Lesson Overview:
In this lesson, students learn about the composer Antonio Vivaldi. They research biographical sketches of Vivaldi and Franz Joseph Haydn, then compare and contrast the lives of the two composers using a Venn Diagram.
Length of Lesson:
One 45-minute period
Instructional Objectives:
Students will:
- learn about the composer Antonio Vivaldi.
- use the bookmarked sites on the Internet to research biographical sketches of Vivaldi and Haydn.
- compare and contrast the lives of Vivaldi and Franz Joseph Haydn using a Venn Diagram.
Supplies:
- 5x7" card stack that students will use to guide them in their treasure hunt (Internet search) (see below)
- Sound system
- Books and articles about Haydn and Vivaldi
- Images of Haydn and Vivaldi
- Map of Italy/World Map
- Symphony No. 94 ("Surprise") Haydn: The Symphonies by Franz Joseph Haydn
- Vivaldi's Ring of Mystery by Antonio Vivaldi
- Vivaldi: The Four Seasons by Antonio Vivaldi
Instructional Plan:
(Procedural note: The procedures in this unit are not necessarily divided into time frames or class periods. Adapt the materials to fit your situation.)
Play music from "Spring" as students enter room. Tell them that they will be studying a new composer. Ask them to listen to the music and decide whether it was written by a contemporary composer, or a composer from another time period.
Tell students that the piece they are listening to is called "Spring," written by Antonio Vivaldi as part of his masterwork, The Four Seasons. Ask students to guess Vivaldi's nationality, and offer support for their answers. Show students a map of the world and have them locate Italy. Give them a brief biographical introduction to Vivaldi.
Divide students into groups, and have them take the Composer Quiz interactive.
Give students prepared index cards with questions about Vivaldi. Have one student in each pair record their answers for later sharing and use in the Venn Diagram activity.
Sample treasure hunt questions include:
- What was Vivaldi's full name?
- Did Vivaldi have a nickname? If yes, what was it?
- Who gave him the nickname? Who called him by this name?
- When and where was Vivaldi born?
- What was his family's musical background?
- At what age did Vivaldi begin his musical training?
- What kind of jobs did Vivaldi have before becoming a composer?
- What kind of work did he have as a composer?
- What instruments did Vivaldi play?
- What kind of music did Vivaldi write?
- Into what musical era does Vivaldi fit?
- For what special accomplishment is Vivaldi known?
- Did Vivaldi write operas? Symphonies? Church music? Chamber works?
After students have conducted their search, have them follow the same procedures for Franz Joseph Haydn. Introduce Haydn,using Symphony No. 94 ("Surprise"), and share a brief sketch of Haydn's life.
Working in teams of two or four, have students complete a Venn Diagram comparing and contrasting the lives of Vivaldi and Haydn.
Assessment:
Give the students an answer sheet with numbered choices of "piano" or "forte" and have them circle the correct answer as they listen to the prepared tape of short musical selections demonstrating the dynamics.
Younger students may demonstrate "piano" and "forte" using instruments from the Orff instrumentarium or from unpitched percussion instruments.
Extensions:
Have students design a dynamic layout for a favorite song and sing it to the class using the correct dynamics.
Simply watch as the students hold up appropriate cards for the dynamic sections of the music.
Students could go to a listening center set up with the CD "Vivaldi—Ring of Mystery."
Sources:
Media:
- Haydn, Franz Joseph. Symphony No. 94 ("Surprise") Haydn: The Symphonies. Hungarica Philharmonia. B0000042DP.
- Vivaldi, Antonio. Vivaldi's Ring of Mystery. Walter Babiak. Children's Group. B00000212N.
- Vivaldi, Antonio. Vivaldi: The Four Seasons. Seiji Ozawa. Boston Symphony Orchestra. B000003CSU.
Web:
Authors:
-
Linda White, Music Teacher
Fairfax County Public Schools
Fairfax, Virginia
