AP Annual Conference 2017
AP MUSIC THEORY ESSENTIALS
Christopher M. Lee
Teacher, Newtown High School (CT)
College Board Advisor for AP Music Theory
SESSION MATERIALS
Click titles to see or download.
Planning Resource: Assembling Multiple-Choice Questions for Classroom Practice
Helps teacher to gather and program multiple-choice questions for in-class practice. Does so by offering an analysis of the sample multiple-choice questions found in the AP Music Theory Course Description (2012). Teachers can easily locate basic questions for early in the year, mid-level questions for winter, etc.
Classroom Activity: Skill Drills 1
Classroom Activity: Skill Drills 2
Self-contained worksheets facilitating various classroom activities. Each worksheet includes: 1) a tiny part-writing warm-up; 2) identification and notation of intervals and triads based on aural stimuli; 3) melodic dictation questions (modeled after the AP exam but placed at a mid-year level of difficulty); and, 4) harmonic dictation questions (modeled after the AP exam but placed at a mid-year level of difficulty). Audio files of the melodic and harmonic dictation questions are available at the bottom of this page.
Classroom Activity: Dictation Warm-ups
Very short (1-2 measure) warm-up exercises for melodic and harmonic dictation. For use at mid-year, perhaps as a warm-up before administering full-fledged melodic and harmonic dictation questions from the AP exam. Focus areas: rhythm in compound meter, pitch spellings in the minor mode (scale degrees 6 & 7), and common bass lines. Single PDF includes reproducible student page and answer key.
Classroom Activity: Aural Multiple-Choice Practice (Template and Example sheet)
A practice sheet template to facilitate practice of a specific question type: the single multiple-choice ear-training questions that might appear in Section IA of the exam. After printing the template, you can create your own practice sheets by writing in your own questions. (See example sheet.) I base my questions on those from actual AP exams, such as the questions found on pp. 19-21 of the AP Music Theory Course Description (2012).
Composition Assignment: Chorale Phrase
Students compose a single chorale phrase in SATB format, following the 18th-century conventions they have been studying. Intended for early in the school year.
Composition Project: Complete Chorale Composition
This three-phase project takes students through the careful composition of a single chorale phrase and explores how that single phrase can form the basis of a complete multiple-phrase chorale. This is accomplished through literal and varied repetition of the phrase--including transposition to the relative key--as well as the option of composing a contrasting phrase. This project is designed to facilitate a chorale-writing experience with minimal time commitment.
Composition Project: Post-Exam Composition Project (example from my own class)
Includes Modern Harmony handout
This composition project can provide an engaging focus for the instructional weeks that follow the AP exam. Students synthesize their learned knowledge and skills while expanding their scope to potentially include post-tonal harmonic approaches.
Helps teacher to gather and program multiple-choice questions for in-class practice. Does so by offering an analysis of the sample multiple-choice questions found in the AP Music Theory Course Description (2012). Teachers can easily locate basic questions for early in the year, mid-level questions for winter, etc.
Classroom Activity: Skill Drills 1
Classroom Activity: Skill Drills 2
Self-contained worksheets facilitating various classroom activities. Each worksheet includes: 1) a tiny part-writing warm-up; 2) identification and notation of intervals and triads based on aural stimuli; 3) melodic dictation questions (modeled after the AP exam but placed at a mid-year level of difficulty); and, 4) harmonic dictation questions (modeled after the AP exam but placed at a mid-year level of difficulty). Audio files of the melodic and harmonic dictation questions are available at the bottom of this page.
Classroom Activity: Dictation Warm-ups
Very short (1-2 measure) warm-up exercises for melodic and harmonic dictation. For use at mid-year, perhaps as a warm-up before administering full-fledged melodic and harmonic dictation questions from the AP exam. Focus areas: rhythm in compound meter, pitch spellings in the minor mode (scale degrees 6 & 7), and common bass lines. Single PDF includes reproducible student page and answer key.
Classroom Activity: Aural Multiple-Choice Practice (Template and Example sheet)
A practice sheet template to facilitate practice of a specific question type: the single multiple-choice ear-training questions that might appear in Section IA of the exam. After printing the template, you can create your own practice sheets by writing in your own questions. (See example sheet.) I base my questions on those from actual AP exams, such as the questions found on pp. 19-21 of the AP Music Theory Course Description (2012).
Composition Assignment: Chorale Phrase
Students compose a single chorale phrase in SATB format, following the 18th-century conventions they have been studying. Intended for early in the school year.
Composition Project: Complete Chorale Composition
This three-phase project takes students through the careful composition of a single chorale phrase and explores how that single phrase can form the basis of a complete multiple-phrase chorale. This is accomplished through literal and varied repetition of the phrase--including transposition to the relative key--as well as the option of composing a contrasting phrase. This project is designed to facilitate a chorale-writing experience with minimal time commitment.
Composition Project: Post-Exam Composition Project (example from my own class)
Includes Modern Harmony handout
This composition project can provide an engaging focus for the instructional weeks that follow the AP exam. Students synthesize their learned knowledge and skills while expanding their scope to potentially include post-tonal harmonic approaches.
Audio Files for Skill Drills activities
Skill Drills 1 (Examples D - G)
question_d_from_skill_drills_1.mp3 | |
File Size: | 6512 kb |
File Type: | mp3 |
question_e_from_skill_drills_1.mp3 | |
File Size: | 6455 kb |
File Type: | mp3 |
question_f_from_skill_drills_1.mp3 | |
File Size: | 6724 kb |
File Type: | mp3 |
question_g_from_skill_drills_1.mp3 | |
File Size: | 6721 kb |
File Type: | mp3 |
Skill Drills 2 (Examples D - G)
question_d_from_skill_drills_2.mp3 | |
File Size: | 6565 kb |
File Type: | mp3 |
question_e_from_skill_drills_2.mp3 | |
File Size: | 6510 kb |
File Type: | mp3 |
question_f_from_skill_drills_2.mp3 | |
File Size: | 6772 kb |
File Type: | mp3 |
question_g_from_skill_drills_2.mp3 | |
File Size: | 6769 kb |
File Type: | mp3 |