It is so important when listening to music in the learning environment to understand how the music sounds, what mood it creates, what the main elements are and how they influence a song.
Below are some great questions to integrate into your music lesson plans to ask the children in the class.
18 Questions to Ask When Listening to Music – FREE DOWNLOAD
- Do you hear any instruments that you recognise?
- Is there one main instrument?
- Is there one sound or lots of different sounds playing at once?
- How does the mood of the music change when lots of instruments are playing?
- How do you think the main instrument is being played? Blown, plucked, bowed or struck?
- Is the texture of the music thick or thin?
- What is the ‘busiest’ part of the music?
- Are the sounds smooth or jumpy?
- Does the music have a melody?
- Would the melody be easy to sing?
- Show me with your hands when you hear a high or low sound in the melody.
- Does the music have a clear steady beat?
- Does the beat move in Threes? Fours?
- Do you hear any particular rhythm patterns which keep repeating?
- Are there parts of the music that repeats?
- Are there clear sections in the music?
- Can you identify when one section ends and the next begin?
- Does the music get faster/slower, louder/softer? What mood does this create?
Asking the children about the elements of music gets them thinking more in-depth which is great for developing thinking skills. So, get singing and don’t forget to ask, ask and ask!