display on the board the musical notation of the examples, and ask students to count how
many independent melodic lines they see and hear as the music plays. Again, replay the
excerpts to confirm correct responses or clarify wrong ones.
2. Divide the class into two groups. Have the class stand up and direct them to sing Row, Row,
Row Your Boat as a two-part round. Explain the musical result as imitation in the form of a
canon.
ASSIGNMENT SUGGESTIONS
1. Identify the musical textures of the following selections. Pay close attention to how many
melodic lines you are hearing:
Grieg: Åse’s Death from Peer Gynt
J. S. Bach: Contrapunctus I, from The Art of Fugue
Ravel: Boléro
Gota (Ghana, West Africa) (first 20 seconds)
2. The African American spiritual Swing Low, Swing Chariot, as performed and recorded in
the online playlist, contains contrasting musical passages that explore three different
textures (monophony, homophony, and homorhythm). Which textures do you hear? When
do you hear the shift from one texture to another? Use the minute and second timings in the
track (0:00) to record the shifts in texture.
TEACHING CHALLENGES
Distinguishing polyphony and homophony (and homorhythm) may be difficult for students with
little or no musical background. As with previous chapters from Part I, visual models can be helpful
in demonstrating the sound and composition of different musical textures. Many animated videos
online explore the musical textures of different pieces of classical music, using lines, shapes,