THE MUSIC DETECTIVE
by Glenys McQueen
Glenys McQueen-Fuentes, a graduate of McGill University (Theatre), Jacques Lecoq School of Physical Theatre in Paris and an MEd (Brock), more
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THE MUSIC DETECTIVE: "HOW TO" USE MUSIC FOR PLAY, CREATIVITY, TEACHING AND LEARNING
We’re surrounded by mysteries—from what stories the clouds tell, to what to do today, to finding vaccines! And we are all curious by nature. That mystery-curiosity combination is behind the many detective stories we see on TV, in comics, literature and games, and we’re going to uses detectives, music, mysteries and curiosity to create our own games and activities!
Detectives are like spies, researchers, or reporters, investigating with magnifying glass, notepad, or high-tech gadgets—looking for clues, codes and answers. What they all use, are questions…mainly 5 questions…in endless combinations.
If you know the board game CLUE, you know already know the 5W’s and some of those possible combinations:
WHO?
WHERE?
WHAT?
WHY?
WHEN?
So…armed with MUSIC and the 5W’s, we are going to use The Music Detective to explore the mysteries of creativity, playing, teaching & learning.
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THE MUSIC DETECTIVE ACTIVITY #1:
“HEY—YOU JUST MADE THAT UP!”
THE “WHAT’S THE STORY?” MYSTERY
We’ve all played the game of finding images in the clouds. We can use music the same way—to find images, events, or whole stories. And each of us hears or sees a different story.
In this game, instead of watching clouds, listeners get to hear any piece of instrumental music and, as with cloud images, they then share their stories and images with other listeners…
A starting tip: The Detective knows there is a mystery, and that there are answers, so the question for the assignment is always “What is the story” and not “Is there a story”.
Whether you’re playing this game alone, with friends, or with students, here are the steps to follow:
CHOOSE…a music track ... any piece of instrumental music that you like (to start, we have 3 tracks of our music underneath to choose from) LISTEN…to the music and…
INVESTIGATE…WHAT story, event or images does the music tell—you? (If you only get bits of a story, or an image…that’s fine).
SHARE…your responses with the other listeners…
REINVESTIGATE…After hearing everyone’s spoken responses, listen to the music again. Did you hear/imagine more??…
REPORT! THE MYSTERY REVEALED…How does each listener want to record the whole or most interesting part of the story?
You may choose to do a drawing, recording, sculpture, written and illustrated story, poem, song, or a dance or movement piece…or combinations of these…(keep your report…there are more mysteries and more Detective reports to come)!
3 music choices for your story:
