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Gustav Holst and The Planets The Planets Suite Gustav Holst 1874 - 1934 IAL about a famous composer’s life • Gustav Holst was an English composer and music teacher for over 20 years. • Most of the music he composed was original, but he had influences from Hindu spiritualism and English folk tunes. IAL about a famous composer’s life Holst was born into a very musical family. His grandfather was a harp composer and teacher; his father was an organist, pianist and choirmaster, and his mother was a singer. Clara Holst Gustavus von Holst Adolf Holst IAL about a famous composer’s life As a child, Gustav was taught the piano and violin. This is Holst playing the violin. This is Holst’s piano. You can see it in the Holst Birthplace Museum. He composed The Planets on this piano. IAL about a famous composer’s life Gustav was a sickly child. His eyes were weak, but no-one realised that he needed to wear glasses. His chest was weak and he suffered from asthma. When he was young, Gustav hated playing the violin, but enjoyed playing the piano. IAL about a famous composer’s life Unfortunately, Holst also had pain in his hands, so it made practising the piano very difficult and painful. After leaving school, he got his first job as an organist and choirmaster. IAL about a famous composer’s life He became a student at the Royal College of Music, where he studied composition. Unfortunately, the pain in his right hand became worse. Playing for a long time was impossible and he had to accept that he would never be a professional concert pianist. IAL about a famous composer’s life Holst decided to take up the trombone. It would allow him to play in orchestras, and he could earn some money. Also, the experience would be useful to him as a composer. Perhaps, he also thought that playing the trombone would help to strengthen his chest and lungs. IAL about a famous composer’s life • Holst wrote The Planets Suite between 1914 and 1916. • Each of the seven movements is named after a planet of the Solar System and its corresponding astrological character. IAL about a famous composer’s life 1. Mars - the Bringer of War 2. Venus - the Bringer of Peace 3. Mercury - the Winged Messenger 4. Jupiter - the Bringer of Jollity 5. Saturn - the Bringer of Old Age 6. Uranus - the Magician 7. Neptune - the Mystic IAL about a famous composer’s life Holst did not compose a piece of music about Pluto, as Pluto was not discovered until 1930. Colin Matthews, a recent composer created a piece of music called Pluto: the Renewer. This is sometimes played alongside Holst’s Planet Suite in concerts. IAL how a stringed instrument works Mars is the Roman god of war and bloodshed, whose symbol is a spear and shield. IAL how a stringed instrument works Watch video clip: Watch Mars here While you listen, draw a picture of how the music makes you feel. IAL how a stringed instrument works In this piece of music, you hear a lot of string or bowed instruments. IAL how a stringed instrument works Holst gave an instruction for the instrumentalists to strike the string with their bow, rather than draw it across the strings. This gave the string instruments a more percussive sound. See a demonstration of col legno here http://datadragon.com/education/instruments /strings.shtml IAL how a stringed instrument works Space Music • Many modern pieces of music for space films have been based on Mars, the bringer of war. • Listen to this piece of music, and see what instruments you can hear. • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EjM NNpIksaI IAL how a stringed instrument works How does it sound similar to Mars the bringer of war? What does it make you think of? How does it make you feel? IAL how a stringed instrument works Group Activity • Make a tissue box banjo – Make a 2 inch hole in one end of the box. – Insert a kitchen roll tube 3 inches in and tape in place. – Tape down 4 elastic bands stretched around the box, covering the centre hole. – Experiment with different widths and lengths of bands. – Pluck the strings with your fingers. IAL how a stringed instrument works Plenary • Groups to demonstrate their banjo. • Discuss what difference different sized elastic bands made to the sounds created. IAL what timbre is Venus was the Roman goddess of love and beauty. Watch Venus here IAL what timbre is Venus was written to be the opposite to the music of Mars. Mars used very loud instruments such as con legno strings and brass. He therefore chose different instruments for Venus. IAL what timbre is • The timbre in music is the distinctive quality of a sound or instrument. This is why you can sometimes recognise certain instruments in a piece of music. • Holst decided that Venus should have a peaceful and soft timbre, in contrast to the harsh booming timbre of Mars. IAL what timbre is • Holst chose a celesta to be the main instrument in this piece. • The celesta looks similar to an upright piano or a large wooden music box. • The keys are connected to hammers which strike a graduated set of metal plates, which are suspended over wooden resonators. IAL what timbre is • The sound of the celesta is similar to that of a glockenspiel, but it has a much softer and more subtle timbre. • This quality gave the instrument its name. Celeste in French means ‘heavenly’. IAL what timbre is • Sometimes, people refer to timbre as the ‘colour’ of the music. • Listen to a bit of the music again with your eyes shut. • What colour does it make you think of? Why? • Which colours do you associate with peace? IAL what timbre is Group Activity Using a variety of percussion instruments, sort them into groups, based on their timbre or colour. IAL what timbre is Plenary • Children to choose an instrument and describe its timbre, either using descriptive words on its quality of tone or colour. • Does everyone agree on colour chosen? IAL how a woodwind instrument works Mercury was the messenger-god of Jupiter, the god of games, business and story-telling. Watch Mercury here IAL how a woodwind instrument works Mercury, the winged messenger has been described as flitting about, not unlike a cosmic butterfly. Listen to an extract again: What instruments can you hear? How can you tell? IAL how a woodwind instrument works Some woodwind instruments are played by vibrating one or two wooden reeds, whereas others are blown directly into the mouthpiece. IAL how a woodwind instrument works • Mercury consists of mainly woodwind instruments, that pass from one to another. • Woodwind is the section of the orchestra that makes a noise when breath is blown along it. Woodwind instruments are virtually straight, and are made of wood or plastic with some metal. http://datadragon.com/educati on/instruments/winds.shtml IAL how a woodwind instrument works Individual Activity We are going to create an oboe out of a drinking straw. • Cut the top of the straw to make a ‘reed’. • Pinch the end of the straw between your thumb and index fingers. Blow across the top end, but don’t blow into the straw. • Alter the pitch by moving your thumb and fingers up and down, while you keep pinching the straw. Challenge: Cut 5 straws of different lengths and tape together to make panpipes. IAL how a woodwind instrument works Plenary Did your straw work? What do you need to do to make a high or low sound? How would this work on a woodwind instrument? Demonstrate how the recorder works, and the pitch produced, based on the number of holes covered. IALT sing a song based on Gustav Holst’s Jupiter In Roman mythology, Jupiter was the king of heaven and Earth, and of all the Olympian gods. Watch Jupiter here IALT sing a song based on Gustav Holst’s Jupiter • The music to Jupiter the Bringer of Jollity has been used many times in recent English history. • It was used as the tune to a very famous English poem, ‘I vow to thee my country’, which is now what it is most well-known for. Christians often sing it as a hymn in church. IALT sing a song based on Gustav Holst’s Jupiter • The first verse of I vow to thee my country was played at the wedding of Prince Charles and Princess Diana in 1982. • The second verse was played at Princess Diana’s funeral in 1997. • http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=i+v ow+to+thee+my+country+lyrics&view=detai l&mid=635DB6D5D5AAD7B28373635DB6 D5D5AAD7B28373&first=0&FORM=NVPF VR IALT sing a song based on Gustav Holst’s Jupiter • It is also used for the ‘World in Union’, the theme to the Rugby World Cup. • The music has a very royal and patriotic feel, which is why it was chosen for this purpose. IALT sing a song based on Gustav Holst’s Jupiter Group Activity Listen to The World in Union, looking at the lyrics (words) and well as learning the tune. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ANW XW65zH28 IALT sing a song based on Gustav Holst’s Jupiter Plenary Which of the human values does The World in Union remind you of? Homework To learn The World in Union for a performance later in the term. IALT understand how music can show the passing of time In Roman mythology, Saturn is the god of agriculture. Watch Saturn here IALT understand how music can show the passing of time • After all the excitement of Jupiter, Holst decides to change the mood. • Saturn becomes a slow march, showing time going on, or someone or something ageing. IALT understand how music can show the passing of time http://www.desymus.org/ExplorerConcert/ Explorer_2011-12_Holst.html • At first, two alternating strange sounding chords are heard from flutes and harps. • Then a slow melody (tune) is played by the double basses. • The music gradually gets faster as the trombones play a 4-beat pattern. IALT understand how music can show the passing of time http://www.desymus.org/ExplorerConcer t/Explorer_2011-12_Holst.html • The music becomes louder and more agitated. Bells clang and the loud brass instruments play. • After the loud climax, the music ends much more peacefully. IALT understand how music can show the passing of time Group Activity • To use a variety of instruments to compose a short piece of music to show the passing of time. • You could use: – Volume/dynamics to vary the feeling – Different types of instruments IALT understand how music can show the passing of time Plenary • Groups to perform their compositions to the class. • Constructive criticism encouraged. – Ensure school rules are followed at all times. IAL how a composer uses a motif to create harmony Uranus was the first ruler of the universe and the god of the sky. He was the husband of Gaea, the goddess of the earth. Watch Uranus here IAL how a composer uses a motif to create harmony • Holst used a pattern called a motif or motive throughout Uranus. • It is used like a repeating pattern in a story, and helps to join different sections of a piece of music together. • Uranus has a 4-note motif. Different instruments play this motif throughout the piece. • http://www.desymus.org/ExplorerConcert/Exp lorer_2011-12_Holst.html IAL how a composer uses a motif to create harmony • Classical composer Beethoven famously used a 4-note motif in his 5th Symphony: IAL how a composer uses a motif to create harmony • Motifs have also been used in films, particularly space-themed ones such as Close Encounters of the Third Kind. Aliens communicate with humans using a 5-note motif: http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=clo se+encounters+of+the+third+kind+music&v iew=detail&mid=C8D41A23F60AD9C05CA 4C8D41A23F60AD9C05CA4&first=0&FO RM=NVPFVR IAL how a composer uses a motif to create harmony Group Activity Create your own motif that could be used throughout a longer piece of music. – Your motif should be up to 6 notes long – You could use different instruments – You could use an echo effect IAL how a composer uses a motif to create harmony Plenary Perform your motif to the class, explaining why you chose the instrument(s) and the notes used. IALT understand how a fade can be used to end a piece of music In Roman mythology, Neptune was the god of the water and the Sea. Watch Neptune here IALT understand how a fade can be used to end a piece of music • Neptune was one of the first pieces of orchestral music to have a fade-out ending. • Fading is a way to reduce the sound, so the music doesn’t just end. • Holst wanted Neptune “to be repeated until the sound is lost in the distance. So there was no difference between sound and silence.” IALT understand how a fade can be used to end a piece of music • ‘Hey Jude’ by the Beatles is an example of a long fade-out coda that lasts more than 4 minutes. • Video/audio clip: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qp UzrOlEs1I IALT understand how a fade can be used to end a piece of music Group Activity: • Create a short musical composition, either singing or with instruments. • Create a fade-out at the end. – The fade should repeat at least 4 times before ending IALT understand how a fade can be used to end a piece of music Plenary: • Perform your compositions to the class. • Encourage constructive criticism. – Ensure the schools rules are followed at all times. IALT create my own composition based on ideas used by Gustav Holst Pluto was the god of the underworld. He was also known as Hades in Greek mythology. Watch Pluto here IALT create my own composition based on ideas used by Gustav Holst • Pluto the Renewer was not composed by Holst, as it was not discovered until nearly 20 years after he wrote The Planets. • In 2000, Colin Matthews, an English composer, wrote Pluto the Renewer as an additional ending to the suite. IALT create my own composition based on ideas used by Gustav Holst • Unfortunately, six years later in 2006, Pluto was removed as a planet, and re-classified as a ‘dwarf planet’. IALT create my own composition based on ideas used by Gustav Holst Independent/Group Activity • Create a composition, based on space. Ideas could include the Solar system or aliens. • You could include some musical ideas used by Holst: – – – – – – Motif Fade-out Timbre Variety of instruments Dynamics Pitch IALT create my own composition based on ideas used by Gustav Holst Plenary • Perform your compositions to the class. • Encourage constructive criticism. – Ensure the schools rules are followed at all times.