Poetic Meter & Text-Setting

This lesson is part of the Rhythm, Meter & Form category.

Objectives

• Students will be able to analyze a short text for prosodic meter and scansion.
• Students will be able to set a lyric to music using normative melodic and rhythmic conventions.
• Students will be able to discuss the scansion of a musical excerpt and how it affects the musical and lyrical aspects of the piece.
• Students will understand the role of rhyme scheme in a musical work.

Resources

Readings

On Poetic Meter

• "Stress and Intonation" (Learning English Online)
• "Meter" (Literary Devices)
• "Learn These 4 Word Stress Rules to Improve Your Pronunciation." (ETS TOEFL)

Metrical Text-Setting

• M. Saunders. "Setting Text in English to Music."
• F. Tobey. "2A Poetic Meter" (A Feeling for Harmony).

Class Activities

• Discussion and demonstration of scansion, lyric setting.
• Analysis of a musical excerpt for scansion and rhyme scheme
• Analysis of a given or student-selected text for scansion, and composition of a rhythm and melody which properly accommodates that scansion

Assignments

• Find the scansion of a given lyric (or poem)
• Setting a given lyric to rhythm and/or melody
• Analysis of written and recorded music for scansion