Notes for Grownups and Teachers

Please help your young concertgoers get the most out of the performance by exploring together the ideas and activities on this page. Be sure to also see the comprehensive and downloadable Philharmonia Fantastique Youth Concert Resource Guide which includes in-depth information about the performance, the creative team (including Grammy®-winning composer Mason Bates), the instrument families, and the making of the film, as well as worksheets and extended learning activities.

You might want to plan your own approach to all the rich resources, but if time is short, here are some suggestions:

Before the performance

• Review together the concert description and music, and discuss what learners are most excited about and hope to learn.
• Discuss “What to Expect” and “Look and Listen for.”
• Watch a 2-minute video about Sprite.
• Review the instrument families in the Resource Guide (p. 15) or in Sprite’s World.

After the performance

• Discuss some or all of the questions in “Think About.”
• Discuss the “Animating Questions” on page 20 of the Resource Guide.
• Try together (or assign students to try at home) one or more of the activities under “Try It Yourself” or in the Resource Guide (p. 20).
• If you need ideas for homemade instruments for the “Build an Orchestra” activity under “Try It Yourself,” see page 39 of the Resource Guide and check out this resource in our library for even more ideas: Strike Up the Band: Creating Homemade Instruments.

Click to see Learning Objectives and Education StandardsClick to hide Learning Objectives and Education Standards

What to Expect

Performance

• This performance features animation, and a magical animated character named Sprite.

Visuals

• The animated images spin, swirl, vibrate, and pop in and out of the screen’s frame. Some of the animated shapes come together to create the main character of the film, Sprite! There are also moments in the film when bright light shines through the animated instruments.

Sound

• The music in this concert is often exuberant and may be loud for some!

What You’ll Need

• Please have any tools on hand that will help make the viewing experience comfortable for you! Depending on whether you’re watching on a shared screen (like a TV or projector screen) or on a computer, in a bright room or a dark room, you might want headphones (to enhance or reduce sound); sunglasses, visors, or other eyewear; fidgets; or communication devices.

Watch the teaser!

Look and Listen for

Before you watch the video, check out this list of important moments and ideas:

• the different colored lines and images and how they represent each instrument family (hint: blue=woodwinds; green=strings; yellow=brass; and red=percussion)
• the different instrument parts that make up Sprite (look to the colors for clues!)
• the different musical themes or styles of each instrument family—how would you describe them?
• the film’s action scene during the brass instrument section and what makes the animal running through the trumpet change its direction
• when Sprite conducts (with the small stick called a “baton”), and what happens when the instrument families all play faster and louder at the same time
• how the string instruments make percussion sounds
• when the instrument families begin playing each other’s themes and finishing each other’s musical patterns (like a person would finish another person’s sentence)
• the flowing lines that suggest sound waves, the usually invisible ripples formed when an object vibrates, such as a violin string

Think About

After you’ve experienced the performance, consider these questions:

• What was your favorite section of the piece and why?
• How did you feel during each section of the film? Did you have a different feeling during the strings versus the brass?
• Did the music or animation make you think of anything you have listened to or seen before? What was it and why did your prior experience come to mind?
• What surprising things did you learn from the virtual performance?
• In describing the moment when the orchestra tunes, Mason Bates said, “As this super-instrument brings its marvels of engineering together into a single pitch, we are witnessing both art and science.” What do you think he means? How can it be both art and science? Do you agree that the orchestra is a “super-instrument”? Why or why not?
• The title Philharmonia Fantastique was inspired by French composer Hector Berlioz’s Symphonie Fantastique (1830), which was groundbreaking for its dream-like storytelling. “Philharmonia” can refer to a symphony orchestra, and it comes from Latin and Greek words that mean “loving harmony.” Do you think Philharmonia Fantastique is a good title for the piece? Why or why not?
• One of the big ideas of Philharmonia Fantastique is how the diverse families of instruments fail when they don’t cooperate, but create harmonious music together when they listen to and learn each other’s “language,” or musical themes. What examples of this idea can you think of in your own life?

Compose Music

Mason Bates says the best thing about being a composer is that it “…allows me to build all kinds of different worlds: symphonies, operas, even films.” Mason composed his first music around age 7, and you, too, can build musical worlds. One way to start is to think of a favorite short story. Then imagine the music that could tell that story without words. Try to “hear” your story’s music in your head and then hum, sing, or describe your music to friends and family. If you know music notation, write the music down. And have fun giving your musical piece a title.

Ready to take it up a notch? Use some of the tools in The Composer’s Toolbox (Google Doc) to make your music even more expressive.

Build Your Own Orchestra

With a few friends or family members (or your class), find different instruments you can play—either actual instruments or ones you make yourself. First, let all participants take turns playing their own musical themes. Then, each musician should try to learn the theme of one other person. Finally, work together to play as an orchestra. Decide on one or two themes that everyone can play or choose new patterns that sound good together. Afterward, discuss the challenges you faced and how you overcame them to make music together. Check out this resource in our library for ideas: Strike Up the Band: Creating Homemade Instruments.

Create a Visual Accompaniment

Like the animators of Philharmonia Fantastique, plan your own animation or video to express music. Choose a short passage from a classical music piece you like. What short story could you tell with this music? Write down a few ideas and draw some pictures—or make an actual video if you like—showing how you would bring the story to life. Share your ideas with others, explaining how the music inspired the story and how your story goes with the music.

More Orchestra Please!

Our Guide to the Orchestra is a kid-friendly and handy reference on just about everything there is to know about orchestras, their music, and their instruments.

Our interactive, Perfect Pitch, explores the instruments and eras of the orchestra and invites learners of all ages to discover the ways compositions can be arranged with different instruments all in a fun, baseball-themed context.

Philharmonia Fantastique Resource Guide and Sprite's World

The Philharmonia Fantastique Youth Concert Resource Guide is a comprehensive teaching guide to the music and film. 

Sprite’s World, is an interactive site for learning more about Sprite and the musical instruments.

Mason Bates, Composer

Learn more about Mason Bates, the composer of Philharmonia Fantastique through his website, YouTube, and Spotify channels!

Photo credit: Kate Warren

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