Overview

This is the first of five lessons to help students learn about Nepal. Music is a way for students to make connections. This lesson focuses on Nepali music as a way to introduce the country to students. A slide show of images from Nepal is also included. The lessons that follow will add to students' knowledge and deepen understanding of this fascinating and beautiful place.

Wherever we live and whoever we are, there is music that reflects our culture and links us to our history and traditions. In this lesson, students reflect on the role of traditional music in expressing cultural heritage, and get an introduction to Nepal as they enjoy different forms of Nepali music.

We suggest working with a music teacher (if possible) as a teaching partner to implement these lesson ideas and extensions. There are many options for introducing music to students - we provide a number of suggestions below.

Subjects: Social Studies and Music
Grades: 4-10
Time Needed: One to three 50-minute class periods
Materials: A computer connected to the Internet with speakers for playing mp3 files; a digital projector for showing images and a slide show, and possibly viewing music videos.

Learning Goals

• Students will learn to define traditional music
• Students will learn to describe distinguishing characteristics of Nepalese and American traditional songs and music
• Students will understand the connection between music and cultural heritage

Key Concepts and Vocabulary

• Heritage
• Musical Genre
• Folk Music
• Traditional Music
• Ancestor
• Ethnic
• Characteristics, features, qualities, etc.

Additional Resources and Learning Connections

• To learn more about American folk and traditional music, see classroom curriculum at PBS American Roots
• A list of classic American folks music can be found at the Music Outfitter music store
• For Nepalese folk songs with descriptions, please see Music Nepal
• For free streaming audio and music video files, see NepaliSong.com
• Pictures of traditional Nepalese musical instruments can be found at Newar Music (Note: The Newar is one of two castes of musicians. The other is the Damai.)
• For more on Nepalese music with images of musical instruments see the Wikipedia Music of Nepal

* Note: all music downloaded for this lesson is licensed for use in educational settings with no restrictions.

Instructional Procedures

1. Explain that students will begin a series of lessons to learn about Nepal. Music is integral to any culture, and the first musical lesson introduces the colorful spirit of Nepal and sets the stage for the learning ahead.
   
   Suggestion: Select one of the musical pieces from the website below. Put the slide show "Images of Nepal" on automatic loop. Both could be playing when the students enter the room. (Suggest #5 "Sebru Tune" - it's 4 minutes and 30 seconds.)
   1. For the music: http://www.ibiblio.org/musicnepal
   2. For the slideshow: "Images of Nepal"
2. Explain to students that traditional music can be found in every country - representing its heritage, history, and people. Often, music is brought from the countries from where people have emigrated. Traditional or folk music usually tells the stories of people's experiences, using the traditional instruments at hand.
3. Share some American folk songs. Play or suggest familiar folk or traditional songs (such as those sung by the Guthrie family; Peter, Paul and Mary; Pete Seeger; or the legendary Carter family - see Resources above). A suggested activity is to explore CDs of folk music online (see this page for an example) to download the short snippets of music freely available. Ask students to listen carefully for clues of how this music tells stories of the history of Americans.
4. Ask students: "How does this music communicate about America - its history and people? What does it evoke about this country?"
   
   Additional resources: The PBS American Roots Music website (supporting a video series you can tape off air) has many instructional resources you can use to delve further into American folk and traditional music. The Eternal Songs section has specific songs you may want to study with your students.
5. Next, share music from Nepal. Use the following websites to download pieces of Nepalese music. Simply have students listen, and consider how these pieces of music evoke clues about the country. (The teacher might choose to have one of these songs playing when students enter the room for class. They are different lengths - some quite long.)
   1. These songs reveal much about Nepal. Note the use of various instruments, both traditional and electronic, stringed, percussive, and wind. (To use this site's resources, simply choose the appropriate player in the right drop down box - the music downloads automatically and plays.) http://www.ibiblio.org/musicnepal/
6. After listening to various songs (time permitting), ask students to share their thoughts and feelings. This lesson could be combined with viewing images of Nepal from the related slide show, or while conducting web searches online. Suggested closure activities include creative writing, poetry, or creating a presentation with music and imagery to accompany information about Nepal.
   

Suggested Extensions

• Compare Traditional Instruments of America and Nepal
  Show images of instruments from Nepal from the web using the Newar Music website links below, describing each of the four types. (Students might try to guess what the instruments will look like based on learning their names - "membranophones" for example, what is a "membrane", etc.)
  
  For example, the material below explains about the four types of Nepalese instruments. (This could be copied and distributed to the students to read.) The website shows images of each type. Students could research these instruments and compare them to similar American traditional instruments (percussion, stringed, wind, and bells.) The use of animals as sources for creating instruments is one example of how traditional people make do with what they have, often creating beautiful sounds from these instruments.
  
  

  Newar Music of Nepal
  Quoted from a Nepalese website: www.jwajalapa.com/music
  
  "The Newars are very much rich in traditional, classical, and folk music as [they are] in dances. Various music and dance events take place in different parts of Newar societies on the occasion of different festivals. In fact, the Newars are so duly intermixed with music and dances that not a single festival, feast, or ceremony, 'from womb to tomb', passes without a music or music and dances."
  
  Musical instruments
  
  It is believed that there have been about 200 types of original musical instruments in Nepal; currently, 108 types of musical instruments have been found. Newar musical instruments can be organized into four types:
  a) Membranophones (http://www.jwajalapa.com/music/membranophones.php)
  b) Idiophones (http://www.jwajalapa.com/music/idiophones.php)
  c) Chordophones (http://www.jwajalapa.com/music/chordophones.php)
  d) Aerophones (http://www.jwajalapa.com/music/aerophones.php)
  

• Compare Music Videos of America and Nepal
  Even in Nepal, music videos are created and shared. Compare these with American versions of music videos. Have students listen and watch music videos from the NepaliSong.com website (http://www.gorkhali.com/playmusic.cgi) to compare and contrast. (Select folk video in the left navigation bar. Requires plug-ins for playing video and sound.)