Arts Education: Music, Dance and Theatre

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Table of Contents

Definitions
National standards for arts
Scholarly application of teaching skills in art
References

Definitions

What is Art?

Scholarly work indicates that art originated from the time man learnt to paint in caves, dance around the fire, decorate and narrate stories (Laban, 2006). In its broad sense, art comprises of three important elements. These are Music, Dance and Theatre.

Therefore, a distinct definition of art does not exist in scholarly world, but it is agreed that art is actually a concept that embraces all human activities and allows people to exchange information, ideas and to express themselves.

In fact, art is a concept that allows people to connect with space and time, body and spirit, emotions and intellect and event and experiences. By passing information from one generation to another, art plays an important role in offering interpretations for new as well as familiar ideas (Fazenda, 2002).

It provides people with their own way of perceiving their world, own habits and state of thinking. Finally, art is a concept that defines the culture, traditions and values of a given society or group of people within a given society.

What is music?

Although a specific definition of music does not exist, it is agreed that music itself is a form of art that involves arrangement of tones in an orderly manner or sequence in order to achieve a continuous or unified composition of tones, which conveys some meaning.

However, music conveys different meanings depending on differences between groups of people. Music has the following characteristics pitch, rhythm, timbre, texture and dynamics. Music is created for the purpose of entertaining, communication and expression.

What is dance?

According to Laban (2006), dance is a part of arts that involves body movements in a rhythmic manner, often following the rhythms of a given piece of music. In fact, dance is a form of expression and communication. Dance in a given culture has the role of providing a means of emotional expression, interaction and connection between the people with their past, their culture, future and their spiritual world.

What is theatre?

Theatre is a form of arts with an emphasis on performance, where live performers present the information to be conveyed to the viewers. The event presented on the stage might be real or imaginary, but communicates experience through a combination of other forms of arts such as dance, music and narration.

National standards for arts

National standards for music

The National Standard for Arts Education has established a set of guidelines for teaching music in elementary schools. First, it emphasizes the singing alone (and with others) as a varied repertoire of music. Secondly, it compels using musical instruments when performing.

Here, it requires that the learners use these instruments individually and in a group as another repertoire of music education. In addition, it requires improvising of variations, melodies and accompaniments. Finally, it requires students to participate actively in reading as well as notating music.

National standards for dance

Dance has seven standards as developed by the national standards for arts. First, it singles out the identification and demonstration of elements and skills of movement while performing. Secondly, it requires the students to understand the principles, processes as well as structures of choreography.

Thirdly, it puts emphasis on teaching the students to appreciate dance as a way of adding meaning to communication. It further emphasizes the application and demonstration of critical as well as creative thinking skills when performing dance. The sixth standard requires establishing the connection between dance and healthy living. Finally, there must be connection between dance and other fields of study.

National standards for Theatre

The first standard puts emphasis on script writing through improvising refined scripts based on imagination, history, literature and heritage. The second standard emphasizes acting by developing and communicating characters that must also be sustained.

Scholarly application of teaching skills in art

In teaching visual and performance arts, it is very important to put emphasis on the subject matter.

Example 1: In Arts

According to Campbel (2005), students ability to acquire knowledge in music education is dependent on their ability to know the specific subject. The teacher ought to ask himself or herself one major question what is the connection between the specific task and the content being studied? Here, the teacher must consider the connection between the subject matter and nature (Gelineau, 2004).

Example 2: In Music

According to Ratey (2001), students ability to grasp things in class relies on how frequently a given topic is repeated. Rauscher at al (2004) confirms that repetition is critical to teaching music.

Specific academic skill: students will be able to comprehend the topic in folk music Miss Susie. They will be able to identify the role of telephones and telephone operators in their society.

Example 3: In dance

Moreover, Moser and McKay (2005) argue that the students ability to develop interest in arts depends on how frequently they take practical sessions. It is crucial to know how the subject area relates to the real life as well as life-long learning. It is important that the students attend art classes and learn well what they are taught there. They need to understand how important such knowledge is in their life and future career.

Specific academic skill: in the dance Ring Around the Rosie, the students will learn the impact of death in human lives. They will learn how people in old times cremated their dead ones. Here, they will connect with the idea of life and death.

Example 4: In theatre

In theatre arts, the audience is an important factor. According to Moser and McKay (2005), it is critical for the students to learn how to determine the type and nature of the audience in order for the performance to be successful.

The main purpose of performing is to ensure the message is communicated to the audience. As such, the students must understand the audience in front of them and learn to attract and hold the attention of the audience.

Specific learning skills: In the children Theatre Little Red Riding Hood, the students will be able to learn the need to be cautious when dealing with strangers. They will be able to identify the good the ill of the society. By acting the theatre, the students will be able to connect their emotions, actions and body signs with the imaginary tale.

References

Campbell, P. S. (2005). Teaching Music Globally. New York: Oxford University Press, 2004.

Fazenda, M. J. (2002). Between the pictorial and the expression of ideas: the plastic arts and literature in the dance of Paula Massano.

Gelineau, R. P. (2004). Integrating the arts across the elementary school curriculum. Toronto, Ontario, Canada: Wadsworth/Thomson Learning.

Laban, R. V. (2006). The language of movement: a guidebook to choreutics. Boston: Plays.

Moser, P., & McKay, G. (2005) Community Music: A Handbook. Russell House Publishing

Ratey, J. J. (2001). A Users Guide to the Brain. New York: Pantheon Books, 2001.

Rauscher, F.H., et al. (2004). Music and Spatial Task Performance: A Causal Relationship. Irvine, CA: University of California, Irvine,

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