Have you ever wondered how an orchestra is composed?
Do you know which instruments make it up?
And would you be able to recognise them by just hearing their sound?
We invite you to find out online.
Born from an original idea of the Orchestra della Svizzera italiana, LAC Orchestra is a web platform and a tablet application that allows you to learn how to recognise the sound of all the instrument families that make up an orchestra, with the aim of deepening your musical knowledge, through a didactic and interactive game, films, sound documents, didactic sheets and PDF solutions.
The different elements that enrich the platform allow you to deepen your knowledge of the instruments of an orchestra and its composition through
- a selection of images of musical instruments
- a selection of sounds from the orchestra's instruments;
- a selection of videos taken from an OSI rehearsal (finale of Johannes Brahms' Symphony No. 1);
- an online game for timbre recognition of instruments;
- two scores for flute and percussion;
- a video with an interview with an OSI violinist ;
- four teaching worksheets for individual in-depth study and a final check of each topic for young people in the first two years of middle school. Each sheet presents brief introductions to the topics and proposals for practical exercises and listening related to them;
- notes for the teacher on the use of the worksheets
The teaching material has been specifically developed in line with the music education curriculum for the first two years of middle school (9-12 years). From the dossier, teachers can follow the worksheets and exercises for students or adapt them according to their own classroom dynamics. The downloadable teaching contents in the “teachers” area' of the site, on the other hand, allow classes to delve deeper into the different musical instruments. While some of the content is more suitable for 9- to 12-year-olds, others can be used at all school levels, making LAC orchestra an educational opportunity for all.
Afterwards, the interactive game on the site can be a stimulating verification or further learning tool. Pupils can play independently by logging on to the site or, together with the teacher, register with the whole class and “challenge” other participants online. A way to test, even remotely, their skills and newly acquired knowledge about the orchestra.
