Wisconsin State Music Standards

Wisconsin State Music Standards

1. Students in Wisconsin will sing, alone and with others, a varied repertoire of music.

Here's why: Singing is a basic means of musical expression in all cultures.  Learning proper use of the voice in singing and speaking from an early age is vital for effective communication.  Students ability to use the voice effectively in singing opens the door to personal fulfillment and expression as well as to valuable activities in the school and community.

2. Students in Wisconsin will play, alone and with others, a varied repertoire of music on instruments.

Here's why:  Throughout history, people have played instruments as accompaniment, for communication, and as an important means of personal expression.  Instrumental music thus has a unique history and a body of quality literature written for particular instruments or groups of instruments.  Like singing, the students ability to perform on an instrument opens the door to personal fulfillment and expression as well as to valuable activities in the school and community.

3. Students in Wisconsin will improvise music.

Here's why:  Indigenous music of every culture was first improvised and then passed on to subsequent generations through aural or rote learning.  Improvisation continues to bean important means of self-expression in all cultures and is an integral part of students musical heritage. 

4. Students in Wisconsin will compose and arrange music.

Here's why:  Composing and arranging music is an important creative activity and a means of personal expression. The performance of one's own musical work is a source of great satisfaction as well as an important way of sharing musical inspiration with others.  These creative activities are possible at any age, depending upon a person's level of music skills and knowledge. 

5. Students in Wisconsin will read and notate music. 

Here's why:  Much like letters and words in a novel or a poem, music notation represents another language or symbolic system of communication.  Unlike the written or spoken word, music and music notation transcend the boundaries of countries and cultures.  Reading and notating music gives the students access to a vast body of contemporary and historical music literature, as well as to a unique mode of personal expression.

6. Students in Wisconsin will analyze and describe music.

Here's why:  Students learn to appreciate music when they understand the elements of music and the way those elements are organized to create a music composition.  Performance with understanding requires this same analysis and discussion.  The ability to analyze music is the foundation for meaningful learning and participation in most other aspects of music experience.

7.  Students in Wisconsin will evaluate music and music performances.

Here's why:  In today's society, music is all around us. As producers and consumers of music, all people benefit from applying their understanding of the structure and elements of musical expression to evaluating music and music performances.  This ability enables student to make informed decisions and develop a greater appreciation of the music they hear or perform.

8.  Students in Wisconsin will relate music to the other arts and disciplines outside the arts.

Here's why:  There are numerous connections and commonalities that exist among the arts, other disciplines, and issues within our global society. Relating music to the other arts as well as disciplines outside the arts enhances student understanding in each discipline.  Building connections gives students the chance to understand cultures as a whole and the  relationships between its parts. 

9.  Students in Wisconsin will relate music to history and culture.

Here's why:  Accepting the growing diversity of our culture and understanding one another can often be accomplished through music.  Music reflects significant historical events and cultural relationships.  By relating music to personal history and culture as well as the history and culture of others, students will understand and connect historical events of the world, as well as music's functions within various cultures.

Explanations taken from http://dpi.state.wi.us/