Introduction
Welcome to the Wonderful World of Disney, a place where dreams come true. In fact, your dreams are coming true because this study is all about the music of this magical place. Music has brought every film, every picture, and every character that we have created to life. We want to ensure that you know how music has done this and why music makes the difference. In this WebQuest you will identify the importance of music in cinema and you will understand how music plays such a vital role in the great drama we call life.
Music is a universal language that is spoken throughout the entire world. It gives meaning to everything surrounding it, and embellishes the things that people formulate within their minds as their eyes are captivated by a movie screen. Composers, arrangers, and film scorers alike have argued that music influences our experiences in cinematic scenarios. A soothing violin solo in a love scene is associated with romance, calmness, and tranquility that we feel. This juxtaposes a belting brass section that educes excitement, valor, and adventure in an action-packed fight scene. Music plays a vital role in the success or failures of motion pictures because it has a tremendous effect on a viewer’s psychological, emotional, and even their spiritual nature. Psychologically,music has an effect on movie viewers because of the way it impacts their brain and a vast majority of people do not know that music can affect one’s mood, and collectively have an impact on their emotions. It is also awe-inspiring to know that music has the ability to affect an individual spiritually; therefore, imagine how powerful a tool it can be in movies. Music is vital to cinema in every aspect of writing, arranging, scoring, and/or composing- manipulating notes, tones,and/or expressions into a quality sound that boosts the effectiveness of a cinematic production. Our minds are expanded each time we watch a new film, and the music, literally behind the scenes, non-consciously exercises our brains.Then we laugh, we frown, and we cry, inevitably, from the emotional toll that the music has on us after watching a tragedy lead to triumph. Finally, we exit the theater with a heighten level of spiritual wholeness, on a new platform of solidity and validation. We feel new and refreshed, and sometimes like running a marathon. Who knew that a trip to the movies could be so satisfying?
Task
Once an individual has determined the story he/she wants to tell and has chosen a cast that will best suit the story being told, they must conglomerate all of the existing and/or pending expenses, film the movie, and edit the finished product. Editing is the final process before the completion of a film, and few people know that music is one of the last additions made to a movie. It is actually incorporated in the final stages of production. This is so that the music will be synchronized with the chain of events that are taking place in the movie’s plot. Furthermore, each time a film scorer begins to score an accompaniment for a new film he/she is required to make distinctions of how to affect a viewer, yet again, psychologically, emotionally, and spiritually.
By complete this WebQuest you will be able to explain if and how music is vital to cinema using the success found in the Wonderful World of Disney to express the effect(s) that music can/cannot have on audiences. You will also gain the knowledge and experience in what it takes to be a film scorer by composing your own music and applying it to film.
Process
Assignment 1: Here is the moment of truth. Your task is to selected a snippet (3-7 minutes) from any one of Walt Disney's animated pictures and explain using the MLA format in at least 2-4 pages how significant the music is to that animated feature. You are to answer questions like: What would this scene be like without music? Does the music enhance the clip? If so, how? Does the music take away from what's happening? If so, how? You must be as convincing as an attorney when explaining how important or how unimportant the music is. Explain why you chose the clip. Use themes, sounds, and/or identify chord progressions (I, IV, V, I; I, IV, V, vi...etc.), cadences (Perfect authentic, Imperfect authentic, half, deceptive, Plagal) and/or chord qualities(major, minor, augmented, diminished) that establish and elicit certain moods and/or emotions, etc.
Assignment 2:But that's not all! After you've completed an analysis of a clip and turned in the paper. You will have an opportunity to compose your own score for a short film. Directions for this procedure are as follows: First, select a 1-2 minute animated clip from a movie, television show, or YouTube (this clip does not have to be from a Disney movie but must be appropriate and approved by the teacher before use). Next, your teacher will assist you in extracting the sound from the clip you have selected and properly citing the clip as a resource. Following the extraction step, you will use musical notation software, preferably Finale or Sibelius 7 {both of which are provided to you}, to compose a short composition that fits the scene. Not to worry, this task isn't as hard as it sounds though it will be a challenge. Nevertheless, once you have completed this assignment you will share you product with the class and you will officially be a young film scorer.
Evaluation
You will be graded based upon the effort that you put forth at doing the very best you can on the assignments given. A rubric is posted for your paper as well as for your film score. This assignment is worth 5 TEST GRADES (each component) and 2 PROJECT GRADES (overall) and will be factored in as 60% of you FINAL GRADE!
1)
NAME___________________________ DATE _________________
Research Paper Rubric
MLA Format
12 pt. Times New Roman
Double spaced
*Must use at least 4 sources: 2 print (journals, articles, books, etc.) 2 electronic (Internet: online journals, blogs, etc.)
SCALE
|
CONTENT
|
POINTS Up to 45 points |
Content must include answers to the questions. Be sure to support your opinions. |
|
FLOW OF IDEAS
|
Up to 30 points |
Information should be organized. |
|
GRAMMAR AND CLARITY
|
Up to 20 points |
Paper should be free of grammatical errors and should be coherent. |
|
CITATIONS
|
Up to 5 points |
Cite your sources. |
This rubric is based on a 100-point scale.
2)
|
|
CATEGORY |
3= 93-100 |
2= 85-92 |
1 77-84 |
R - Redo (60-77) |
|
Music Score |
Music score is very neat and all required elements are included: Song Title, Composer Name, Instrument, Clef Sign, Time Signature, Key Signature, and Copyright. |
Music score is neat. Two or less of the required elements are missing from the musical score. |
Music score is legible. Three to four of the required elements are missing from the musical score. |
Music score is illegible and many of the required musical score elements are missing. |
|
Music Notation |
All notes are written neatly using proper barline placement. |
Most notes are written clearly using the proper barline placement. |
Notes are written clearly, but barline placement is often incorrect. |
Notes are written in a sloppy and illegible manner. Barline placement is not correct. Needs to be resubmitted. |
|
Harmony |
Each measure contains at least one triad. The triads are written in a variety of formats including: root, 1st, and/or 2nd inversions. |
85% of the measures include at least one triad and the triads are written in a variety of formats including: root, 1st, and/or 2nd inversions. |
70% of the measures contain at least one triad. The triads are written in only the root position. |
Half of the measures are missing a triad. Composition needs to be edited and resubmitted. |
|
Meter and Rhythm |
All measures have the correct # of beats and a variety of rhythms are used. Including the use of Whole, Half, Quarter, eighth, and sixteenth notes. |
85% of measures have the correct # of beats and a variety of rhythms are used. Including the use of Whole, Half, Quarter, and eighth notes. |
70% of the measures have the correct # of beats. Rhythms are very basic and do not expand beyond quarter notes. |
Under half of the measures have the correct # of beats. Composition needs to be edited and resubmitted. |
|
Overall Performance |
The composition was creative, clean/easy to read, and included all required elements. |
The composition was somewhat creative and legible. Most of the required elements were included. |
The composition was very basic and somewhat legible to read. At least half of the required elements were included. |
The composition was not complete, and very difficult to read. Under half of the required elements were included. Project will need to be revised. |
Conclusion
*Not to be read until the completion of the assignment.
Congratulations! You have successfully explored the Wonderful World of Disney and enlightened yourself along with your classmates how exciting and essential music is in movies. And that's not all! You are now officially a film scorer in your own right. Your work will go down in history and from here you can continue to freely explore the world of music and the tremendous impact that it has on movies. You can even construct your own film and compose the music for that film. I am so proud of each and every one of you. Don't ever stop making music!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6U40IyZY2_A
Credits
Teacher Page
This WebQuest is design to boost students' appreciate for music and the arts. It is also design to produce a level of understand of music's functionality and its benefits or effects on temperament/mood/emotions, etc . Of course there are hundreds of avenues through which music can impact the world; however, this WebQuest targets specifically: music in movies. Though this would be consider a "colorful" or fun project it calls for a great deal of time. It may require anywhere from 6-8 weeks or even up to an entire semester to complete.
ISTE Standards for Students {International Society for Technology in Education}
a.
Critical thinking, problem solving,
and decision making
Students use critical thinking skills to plan
and conduct research, manage projects, solve
problems, and make informed decisions using
appropriate digital tools and resources.
b.
Plan and manage activities to develop a solution
or complete a project
c.
Collect and analyze data to identify solutions
and/or make informed decisions
d.
Use multiple processes and diverse
perspectives to explore alternative solutions
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sHrYDL9LkIQ
http://www.iste.org/docs/pdfs/20-14_ISTE_Standards-S_PDF.pdf