Learner Resource 3

Activity 4 – Area of Study 3 (Rhythms of the World)

Introduction

This resource gives you some suggestions as to how you might approach an Area of Study 3 composition brief. Rhythms of the World is a vast area, but this should give you an idea of how to get started.

The activity

Sample Brief: Create a composition (melodic and/or rhythmic) that suggests a world music style you have studied. Your composition should be suitable to be played at a local music festival.

What is this brief asking me to do?

Your composition will need to be in one of the following styles:

·  Indian classical music and Punjabi bhangra.

·  Traditional Eastern Mediterranean and Arabic folk rhythms, with particular focus on traditional Greek, Palestinian and Israeli music.

·  Traditional African drumming.

·  Traditional Calypso and Samba.

Wider listening

Once you have decided on your chosen style, you should do as much wider listening as much
as possible. Make a start with the ‘Suggested Repertoire’ from the OCR Specification (pages 44 and 45).

Which stimulus should I choose?

This will really depend on the style you have chosen. Depending on the style, you may be restricted to a particular collection of notes (for example raga) or specific rhythms which are repeated in a style. In order to use a stimulus successfully, you will probably need to consider creating a fusion – a mix of world music and western styles. For example, you could decide on the set of words as your stimulus, while including features of your chosen musical style.

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Practical Component

What are the characteristic features of my chosen musical style?

Just because this Area of Study is called Rhythms of the World, there will be more to a style than just its rhythm (if at all). Consider the following:

·  Organisation of pitch or rhythm – is there a particular scale (e.g. pentatonic or raga) or rhythm which is typical of this style? Is there an ostinato rhythm?

·  Are there any typical instruments you need to include in your composition?

·  How do the performers work together? Do they have specific roles?

·  Do you need a specific kind of tonality and harmony?

·  What about textures/layers? Is there are way in which these layers build up in any of the styles? This will be essential if you choose a predominantly rhythmic style (e.g. African drumming or Samba).

Here is a suggested initial approach:

1)  Once you have decided on your chosen style and instruments, you need to identify one of the key melodic or rhythmic features. How will you develop an idea from this? If it is a rhythm, you will need to play it and repeat it, experimenting with whether it can become an ostinato, or whether you can set a some kind of melody to it (a lot of bhangra music melodies use the chaal rhythm). If your idea is melodic, you can experiment with question and answer phrases as in Learner Task Sheet 1. Is there a stimulus which may help you come up with some initial ideas?

2)  If you haven’t already, consider which stimulus you will use. The stimulus may help you come up with initial question/answer phrases, or potential ostinato rhythms.

3)  How you proceed from here will entirely depend on your chosen style. You must consider the structure of your composition. If your composition is rhythm based, how will you create interest and contrast? How will your sections relate to each other?

Once you have done this, you have an initial outline which will hopefully inspire the rest of your composition.

What will make my composition successful?

The OCR is looking for a ‘highly musical, stylish and effective’ piece. In terms of this brief, you should consider the following (this is not necessarily an exhaustive list):

·  Use of musical elements: has your characteristic rhythm or melody been developed appropriately? Do your textures develop as they would in your chosen style?

·  Development of ideas appropriate to the style: If a rhythm is the key feature of the style, how do you create interest using the other elements? Are there cross rhythms and polyrhythms in Samba or African Drumming? If your composition is melody based – are your phrases balanced and repeated appropriately?

·  Stylistic conventions: Have you chosen an appropriate combination of instruments? Have you used the characteristic rhythms or melodies found in your chosen style?

·  Structural conventions: have you chosen an appropriate structure and is it clear? If it is mainly a rhythmic piece, how does your music develop throughout the structure?

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Practical Component