!!

GRADE 9!

RECORD YOUR OWN !

mini

SONG

You will be recording your own mini song using your knowledge of chords on the

piano. Using 4 different instruments in Garageband, you will piece together a song by recording a chord progression and melody and adding rhythm to “spice things up”.

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Planning It’s important to have a plan!

! Use the following chart to plan out your song in the key of C major

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C MAJOR SCALE Write the letters of the C major scale above the corresponding numbers.

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1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

CHORDS Write the I, IV and V chords of C major below using the scale to help you.

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C (I) F (IV) G (V)

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PROGRESSION Write a chord progression (pattern) using only the chords above. You will need 8 bars of chords.

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BAR

1

2

3

4

5

6

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PRACTICE Practice makes perfect!

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1. In Garageband, set a tempo that you like. It is labelled BPM for Beats Per Minute.

Ex: 1 min = 60 BMP = 1 beat per second. 120 BMP = 2 beats per second.

! 2. Practice playing one chord per bar using whole notes. Use a sound of your choice.

! 3. Once you are comfortable, record the chords in Garageband on a track.

! ! !

7

8

MUSIC

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COMPOSE You are now becoming a songwriter.

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1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

6. 7.

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After completing the chord progression and recording that track, you will add three more tracks.

Select an appropriate drum loop for the style or feel that you desire.

Drag that drum loop into your project and loop it as many times as necessary.

Select a bass sound you would like to record your bass part.

To record the bass part, simply play the note of the chord that is playing.

For example, if you are playing a C major chord, the bass note will be a C.

Finally, choose a lead instrument for your melody.

After practicing your part, record a melody that uses ONLY the notes that are in the chord for that bar.

For example, if the chord is F major, you may only use the notes of the chord in the melody instrument. Those notes would be F, A or C.

EVALUATION The teacher does want to know how you did!

! Questions to ask yourself:

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!

CRITERIA

LEVEL 1

LEVEL 2

LEVEL 3

LEVEL 4

Accuracy

The notes and chords used in the song are not the I, IV and V chords of the selected key.

There are some chords or notes that are correct, but there are many errors left in the recording.

There are few errors in the chords or melody notes. The student is able to record the chords and melody with significant accuracy.

There are little to no errors present in the final product. The student has properly chosen the notes of the chords for the melody track as well as the appropriate chords of this key.

Tempo

The tempo is sporadic and inconsistent. Using a metronome would have helped.

There are many times when the tempo of the chords or melodies are not in sync with each other.

The melody and chords are consistently played in time with few errors.

The melody and chords are in tempo and in sync.

Musical Style

There is no consistency with the choices of instruments and drum loop. They do not conform to a single style.

The drum loops and instrument choices have some logical reasoning.

The drum loop and instrument choices are consistent with the style.

The choices for instrumentation are in keeping with the style the composer has chosen. There may be an extra track or creative use of instruments.

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-Do I have 4 tracks in my song?

-Did I only use the 1, IV and V chord of C major?

-Did I only use the notes of those chords in the melody?

-Do I have 8 bars of music?















TOTAL:

30 marks (10 per criteria)