Georges Bizet Habanera and Toreador Song from Carmen

Georges Bizet Habanera and Toreador Song from Carmen Primary classroom lesson plan Written by Rachel Leach

Lesson outcomes After this lesson, pupils will be able to: • listen and reflect on a piece of orchestral music • invent their own musical motifs and structure them into a piece • invent lyrics for a song • perform as an ensemble • learn musical language appropriate to the task Copyright : Words - Rachel Leach, Design - BBC 2

Curriculum checklist Learners will: • play and perform in ensemble contexts, using voices and playing musical instruments • improvise and compose music for a range of purposes using the interrelated dimensions of music • listen with attention to detail and recall sounds with increasing aural memory Copyright : Words - Rachel Leach, Design - BBC 3

Glossary of music terms Term Definition Bar a small fragment of music that is used to help counting Habanera a dance form originally from Cuba but now thought very Spanish sounding Opera a story told through singing, acting, music and movement Pitched percussion instruments that can play different pitches – xylophones, glockenspiels, chime bars etc. Tune another word for ‘melody’. A linear line of notes, like a musical sentence Unpitched percussion instruments that can only make a limited number of sounds – drums, shakers woodblocks, tambourine etc. Copyright : Words - Rachel Leach, Design - BBC 4

Lesson 1 Watching and listening Copyright Rachel Leach & BBC

Background – the composer Georges Bizet (1838 - 1875) • • • LESSON 1 French composer Extremely popular now but struggled to find fame during his short lifetime Most famous for the opera Carmen which contains some of the best Spanish sounding music ever written and some of the most famous melodies ever Copyright : Words - Rachel Leach, Design - BBC 6

Background – the music ‘Habanera’ and ‘Toreador Song’ from Carmen § Carmen is an opera from 1875 § It tells the story of a young factory worker called Carmen, her boyfriend Don Jose and a famous bullfighter called Escamillo § Habanera is the first song Carmen sings. The music perfectly describes her character § Toreador Song is the first song Escamillo sings, it shows off his swagger and confidence LESSON 1 Copyright : Words - Rachel Leach, Design - BBC 7

Watch the orchestral performance - Habanera https: //www. bbc. co. uk/programmes/p 03 c 0 yv 8 LESSON 1 Copyright : Words - Rachel Leach, Design - BBC 8

Watch the orchestral performance – Toreador https: //www. bbc. co. uk/programmes/p 03 c 0 xq 2 LESSON 1 Copyright : Words - Rachel Leach, Design - BBC 9

Describe and draw Carmen • From the style of the music, what is Carmen like? • Is she young or old? • What mood is she in? • What is she doing? LESSON 1 Copyright : Words - Rachel Leach, Design - BBC 10

Lesson 2 Habanera! Copyright Rachel Leach & BBC

Carmen’s signature song LESSON 2 Copyright : Words - Rachel Leach, Design - BBC 12

Let’s try with some instruments! LESSON 2 Copyright : Words - Rachel Leach, Design - BBC 13

Lesson 3 Hot Spanish Sunshine! Copyright Rachel Leach & BBC

Can you clap the rhythm? LESSON 3 Copyright : Words - Rachel Leach, Design - BBC 15

Let’s make the rhythm into a melody • Begin by moving downwards • Move to next-door notes • Uses white notes (C, D, E, F, G, A, B) LESSON 3 Copyright : Words - Rachel Leach, Design - BBC 16

Lesson 4 Olé! (or Olay!) Copyright Rachel Leach & BBC

Remember ‘Habanera’ and ‘Hot Spanish Sunshine’ LESSON 4 Copyright : Words - Rachel Leach, Design - BBC 18

Let’s make it Spanish! LESSON 4 Copyright : Words - Rachel Leach, Design - BBC 19

Make your own! Include: • 8 habaneras • The ‘hot Spanish sunshine’ tune • One or two moments of percussion punctuation • A big finish! LESSON 4 Copyright : Words - Rachel Leach, Design - BBC 20

Lesson 5 Toreador’s Song Copyright Rachel Leach & BBC

Let’s get to know Escamillo …and dance! LESSON 5 Copyright : Words - Rachel Leach, Design - BBC 22

Let’s get to know Escamillo LESSON 5 Copyright : Words - Rachel Leach, Design - BBC 23

Now let’s put them together LESSON 5 Copyright : Words - Rachel Leach, Design - BBC 24

Create new words for the melody LESSON 5 Copyright : Words - Rachel Leach, Design - BBC 25

Try it with this melody too LESSON 5 Copyright : Words - Rachel Leach, Design - BBC 26

Put your Toreador piece together • The ‘four-one’ rhythm and the ‘I’m the best there is’ rhythm with four dance moves • The ‘chorus’ – sung to the real tune with a pulse LESSON 5 Copyright : Words - Rachel Leach, Design - BBC 27

Lesson 6 Performance time Copyright Rachel Leach & BBC

Recap Carmen’s Habanera made from: The habanera rhythm The ‘hot Spanish sunshine tune The musical punctuation and Olé! Escamillo’s Song made from: The rhythms and poses The sung melody and pulse LESSON 6 Copyright : Words - Rachel Leach, Design - BBC 29

A sound effect for Jose LESSON 6 Copyright : Words - Rachel Leach, Design - BBC 30

Let’s perform! LESSON 6 Copyright : Words - Rachel Leach, Design - BBC 31

Taking it further – cross-curricular activities LISTENING: The best bits of Bizet’s opera were transformed into two suites, both feature fantastic music and there’s much more to listen to LITERACY: Write the story as a play, a novel or a newspaper report but come up with a different ending RESEARCH: Bizet was hugely inspired by Spain. He read a lot of books about Spain, ate Spanish food and totally immersed himself in all things Spanish. What countries inspire you? Immersed yourself in another country via books, music (and the internet!) just like Bizet. Copyright : Words - Rachel Leach, Design - BBC 32