For young students:
Teaching Scales
Teaching Scales
(mood/major-minor/storytelling) by Mayita Brown
Music Educator in Allegro Piano Studio, México
LEVEL 1
The class starts with a hearing and body movement activity. They listen to the piano and start walking, when they hear sounds that are feeling happy (major) they walk forward, and when they hear sounds feeling sad they have to walk backwards.(minor)
After this, we talked about what images they found in their minds while walking,I asked them what makes them feel like this music - while I play major melodies-) and when they feel like this? when they are eating an icecream, when they are at the park. etc. Then I ask when they feel like this (with minor melodies) when it is raining, when they lost a pet. It could be anything, I’ve heard they mentioned the sun, the clouds, the rain, playing with their pets.
LEVEL 2
First of all
This is a story about how to introduce scales to piano students, and is inspired in Irina Gorin’s method for piano. She is the author of “Tales of a Musical Journey” which is the course I’m taking right now with her. So, the credit is hers. I only changed the images and this activity has been a hit in my studio.
The story begins like this…
Once upon a time there were two sisters, the older sister was always happy, energetic and full of life. Her name was MAJOR SCALE.
Major scale has a younger sister who’s name was MINOR SCALE. The little sister was 6 years old and here it comes 6 steps up (for example in C major) to define the name of the little sister. 1 2 3 4 5 6 six steps is A, A minor. Minor scale was jealous of her cheerful older sister and wanted to look just like her, but she didn't, and all that made her feel very sad all the time.
The sisters lived with her abuelita in a big house with a big stairway with 7 steps. At the top of the stairway was an elegant mirror. Here are the steps.(play major scale). Every morning, major scale woke up, ran up the stairs (play major scale ) , looked at herself in the mirror and said Yay! i'm so pretty and happy, and joyfully start her day ( play major scale descendent)
Minor scale looked at her sister and wanted to do the same, she started climbing up the stairs (play minor scale) and when she got up to the top, she looked at the mirror, took a deep breath and said… Oh! I look and sound so sad and so NATURAL, minor sister went down the stairs with tears in her eyes, (minor scale desc.)
One day, minor scale notice her mom forgot a high heel shoe on the top stair. The girl decided to try the shoe on, as she walked she counted the steps, 1 2 3 4 5 6 she put the shoe on 7 and arrived at the top and looked in the mirror. Suddenly she realized that she looked and sounded very differently, and she said, WOW! I look and sound so beautiful I sound HARMONIC -harmonic means beautiful- , this incident made minor scale feel very special and she carefully went down the stairs stepping into her mother's shoe on the 7th step ( 1 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 ).
The next day she thought , if one shoe made me feel so beautiful, why if I put both shoes on! She went upstairs counting carefully each step and put the shoes on. The first shoe in the 6th step ( 1 2 3 4 5 6 )and the other one on the 7th step. Minor scale couldn't believe her ears and eyes.
On the lower steps she still sounds sad but on her high heels she could sound happier, just like her sister! Minor was turning into major, it was MELODIC and then minor scale looked at the mirror and thought …Oh! These shoes are so big I rather take them off and be myself again. She took the shoes each on the 7th and 6th steps (play 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1) and became natural minor scale again.
But from now on she really liked who she was because she realized she has a special power (encanto) of being natural, harmonic and melodic minor scale.
LEVEL 3
Next we go to the piano and build the major and minor scales and with natural harmonic and melodic.
And remember…
Mayita has the students act these out with their expression to practice knowing the terms:
MAJOR (He lived!)
minor (He died)
Diminished (Who killed him!!)
Music Educator in Allegro Piano Studio, México
LEVEL 1
The class starts with a hearing and body movement activity. They listen to the piano and start walking, when they hear sounds that are feeling happy (major) they walk forward, and when they hear sounds feeling sad they have to walk backwards.(minor)
After this, we talked about what images they found in their minds while walking,I asked them what makes them feel like this music - while I play major melodies-) and when they feel like this? when they are eating an icecream, when they are at the park. etc. Then I ask when they feel like this (with minor melodies) when it is raining, when they lost a pet. It could be anything, I’ve heard they mentioned the sun, the clouds, the rain, playing with their pets.
LEVEL 2
First of all
This is a story about how to introduce scales to piano students, and is inspired in Irina Gorin’s method for piano. She is the author of “Tales of a Musical Journey” which is the course I’m taking right now with her. So, the credit is hers. I only changed the images and this activity has been a hit in my studio.
The story begins like this…
Once upon a time there were two sisters, the older sister was always happy, energetic and full of life. Her name was MAJOR SCALE.
Major scale has a younger sister who’s name was MINOR SCALE. The little sister was 6 years old and here it comes 6 steps up (for example in C major) to define the name of the little sister. 1 2 3 4 5 6 six steps is A, A minor. Minor scale was jealous of her cheerful older sister and wanted to look just like her, but she didn't, and all that made her feel very sad all the time.
The sisters lived with her abuelita in a big house with a big stairway with 7 steps. At the top of the stairway was an elegant mirror. Here are the steps.(play major scale). Every morning, major scale woke up, ran up the stairs (play major scale ) , looked at herself in the mirror and said Yay! i'm so pretty and happy, and joyfully start her day ( play major scale descendent)
Minor scale looked at her sister and wanted to do the same, she started climbing up the stairs (play minor scale) and when she got up to the top, she looked at the mirror, took a deep breath and said… Oh! I look and sound so sad and so NATURAL, minor sister went down the stairs with tears in her eyes, (minor scale desc.)
One day, minor scale notice her mom forgot a high heel shoe on the top stair. The girl decided to try the shoe on, as she walked she counted the steps, 1 2 3 4 5 6 she put the shoe on 7 and arrived at the top and looked in the mirror. Suddenly she realized that she looked and sounded very differently, and she said, WOW! I look and sound so beautiful I sound HARMONIC -harmonic means beautiful- , this incident made minor scale feel very special and she carefully went down the stairs stepping into her mother's shoe on the 7th step ( 1 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 ).
The next day she thought , if one shoe made me feel so beautiful, why if I put both shoes on! She went upstairs counting carefully each step and put the shoes on. The first shoe in the 6th step ( 1 2 3 4 5 6 )and the other one on the 7th step. Minor scale couldn't believe her ears and eyes.
On the lower steps she still sounds sad but on her high heels she could sound happier, just like her sister! Minor was turning into major, it was MELODIC and then minor scale looked at the mirror and thought …Oh! These shoes are so big I rather take them off and be myself again. She took the shoes each on the 7th and 6th steps (play 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1) and became natural minor scale again.
But from now on she really liked who she was because she realized she has a special power (encanto) of being natural, harmonic and melodic minor scale.
LEVEL 3
Next we go to the piano and build the major and minor scales and with natural harmonic and melodic.
And remember…
Mayita has the students act these out with their expression to practice knowing the terms:
MAJOR (He lived!)
minor (He died)
Diminished (Who killed him!!)