Forty-Part Motet - The Toronto Consort

presents:
Janet Cardiff
Forty-Part Motet
Organized by the National Gallery of Canada
Teachers' Guide
Written by Alex Eddington
This innovative undertaking by the
Toronto Consort has been generously
supported by the Metcalf Foundation
under its Strategic Initiatives Program.
Table of Contents
Part 1: Introduction to the Project
Forty-Part Motet and related workshops .....................................................1
Where and When .........................................................................................2
Workshop/installation schedule ...................................................................2
How to get the most out of Janet Cardiff's Forty-Part Motet ......................3
Some important things to remember............................................................4
About the Toronto Consort...........................................................................5
Toronto Consort: Education Concerts...........................................................6
Part 2: Frequently Asked Questions
What is the sound installation Forty-Part Motet? ..............................................................8
How does Janet Cardiff describe Forty-Part Motet? .........................................................9
Who are the voices of Forty-Part Motet? ..........................................................................9
How long is Forty-Part Motet? ..........................................................................................9
What will Forty-Part Motet sound like? ............................................................................10
Where has Forty-Part Motet been presented? .................................................................10
Who is Janet Cardiff? What are some of her other works of art? .....................................11
Who was Thomas Tallis? ...................................................................................................12
What is Spem in alium?.....................................................................................................13
Why did Thomas Tallis compose a 40-voice motet?.........................................................13
What iss a motet? .............................................................................................................14
What is polyphonic music? What is counterpoint? ...........................................................14
What is imitative counterpoint? ........................................................................................15
What do the words “Spem in alium” mean? ....................................................................15
Does anyone still perform the motet Spem in alium? How difficult is it to sing? .............16
What are some notable recordings of Spem in alium? .....................................................16
What is the legacy of Tallis' other music? .........................................................................17
Did any other composers write pieces with 40 (or more) parts? ......................................17
Part 3: Classroom Activities
Activity 1:
Activity 2:
Activity 3:
Activity 4:
Music for a Grand Occasion ............................................19
Letter to a Duke ...............................................................21
Instant Polyphony ............................................................23
Forty-Part Soundscape ....................................................25
Part 4: Connections to the Ontario Curriculum
Grade 7 Music ...........................................................................28
Grade 8 Music ...........................................................................28
Grade 9 Music (Open) ...............................................................29
Grade 10 Music (Open) .............................................................29
Grade 11 Music (University/College Preparation) .....................30
Grade 11 Music (Open) .............................................................31
Grade 12 Music (Workplace Preparation) ..................................31
Grade 12 Music (University/College Preparation) .....................32
Part 5: Online Resources
Janet Cardiff and Forty-Part Motet .............................................33
Thomas Tallis and Spem in alium ................................................33
Ensembles and festivals ..............................................................34
The Chapel Royal at St. James's Palace ......................................34
Renaissance Music .......................................................................34
Life and culture (including music) in Elizabethan England ...........34
The Toronto Consort ....................................................................34
Part 1
Introduction to the Project
Forty-Part Motet and related workshops
In September and October 2012, the Toronto Consort will present Janet Cardiff's Forty-Part
Motet, organized by the National Gallery of Canada. This unique sound installation will be
running in the gymnasium of Trinity-St. Paul's United Church during Scotiabank Nuit Blanche.
As a part of this project, we are also offering two different workshops to students in the
Greater Toronto Area, free of charge.
1. We are pleased to offer a workshop and installation experience to school groups at
Trinity-St. Paul's on October 1 and 2, 2012. This 60-minute hands-on workshop is
available to Grade 7 to 12 students. The workshop will be general in nature,
appropriate for students of music, visual art, drama, history, media studies, and
other subjects.
2. From October to December, we offer in-school, performance-based workshops in
Renaissance music. These are aimed at music students in Grade 7 to 12, in any
performance discipline: vocal, strings, band, guitar, or keyboard. Toronto Consort
musicians will come to your school to work with a music class or ensemble, either
on repertoire that teachers have previously selected, or on repertoire that we bring.
The workshop can be adapted to any level of experience.
This teachers' guide is aimed primarily at school groups who will attend the first
workshop: the workshop/installation experience at Trinity-St. Paul's.
This innovative undertaking by the Toronto Consort has been generously supported by the
Metcalf Foundation under its Strategic Initiatives Program.
For more information about the workshops being offered, and to register
your school group, please contact Alex at (647) 448-0071.
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Where and When
The Forty-Part Motet workshop/installation experience will take place at Trinity-St. Paul's United
Church.
The church is located at 427 Bloor Street West: at the corner of Bloor St. and Robert St., one block
west of Spadina.
You will enter through the doors on the north-east corner of the church, at Robert St.
A volunteer will meet you at the Robert Street doors.
Please plan to arrive at least 15 minutes ahead of your scheduled workshop start time.
Our workshops are tightly scheduled so we serve the maximum number of student groups.
Entering through this door involves climbing a small number of stairs; please inform us and/or the
volunteer on duty if anyone in your group requires an accessible entrance.
Workshop/installation schedule
The total length of the workshop/installation experience is approximately 60 minutes.
We are using several rooms in Trinity-St. Paul's United Church so that we can have a new group arrive
every 30 minutes.
Schedule:
25 minutes
Hands-on introductory workshop on Renaissance music. This will be
general – aimed at all students with any (or no) level of musical training.
(in the Sanctuary)
5 minutes
Move to Chapel.
10 minutes
Introduction to Forty-Part Motet – Janet Cardiff's installation: the
technology, the music, and how to get the most out of it (in the Chapel)
15 minutes
Forty-Part Motet installation experience (in the Gymnasium)
5 minutes
Q+A (in the Chapel)
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How to get the most out of Janet Cardiff's Forty-Part Motet
Feel free to move around the room, stopping anywhere you want, listening to the music in any way
you choose – this is what the artist intended!
Here are some suggestions for how to get the most out of Forty-Part Motet. Obviously you can't do
all of these in 15 minutes, so make some basic decisions ahead of time about how you might spend
your time in the installation:
•
Follow the music with your feet. If something you hear catches your attention, walk toward it.
When you want to hear something else – move. Please always move slowly and carefully.
•
Change your distance. Listen up close to one loudspeaker. Step back a bit and listen to a
group of speakers. Go to the middle of the room and listen to the sound blending in your
ears. Compare these different experiences.
•
Make friends with a singer. Spend a few minutes listening to only one loudspeaker. What is
that singer's contribution to the whole piece? What is their voice like? Walk back to the centre
of the room. Can you pick your favourite singer's voice out of a 40-voice mass texture?
•
Spot the imitation. Like many Renaissance composers, Thomas Tallis used imitative
counterpoint in his music. Listen for rhythms and melodies that are imitated between voices –
this can be a challenge when 40 voices are singing (see “What is Imitative Counterpoint?” on
Page 15). Try literally following the imitation by walking around the room.
•
Ride the chord changes. Tallis composed this piece in blocks of harmony. Sometimes you'll
hear one chord for a long time, and then the music will suddenly change harmonies. Stand in
one place, focussing on the harmony. When the chord changes, change your position in the
room.
•
Visualize. As you listen to the music, notice what images or colours come to mind. Do they
stay the same or do they change? Are the changes gradual or sudden? Try to remember so
you can compare your experience with others.
•
Describe. Try to put your experience of the installation into words. Bring a notebook with you
and write down any words or phrases that come to mind. You don't need to make sense of
them. Later, compare what you wrote with others.
•
Do some research. This guide contains a lot of information about artist Janet Cardiff,
composer Thomas Tallis, Renaissance music and so on – but that is just a starting point. At the
end of this guide you will find a list of resources to explore. Get to know the piece Spem in
alium by listening to recordings online. Take a look at Janet Cardiff's website to learn about
her other work. The more context you have coming in, the more you'll get out of Forty-Part
Motet.
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Some important things to remember
• Don't touch the equipment. Forty-Part Motet involves a lot of expensive speakers, cables,
and audio technology. You can look at all of it, even up close – the technology is part of the
artistic experience. But if you touch anything, you will be asked to leave by security
personnel.
• Look around. It's okay to listen with your eyes closed when you're standing still. In fact,
that's a great way to focus on the sound. But to avoid collisions with other people, keep
your eyes open as you move around the installation room.
• Move slowly. There will be up to 50 other people in the installation room with you. Please
be considerate and safe: always walk slowly and carefully. Running is not allowed.
• Listen silently: It is tempting to talk with friends about what you are experiencing. Please
respect the other people in the room: save your comments for afterward. It's okay to take
notes!
• Park your phone: Please make sure that your cell phone is on silent mode – even vibrating
phones can disturb other people. Put your phone away while you are visiting the
installation.
• Finally, please note that photography and audio recording are NOT allowed in the
Forty-Part Motet installation.
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About the Toronto Consort
"Toronto should count its blessings that it has an ensemble like the Consort to expose it to the
masterpieces of Early Music. From soloists to musicians to conductor David Fallis, this was early
music-making at its very best." —Toronto Star
Since its founding in 1972, the Toronto
Consort has become internationally
recognized for its excellence in the
performance of medieval, renaissance
and early baroque music. Some of
Canada’s leading early music specialists
have come together to form the Toronto
Consort whose members include both
singers and instrumentalists (lute,
recorder, guitar, flute, early keyboards
and percussion).
The Toronto Consort:
(top row) David Fallis, Alison Melville, Michelle DeBoer,
John Pepper, Paul Jenkins.
(bottom row) Katherine Hill, Terry McKenna, Laura Pudwell,
Ben Grossman.
Photo Credit: Paul Orenstein
Each year The Toronto Consort offers a
subscription series in Toronto. These
concerts are constantly exploring new
repertoires and new ways to bring early
music to the modern audience. The
Consort often works in collaboration with
other artists, such as actors, dancers and visual artists, to produce concerts which have dramatic as
well as musical appeal. Many of the Consort’s most successful Toronto programs have been taken on
tour across Canada, the United States and Europe.
The Toronto Consort is heard frequently on Canadian and international radio and television and has
appeared with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra and the Montreal Symphony Orchestra as well as the
North German Radio Orchestra. Its many recordings include the Praetorius Christmas Vespers, The
DaVinci Collection, The Queen: Music for Elizabeth I, The Way of the Pilgrim, Mariners and
Milkmaids, The Little Barley-Corne, Nowell Sing We, the Juno-nominated Full Well She Sang,
Orlando di Lasso: Chanson and Madrigals, and O Lusty May.
Unusual for an early music ensemble, but further evidence of the Consort’s versatility and virtuosity, is
its contemporary repertoire. Canadian composers such as John Beckwith, Lothar Klein and David
Keane have written pieces especially for The Toronto Consort. The Toronto Consort recorded the
soundtrack for Atom Egoyan’s award-winning film The Sweet Hereafter.
Visit the Toronto Consort online at www.TorontoConsort.org
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Toronto Consort: Education Concerts
The Toronto Consort offers an extensive Student Education Project designed for students of high
school age. The programs are presented at Trinity-St. Paul's Centre in Toronto. Three unique
educational opportunities are offered:
1) Shakespeare's Songbook brings alive the kinds of music which would have been heard by William
Shakespeare in Renaissance England. Based on researches in the field, this 50-minute concert/lecture
uses the songs and dances of Shakespeare's plays as a way of introducing high school students to the
wonderful world of Elizabethan music.
With music for fools, fairies and Falstaff, students hear and are introduced to ballads, recorder and
hurdy-gurdy improvisations, harpsichord fantasias and a capella vocal works. A great way to increase
understanding of William Shakespeare, and to be introduced to an unforgettable musical world!
2) An Introduction to Medieval Music is a
wonderful way to introduce students to the
unusual world of medieval music. The 50-minute
program is devised as a pilgrimage, just as it
might have happened in medieval Europe in the
early 13th century.
First stop is Paris, where we hear the cries of
street vendors, listen to itinerant students singing
the original Carmina Burana, and take part in
lively instrumental dances. As we travel through
Students learn about the Medieval hurdy-gurdy
France we encounter a group of knights on their
way to the Crusades, and hear their songs and
stories. Finally we reach Spain where we are joined by throngs of pilgrims singing cantigas and
dancing. Throughout, students are introduced to medieval instruments and their unique sounds.
3) The Marco Polo Project is a creative re-imagining of the extraordinary music the 13th-century
Venetian explorer might have heard on his travels.
The impetus for this 50-minute education concert came from the fact that students in Toronto today
come from all around the world, and represent a wide range of cultures and musical backgrounds.
The Consort wanted a way to connect early music with these other musical traditions. Marco Polo is a
perfect vehicle, because he travelled so extensively through the middle East and southern Russia to
China. This education concert follows Marco Polo’s travels, with an emphasis on the instruments and
the singing style of the different cultures he might have encountered on his journey.
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Students hear examples of Chinese musical styles and instruments and traditional Georgian music,
which features incredible vocal gymnastics, including nimble counterpoint and strident dissonant
chord tunings. Around these pieces from Georgia and China, the Toronto Consort plays examples of
the lively dances and haunting laude (Italian spiritual songs) which would have been known by Marco
Polo and his family.
The Student Education Project is designed for secondary school students, to introduce them to the
rich musical and cultural heritage of the Middle Ages, Renaissance and early Baroque periods. These
programs complement studies in many areas including English, Music, Modern Languages,
Performing Arts, and History.
Find out more and download teachers' guides at
www.TorontoConsort.org/education/education.html
For more information on the programs, dates of presentation, and bookings,
please call Lisa at 416-966-1045.
Toronto Consort singers in rehearsal with conductor David Fallis
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Part 2
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What is the sound installation Forty-Part Motet?
A: Janet Cardiff's sound installation Forty-Part Motet (2001) transforms the experience of listening to
Thomas Tallis' masterpiece of English Renaissance music, the 40-voice motet Spem in alium (see
“What is Spem in alium?” on page 13).
40 loudspeakers are arranged
around a room, each one playing a
recording of one voice in Tallis'
piece. The recordings are carefully
synchronized. The speakers are on
stands set at human head height,
and are arranged in 8 groups of 5:
the same way that Tallis arranged
the parts into 8 choirs in his score.
However, the spacing of the
speakers is wider than a choir
would stand, and the audience is
completely surrounded by an oval
of constantly shifting sound.
Forty-Part Motet at MoMA in New York City
Cardiff's installation allows you to experience Thomas Tallis' choral piece Spem in
alium in any way you choose.
With the option to “sample” any loudspeaker at any time (by moving closer to it), you
can listen to one voice, or to the harmonies created by a group of voices. If you stand
in the middle of the room, the voices blend into a mass of sound. By moving around
the room, you create your own unique experience and build a personal connection
with the music.
For suggestions of ways to frame your Forty-Part Motet experience, see Page 3.
Forty-Part Motet is in the permanent collection of the National Gallery of Canada.
It won the National Gallery's Millennium Prize in 2001.
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Q: How does Janet Cardiff describe Forty-Part Motet?
A:"While listening to a concert you are normally seated in front of the choir, in traditional audience
position. With this piece I want the audience to be able to experience a piece of music from the
viewpoint of the singers. Every performer hears a unique mix of the piece of music. Enabling the
audience to move throughout the space allows them to be intimately connected with the voices.
It also reveals the piece of music as a changing construct. As well I am interested in how sound
may physically construct a space in a sculptural way and how a viewer may choose a path through
this physical yet virtual space.
I placed the speakers around the room in an oval so that the listener would be able to really feel
the sculptural construction of the piece by Tallis. You can hear the sound move from one choir to
another, jumping back and forth, echoing each other and then experience the overwhelming
feeling as the sound waves hit you when all of the singers are singing.”
—Janet Cardiff, www.cardiffmiller.com
Q: Who are the voices of Forty-Part Motet?
A: Cardiff worked with the Salisbury Cathedral
Choir, recording one voice at a time. This
means that the entire piece only comes
together when the installation is heard – in the
ear of the listener.
Janet Cardiff
Choir Recording
Photo: Hugo Gledinning
Q: How long is Forty-Part Motet?
A: The entire installation is about 14 minutes, on a continuous loop. The “intermission” section that
sounds like a rehearsal is 3 minutes, and the performance of Thomas Tallis' Spem in alium lasts 11
minutes.
9
Q: What will Forty-Part Motet sound like?
A: The installation is on a 14-minute loop.
Most of the time you will hear Thomas Tallis'
motet Spem in alium. Because the
loudspeakers are distributed all around the
audience, you will hear the music travel
around you as the music is handed between
the 40 individual voices and the 8 choirs.
Listen for rhythms and melodies that are
imitated between voices – an example of the
imitative counterpoint frequently used by
Renaissance composers (see page 15).
Occasionally all 40 voices sing together –
sometimes for short bursts, sometimes for
sustained sections.
View of Janet Cardiff's Forty-Part Motet, 2001, 40-track
audio installation, 14 minutes in duration; at the Rideau
Chapel, National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa.
When the installation loops around, there is a short section (the “intermission”) that sounds like
people gathering for a rehearsal. Janet Cardiff recorded singers chatting and discussing the music, as
well as some directions and encouragement by the choir's conductor. You will hear this at some point
before the music of Spem in alium repeats.
Q: Where has Forty-Part Motet been presented?
A: The world premiere was in 2001 at the Salisbury Cathedral Cloisters, UK. Since then, Forty-Part
Motet has been presented in galleries, chapels and other spaces in Austria, Finland, France,
Korea, Japan, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and Canada: including Montreal, Edmonton, and the
Power Plant Gallery in Toronto.
Before coming to Toronto for Scotiabank Nuit Blanche in September 2012, the installation was
presented at MoMA in New York City.
There are two complete sets of the installation equipment (40 speakers, stands, cables, audio
equipment, computer) that tour the world. One is in the permanent collection of the National
Gallery of Canada, and the other is in Janet Cardiff's own collection.
Believe it or not, all of the equipment for Forty-Part Motet fits into three shipping crates.
10
Q: Who is Janet Cardiff? What are some of her other works of art?
A: Canadian artist Janet Cardiff was born in Brussels, Ontario, in 1957. She studied art at both
Queen's University in Kingston, and the University of Alberta. She creates artwork in a variety of
media, including video, audio, and installations. Much of her work is audio-based.
In 1995 she began creating audio “walks” where participants, wearing earphones, are guided by
Cardiff's voice along a route through an outdoor site. The audio intercuts gentle imperative
directions (e.g. “Turn right. ... Go up the stairs.”) with disconnected fragments of stories, and
ambient sounds that may or may not relate to what the viewer is experiencing. Much of Cardiff's
art aims to dislocate the viewer/participant, bringing them to a place where fiction and reality
meet.
Janet Cardiff currently lives and works with her partner George Bures Miller (b. 1960) in Berlin,
Germany. Cardiff and Bures Miller together represented Canada at the 49th Venice Biennale
(2001), one of the pre-eminent art exhibitions in the world. At the Biennale they premiered The
Paradise Institute, in which the audience enters a small movie theatre and becomes involved in a
crime happening both on- and off-screen.
Some of Cardiff's other work (both alone and with Bures Miller) includes the 98-speaker sound
installation A Murder of Crows, a house made out of antique books, and Ship o' Fools (which
premiered in Toronto at the 2010 Luminato Festival), in which the hull of a small boat is filled with
musical instruments that play themselves.
You can learn more about the work of Janet Cardiff and her partner
George Bures Miller at www.cardiffmiller.com
Janet Cardiff and George Bures Miller.
Photographed in Grindrod, British Columbia
Photo: Zev Tiefenbach
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Q: Who was Thomas Tallis?
A: Thomas Tallis was the composer of Spem in alium, the 40-part motet used by Janet Cardiff in her
sound installation Forty-Part Motet.
Tallis was a composer and organist who lived during the
English Renaissance: from about 1505 to 1585. Tallis
lived and worked during a period of great change in the
English religious and political landscape, and was able
to embrace the corresponding changes to the style of
music he was required to compose.
While his first positions were in the church – including
an important post at Canterbury Cathedral – Tallis spent
most of his life working in the English royal court as a
Gentleman of the Chapel Royal at St. James's Palace.
He worked there under four English monarchs: King
Henry VIII, King Edward VI, Queen Mary, and Queen
Elizabeth I. Tallis was one of the first people to write
music for the brand new Church of England.
Thomas Tallis
Tallis' duties at the Chapel Royal would have included composing vocal church music, playing
organ for religious services, and teaching keyboarding and composition to the boys who sang in
the chapel choir. One of the choir members was William Byrd, who became another important
composer of the English Renaissance through Tallis' tutoring. Byrd and Tallis eventually became
colleagues, working together in the Chapel Royal.
In 1575, Queen Elizabeth I granted Tallis and Byrd exclusive rights
to print and publish music for 21 years. Later the same year, Byrd
and Tallis published Cantiones sacrae (“sacred songs”): 17
polyphonic vocal motets, perhaps in honour of the Queen's 17th
year as sovereign.
William Byrd
The friendship between Tallis and Byrd might also be partly
explained by the fact that both men were likely practicing Catholics
during a period when the Catholics of England were oppressed.
However, as members of the Chapel Royal they received privileges
that would not have been available to other people of their faith.
Even in his old age, Tallis continued to develop his musical style and give himself new
compositional challenges. It was in the last years of his life that he composed his masterpiece:
Spem in alium, a motet in 40 parts.
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Q: What is Spem in alium?
A: Spem in alium is Thomas Tallis' best-known piece of music. It is considered a masterpiece of
Renaissance polyphonic vocal music (see page 14). It is also one of the most dense and complex
pieces of vocal music ever written, with 40 independent vocal parts.
The 40 parts of Spem in alium are grouped into 8 choirs of 5
voices each. The piece is often performed with the 8 choirs
separated in space – even surrounding the audience, like the
loudspeakers in Janet Cardiff's sound installation.
Not all the parts sound at once: the music passes between
choirs, and solo voices are heard. The full ensemble only
sings together in 35 out of 183 bars (about one-fifth of the
piece) and these tutti sections sometimes only last for a
couple of bars at a time.
Throughout the piece you can hear a style called imitative
counterpoint (see page 15), in which the voices imitate each
other and musical motives jump from part to part.
Chapel Royal, St. James's
Palace
Q: Why did Thomas Tallis compose a 40-voice motet?
A: Tallis may have been inspired by the Italian composer Alessandro Striggio (c. 1536-1592), who
visited London in 1567. Striggio brought singers to perform a 40-voice vocal piece (one
movement was for 60 voices!) for the English royal court. It is said that a Duke (possibly Thomas
Howard, the 4th Duke of Norfolk) then challenged Tallis to write his own 40-part work, to prove
that the English could do as well or better than this Italian composer. It is said that upon hearing
the premiere of Spem in alium, the Duke presented Tallis with the gold chain from around his
neck.
No one is certain of the circumstances of the first performance. Spem in alium may have been
composed to mark the occasion of the Duke's release from prison in 1570. The Duke's country
house, Nonsuch Palace, had an octagonal banquet hall with four balconies, which could explain
Tallis' decision to compose a piece for 8 choirs. In the Duke's hall, Tallis could surround his
audience with music.
Some historians believe that Tallis actually composed Spem in alium in honour of Elizabeth's 40th
anniversary as Queen, in 1573.
Either way, it is definitely music for a grand occasion.
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Q: What is a motet?
A: Motets are a form of vocal music that evolved over 400 years, from the 13th to 18th centuries. The
texts were usually sacred, often from the Bible; the music was generally for voices singing a
cappella: without instrumental accompaniment.
The medieval motet began in France. Composers would take an existing plainchant tune (a piece
of Gregorian chant from earlier Medieval church music), and use it as a cantus firmus (“fixed
song”). While the cantus firmus moved along slowly in long note values, they would compose
faster-moving original music flowing over top. There were usually three parts in counterpoint,
sometimes all moving at different speeds due to different note lengths. Composers started to
use different texts simultaneously: sacred Latin texts (from the original plainchant) in the slow
cantus firmus, and different French texts in the faster parts. Sometimes these other texts were
secular – even profane! Not only was the religious text in the cantus firmus part obscured by
moving so slowly, but the other parts could even contradict its message.
Eventually, the church cracked down on complex, polytextual motets (i.e. with several different
texts at once). During the Renaissance, the style of motets changed: they had only one text, the
number of parts increased to 4-6, and the plainchant cantus firmus was dropped in favour of all
parts having original music. Composers in this period were interested in having the voices share
material in imitative counterpoint (see page 15) rather than treating them as separate ideas.
The style had also become international. In Italy, Palestrina composed over 180 Latin motets for
the Catholic church. In central Europe, J.S. Bach composed motets in the German language. In
England, the popularity of motets had risen, as with their non-religious counterpart: the madrigal.
Most Renaissance motets had 4 to 6 independent vocal parts: Spem in alium has 40!
Q: What is polyphonic music? What is counterpoint?
A: Polyphonic music is composed for multiple voices heard simultaneously: in counterpoint (as
opposed to monophonic music, which has a single melodic line). The word counterpoint comes
from the Latin phrase punctus contra punctum, which means “note against note”.
Composers use counterpoint to create polyphonic music driven by intertwined melodies.
The composer's challenge is to create natural-sounding melodies that combine to create good
harmony: a convincing progression of chords.
Most of the time composers create counterpoint with fewer that 5 independent parts. Spem in
alium has 8 times that many: 40 independent parts! To keep things clear for the listener, Thomas
Tallis chose to write vocal melodies that move within very clear harmonic blocks.
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Q: What is imitative counterpoint?
A: Imitation occurs when musical material (a melody, a motive, a rhythm) is passed between
different musical parts (voices or instruments). A simple example of musical imitation is the
round. In the famous round “Row Your Boat,” each voice sings the same song, but they start one
at a time and the song fits with itself in harmony. A slightly more complex form of imitation is a
canon, where voices sometimes imitate each other starting on different degrees of the scale, or
even in different keys. Even more complex is the fugue, a form of piece structured around
imitation.
In Renaissance vocal music, imitation was part of the composer's art. Rather than being a strict
imitation of a complete melody or theme (like in a canon or a fugue), the Renaissance style of
imitation involves shorter fragments of material that is passed around more freely.
Spem in alium contains many examples of imitative counterpoint, but they can be hard to hear in
the tutti sections where most or all 40 voices are singing at once. You can hear it in the more
intimately scored sections, where the voices sing in smaller groups and you can hear individual
lines.
Thomas Tallis also wrote a famous canon tune called, appropriately, Tallis' Canon. (see “What is
the legacy of Tallis' other music?” on page 17.)
Q: What do the words “Spem in alium” mean?
A: The text of Tallis' famous motet was adapted from the Book of Judith in the Bible. The original
Latin text below was (and still is) used as a regular part of the Catholic liturgy, as a reading on a
certain day of the year.
LATIN original
Spem in alium nunquam habui praeter in te
Deus Israel
qui irasceris
et propitius eris
et omnia peccata hominum in tribulatione dimittis
Domine Deus
Creator coeli et terrae
respice humilitatem nostram
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ENGLISH translation
I have never put my hope in any other but in You,
O God of Israel
who can show both anger
and graciousness,
and who absolves all the sins of suffering man
Lord God,
Creator of Heaven and Earth
be mindful of our lowliness
Q: Does anyone still perform the motet Spem in alium? How difficult is it to sing?
A: Spem in alium is performed surprisingly often, considering it takes a minimum of 40 singers and a
lot of rehearsal time to put it together. It is often performed with more than one singer on a part,
but even then it is a major undertaking, particularly for an amateur choir.
Because there are so many parts happening at once, and because the piece is often performed
with the 8 choirs spread out in a horseshoe or circle surrounding the audience, it needs to be
performed with the aid of a clear conductor that all singers can see.
On June 10, 2006, the British Broadcasting Corporation organized the largest-ever performance
of the piece – involving more than 700 singers.
Spem in alium is sometimes performed as a 40th anniversary celebration.
The Toronto Consort will be doing exactly that in their concert The Tudors on October
19 and 20, 2012 – which will mark the beginning of their 40th concert season.
Spem in alium wasn't performed very frequently during Tallis' lifetime, but it was sung at
ceremonies to crown two Princes of Wales. New lyrics were composed for these occasions (which
is called creating a contrafactum).
Q: What are some notable recordings of Spem in alium?
A: The piece has been recorded by many choirs. One excellent recording is by the Tallis Scholars of
England.
There is a complete recording of the Tallis Scholars singing Spem in alium on Youtube.
However, some recordings are a bit more unique. The male a cappella sextet the King's Singers
recorded the piece by multi-track recording their six voices. The Kronos string quartet recorded
an instrumental version through multi-tracking on their album Black Angels. British musician Peter
Gregson even recorded all of the parts alone, on solo 'cello!
16
Q: What is the legacy of Tallis' other music?
A: 20th-century British composer Ralph Vaughan Williams composed Fantasia on a Theme by
Thomas Tallis for string orchestra in 1910. The theme that this piece uses is the “third mode
melody” that Tallis had composed for the English hymnal. In the structure of his piece, Vaughan
Williams also alludes to the Fantasy, a musical form that was popular among Elizabethan
composers like Tallis. Vaughan Williams' Fantasia is one of the most popular pieces of Classical
music in existence, and has appeared in several films including Mel Gibson's The Passion of the
Christ.
Some of Tallis' other music also lives on through Hollywood movies – although the route there is
not always straight-forward. “Tallis' Canon” became a widely-used hymn tune in many Christian
denominations. Later, the 16th-century tune was used by the 20th-century composer Benjamin
Britten in the climactic scene of his children's opera Noye's Fludde (the story of Noah and the
Ark)... which was recently used in the soundtrack to director Wes Anderson's quirky 2012 film
Moonrise Kingdom.
Of course, Tallis' name lives on through the Tallis Festival (see below), and choirs like the Tallis
Scholars in England and Toronto's own Tallis Choir.
Q: Did any other composers write pieces with 40 (or more) parts?
A: Renaissance Italian composer Alessandro Striggio wrote a choral Mass setting with 40 parts – even
60 parts in one movement! It was after hearing that piece that Tallis wrote Spem in alium. (For the
full story, see “Why did Thomas Tallis compose a 40-voice motet?” on page 13.)
Some modern composers have also been inspired by Tallis' 40-voice motet. The Tallis Festival,
based in London England, has commissioned composers Jaako Mäntyjärvi (in 2006) and Peter
McGarr (in 2007) to compose choral pieces with 40 parts. In 1998, English composer Giles
Swayne composed The Silent Land for 40 voices (including 8 solo singers) and solo 'cello.
17
Part 3
Classroom Activities
While it may be preferable to use these activities before experiencing Janet Cardiff's FortyPart Motet installation, as a way of giving context to that event, they can equally be used
after students have already attended the installation/workshop on October 1 or 2.
These activities are not only for music students, but can be adapted to students of visual art,
media studies, history, etc. Please see the Extensions to each activity for some ideas on how
to adapt them. These are just starting points for an exploration of the context of Thomas
Tallis' Spem in alium and Janet Cardiff's Forty-Part Motet.
Music by Thomas Tallis – in original Renaissance notation
18
Activity 1: Music for a Grand Occasion
Lesson Focus: In two parts: 1) Imagining and describing the qualities of a piece of music written for a
celebratory occasion. 2) Listening to Spem in alium by Thomas Tallis and responding.
Grade: 7 to 12
Subject: Music, or any (see Extensions)
Groupings: Individual/pairs
Materials: paper and pens; recording of Spem in alium (the Tallis Scholars' recording is available for
free on Youtube)
Time Required: 60 minutes (or 2 sessions of 30 minutes)
Procedure:
•
Read students the following prompt (and/or print it out):
Imagine that you are a composer living in Renaissance England, and
working in the Chapel Royal. You have been asked to create a piece of
choral music in honour of the 40th birthday of your employer, Queen
Elizabeth I. The birthday celebrations will be a grand occasion, held in an
enormous hall with many balconies. What are some of the qualities of the
music you would write?...
•
Working alone, students take several minutes to write an answer the following questions in as
much detail as possible. Point form is encouraged. They don't have to answer every question:
they just need to be as descriptive as they can.
(The following question prompts can be simplified, elaborated, and altered based on
the students' grade and knowledge of music:)
◦
◦
◦
◦
◦
◦
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Would it be slow? Fast? Somewhere in between?
How many voices would you write for?
Would you use instruments? Which ones?
Would there be soloists?
What kind of text would you use?
Will the voices all sing the text at the same time, or will they pass it around?
Will the music be mostly homophonic (everyone singing together, in the same rhythm) or
polyphonic (everyone singing different melodies/rhythms)?
19
◦ What mood(s) will the piece have? How will the music convey these moods?
◦ How long would the piece be? Would it be divided into sections (movements), or would it
be one continuous piece?
•
•
Now, working in pairs: students take a couple of minutes to compare their planned piece with
that of their partner.
(optional: the teacher asks each person to share 1 or 2 qualities of the piece their partner
would write for the occasion.)
(The following can be done either immediately, or the next class period:)
•
•
Listen to Spem in alium by Thomas Tallis. This was a piece of Renaissance English choral
music, possibly written for the occasion of Queen Elizabeth's 40th birthday.
Working with the same partner, students answer the same questions about Tallis' music as
they did before (above). They should also note where Tallis' compositional decisions were
similar to their own, and where they were different.
Variations:
• This activity is possible for a non-music class. Change the emphasis of the question prompts
so that they are less about the elements of music, and more generally descriptive – but still
focussed on choices in the creative process.
• Another idea for any subject: the emphasis of the entire activity can be re-focussed onto the
event itself. Start by listening to the music, after telling students that this is music composed
for an important occasion. Working alone or in pairs, have students imagine what occasion the
music might have been created for. Have them answer specific questions, such as:
◦ What is being marked, celebrated, or commemorated by the occasion?
◦ What place is it held in? How is that place decorated?
◦ Who is attending? Are there any specific people who would be there?
◦ How large is the crowd?
◦ How are people dressed?
◦ Are there speeches? What words/phrases/ideas would come up in these speeches?
◦ What is the mood of the occasion?
Extensions:
•
This activity could lead into Activity 3: Instant Polyphony:
◦ 2 or 3 pairs combine into a small group
◦ Compare attributes of their planned composition (the first phase of Activity 1) and reach
consensus on a few musical qualities the piece would have
◦ Segue into Activity 3: create a polyphonic composition using some of the musical
decisions that the group has already agreed upon (e.g. it will be a slow piece. It will have
a joyful mood...)
20
Activity 2: A Letter to the Duke
Lesson Focus: Writing in role as Thomas Tallis, to build the context of his life and role as a composer
in the Chapel Royal of St. James's Palace.
Grade: 7 to 12
Subject: Any
Groupings: individual
Materials: Paper and pens.
Time Required: 45-60 minutes (or some homework time)
Procedure:
•
Read students the following prompt (and/or print it out):
You are Thomas Tallis: a great and well-respected composer in the English Renaissance.
You work in the Chapel Royal of St. James's Palace, composing music for religious
ceremonies and royal occasions. Your employer is Queen Elizabeth I, the most powerful
person in all of England.
A composer from Italy visits the English royal court, bringing with him 40 singers, who
perform a piece he has composed for 40 vocal parts – 40 independent melodies woven
together into beautiful harmony! When you hear it, you are stunned. “How could any
composer create such complicated music,” you wonder, “and not go stark raving mad?”
After the concert, the powerful Duke of Norfolk approaches you. The Duke is clearly
angry.
“Such magnificent music... composed by an ITALIAN!” he fumes. “The English have
been outdone by a composer from THE CONTINENT!! Thomas Tallis, you are the
greatest composer in all of England. I ask you to compose an even more magnificent
piece for 40 singers, in 40 parts. If anyone can do this, Tallis, it is you. Write to me saying
whether you will accept my challenge, and what your terms will be. I know you are busy,
and that it will be a daunting task, but you MUST help to prove the superiority of English
music!”
•
In the role of Thomas Tallis, students write a letter to the Duke, in language appropriate for
writing to such a powerful man. Prompt with such questions as:
21
◦ Let's assume that you accept the Duke's challenge. What makes you accept, despite the
◦
◦
◦
◦
◦
◦
◦
◦
difficulty of the challenge?
How long will it take you to write the piece? How difficult will it be?
How will writing this piece affect your daily life? What will you have to change (if anything)
to find the time to compose it?
What in your training and experience will help you to succeed?
How will you start? What will your process be?
Where and when do you hope to have the piece performed?
What will you do to make the piece even better than the rival Italian composer's piece?
What compensation do you expect? Is it money, or something else?
From your perspective, what will be the significance of this piece to your own work? To
your country? To the history of music composition?
Extensions:
•
Working in pairs, students read their letter aloud to their partner. The teacher briefly questions
students about their partner's letters (using prompts similar to above).
•
Working in pairs or small groups, students share their letters with each other, and discuss
similarities and differences in their responses. Then:
◦ Working through a process of improvisation and revision, they dramatize a meeting
between Thomas Tallis and the Duke of Norfolk.
◦ The situation: instead of writing a letter, Tallis has gone in person to the Duke to accept his
challenge, and to discuss the circumstances of the piece that he will write.
◦ The Duke is willing to pay Tallis well for his services – but only if the piece he writes is truly
more magnificent than that of the rival Italian composer. Tallis must convince a skeptical
Duke that he can do this – and how he will achieve his goal.
◦ All students in the group must have roles in the scene. Who else would be in the room
during a meeting between a Duke and a composer of the Chapel Royal? What would their
roles be? Would they say anything?
22
Activity 3: Instant Polyphony
Lesson Focus: Composing short polyphonic pieces through improvisation and revision
Grade: 7-12
Subject: Music, interdisciplinary
Materials: Short rhythmic texts (i.e. poems) printed out. (For extensions: chart paper and markers.)
Groupings: groups of approximately 4 to 6 students
Time Required: 45-60 minutes
Procedure:
• Each group receives a text to use (these can be the same for each group, or different)
• Each member of the group chooses 1-2 lines of text, and comes up with a memorable,
musical way to say that text. It can be simple, it can be weird – but it has to be repeatable.
• This activity works best if these text-phrases also have some silence built in: a.k.a. rests!
• In developing their text-phrases, students can play with rhythm, pitch, the tone/timbre of their
voice, range (high/low), and even add other vocal and body sounds.
• The group's goal is to create a piece that combines every member's text-phrase into a
composition with a polyphonic texture, created through an experimental, improvisational
process:
◦ Each person can “loop” their lines by repeating them.
◦ The group should find musically interesting ways for the text-phrases to interlock (i.e.
hocket, counterpoint) and experiment with combinations (this is where silences in the parts
are helpful!)
◦ Groups should shape their pieces so that the texture is not always at its fullest (i.e. not
everyone is making sound at once). Play with where individual performers enter and exit
the group texture.
◦ Choices can be made about overall volume (crescendo/diminuendo, sudden changes),
and the balance of parts.
◦ Other musical attributes can change over the course of the composition (i.e. overall pitch
range can gradually get higher)
• When the compositions are developed and have a convincing ending, give students another
couple of minutes to spatialize the piece: Where in the room will they perform? Who will
stand where? Will any members of the group move during the piece or is everyone
stationary?
• The groups perform, followed by a discussion of choices that each group and individual made
in creating their piece.
23
Variations:
• Instead of using text, have groups work with nonsense syllables, vocal/body sound effects
• It is possible to do this activity using instruments – but the emphasis does not need to be on
creating Western counterpoint that is harmonically pleasing. If using instruments,
encourage students to play around with extended techniques and unusual sounds. They
should also feel free to combine instruments with other sounds: singing, talking,
stamping/clapping, etc. etc.
Extensions:
• Give the groups large chart paper and coloured markers, which they use to graphically notate
their compositions. This is meant to serve as a mnemonic: they can notate anything that
will allow their group to remember and revise their piece. Elements to notate can include
pitch, volume, musical gestures, spatial arrangement, etc... usually (but not always) notated
over a horizontal time-axis. (It can help to have previously shown students examples of
widely different graphic notations – and even attempt to perform some.) Once graphic
notation is introduced, this activity can be spread over multiple class periods, since
students now have a record of their piece, which they can revise over time and build into a
larger-scale composition.
• With experienced music students, the group's composition can of course also be documented
using Western music notation. Familiarity with simple polyphonic genres (round, canon) at
the least would be beneficial.
24
Activity 4: Forty-Part Soundscape
Lesson Focus: Using computers to quickly create a densely-layered piece of sound art, then shaping
it into an effective musical composition.
Grade: 7-12
Subject: Music, media studies, interdisciplinary.
Materials: Computers with audio software (Garageband for Mac, Audacity for Windows or Mac)
Audacity software can be downloaded for free at http://audacity.sourceforge.net
Groupings: Individual or small group
Time Required: 60 minutes +
Procedure:
Garageband:
• Create a new project. Choose a key, time signature and tempo.
• Open the Loop Browser
• Choose loops and drag them into your song. This automatically creates new tracks. Try to
•
•
•
•
•
choose loops that will contrast with each other: different instruments, rhythms, etc.
You can also create tracks with software instruments, and record using either a MIDI keyboard
or the “Musical Typing” window. Again, try to choose software instruments with different
sounds and timbres, and record music that contrasts with
You can also record sound into tracks (New Track / “Real Instrument Track”) using a USB
microphone, your computer's built-in microphone, etc. You can record anything:
instruments, voices, sound effects...
As you add material to tracks, you can “loop” it. Hover your cursor over the top-right edge of
the region – it will turn into a circular arrow. Click and drag for as long as you want to loop.
You can also repeat material wherever you want in the piece by clicking on the region you
want to copy, clicking control-C, then drag the counter where you want and paste (control-V).
Imitation: create some tracks by copy-pasting other tracks (loops or original material) into
other tracks. You can use similar or different instruments. Shift the material so it overlaps
itself. Can you find several ways that the material can fit alongside itself?
The goal of all of this is to create a lot of tracks. 40 tracks – or more! A really hyper-dense
soundscape. Make it last at least 2 minutes so that you have time to shape your multi-track
piece over time.
25
• Once you've got at least 40 tracks, start shaping your piece:
◦
Texture: If you have all the tracks sounding at once, for the entire piece, that can
◦
◦
◦
get boring quickly. Decide where they will enter and exit the piece so that you
vary the texture. Choose one or two moments where all tracks are playing at once.
The rest of the time, play with smaller groups: solos, trios, half of the tracks, etc.
Volume: Do tracks enter abruptly or do they fade in and out? Adjust the balance
of the ensemble: what tracks should be louder, in the foreground? What should be
in the background?
Spatialization: Try panning tracks Left or Right in stereo “space”. This gives depth
to your piece. Panning can also be automated: for example, you can make a track
move from left to right, or anywhere, at any speed and in any pattern.
Instrumentation/timbre: Is it hard to hear an important track in the dense texture?
Anything you have recorded in a software instrument can be changed to a
different software instrument – either by changing the instrument for that track in
the Track Info window, or by dragging a section of music to another track. (Apple
Loops are audio data, however. You can't change the instrumentation on them.)
• Find a way to end the piece convincingly – then share it.
• You can burn your piece to an audio file that can be played anywhere. Look under the Share
menu for options.
Audacity:
• Create a new project.
• Make sure that you are set-up to record. You will need either a USB microphone, your
•
•
•
•
•
computer's built-in microphone, etc. Under “Audacity – Preferences”, choose your method
of audio input.
Record a track: press the button with the red circle on it. Audacity makes a new track each
time you record, and starts recording immediately. To stop, press the yellow square.
You can record anything: instruments, voices, sound effects... Record something at least 20-30
seconds in length so you have lots of material to work with.
Record more tracks in this way. Try to record sound that is contrasting to what you have
recorded previously: different instrument or voice, different rhythm, pitch, etc.
After you have recorded tracks, “loop” them. This isn't automatic in Audacity. You need to
highlight the audio you just recorded, copy it (press control-C), then paste it (control-V) on
the same track, right after itself. Do this a few times so that the length of your piece will be
at least 2 minutes.
Once you've recorded and looped at least 8 contrasting tracks, create more tracks through
copy-pasting: a simple way to create imitation. Go to the “Project” menu and select “New
Stereo Track”. Highlight whatever section of sound you want to copy. Copy it (control-C),
then paste it into the new track (control-V). Shift the material so it overlaps itself. Can you
26
find several ways that the material can fit alongside itself?
• The goal of all of this is to create a lot of tracks. 40 tracks – or more! A really hyper-dense
soundscape. The piece should last at least 2 minutes so you have time to shape it.
• Once you've got at least 40 tracks, start shaping your piece:
◦
Texture: If you have all the tracks sounding at once, for the entire piece, that can
get boring quickly. Decide where they will enter and exit the piece so that you
vary the texture. Maybe choose one or two moments where all tracks are playing
at once. The rest of the time, play with smaller groups: solos, trios, half the full
ensemble, etc.
◦
Volume: Do tracks enter abruptly or do they fade in and out? Adjust the balance
of the ensemble: what tracks should be louder, in the foreground? What should be
in the background? Adjust overall Volume in the left-most part of the track (- ....
+). Using the volume tool (2 arrows pointing at a blue line) you can change the
volume over time. Click to make adjustment points, then drag the volume up or
down. It will change smoothly.
◦
Spatialization: Try panning tracks Left or Right in stereo “space”. This gives depth
to your piece. Adjust pan in the left-most part of the track (L....R).
◦
Effects: You can apply effects to audio in your tracks. Highlight what you want,
then go to the Effects menu and choose an effect. Important: this is destructive
editing – it will change your audio and cannot be easily undone (except
immediately by Undo: control-Z).
• Find a way to end the piece convincingly – then share it. Remember to SAVE your project
frequently!
• You can burn your piece to an audio file that can be played anywhere. Go to the File menu,
then click “Export as WAV...”
27
Part 4
Connections to the Ontario Curriculum
The activities in Part 3 of this document, as well as the workshop/installation offered at Trinity-St.
Paul's United Church on October 1 and 2, support the delivery of the following expectations from the
Ontario Ministry of Education Arts curriculum, Grade 7-12, Music.
The activities and workshop/installation also support the delivery of curriculum in visual art, drama,
history, and other subjects. The relevant specific expectations can be extrapolated from the music
expectations below.
There are certainly many opportunities for cross-curricular activity through this project.
Grade 7 Music - Specific Expectations
By the end of Grade 7, students will:
C1.2 apply the elements of music when singing
Grade 8 Music - Specific Expectations
By the end of Grade 8, students will:
and/or playing, composing, and arranging
music, using them for specific effects and clear
purposes
C1.2 apply the elements of music through performing,
composing, and arranging music for
a specific effect or clear purpose
C1.3 create musical compositions in a variety
of forms for specific purposes and audiences
C1.3 create musical compositions in a variety
of forms for specific purposes and audiences
C1.4 use the tools and techniques of musicianship
in musical performances
C1.4 use the tools and techniques of musicianship
in musical performances
C2.1 express analytical, personal responses to
musical performances in a variety of ways
C2.1 express analytical, personal responses to
musical performances in a variety of ways
C2.2 analyse, using musical terminology, ways in
which the elements are used in the music that
they perform, listen to, and create
C2.2 analyse, using musical terminology, ways in
which the elements are used in the music that
they perform, listen to, and create
C3.2 analyse some historical, cultural, and
technological influences on style, genre, and
innovation in music
C3.1 analyse some of the social, political, and
economic factors that affect the creation of
music
28
Grade 9 Music (open) - Specific Expectations
Grade 10 Music (open) - Specific Expectations
By the end of Grade 9, students will:
By the end of Grade 10, students will:
A1.2 apply the creative process when composing
and/or arranging music
A1.2 apply the creative process when composing
and/or arranging music
A2.2 manipulate the elements of music and related
concepts appropriately when improvising
melodies and rhythms
A2.2 manipulate the elements of music and related
concepts appropriately when improvising
melodies and rhythms
A2.3 apply the elements of music and related
concepts appropriately when composing
and/or arranging simple pieces of music
A2.3 apply the elements of music and related
concepts appropriately when composing
and/or arranging simple pieces of music
A3.2 apply compositional techniques when
composing and/or arranging simple pieces
of music
A3.2 apply compositional techniques when
composing and/or arranging simple pieces
of music
A3.3 use current technology when practising,
performing, composing, and/or arranging
music
A3.3 use current technology when practising,
performing, composing, and/or arranging
music
B1.2 identify and describe the use of elements
and other components of music in a variety of
selections, including their performance repertoire
B1.2 identify and describe the use of elements
and other components of music in a variety of
selections, including their performance repertoire
B1.3 explain the difference between technical
aspects and expressive aspects of music, with
particular emphasis on style and appropriate
use of dynamics and other expressive controls,
and assess the contribution of both aspects to
the successful interpretation of musical selections
B1.3 explain the difference between technical
aspects and expressive aspects of music, with
particular emphasis on style and appropriate
use of dynamics and other expressive controls,
and assess the contribution of both aspects to
the successful interpretation of musical selections
B2.3 identify and describe ways in which art
music reflects the society in which it was created
and how it has affected that culture or community
B2.1 explain the origins of traditional, commercial,
or art music with reference to the culture
or community in which it was created
C1.1 demonstrate an understanding of the elements
of music, particularly through practical
application and aural recognition, and use
appropriate terminology related to these
elements
B2.2 describe significant contributions of individuals
within a community or culture to genres
of traditional, commercial, and/or art music
C2.1 demonstrate an understanding of the origins
and development of some musical forms
B2.3 explain the ways in which traditional,
commercial, and art music function in and
influence community or cultural rituals and
celebrations
C1.1 demonstrate an understanding of the elements
of music, particularly through practical
application and aural recognition, and use
appropriate terminology related to these
elements
C2.1 demonstrate an understanding of the origins
and development of some musical forms
29
Grade 11 Music (University/College Preparation)
Specific Expectations
By the end of Grade 11, students will:
A1.2 apply the creative process when composing
and/or arranging music
A2.2 manipulate the elements of music and related
concepts appropriately and effectively when
improvising melodies in a variety of musical
forms
A2.3 apply the elements of music and related
concepts appropriately and effectively when
composing and/or arranging music in a variety
of forms
A3.2 apply compositional techniques when composing
and/or arranging music
B1.3 analyse, and assess the effectiveness of,
music from a variety of styles and genres and
in various performance modes
B2.1 analyse ways in which traditional, commercial,
and art music are a response to and reflection
of the community or culture in which they
were created
B2.2 analyse the impact that significant individuals
or groups from a variety of cultures have had on traditional,
commercial, and/or art music
A3.3 use a variety of current technologies in
various applications related to music, including
composing, arranging, performing, and/or
recording music
C1.1 extend their understanding of the elements
and other components of music, particularly
through practical application and aural recognition,
and use appropriate terminology related
to these elements
B1.1 deconstruct the elements and other components
in musical works through score study
and purposeful listening
C1.2 demonstrate an understanding of, and use
correct terminology related to, the concepts of
notation in a variety of activities
B1.2 listen in a purposeful way to selections from
a wide variety of musical styles and genres,
and analyse and reflect on their responses to
and interpretation of them
C2.1 demonstrate an understanding of the development
and function and/or theme of various
musical forms and conventions
30
Grade 11 Music (Open)
Grade 12 Music (Workplace Preparation)
Specific Expectations
Specific Expectations
By the end of Grade 11, students will:
By the end of Grade 12, students will:
A1.1 apply the creative process when performing
music and composing and/or arranging music
A1.1 apply the creative process when performing
music and composing and/or arranging music
A2.2 apply the elements of music and related
concepts appropriately when composing
and/or arranging music
A2.2 apply the elements of music and related
concepts appropriately when composing
and/or arranging music
A3.2 use compositional techniques and available
technology when composing and/or arranging
music
A3.2 use current technology in a variety of
applications related to music, including the
preparation of a portfolio
B1.1 listen to and/or perform selections that
represent a wide variety of musical genres
and styles, and describe and reflect on their
responses to them
B2.2 analyse factors, including social and cultural
factors, that influence the creation and consumption
of music
B1.2 analyse productions such as concerts,
recitals, musical theatre, and/or other musical
events with reference to the elements and other
components of music as well as the technical
and organizational aspects of the production
B1.3 assess the effectiveness of a variety of musical
selections and/or productions
C1.1 demonstrate an understanding of the elements
of music, through practical application
in musical performance, composition, and
production, and use appropriate terminology
related to these elements
C1.2 demonstrate an understanding of, and use
correct terminology related to, the concepts of
notation in a variety of performance and/or
composition activities
B2.2 describe significant contributions of individuals,
groups, or organizations within a community
or culture to presentation and production
aspects of traditional, commercial, and art
music
B2.3 explain the role of traditional, commercial,
and/or art music in various communities or
cultures
C1.2 demonstrate an understanding of, and use
proper terminology when referring to, aspects
of musical form in a variety of genres
31
Grade 12 Music (University/College Preparation)
Specific Expectations
By the end of Grade 12, students will:
A1.2 apply the creative process when composing
and/or arranging increasingly complex musical
works
A2.2 manipulate the elements of music and related
concepts effectively and with increasing skill
and creativity when improvising melodies in
a wide variety of musical forms
A2.3 apply the elements of music and related
concepts effectively and with increasing skill
and creativity when composing and/or arranging
music in a variety of forms
B1.2 listen to and reflect on selections from a
wide range of musical styles and genres,
including their own performance repertoire,
and analyse and reflect with increasing insight
on their responses to and interpretation of
them
B1.3 analyse with increasing insight and assess
the effectiveness of music from a wide range of
styles and genres and in various performance
modes, and reflect on how such analyses can
enhance their own creation or performance of
music
A3.2 apply compositional techniques with
increasing skill and creativity when composing
and/or arranging music
B2.2 analyse the impact of significant individuals
or groups from a variety of cultures or
communities on various genres of traditional,
commercial, and/or art music
A3.3 use a variety of current technologies with
increasing skill when practising, performing,
composing, arranging, or recording music
B2.3 analyse the various functions of music in
society
B1.1 deconstruct with increasing skill and insight
the elements and other components of music
through score study of and purposeful listening
to increasingly complex musical works
C1.1 extend and deepen their understanding of
the elements and other components of music,
particularly through practical application and
aural recognition, and use appropriate terminology
related to them
C2.1 demonstrate an understanding of the development
of various forms of music with respect
to chronology, genre, and theme
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Part 5
Online Resources
Janet Cardiff and Forty-Part Motet
Janet Cardiff and George Bures Miller: professional website
www.cardiffmiller.com
The Canadian Encyclopedia: article on Janet Cardiff
www.thecanadianencyclopedia.com/articles/janet-cardiff
Video of Forty-Part Motet (including audience interviews)
http://www.cardiffmiller.com/artworks/inst/motet_video.html
Article: review of Forty-Part Motet
www.cardiffmiller.com/press/texts/bloomberg01.01.pdf
Article about A Murder of Crows (another sound-based installation by Janet Cardiff)
www.capitalnewyork.com/article/culture/2012/08/6385186/cardiff-and-millers-murder-crowshaunting-case-cinema-through-sound-?culture-bucket-headline
New York Times: article about Cardiff and Miller's work
www.nytimes.com/2012/07/29/magazine/janet-cardiff-george-bures-miller-and-the-power-ofsound.html?_r=2&pagewanted=all
Thomas Tallis and Spem in alium
Score of Spem in alium (free legal download)
www3.cpdl.org/wiki/index.php/Spem_in_alium_nunquam_habui_%28Thomas_Tallis%29#Full_scores
Audio of Spem in alium (Tallis Scholars' recording) – on Youtube
http://quietube3.com/v.php/http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UtJvtk6EHZE
Encyclopedia Britannica: Thomas Tallis
www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/581620/Thomas-Tallis
33
Ensembles and festivals named for Thomas Tallis
The Tallis Festival
www.exmoorsingers.org/tallis-festival/
The Tallis Scholars (choir)
http://www.thetallisscholars.co.uk
The Chapel Royal at St. James's Palace
Official Website of the English Monarchy: History of the Chapels Royal
www.royal.gov.uk/TheRoyalResidences/TheChapelsRoyal/History.aspx
Renaissance music
Encyclopedia Britannica: Vocal Music (including Renaissance)
www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/631696/vocal-music#toc27530
Life and culture (including music) in Elizabethan England
www.elizabethan-era.org.uk
http://elizabethan.org
The Toronto Consort
www.TorontoConsort.org
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