ExtraOrdinary Music Education &
Exercises ~ Section 3
More on Listening ~ Making Distinctions
Featuring The Bulgarian Children's Choir
In this selection, try listening before the choir starts
for the pre-delay again. It's much clearer in this 'number.' Anyone with 'normal' hearing should be able to hear it. If not, have your hearing checked.
Listen for the breath work, also clearer in this transfer.
Can you distinguish 'unisons' from harmonies and dissonances? Notice when the harmonies break away from the unisons. Does it tickle?
What interesting choices of intervals! What other choices could have been made?
Do some of the vocal or instrumental phrases sound
like Morse Code in this selection, too?
What do you think this particular rhythmic code might be saying?
Write down your intuits and compare thtm with the previous entry or entries in this category later. If you notice articulation, you might also hear what the children are saying. What are they saying to YOU? Write it down.
See the link below for a little more writing music. Go far away and come back.
Were you more able to hold onto the previous mp3 file this
time without getting too lost in the new mp3? This is difficult. You will get better at it if you 'practice.'
Did you have to go back to the Bulgarian Choir mp3
again to continue with the answers? I did.
This can be rather taxing if you are truly dedicated to developing your listening and other skills being deeply engaged in the exercises. Allow yourself the time you need to relax into it and it will be more beneficial and much more fun.
Don't worry about adding too many planes of listening at once.
Take a rest and relax. Review some Help & Glossary files
in your reverie.
For help and glossary see:
Did you hear the 'post-delay' or echo of the children's last 'measure' at the end of this selection? It was more noticable than the previous selection.
You might try a round or two in distinction of placement of the parts again. When do they enter and exit?
Listen back to see which parts seem to be 'positioned' to the right. Left. Middle. Elsewhere.
Are there any solos in this selection?
Distinguish the 'counter point' in contrast to the dominant melody. Is it similar or different from the counter melody in the previous selection?
Always listen for dynamics. You will become more and more familiar with the process or protocol of these listening exercises with each selection.
Can you learn how to 'throw your voice' like the children do on the 'trills,' 'grace notes,' and/or 'accidentals'? How is a trill different from 'vibrato?'
How many rounds has it taken you to have made the number of discoveries you have so far? Is the number greater or less than an equal amount of time spent with the previous files?
Take another break and include as much movement as your available timeframe permits. Resume the exercise now, or at a later time.
For help and glossary see:
If you would like to stretch your 'powers' by adding even more planes of listening, continue with the following:
Try listening for the rhythms, tempo, and timing again,
that make the work so engaging. This selection is especially good for this exercise with its vocal and its additional instrumental or 'percussive' parts.
~ Advanced Training ~
This selection is also good for exercising the faculty or function of pitching your listening into the various dimensions of clicking and popping per instructions in the previous exercise. There are several different types of crackles, clicks, and pops in this mp3 file. If you don't care to review a round of crackles in this domain, you might enjoy discovering another arena.
Some of the clicks seem to be the sound of 'castinettes' or another percussive instrument. Can you distinguish what is being used here? It's 'timbre' seems to be of the wood family.
There are 'drums' in this selection, too. They are not counted
as clicks or pops, they are drums!
Can you make the distinction?
Do you even know what a drum is?
If not, see:
and
Maybe you're more interested in the arena of the various file formats.
Do you know the difference between an mp3 file and a midi file?
If not, visit the link below to review a midi file in contrast to the mp3 files you've been listening to in this 'cosi' series. A midi file will play generic instrument sounds thru your cpu's soundcard. If your system is not set to the same midi protocol, all the parts might be played with the wrong instrument patches. Mp3, wav, ra, and similar formats are soundfiles of recordings of works recorded with live or synthetic instruments, with or without vocals and/or other effects. See if you can learn to make these distinctions.
The Foster page highlighting a two-part midi file should be playing a 'glockenspeil' or other delicate 'bell' on the melody, and a 'harp' on the 'arpeggiation.'
Was your system set to receive this 'patch' information or did it play other sounds? If so, what other sounds did you hear on these two parts? If other sounds played, set your system to play the glock and harp. Does is sound completely different that when the midi file played the other patches?
If you have been experiencing the cosi files for a while, take note of how much your listening skills have grown since you first began the exercises. Wind this session up with 1 more round of either mp3 from the Bulgarian Children's Choir, any of the others herein including the Evening Danse mp3 below, or meltdown with another delicate 'reprise' of the Foster1 midi file above, then go play. Foster1.html includes 3 pages of sheet music. But for now, that is enough to know.