual)
items
- Wuytack, Jos / Boal-Palheiros, Graça: Aktyvus muzikos klausymasis ir muzikograma, in: Vaiko Muzikos Pasaulis. Vaiku Muzikinio Ugdymo Straipsniu Rinkinys , Vilnius, 2009, pp. 84–95.
- Wuytack, Jos / Boal-Palheiros, Graça: Audición musical activa con el musicograma, in: Eufonia. Didáctica de la Música , 2009/47, pp. 43-55.
- Boal-Palheiros, Graça: Making music with joy! Active listening, singing, playing and dancing with children, in: Perspectives. Journal of the Early Childhood Music and Movement Association , 10 (2) 2015, pp. 10-17.
Web links
- Associação Wuytack de Pedagogia Musical (reference address for the literature mentioned as well as the musicograms as PDF and for the associated music on CD)
Individual evidence
- ↑ Wuytack, Jos / Schollaert, Paul: Actief muziek beluisteren. Leuven 1972.
- ↑ Wuytack, Jos: Musicalia I - Musicogrammes. Bruges, 1982. (28 musicograms) & Wuytack, Jos: Musicalia II - Musicogrammes. Bruges, 1984. (30 musicograms)
- ^ Wuytack, Jos / Boal Palheiros, Graça: Audicion musical activa. Associação Wuytack de Pedagogia Musical, 1996. (Student booklet and teacher manual)
- ↑ development. In: orff.de. Retrieved on August 11, 2016 (German).
- ↑ Boal Palheiros, Graça / Wuytack, Jos: Effects of the 'musicogram' on children's musical perception and learning . Proceedings of the 9th International Conference on Music Perception and Cognition. Bologna, 2006. pp. 1264-1271.