MusicKit the Virtual Music Classroom Music Activities and Resources for Kids and Teachers

FEATURES:

1. Program Music - music which describes an event or situation, in this instance a visit to an art exhibition. (Autumn, by Vivaldi, describes the season so it is also considered program music.)
2. Orchestration - the piece was originally written for piano. Maurice Ravel arranged this, the most famous orchestration of "Pictures."

BACKGROUND:

The Composer: Mussorgsky was a self-taught musician. He was born to an aristocratic family, but lost all wealth when serfdom was abolished in Russia. He was never a “successful” musician and he had to work as a minor official in Russian Government for a living. He lived a dissolute life. His music is highly original - he didn’t always follow the rules, in part because he was mostly self-taught.

The Composition: Mussorgsky wrote Pictures at an Exhibition after seeing an exhibition of paintings by a friend who had just died. He went home and wrote Pictures on the piano. “The Promenade,” which describes walking between the pictures, is repeated throughout the longer work. It occurs at the start of the piece in this, the begining excerpt from this work. “The Gnome” describes a painting of a gnome with crooked legs shrieking about wildly. It could be good Hallowe’en music. The French composer, Ravel, arranged Mussogsky’s piano piece for orchestra and the Japanese composer Tomita used “Pictures” as the inspiration for his synthesizer work. It is fun to compare these three!

QUESTIONS: Ask these questions before listening to the piece. (If possible, listen to a recording of the piece
not just the Midi files on this page! Here is another place to buy a recording):

- What makes you think of walking at the beginning? What happens then?
- What words could you use to describe the difference between the two parts of this selection?

SOME POSSIBLE ACTIVITIES:
1. Draw a picture of the Gnome, or mime the actions of the Gnome as you listen.
2. Raise hands when Mussorgsky sees “The Gnome.”
3. Discuss the arrangements. Would Mussorgsky like them? Do you?
4. Learn the Promenade Theme:

5. Listen to the rest of the Pictures at an Exhibition.
6. Older students may learn the odd rhythm of “The Promenade.” It is an eleven beat pattern: one bar of 5/4 and one of 6/4. Try counting it silently to yourself while you listen.

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