Perform Brief Sight-Reading Examples

Artistic Process
Performing
Anchor Standard
Pr4 - Select, analyze and interpret artistic work for presentation.
Grade Level
5-6
7-8
Process Component
Analyze
Primary Strand
Harmonizing Instruments

Procedure

• Teacher provides students with basic approaches to sight-reading.
• Students look at key signatures/tonal center, accidentals, rhythm, clef changes (if
applicable), expressive qualities (such dynamics, articulation, and tempo), and notes (transformation of solfège syllables, if applicable).
• Teacher demonstrates a suggested order of steps for the sight-
reading process, including: what to look for; fingerings or humming
the excerpt with accurate pitches (fingerings and/or solfège syllables)
and rhythmic values (air bow); and playing or singing the excerpt.
• Teacher assists the students in reading several excerpts.
• Students “practice” sight-reading.
• Students sight-read during lessons

Standards Code

MU: Pr4.2.H.5.a - Identify prominent elements of music (such as form and harmony) in a varied repertoire of music.
MU: Pr4.2.H.5.b - Use aural skills and standard notation when analyzing selected music.
MU: Pr4.2.H.8.a - a. Identify and compare prominent elements of music (such as form and harmony) in a repertoire of music representing contrasting styles.
MU: Pr4.2.H.8.b - Use aural skills and standard notation (rhythmic, melodic, and harmonic) when analyzing selected music.

Suggested Assessment

Teacher-generated rubric addresses pitch, rhythm, dynamics, tempo, and articulation accuracy.

Enduring Understanding

Analyzing creators' context and how they manipulate elements of music, provides insight into their intent, and informs performance

Essential Question

How does understanding the structure and context of musical works inform performance?

Additional Instructional Ideas

Apply knowledge of sight-reading to perform a teacher or selected composition, paying particular attention to the execution of notated symbols.