Friday, November 30, 2012

Returning of Choir Costumes

Dear choir members,

Please return your choir costumes on 27 December 2012 from 1.00 pm to 2.00 pm at Music Room 1.

Remember to label it with your name and 2013 class,  P6 pupils, just label it with your name.  Return with the hanger.

I know you will do well at the Winter Choral Festival.

Happy holidays!!!!

Thursday, July 26, 2012

One Song




Words and Music by Dave and Jean Perry

Dave and Jean Perry have been writing and publishing their songs for schools and churches for twenty-four years. Their music has been performed by choirs in Europe, Asia, Africa, South America, North America and Australia. They have over two hundred fifty songs in print and are recipients of special composers awards from ASCAP.
http://www.daveandjeanperry.com/aboutus.aspx

One Song
This easy 2 part song uses flowing melody lines and scalewise movement to weave a harmonic texture that sounds much more complicated than it really is. The joy of singing is the theme of the text. 
http://www.daveandjeanperry.com/publications.aspx


Friday, July 20, 2012

Primary 5: Unit 3 Singing in Parts


My Paddle
Listen to this song, at first there is only 1 voice (solo).
Later (around 1 minute), you will hear another voice. That is the mixed-part singing that we will discuss from pg30-33.
Our text book only show part of this song, a traditional  Canadian song.
Please practice to use your recorder to play the song, sing the song with you group members and prepare for the assessment next week.



This is the recorder tutorial, but the starting note is B and it use the High E, you may choose to play this version or follow the text book which use the starting note, A.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=endscreen&v=QBeiyBORM7U&NR=1


This is another version, from 1 minute onwards, listen carefully for the 3 part canon.
The lady use 2 songs, My Paddle and Land of the Silver Birch, but the tune is similar and it sounds beautiful.
All 3 voices belong to the same lady, she recorded 3 times using Audacity.
Check to find out how to use Audacity to record your song/ voice.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JRBdvyiI-ts&feature=related


This is the 4 part canon for recorder, but use another key, the starting note is not A , it is B.
They are Grade 4 pupils.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N4RwRprW9Po


This version shows you the picture related to the lyrics.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7zDTdKRqZ9g&feature=related



Friday, June 29, 2012

Primary 5: Unit 2_Melody Composition

Listen to the song below. This is the original song that Best Friend is based on. This song is about a soldier from Ukraine who left his loved ones to fight for his country.  Identify the melodic variation methods used.

This one was performed by the Red Army:


Minka uses the Balalaika (a Russian instrument with 3 strings). Find out more about this instrument online , eg, the image, the sound/ video clips. 

You should have learn about Binary and Ternary Form when you are in Primary 3 or 4 using the First Step. 
This is a quick revision:

The words Binary and Ternary simply mean two and three and refers to music which is in two or three distinct sections. If you hum the tune to Twinkle, twinkle little star in your head (this is calledinternalising the music) you should be able to distinguish the three sections. If we were to give each section a letter, it would look like this:

A Twinkle, twinkle little star, how I wonder what you are.
B Up above the world so high, like a diamond in the sky.
A Twinkle, twinkle little star, how I wonder what you are.
So music in ternary form is can also be called ABA form, whereas binary form is simply AB


Is theSingapore's national anthem in ABA form or AB form?

Primary 5: Unit 1_ Prelude, Interlude and Finale

Listen to the Birdcather's Song (recorder). In  a piece of music, the beginning is called the prelude, while the end is called the "finale". the additional section of music inserted between the prelude and the finale is called the interlude.

Do the worksheet on your textbook, page 4-5.

Listen to the Trout. This is an art-song . An art-song is a song written for only 1 singer and is accompanied by a musical instrument, usally a piano.  Art-song are different from other types of songs because the lyrics are considered more poetic or elegant, while the music is composed to enhance the beauty and meaning of the lyrics. The most famous composer of art-songs was Franz Schubert. Please do a google search to find out more about him and his music.

This one shows you the song in it's original language and the translation in EL.



This one shows you the same piece by a Soprano (lady, high pitch)
Try to recognise repeated and altered rhythms or pitch in this song.



This one shows you the same piece by a Baritone (most common male voice, between tenor and bass)


Try to play The Trout with your recorder, it is fun!


This is the Donkey Riding by a children choir. Try to identify the main melody and the variation in each section of the song.



Wednesday, March 14, 2012

Choral Clinic by Mrs Johnson (info + photo)

Mrs Angie Johnson visitted our school on 13/3/2012 afternoon.
We learned so much from her. At the same time, it was really fun!
General Info about Mrs Johnson

• Artistic Director for the Young Naperville Singers (YNS) and Young Fox Valley Singers (YFVS)

• She is the only clinician chosen from the United States to work with choirs from 15 Singapore schools.

• She has been with Young Naperville Singers for 13 years

• This is her fifth year as Artistic Director for the youth choral organization founded in Naperville in 1984.

• She oversees the music education, artistic programming and visionary leadership.

• Under her tenure, YNS has grown to over 320 singers (ages 6–18) in eight choirs, including the Young Fox Valley Singers and an artistic staff of nine directors and accompanists.

• Prior to working at YNS, Johnson was the music teacher at Gregory Middle School, in Naperville, IL, for seven years.

• She received the honor of “Most Influential Educator” by the Indian Prairie Educational Foundation.
Objectives of the Choral Clinic

• “To help prepare our local choirs for this central judging, we decided to look for a clinician that was skilled in the expertise of educating and motivating children of primary level in choral singing,”

• “We are confident that the children will benefit greatly from Mrs. Johnson's vast experience and knowledge in working with young choristers, and that the workshops will help bring their choral singing to a new level and motivate them to perform at their best during the festival!”
----Quee Ming Seah, Director of Events for SourceWerkz



http://oswego.patch.com/topics/Angie+Johnson
http://www.youngnapervillesingers.org/
http://www.choralnet.org/view/310487

Here are the group photos:










Saturday, March 10, 2012

Mid Winter +RVPS Bratislava Choral Festival Trip 2011

River Vally Primary School Choir participated in a competition last year.
One of the songs they sang was Mid Winter.
They sang beautifully and they won the Gold Prize there.
Enjoy!

Thank you Mr Lim for sharing this information with us.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BBcuBlYuVmQ


Mid Winter by Bob Chilcott
Who is Bob Chilcott?
Please click the link below to find out more about him.

Monday, February 20, 2012

mp3 that all choir members must listen everyday

Dear Choir members,
Mr Lim has prepared the following mp3 for all of you.
All school team and probation team members, it is a MUST, to listen to these mp3 everyday, from now till mid April.
You can play the mp3 and sing your part after listening to these mp3.
Always have the score with you, refer to all the special notes that Mr Lim highlighted to you during the practices.

For Music Comes, all should listen to your part (eg, Soprano listen to soprano part, Alto listen to alto part).
You must make sure you are very familiar with your part before you listen to the complete version.
For the piano version, you can listen and try to sing, and ask your friend/ family members to listen to you.

Mr Lim would like you to listen to "Pu Die扑蝶", performed by the Changkat Primary School Choir.
They are able to sing the way Mr Lim has highlighted to you.
They can sing the lyrics correctly and with good intonation and expression.
I really wish you pay attention to their performance and sing this way.

Music Comes: Soprano

Music Comes: Alto

Music Comes : Complete

Music Comes: Piano

Pu Die 扑蝶






Friday, January 6, 2012

Choir Exchange Programme on 30/12/2011, 2-5pm

4 schools participated in the Choir Exchange Programme on 30/12/2011.
We are the host school. We gathered in the School Hall to carry out the programme.