Curated OER
Music: Off the Wall & Onto the Stage - Composing
Kids explore Gullah music from Africa and then create original compositions based on what they've learned. They practice traditional melodies and rhythms then make some of their own, which they then perform for the class.
Curated OER
Loop-based Composing based on Visual Stimuli
Students search the World Wide Web to locate an artistic image that inspires an aural composition. They compose a musical piece using loop-based composition software and use file management and storage techniques to archive project work....
Curated OER
Song Writing
In this music worksheet, learners identify specific tips for composing a song. They use strophic form where each verse has the same melody. Students also select a chord sequence and use cadences at the end of each phrase and modulations...
Curated OER
Composing Project
Students design, compose, and present short musical compositions for keyboard in this lesson plan meant for the high school choir class. This lesson can be adapted to any time frame, but the author suggests a considerable amount of time...
Curated OER
Mysterious Music
Eighth graders investigate how to compose music for a detective program. The goal is for them to discover the method needed. The idea was simple, they were told to compose the music with emotional tension that climaxed and then relaxed...
Curated OER
Music Technology
Students practice using keyboard and sequencing software to expand their compositions. They use the notes in the C Major Scale and playback their song written in an ABA song form. They complete pages in a basic piano workbook and...
Curated OER
The Rhythm of Life - Episode One - Rhythm
Students investigate the role of music in their lives. They examine rhythm as the building block of music and examine how to appreciate music. They investigate music as a tool in health and healing.
Curated OER
Internet Pen Pals
Students write letters to e-mail pals and respond to letters received. Students describe the geography of their community to their pals.
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Mit: Open Course Ware: Composing With Computers
A complete, undergraduate level online course on music composition with computers. Includes all course material, projects, assignments, and exams with solutions.
Other
The Duke Ellington Society
The Duke Ellington Society maintains this wealth of information on Duke Ellington and his works including news, information on the singers who worked with him, audio clips, and links to other Ellington sites.
PBS
Pbs: Elements of Music: Exploring the Composer's Tools
This online lesson will help students understand how composers write music by engaging in a project which culminates in their own compositions.
Other
Mackie Mixers: Home Page
Mackie is one of the highest quality studio mixer manufacturers in the world. Here they provide information and pictures of their mixers and the features offered.
Better Lesson
Better Lesson: Finding the Area Review and Assessment
Sixth graders find the area of rectangles, triangles, parallelograms, and trapezoids by using formulas or by composing into rectangles or triangles.
Better Lesson
Better Lesson: Filling Shadows With More and Less
First graders use their understanding of composing and decomposing shapes to cover a given area. Today's lesson is bringing together many of the geometric skills from previous lessons.
Khan Academy
Khan Academy: A Turner Drawing Guide
This Khan Academy resource is an article that familiarizes the student with the Turner drawing technique.
McREL International
Mc Rel: Whelmer #11 Learning Activity: Straw Oboes
An easy to do activity that investigates sound waves, wave length, frequency and pitch. The activity is presented in a lesson plan format that meets NSES standards.
McMaster University
Mc Master University: Music Composition for Beginners
A brief site on the advent of technology changing how music is written (and by whom) forever. One bad point is that for most of the links to work, you have to figure out for yourself where they go and type it in.
Other
Composing Music Using Computers
Understanding MIDI, digital audio, and how to compose using both. Although this site is from 1996, much of the information remains relevant.
Other
The Golden Rules of Songwriting
Do you have the desire to begin writing music but don't know how to get started? This well written article provides some very good advice to help you on your way.
Other
Berklee.com: Composition Major
This site gives details to what a composer, an arranger, and a conductor really do. Includes other related careers as well.
Other
Rock Instrumental Songwriting
Aimed primarily at the young guitarist, this column addresses how to begin writing your own songs. There is some good advice on how to begin to think of the structure of your song as opposed to just thinking of a few riffs.
Other
Structural Chord Progressions
When composing music, it is good to be sure you have the right set of chords surrounding your melody. This column provides a brief overview on how to begin to think of chord structures for your songs.
Other
Using Theme and Variation in Composing
A good article on how to take a musical idea and develop it further using theme and variations. Included are a few music samples in written form and mp3 form that help to explain the concept.
Other
Compositional Inspiration
Without going into specifics, this article provides general ideas on how to begin writing your own music. A few of the ideas discussed are recording yourself playing around, learn a new scale or pattern, and apply some new music theory...