Class # Pno-T Exploring The Piano and Basics of Music Composition
Class # Pno-T Exploring The Piano and Basics of Music Composition
Class # Pno-T Exploring The Piano and Basics of Music Composition
PNO-T
Description We explore the Piano and learn a song. We then explore basic
components of music (melody, harmony, bass, chords and rhythm) and
use them to create a remix of the Happy Birthday song!
In-Class Notes for song and backing track for advanced beginners
Resources MusiQuest
Hello, my name is <Teacher Name> and I am going to help you learn Music! I promise this
will be a fun class and you will discover how amazing it is to learn Music just like I did.
I’m curious to know why you want to learn Music or what got you interested in learning
Music?
<Wait for student response and understand student motivations>
That’s really nice. Let me tell you what kind of Music I like and after that I would love to
hear from you too.
<Teacher shares the kind of Music or songs they like to listen to - favourite band, songs,
interesting memories of performances, first song they learnt.
So that’s about me. What kind of Music do YOU like to listen to?
<Wait for student response>
<Tell the student that they could learn their favourite song or movie theme through the
course>
<If the teacher knows any of the student’s favourite songs then they play them>
I’ve got a little surprise performance for you. Why don’t you sit back and enjoy and I’ll
play some Music for you. After that you can tell me what you liked the most, OK?
<Perform 2 to 3 songs and for each song give a brief introduction about the song>
Thank you. So which song did you like and what did you like about it?
<Wait for student response and appreciate their response enthusiastically>
It’s amazing isn’t it? You need sugar to taste something sweet or a flower to smell
something nice but with Music you can feel so many different emotions just by listening!
<For the next section, you will need to know the Grade of the student which will be
visible on your screen on the top left side so please make a note of that.>
No problem, you will not need a Piano today. I would like to share with you all the
interesting things that you will learn as a part of this course.
Alright can you please click on the activity called ‘Start Virtual Piano’?
This website opens a virtual piano which looks something like this:
The C5 on this virtual keyboard (i.e. C note of the 5th Octave) is pressed through the
alphabet ‘S’ on the keyboard.
The 8 continuous keys on the laptop’s keyboard starting from S/D/F/G/H/J/K/L can be
used for playing the entire C5 octave.
By clicking on ‘Key Assist’ on the virtual piano the student can also label the keys as per
the music alphabets (C/D/E/F/G/A/B).
Did you enjoy that? Now imagine how much more fun it will be to play an actual
keyboard!
<Proceed to the Happy Birthday Remix activity>
Enter this section only if student has an instrument that can be used
How long have you been learning the instrument? Can you please play something for
me?
<Listen to response from the student and observe them as they play the piano/keyboard
and decide as follows:
1. Beginner
a. They’ve not learnt before or can play simple songs with one hand / finger
b. Unable to play anything meaningful
2. Non Beginner
a. Able to play simple songs with both hands
b. Have learnt formally before
The teacher introduces the student to the keys on the Piano and asks what they know on
the Piano.
Can you see the pattern on the Piano on the Black Keys?
<student observes there are Patterns of 3 black keys and 2 black keys is being repeated>
a) Okay let’s only look at the Two Black Keys now, can you see a white key in
between?
<student response>
Yes, that’s the Letter D, can you play at least two D’s on the Piano?
<student plays>
Note C is the white key before D while Note E is the white key after D. Can you
play C <student plays>, Can you play D again? <student plays>, Can you play E?
<student plays>
b) Now, F,G,A,B are placed around the Three Black Keys. Can you try to play F?
<student plays>, Can you try G? <student plays>, Can you try A? <student plays>,
Can you try B? <student plays>
c) Can you play all from C-G one by one?
<student plays>
Can you sing the song for me? It is the Happy Birthday song.
<The student may or may not sing. If they don’t then teacher can encourage them to sing
along>
Now, let’s play the song. I want you to raise your Right Hand and show me 4 fingers
excluding your thumb.
<student shows>
We will be playing two G’s, one with the right hand and other with the left hand.
Let’s assume the G that we are playing with the Left Hand is G1 and the G being played
with the Right Hand as G2. G1 and G2 are indicative of random G’s on the piano and not
the actual ones.
I want you to keep the smallest one of your Right hand on G2, Ring finger on F, Middle
one on E and index or pointer on D.
I want you to show me the same 4 fingers on the Left Hand now and keep the smallest
one on G1, Ring Finger on A, Middle one on B and pointer on C. But make sure they are
one after another. You can also look at the sequence of Letters on the Slide I am
presenting.
<student shows>
Awesome, now we will follow the alphabets on the Happy Birthday sheet and play.
<Encourage and help the student play this song>
Wasn’t that great? Now let’s have some more fun and play this with drums! I have
created a simple track which I will play for you and you can play the same Happy
Birthday song. I’m sure you will enjoy it!
<Click on ‘Happy Birthday Video Track 1’ and ask student to play when the video is
displayed on the student’s screen>
<Encourage and help the student play this song. Proceed to Happy Birthday Remix
activity if only 30 minutes or less are remaining>
That was simply amazing! Now we are ready for the next level! This time you are going
to play with a full orchestra! Imagine you are at the centre of the stage and surrounded
by other instrument players around you - there are drums, guitar etc.
I’m sure you will love this. Let me play the track for this. We will listen to this first and
then you can play along once you are comfortable.
<Click on ‘Happy Birthday Video Track 2’ and ask student to play when the video is
displayed on the student’s screen>
<Encourage the student to play in rhythm to the song.
<This song is set up like a duet in which the teacher and student alternate and play parts
of the song as below
We first teach the student the ‘Student Part’ and then start playing the song once the
student feels confident.>
So the name of the song we’re going to learn is called ‘Fur Elise’ (pronounced as
fyur-elise). Let’s first listen to this song!
Did you like that? It sounds so nice! This song was composed almost 200 years ago by
Beethoven who is one of the most famous composers. The name of the song means ‘For
Elise’ and it is a mystery who Elise really was! Awesome, let’s start learning this.
You only have to play this music with the right hand.
Let’s say your thumb is Finger 1 <Show> and the rest of the fingers are 2,3,4,5 <show>
We place the smallest finger of our Right Hand (5) on E and then 4th (ring finger) on the
Black key before. Look at the finger pattern - 54545
<Play the 54545 pattern for the student to help them understand>
Now, your turn. Just look at the visual very carefully and go..
<student tries playing>
<Make them play till they get it right>
Exactly! You got it. Now, let’s play the second line of the Finger pattern, 1321 which is
B-D-C-A.
<Play this pattern to explain better>
<student tries>
Amazing, Now let’s play the complete Finger Pattern. Let me play once so that you can
understand the flow.
<Play the finger pattern given on the Slide>
<student tries>
NOTE FOR TEACHERS - Please practice this before the class to confidently play with the
student. You can simply follow the notes/letter names. You can choose a higher octave
than Middle C to play this piece.
So we will alternate. You play your part and then I will play mine and we will do this 2
times. Let’s give it a try.
<This activity has more student led parts compared to Fur Elise and it is also set up like a
duet as below:
We first teach the student the ‘Student Part 1 & 2’ and then start playing the song once
the student feels confident.>
So the name of the song we’re going to learn is called ‘Turkish March’. Let’s listen to the
song first and then you can tell me why it might be called ‘Turkish March’!
Did you like that? It sounds so nice! Can you guess why it’s called ‘Turkish March’?
<Wait for response and congratulate for correct answer or guide them towards it>
It’s called ‘Turkish March’ because the song has a strong and regular pattern much like a
marching band. Also, it uses many patterns from Turkish style of music which originate
from the country ‘Turkey’ hence the name! This was composed by Mozart about 250
years ago! Isn’t it amazing that it is still so popular?
You only have to play this music with the right hand.
We place the smallest finger of our Right Hand (5) on E and then 4th (ring finger) on D.
We can flexibly use Finger 2 for the Middle Black Key and B. Let’s play the first finger
pattern 2-1-2 (Black Key) 1-3. Don’t worry about using different fingers. You can also use
Left Hand to help you
Let me show you how the first line of the pattern sounds like
<Teacher to play the first line of finger pattern>
<student tries playing>
<Make them play till they get it right>
Now let’s play the second line of the Finger pattern, 4-3-2-3-5
<student tries>
<Help them till they get it right>
You have to follow something very similar to Part 1. Can you try to play the finger
patterns one by one
<Let the student try>
<If the student is not able to play, guide them by calling our Finger Numbers specified for
particular letter names on the Piano. Please refrain from calling “sharps” or “flats” for
this lesson>
NOTE FOR TEACHERS - Please practice this before the class to confidently play with the
student. You can simply follow the notes/letter names. You can choose a higher octave
than Middle C to play this piece. Follow the colours.
Similarly, there are many ingredients which we use in music and today I will introduce the
two most important ingredients!
Understanding Melody
The first ingredient is called Melody. This is the tune that you hum when you are singing
a song. This tune sets the mood for the song and can make it happy or sad. Do you want
to see?
<Play C-major i.e. C-E-G once and then C-minor ie. C-Eb-G and ask the student what
difference did they feel?>
Can you hum a happy and sad sounding melody for me?
<Encourage student to respond and make up a melody>
Great!
Understanding Rhythm
The second ingredient is called rhythm. Rhythm is a repeating pattern and depending on
how fast the pattern is it also gives the Music a sense of speed. For example, when a train
is pulling off the station you hear a slow choo-choo-choo but when it is speeding you
hear the same choo-choo-choo faster.
Even a simple rhythm with a drum or a pen or a spoon can be Music without any melody.
Just the way you might make a pizza with just cheese! Listen to this!
<Orally or with a nearby object perform a simple percussion like a drum beat>
To help you understand Melody and Rhythm better we are going to do another fun
activity. This time we will create a remix of the famous Happy Birthday song and you can
choose which type of version you want!
Please click on the Happy Birthday Remix activity link that you can see on your screen on
the right hand side.
<The student will see the screen below. If not, ask the student to close that browser and
click on the activity link again. Sometimes this takes 2 attempts. Student can click on
arrows at the bottom of the screen to navigate and check all the options>
So here are your options, which one do you think you will like the most?
1. Hip Hop
2. Tropical - as if you are celebrating your birthday on a beach
3. Techno - this has a groovy and dance like mood
4. Rock!
<Start the Happy Birthday quest based on the student’s choice and start guiding the
student to explore different musical instruments and have fun with the groove!>
<Melody Section
Once all the dotted boxes are clicked they can hit the play button and hear the melody
and if required also change the instrument by clicking on the Melody icon on the right
side. If satisfied, ask the student to click on the blue arrow to go to the Rhythm section.
Remember: The next arrow will appear only after all dotted boxes have been clicked.
Rhythm Section
Tip: Let the music keep playing as the student adds drums. The drums section is more
complex so some kids may not enjoy it without the background music.
Once completed, encourage them to try other drum kits.
If satisfied, ask the student to click on the blue arrow to complete the song.
I loved how you stayed focused throughout the activity. So here you go!
<You can give the student a hat for ‘Concentration’ as a reward for their focus!>
Remember: The next arrow will appear only after all dotted boxes have been clicked.
On clicking the blue arrow the student sees a pop-up that looks like this.
Follow the next 5 simple steps to submit the remix URL in the class. This will be sent to
the parent at the end of the trial class.
Step 1: After clicking on ‘Save Song’ click on ‘Exit’ and you will see a screen like this:
Step 2: Guide the student to click on the Red Arrow on the top left side.
This will take you to the main account page which looks like this:
Step 4: Ask the student to click on the blue sharing icon and copy the link to the Happy
Birthday song.
That’s amazing! You will get a link to this after the class so you can send it after the class
to your friends and family!
I had a lot of fun today! Did you enjoy the class too?
<Wait for student response and reaction>
Remember to share your Happy Birthday song with your friends! I think it sounds great
and they will love it.
Now I would like to have a word with your parents. Would you mind calling your mother
or father?
Teachers can use the script below for their pitch depending on the time available.
Suggested Elevator Pitch (If you have less than 5 mins with the parent)
<Student Name> was wonderful in the class today. I really enjoyed the class too! Let me
tell you about the course in brief.
<Student Name> would you like to play what you learnt today?
Perform for Music has a very modern, performance and creativity based curriculum.
Students learn music through songs they choose, they perform in 14 live recitals which
gives them a lot of confidence and also motivates them to practice. They learn about 35
songs that they can choose so they will really enjoy their learning journey.
There are around 25 different music related games that students can access after the
class which improve their rhythm skills, listening skills and note knowledge.
I would love to teach <Student Name> before my slots fill up. The Academic Counsellor
will call you after the class to share more details about the course and how to enroll.
Suggested Detailed Pitch (If you have more than 5 mins with the parent)
<Open the wrap up pitch by clicking on the ‘Wrap up pitch’ option on the panel>
Hello Sir / Madam, hope you are doing well. I had a blast with <Student name> today.
May I know why you are considering a Music course for <Student name>?
<Wait for response>
<Student Name> would you like to play what you learnt today?
I especially like the point about Grit because in Music children rarely get anything correct
the first time. They have to stay at it and finally they learn and then really enjoy the
feeling of having learnt something new.
Even in academics, there is research that suggests that children who undergo intensive
music instrument learning are on an average 1 year ahead of their peers.
Regular recital events in which the students perform before other students and their
families and it is a global audience. It really boosts the confidence of students.
Students can choose songs that they like and can build a repertoire of 35 songs. Since
they learn songs they like, the learning journey is much more enjoyable.
Course encourages students to compose and improvise right from the first class. In fact,
even today in the trial class, we created a fun remix of the Happy Birthday song,
<If the student is nearby you can ask them to play the Happy Birthday Remix>
If the student is sure about the instrument they would like to learn then you can start
directly with the Novice Level.
Novice Level has 48 classes:
● Build a strong foundation in the instrument
● Basic music theory
● Compose simple music and are able to express themselves through Music
<Wait for response and if the parent is curious share more details about the curriculum
which are in the later slides>
Thank you again for your time. I hope you got all the details you needed to consider
enrolling <student name>. I strongly recommend that you start as soon as you can.
Childhood is the best time to learn music and it is also when they benefit the most from
it!
Good bye!
<Mark class as completed and share remarks for the sales team>
In-Class Activities
(Teacher Led)
In-Class Activities
(Student Led)
Post-Class Activities
OPS UPLOAD
Concepts Covered Today Not Applicable