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Music, Drama and Dance
Music, Drama and Dance can be linked, or used separately, in a museum setting. They can enhance the museum experience for schools. Museums and their collections can also be a source of inspiration for music, dance and drama.
Music:
- is a separate Curriculum subject
- recorded, or live, can be used to enhance the experience of a museum visit, or in preparation or follow-up to a visit. For instance, music from the Tudor period played during a gallery visit or as part of a hands-on session, or combined with movement or dance, can bring the past to life. Depiction of musicians or musical events in pictures can also be highlighted as a depiction of social history.
- inspired by a museum visit can be composed and performed by the children either at the museum or back at school following a visit.
Drama:
- is part of the English Curriculum
- is used by an increasing number of museums, e.g., role-play or live interpretation or theatre or drama as an alternative to (or as a supplement for) more traditional education programmes. Early findings from research currently being funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Board suggests that longer-term recall of concepts and facts may be improved using theatre and live interpretation.
Dance:
- is part of the Physical Education (PE) Curriculum
- is used by museums in different ways
- offers a kinaesthetic experience which helps to engage visitors and develop empathy through bodily experience.
There are three types of dance which could be inspired by museums.
1. Historical dance, used as part of "living history":
- can demonstrate how people lived, social etiquette, or costume
- can bring a painting alive e.g. of life at the court of King Charles I
Different kinds of dance, linked with artefacts and costume can bring a period of time to life. For instance:
- a Tudor dance could enhance understanding of costume, ettiquette
- the instruments themselves can enable understanding of the social context e.g. a re-enactment of Elizabethan court dance can not only bring the music alive, but also deepen an understanding of court etiquette and social rules
- a dance depicting Victorian wash day could be developed from real work movement.
2. Movement and Dance can be used:
- as a creative response to a work of art
- to explore our response and interpretation of an artefact through movement.
3. Site specific work involving dance or movement as an exploration of the space, architecture or function of museum.
How to Take This Forward
- Look at the websites listed below for ideas and inspiration.
- Contact your local Arts Development Officer (the Arts Council or your local authority should have details).
- Contact local schools and ask to speak to the relevant co-ordinator: Music, PE (Dance) or English (Drama).
- Contact other museums who may incorporate music, dance or drama into their sessions for schools. Some examples of workshops are listed below.
The Pitt Rivers Museum runs:
- Hands-on Javanese gamelan workshops for schools (the gamelan is an Indonesian orchestra of bronze gongs and other metallophones) for Key Stages 2, 3, 4, AS/A2
- Key Stage 4 Music Study Days in conjunction with the Bate Collection of Musical Instruments combining a workshop on the development of the orchestra with a gamelan session.
Downloads
Using Drama in Teaching Sessions for Key Stage 2 (Portsmouth City Museums and Records Service, Bryony Kelly. Word DOC, 60Kb).
Shadow Puppets (Brighton Museums and Galleries. Word DOC, 80Kb).
Useful Websites
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National Curriculum Music Key Stages 1 and 2.
The Department for Children, Schools and Families, Standards Site for Schemes of Work for Music, Key Stages 1 and 2 and Key Stage 3.
National Curriculum PE (Dance) Key Stages 1 and 2.
The Department for Children, Schools and Families Standards Site for Schemes of Work for Physical Education, Key Stages 1 and 2 and Key Stages 3 and 4.
National Curriculum English (Drama) Key Stages 1 and 2.
Qualification and Curriculum Authority (QCA) pages about Music.
Drama in Schools publication from Arts Council.
Pitt Rivers Museum for more information on music workshops.
Bate Collection of Musical Instruments.
Portsmouth Museums offer Home Front sessions at the D-Day Museum which use role play.
Dover Museum run Drama and History workshops.
Lewes Education run drama sessions at Anne of Cleves and the Castle. Lewes are also running a Young Roots funded project working with student composers, school dance groups, professional choreographers and mentors to devise a site specific dance.
Jane Austen's House Museums uses dancing with all their school groups from Key Stage 1 up to A-level.
Museum of Farnham use Drama and Role Play sessions successfully.
Fishbourne Roman Palace offer a Drama session which explores the Roman home.
Arts Alive the outcome of a QCA development project.
Surrey Museums Consultative Committee for information about using Museums as a Stimulus for Dance and Drama.
International Museum Theatre Alliance