MUSICWORKS CREATIVE EXERCISE THE SERIAL CIRCLE inspired by the music of Anton Webern

This activity is a whole class activity! Students will need a pitched instrument! Clear open space is essential for this activity! Students should stand or sit in a circle! "ou will need to print one copy of the #$ enclosed flashcards! Each flashcard contains a different pitch name!

Summary Webern%s music is meticulously structured and comple&! This creative e&ercise will enable your students to easily 'rasp the principal concepts of serialism in a fun and strai'htforward way! (sin' flashcards) the students will create a tone row! They will then e&plore the row to create a short serial 'roup composition! The *ey musical concepts e&plored in this activity are TONE ROW, SERIALISM) ORCHESTRATION and STRUCTURE!

Creating a Tone Row #! $! As* a student to shuffle the enclosed flashcards and to place all #$ of them face up in a circle on the floor! Invite #$ students to stand by a flashcard with their instruments +one student per flashcard,!

If you wish to involve more students: more than one person may stand at each flashcard! If you wish to involve fewer students: some students may be responsible for more than one flashcard! -! .iscuss the principles of a tone row with the students) and e&plain that the flashcards on the floor also ma*e a tone row! Emphasise the *ey concept of playin' each row note in

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succession! The students must now choose a startin' point in the row and play the row) in turn) from be'innin' to end +literally playin' round the circle,!

0!1! Each student is only responsible for playin' one note! They may choose to play the note in whichever octave they wish! If some of the notes are doubled when more than one student is standin' by a flashcard) the students should aim to play the note e&actly to'ether! Structuring a Compo ition u ing t!e Tone Row Challen'e the class to create a short serial 'roup composition usin' the tone row! Remember) each person is really only responsible for one note! E"p#ore any o$ t!e $o##owing concept wit! t!e tu%ent & RH'THM 2 can the students invent a rhythm to fit with the tone row3 ('NAMICS 2 carefully assi'n some dynamics to the pitches! ARTICULAION 2 thin* about the 4uality of sound and attac* used to produce each note! RAN)E 2 rather than playin' the row notes in a random octave) decide e&actly where each note should sound!

0ow) apply any of the concepts above to the techni4ues below to create further music5 HARMON' 2 ma*e interestin' chords by combinin' row notes! Try playin' the #st four notes to'ether as a chord! Then the ne&t four and then the ne&t four! 6ow did they sound3 *AR' THE STARTIN) +OINT RETRO)RA(E 2 how does the row sound bac*wards3 ORCHESTRATION 2 what would it sound li*e if only the strin' instruments played their row notes3 etc!

Encoura'e the students to invent their own rules5 the more comple& and mathematical) the better! 7inally) shape all the ideas to'ether and structure one complete and continuous piece of serial music!