Modal Melody

Objectives

• Students will be familiar with the characteristics of each diatonic mode.
• Students will be able to analyze the mode of a melody.
• Students will be able to write a melody in a specific mode.
• Students will be familiar with the different minor scales and the reason for using them.

Class Activities

• Discussion of each mode and its specific melodic characteristics (especially its color tones)
• Improvisation and composition of melodies which highlight unique characteristics of a particular mode
• Discussion of natural, harmonic and melodic minor
• Using melodic minor to remove augmented seconds from a common practice period melody

Assignments

• Writing minor and modal scales
• Identifying key and mode of written and recorded music excerpts
• Writing a melody in a particular mode
• Properly inflecting ˆ6 and ˆ7 in a classical minor melody