Putting it Together

MELODIC PATTERNS

Tonality + Rhythm + Style

Tonal and rhythmic audiation are taught independently of each other because students who are just learning to audiate find it difficult to understand that a tonal pattern combined with a certain rhythm remains the same tonal pattern when combined with a different tonal pattern (and vice versa). The more experience students have audiating tonal and rhythm patterns separately, the more effectively they can later combine these patterns into melodic content.

Melodic patterns are the combination of tonality, meter, and style. Before launching into the entire tune, it’s helpful to break the melody into smaller chunks—aka melodic patterns—in order to establish executive skills (fingerings, embouchure, all those performance skills that are so important)!

Jump Right In: Recorder Book Teacher's Edition (pp. 204-205)

Advanced Technique: Transposition

Once you learn a pattern or tune in one key, learn it in all 12 keys! Learning to audiate the tonality, meter, and style of a piece gives you the tools and freedom to be able to pick it up by ear in another key. Scales are useful for woodwind players who often need to play scale flourishes in repertoire, but learning to play a melody in every key will be more beneficial for developing a rich musical vocabulary.