Band I

The Utah State Music Core divides the goals of music education into four music standards which are Perform, Create, Listen/Analyze/Evaluate, and Discover Meaning. The standards organize the curriculum into manageable and related units and guide the student through a rich experience with music. Each standard is broken into objectives, each objective into indicators. The individual Core courses are presented in a portfolio format to facilitate student progress and to encourage the support of parents, teachers, and classmates. Listed below are all the music objectives. Each course includes the objectives relevant to its focus and provides indicators to detail the emphasis indicated in the course descriptions that follow. There are additional, elective courses available many schools. Playback and recording technology is required for each course.

Standard 1 PERFORM
Students will use body, voice, and instruments as means of musical expression.

Objective A: Produce a beautiful tone.
Objective B: Demonstrate technical performance skills.
Objective C: Demonstrate notational literacy.
Objective D: Demonstrate productive rehearsal habits.
Objective E: Demonstrate knowledge, use, and care of selected instruments.
Objective F: Perform varied repertoire.

Standard 2 CREATE
Students will improvise and compose music.

Objective A: Improvise rhythmic and melodic ideas and phrases.
Objective B: Record musical thoughts in standard notation.
Objective C: Create imitations of music passages.
Objective D: Write original melodies and short compositions.
Objective E: Orchestrate melodies and short compositions.
Objective F: Arrange melodies and short compositions.

Standard 3 LISTEN/ANALYZE/EVALUATE
Students will expand music listening skills and use music vocabulary to analyze and evaluate music.

Objective A: Describe the elements of music.
Objective B: Analyze and evaluate musical examples.
Objective C: Evaluate ensemble performance.
Objective D: Document personal growth as a musician.

Standard 4 DISCOVER MEANING
Students will find avenues of understanding and communication through connecting music to personal growth, the joy of living, traditions, culture, and history.

Objective A: Examine how music relates to personal development and enjoyment of life.
Objective B: Experience how music connects us to history, culture, heritage, and community.

MUSIC COURSE DESCRIPTIONS

Band I (MU 1630)
This course provides opportunities for students to develop their musical potential and aesthetic understanding through learning to play a woodwind, brass, or percussion instrument. Study includes the care and cultivation of a beautiful tone, the ability to read music, the building of technical skills, team spirit, and responsible rehearsal habits. Students will have opportunities to experience the spontaneity of improvisation and the creative process of composing. Students will strengthen listening skills and their ability to analyze and evaluate music and music performances. Attention will also be given to relating their music experiences to the time and culture of the pieces they study, as well as to contemporary society. No prerequisite course required.

Band II (MU 1730)
This course further develops and refines core concepts and fundamentals introduced in Beginning Band. Study includes the care and cultivation of a beautiful tone, the ability to read music with increasing fluency, the building of technical skills, team spirit, and responsible rehearsal habits. Students will have opportunities to experience the spontaneity of improvisation and the creative process of composition. Students will heighten listening skills and increase their ability to analyze and evaluate music and music performances. Attention will also be given to relating their music experiences to the time and culture of the pieces they study, as well as to contemporary society. Prerequisite course is Band I (MU 1630) or audition.

Band III (MU 1770)
This course provides opportunities to foster and refine musical expression through instrumental performance, analytical/evaluative skills, and aesthetic judgment. Study includes the care and cultivation of a beautiful tone, the ability to read music with fluency, the polishing of performance skills, team spirit, and responsible rehearsal habits. Students will have opportunities to experience the spontaneity of improvisation and the creative process of composing. Students will hone listening skills and their ability to analyze and critique music and music performances. Attention will also be given to relating their music experiences to the time and culture of the pieces they study, as well as to contemporary society. Prerequisite course is Band II (MU 1730) or audition.

Choir I (MU 1620)
This course provides opportunities for students to develop their musical potential and aesthetic understanding through singing in a choral ensemble. Study includes the care and cultivation of a beautiful tone, aesthetic awareness, the ability to read music, the building of technical skills, team spirit, and responsible rehearsal habits. Students will have opportunities to experience the spontaneity of improvisation and the creative process of composition. Students will strengthen listening skills and their ability to analyze and evaluate music and music performances. Attention will also be given to relating their music experiences to personal development. No prerequisite course is required.

Choir II (MU 1720)
This course provides opportunities for students to develop their musical potential and aesthetic understanding through singing in a choral ensemble. Study includes the care and cultivation of a beautiful tone, aesthetic sensitivity, the ability to read music with increasing fluency, the building of technical skills, team spirit, and responsible rehearsal habits. Students will have opportunities to experience the spontaneity of improvisation and the creative process of composition. Students will heighten listening skills and increase their ability to analyze and evaluate music and music performances. Attention will also be given to relating their music experiences to the time and culture of the pieces they study, as well as to contemporary society. Prerequisite course is Beginning Choir (MU 1620), or audition.

Choir III (MU 1760)
This course provides opportunities for students to develop their musical potential and aesthetic understanding through singing in a choral ensemble. Study includes the care and cultivation of a beautiful tone, aesthetic understanding, the ability to read music with fluency, the polishing of performance skills, team spirit, and responsible rehearsal habits. Students will have opportunities to experience the spontaneity of improvisation and the creative process of composition. Students will hone listening skills and their ability to analyze and critique music and music performances. Attention will also be given to relating their music experiences to the time and culture of the pieces they study, as well as to contemporary society. Prerequisite course is Intermediate Choir (MU 1720), or audition.

Orchestra I (MU 1640)
This course provides opportunities for students to develop their musical potential and aesthetic understanding through learning to play orchestral string instruments. Study includes the care and cultivation of a beautiful tone, the ability to read music, the building of technical skills, team spirit, and responsible rehearsal habits. Students will have opportunities to experience the spontaneity of improvisation and the creative process of composition. Students will strengthen listening skills and their ability to analyze and evaluate music and music performances. Attention will also be given to relating their music experiences to the time and culture of the pieces they study, as well as to contemporary society. No prerequisite course is required.

Orchestra II (MU 1740)
This course provides opportunities for students to develop their musical potential and aesthetic understanding through learning to play orchestral string instruments. Study includes the care and cultivation of a beautiful tone, the ability to read music with increasing fluency, the building of technical skills, team spirit, and responsible rehearsal habits. Students will have opportunities to experience the spontaneity of improvisation and the creative process of composition. Students will heighten listening skills and increase their ability to analyze and evaluate music and music performances. Attention will also be given to relating their music experiences to the time and culture of the pieces they study, as well as to contemporary society. Prerequisite course is Beginning Orchestra (MU 1640), or audition.

Orchestra III (MU 1780)
This course provides opportunities to foster and refine musical expression through instrumental performance, analytical/evaluative skills, and aesthetic judgment. Study includes the care and cultivation of a beautiful tone, the ability to read music with fluency, the polishing of performance skills, team spirit, and responsible rehearsal habits. Students will have opportunities to experience the spontaneity of improvisation and the creative process of composition. Students will hone listening skills and increase their ability to analyze and critique music and music performances. Attention will also be given to relating their music experiences to the time and culture of the pieces they study, as well as to contemporary society. Prerequisite course is Intermediate Orchestra (MU 1740), or audition.

Music Connections (MU 1600)
Music Connections is an extension of the K-6 Music Core and includes concepts and skills to integrate music into everyday life. Study will include explorations in creating, experiments with singing/playing/reading music, development of analytical and evaluative skills in music listening, investigations of various purposes of music, and inquiry into music’s impact on culture, history, quality of life, and other subject areas. No prerequisite course is required.

Music Aesthetics (MU 1700)
This course is designed for students who seek the opportunity to extend their musical understanding, heighten music listening skills, and increase their ability to respond more fully to music. Experiences will include opportunities to experiment with sounds, analyze famous compositions representative of most styles, and inquire into music’s connections to contemporary life, history, and cultures. No prerequisite course is required.

Music Composition (MU 1750)
This course is designed for students who seek the opportunity to create original music compositions. In addition to developing compositional abilities, experiences will include the development of skills needed to analyze and evaluate music, continued explorations into music’s relationship with other disciplines and its impact on culture, and development of ability to perform/record/present/discuss original compositions. No prerequisite course is required.

Guitar (MU 1610)
This course provides opportunities for students to develop their musical potential and aesthetic understanding through learning to play a guitar. Emphasis will be placed on playing position, tone production, fundamental technique, simultaneous playing and singing, reading music, and composing songs/lyrics. Knowledge and skills will include experiences in singing, creating, playing, listening, and connecting to cultures. No prerequisite course is required.