"Music is in everyone and for everyone
"
- Christine Judge
Music Updates
Minute of Listening: a sound project!
Music Cornwall was pleased to be invited by Sound And Music to work together on an innovative pilot project in thirty Cornish primary schools last term, called "Minute of Listening". Schools used a custom-built piece of software to play one minute of music or sound each day, introducing children and teachers to a wide variety of recordings across many genres and from all kinds of sources, from African drumming to wildlife and abstract sounds. Questions and supporting material about the music and sounds were included to stimulate class discussion and followup activities.
The evaluation showed an extremely positive response from schools:
"This is a brilliant starter for a music lesson - a good way of encouraging focused listening."
"It has made me aware of how to use a variety of sounds in my music lessons, and also to use questions, which stimulate their imagination, more often."
"The creative ideas that come from listening to sounds and using those as a stimulus for drama, creative writing and drawing is a fantastic way to develop imaginative skills."
You can find more details and a video of the project at http://www.soundandmusic.org/projects/minute-listening
Following the success of this pilot project Sound And Music are developing this project to make it available to all schools - we'll keep you informed of developments!
Music Cornwall also offers a range of services that develop listening skills, including "Sonic Postcards" projects (also developed by Sound And Music) encouraging pupils to engage with their sound environment and be creative with music technology.
