Ten Pieces Again

[french frank]

Just received this morning:

"Dear Sarah,

Thank you for your letter concerning Ten Pieces.

I can assure you that we aim to spread the word about this project right around the BBC. Our flagship Children’s programme, Blue Peter, will be covering it. Furthermore there is a storyline in the Dumping Ground (CBBC's hit drama) where children are taking part in Ten Pieces. I am also delighted that many of the CBBC stars are presenting pieces in the cinematic film - including Blue Peter's Barney, Khalil from the 4 O'Clock Club, and two actresses from the Dumping Ground.
Also, several of the pieces feature in Melody, a Cbeebies series introducing classical music to little ones which was partly made by the Executive Producer in BBC Learning who is making the 10 pieces. Cbeebies are also planning a themed music week to tie in, and there will be guides for parents on how to get your kids onto classical music.

Aside from Radio 3 support, I fully expect to utilise the airwaves of Radio 2, and we are hoping for a number of outlets in The One Show on BBC 1.

Best wishes,

Bob

Bob Shennan
Director BBC Music
Controller BBC Radio 2, 6 Music, Asian Network"

I replied that I was impressed

[Radio64]

Sarah?

[french frank]

Sarah?

Username french frank.

[Radio64]

Username french frank.

ah. How d'you do.

[Serial_Apologist]

They didn't say anything about our views on Radio 3 being put in the Dumping Ground, I see...

[french frank]

They didn't say anything about our views on Radio 3 being put in the Dumping Ground, I see...

I missed a trick there!

[doversoul1]

During the autumn term, children will then be asked to respond creatively to the music through their own compositions, dance, digital art or animation. Six ambassadors - Nicola Benedetti, Alison Balsom, Cerys Matthews, Laura Mvula, Julian Joseph and Catrin Finch will be going into schools to help children engage with the project

http://www.theguardian.com/music/2014/jun/16/bbc-ten-pieces-classical-music-primary-school-children

I know this is a completely wrong thing to say but as a child I would have hated this with all my heart. Although I wasn’t aware of classical music as such at primary school, music was a serious and very private thing to me. I was very aware that anything I ‘composed’ wouldn't be a real thing, and I knew I had no musical talent and had no interest in hearing what those who had had to say. Dance? Art? Oh God! I’d have faked a headache and stayed at home. I just wanted to listen to music. There. I’ve said it.

P.S. I had a wonderful music teacher later in my school days. He ran the school orchestra, played records and talked about music. Nothing more.

[french frank]

I know this is a completely wrong thing to say but as a child I would have hated this with all my heart. Although I wasn’t aware of classical music as such at primary school, music was a serious and very private thing to me. I was very aware that anything I ‘composed’ wasn’t a real thing, and I knew I had no musical talent and had no interest in hearing what those who had had to say. Dance? Art? Oh God! I’d have faked a headache and stayed at home. I just wanted to listen to music. There. I’ve said it.

Oooh!!! REELLY!!! When I was at primary school, music hardly existed at all. Our two teachers both played the piano and we sang things - can't remember what. In the parental home we had a very out of tune upright piano which no one played. My mother could fumble her way through part of Coleridge-Taylor's Petite Suite de Concert (piano version) and occasionally did. And there was a gramophone with a sundry collection of ancient shellac 78s (about 10). A few 'new' records were bought but nothing classical as no one knew anything about it.

The main difference was that I wasn't surrounded everywhere, as I would be now, by music: with all the different flavours of pop music, on radio, on television, introduced by friends &c.

[BBMmk2]

Hindsight is a wonderful thing, especially where classical music is concerned. I attended prep school and the music department there was not all that great, until a younger chap took over, where it immediately took on a much more vibrant atmosphere than with it's predecessor. It was this new MD, that I found my first musical foothold. Thanks to him, this was how my musical education begun! he would be a great exponent of a type of evangelism for classical music.

[doversoul1]

Oooh!!! REELLY!!! When I was at primary school, music hardly existed at all. Our two teachers both played the piano and we sang things - can't remember what. In the parental home we had a very out of tune upright piano which no one played. My mother could fumble her way through part of Coleridge-Taylor's Petite Suite de Concert (piano version) and occasionally did. And there was a gramophone with a sundry collection of ancient shellac 78s (about 10). A few 'new' records were bought but nothing classical as no one knew anything about it.

The main difference was that I wasn't surrounded everywhere, as I would be now, by music: with all the different flavours of pop music, on radio, on television, introduced by friends &c.

There was even less music when I was a child. A piano in a private home was unheard of. Music I knew was mostly songs we learned at school. The point I was trying to make was that even with these songs, my response to music was inextricable (or abstract, maybe) and private. I would have hated it if I’d have to turn my response into an instant classroom activity.

Why can’t children be taught or encouraged to learn to listen to music without added activities?

[MrGongGong]

Why can’t children be taught or encouraged to learn to listen to music without added activities?

http://www.soundandmusic.org/projects/minute-listening

[doversoul1]

Minute of Listening is an exciting and innovative project that has the potential to provide all primary-aged children with the opportunity to experience sixty seconds of creative listening each day of the school year.

I mean MUSIC. Not a bit of sound, and then this again:
[…] followed by group discussions and sharing their responses to the sounds they heard.

Do they always have to ‘share’ their thought on the spot (Tweet, phone in?)? I bet a lot of children are too busy thinking about what they are going to say instead of concentrating on listening. I would if I had to talk afterword. This is what I mean. Can’t they just be left to listen to whatever it is they are to hear?

[MrGongGong]

Minute of Listening is an exciting and innovative project that has the potential to provide all primary-aged children with the opportunity to experience sixty seconds of creative listening each day of the school year.

I mean MUSIC. Not a bit of sound, and then this again:
[…] followed by group discussions and sharing their responses to the sounds they heard.

Do they always have to ‘share’ their thought on the spot (Tweet, phone in?)? I bet a lot of children are too busy thinking about what they are going to say instead of concentrating on listening. I would if I had to talk afterword. This is what I mean. Can’t they just be left to listen to whatever it is they are to hear?

Music is a sonic phenomena, SOUND is what it's largely made of
and without reflection asking people to simply "listen" doesn't work
people (and not just children) don't listen if you ask them to
developing a language for talking about sound is a vital thing IMV and something that could be done much better

Most people in here like to talk about music
encouraging music as a "thinking" activity is a very good thing IMV

You also forget that we are wierdos, "normal" () people don't like listening to music and thinking about it, they seem to like using music only for other purposes.

[doversoul1]

Music is a sonic phenomena, SOUND is what it's largely made of
and without reflection asking people to simply "listen" doesn't work
people (and not just children) don't listen if you ask them to
developing a language for talking about sound is a vital thing IMV and something that could be done much better

Most people in here like to talk about music
encouraging music as a "thinking" activity is a very good thing IMV

You also forget that we are wierdos, "normal" () people don't like listening to music and thinking about it, they seem to like using music only for other purposes.

But sound is not music (you can’t hear music without hearing sound but you can hear sound without hearing music).

I agree with you that developing a language for talking about anything is very important. However, a project like this seems to me to be more about talking than for learning to listen to music, and talking is not necessarily the same as thinking. Will children learn to listen to an entire piece of music (not necessarily anything very long) just for the sake of listening to the music and not for any activity afterward?

Still, I won’t go on about it. Let’s hope some children will pick up the pleasure of listening to (classical ) music and won’t put too many off (not everybody likes having to talk about things).

[ed] Re: the last paragraph

[MrGongGong]

But sound is not music (you can’t hear music without hearing sound but you can hear sound without hearing music).

Hummm

You can have music without sound, I can imagine it without hearing any sounds and that is still music
The minute of listening project is a great example of something that focusses on the act of listening the "what to listen to in music" approach where people are supposed to understand the "elements" of music just kills curiosity and doesn't encourage real deep listening.

Pauline Oliveros also has some interesting things to say about this.