davin's notes

davin's notes

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numu

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what the demise of unit standards means for music tech and star funding

Kia ora Chris,
I have been following this thread with interest. Of particular note, is your bullet point 1 and 6, which I have addressed below.

I can clarify a few issues from the STAR fundable areas:

* The subfield Performing Arts General (encompassing domains of Performing Artist Self Management, Performing Arts Management and Performing Arts Technology) is all available to STAR. There is no reason why this should change. As long as it's in the Performing Arts area, no problem. Once it is called Music Technology, then it is restricted (as it is already funded as part of the 'regular' curriculum).
* We have recently removed the Core Generic subfield you referred to, from the STAR Excluded List (SEL) making these available for STAR funding (ie: the Self Management; Social and Cooperative Skills; and Work and Study Skills domains within the Core Generic sub field)
* Also removed from the SEL are: The Interpersonal Communications and Introductory Communication Skills domains within the Communications Skills subfield.

Of course SEL restrictions do not apply for STAR from L4 upwards for any curriculum area, so subject to accreditation and/or access to a provider, anything can be potentially done above L3 leading onto tertiary.

Having external providers such as Duncan resourcing alongside these developments in PAT, is a huge bonus, and should allow for a smoother transition (although Duncan will undoubtable be putting in a huge amount of work behind the scenes to make this happen).

All this is of course dependant on the STAR being used to resource individual student needs in their career pathway and establishing identity. Secondary music teachers should talk about their student needs with their STAR Coordinator in relation to their Schools STAR Policy, or the school may contact their regional STAR Facilitator or Advisor at School Support Services.

Me te mihi nui,
Mark

Mark Dashper
Secondary Facilitator
Pathways

metalica analysis

pop music pd notes

Making it happen

What is timbre? (vid)

• Timbre is more than just ‘instrument’

• Timbre is the key element in pop music

• Students need to describe what they’re hearing as accurately as possible:

– Piano

• Keyboard

– Electric piano

» Rhodes with phaser

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Focussed Listening 1

• Title: Postcards from far away

• Artist: Coldplay

• Album: Prospekt’s March (EP)

• Label: Parliophone

Describe the timbre/s

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Focussed Listening 2

• Title: Lovers in Japan (Osaka sun mix)

• Artist: Coldplay

• Album: Prospekt’s March (EP)

• Label: Parliophone

Describe the timbre/s (particularly the piano)

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Composition pretask

• Getting to know garageband.

• Your task is compose a piece of music 20 secs long.

• You can only use cr78, tr 606 tr 808 or tr 909 sounds.

• You must upload an mp3 to moodle to hand this work in. This the only way this work can be submitted.

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Show and tell #1

• Garageband demo

• Garageband is basically a composition tool

• Garageband is free with an apple computer

• It only runs on an apple

• It’s the main reason for getting apple computers

___

What to teach?

• The bad news: Unit standards are on the way out

• The good news: proposals for music tech achievement standards are in the pipeline (levels 1-3)

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Draft Performing Arts Technology Standard Matrix

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An ‘aside’

• Which comes first? The assessment/standard or the course?

• The course (of course!)

___

Until the end of 2010:

• 20747 Perform music based on research of recorded compositions (the ten credit monster)

• Research 20 pieces, 4 styles, play an example from each style

• The moderater tells me that this is on the way out

___

Performance assessments

• Pay attention to the performance setting

– Is a classroom appropriate?

– Lunchtime concerts

– Rockquest finalist requirements…

• Pop performers are almost always standing

• Singers must have a mic

___

Points of clarification

• Accuracy can be assessed with the help of a recording

– Sometimes note-by-note perfection is not appropriate

– Sometimes (often) there is no score

– A recording of the original will suffice for moderation

___

With a friend

• Choose 4 genres that you would study as part of a pop music course

– These genres should be:

• Easily and clearly defined

• Likeable

• Then:

– Choose one piece to be learnt/studied from each genre

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Repertoire choice

• (I) very closely supervise the selection of repertoire across courses

• For the ten credit monster (20747)

– Is it playable?

– How ‘ordinary’ is it?

– Is it a good example of this style?

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My TCM repertoire

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Guitars

• Comment to students on their tone/timbre

• Always use a tuner

• New strings

• Check your intonation (see metalica example)

___

Show and tell #2: logic

• Logic is an advanced composition tool

• Logic used to be available for PC and mac

• It was bought in about 2002 by apple, stripped down and released as garageband

• It has had a major overhaul since apple bought it

• About NZ$250 per licence

Viva la vida produced in logic

___

Mainstage

• Packaged with logic

• A performance tool

___

The wrap up

• Pop music is timbre

• The standards fit the course – not the other way around

• Master your tools one at a time

___

One more thing

• Numu.org.uk