Feeling+Macro+and+Micro+beats+with+movement+activity+for+Show+Choir+or+Choir

This activity was taken from Dr. Hibbard's movement activities in Advanced Conducting and in Chamber Singers. The movement activity serves to help students internalize and become familiar with the concepts of macro and micro beats in music. For show choirs this is especially useful, as you can get them to use different types of micro/macro beats in choreography movements etc. It is also a good activity to get students used to moving in front of each other and maybe doing something that they are not very comfortable with.

Concepts/Skills/Values: Feel micro/macro beats in music, movement to different types of beats

Standards: Listen/Evaluate/Movement/History Culture

Behavioral Learning Objectives: The student will be able to establish what the micro and macro beats are using their movements, visually assessed by the teacher, while listening to music in varied styles, tempos, genres, and meters.

Materials required: A space where the students have plenty of room to walk around and move their arms without running into other students. Create a playlist specifically for this activity that includes pieces of music with/from varying styles, genres, tempos, meters, and cultures, begin playing the music.

Sequence: 1. Explain to students that the activity will require active and mature participation on their part, it will be fun, but they have to all do it and not make fun of or laugh at anyone. 2. Explain the concept of micro and macro beats using the concept of subdivision within a 4/4 bar of music. Draw a visual on the board with rhythms. Have the students clap the "micro" beats. Have the students clap the "micro" beats. 3. Using the playlist specifically for this activity, play the music and demonstrate what you mean to the students, using arm movements, stepping etc. 4. Let the playlist play and have students join you in the activity and help them to come up with movements, steps etc. Guide them in their movement, asking them to all do the biggest macro beat, down to the smallest micro beat. Have them experiment with doing the macro beat with their steps, but with their hands doing a micro beat. Let them experiment with their movements throughout the activity, monitoring appropriateness and level of maturity/dangerous actions.

I feel that this activity really helped the choir to get a good sense for all the beats and rhythms in music, heard and not heard, felt and unfelt. I think it gives choirs who don't move an opportunity to incorporate movement, which in turn can influence the ensemble unity in rhythms and motion in phrasing and dynamic lines etc. Any part of this could be adapted for younger ages, you could just focus on waltz's or pieces in 4/4 time etc...it helps them to feel the subdivisions and maybe internalize them better.