Fourth Grade General Music
Round
A round is a song that is sung by two or more groups or people. When we sing a round, we all sing the same melody of a song but start at different times. At the beginning of the year, we sang two rounds in class: A Ram Sam Sam and Ghost of John. Choose a part and sing along!
The kookaburra is a bird from Australia that is famous for it's laugh! You might already know this song, but did you know it can be sung as a round? Listen, then sing along. Challenge yourself to sing along with the second or even the third entrance!
Yankee Doodle
Yankee Doodle is a popular song in our country today, but it started it's life as a song sung by British soldiers to taunt the Americans during the American Revolution. It only became an American patriotic song after our country won the war. Since then, verses have been added and changed, so there are many different versions of the song. Here is Yankee Doodle being performed by The US Army Band.
Music around the world
Take a look at the map below. See if you can find the countries of the music we have listened to in class.
Native American Music
Drums hold a place of great importance in Native American music and culture. They are typically made from animal hide stretched over a wooden frame. The pow wow drum is the largest of these drums, and is named after the traditional gatherings where they are played. It is a symbol of power and used as a tool to call people together. There are a variety of rhythms and drumbeats, and each type of song requires a different one. The drumbeats must be in perfect time, and each singer must be in perfect unison.
Music from China
We learned about several Chinese instruments in class including the gong, pipa, erhu, yanqin, guzheng, and dizi. This ensemble called the Twelve Girls Band plays many of these instruments. Can you spot them in the video?
Music from Ireland
Some of the instruments from this region, like the bagpipes and the fiddle, were already familiar to us. Others, like the bodhran and the penny whistle were new. A lot of Irish music is written for dancing. Irish dancing is sometimes called step dancing. An Irish Jig is both a piece of music and a dance! You can learn how to dance a jig with this video.
Music from the Caribbean
Four White Horses is a folk song that comes from the Virgin Islands in the Caribbean. This song is tricky because of the syncopated rhythms. It's often sung while playing a hand game! We learned this game in class, but you can make up your own moves to use with the song. How fast can you go?
Music from Africa
Funga Alafia is a welcome song that comes from Nigeria. "Funga" means welcome. "Alafia" means peace or good health. "Ashe" means let it be so. When you watch this video you will see two African instruments. The men are playing a drum called a djembe. The djembe is pitched, so it plays a different sound depending on where you hit the drum head. The woman is playing a shekere, a hollowed out gourd that wears a beaded skirt. It rattles when it is shaken or bounced between hands. You can learn more about African music and instruments here.
Tambores
This song come from Brazil, where the main language is Portuguese. This song can also be called "O Ba Ba." Can you keep up with the hand jive?
Viola Organista
The viola organista was designed by the great inventor Leonardo da Vinci in 1488. This video is of an instrument that was built in Poland in 2013. It looks like a piano but sounds like a string quartet! The musician uses keys to play the notes of the viola organista, and the sound is created when these strings press against rotating wheels covered in horse hair.