As we approach the end of the school year, I’ve been thinking about fun ways to keep my students engaged while also making sure the learning continues.
Enter…(drumroll)…teaching music with Minecraft.
So many of the Minecraft music discs are popular because they’re catchy, often fast and up-beat, and easily become earworms that get stuck in your head. For the next four weeks, I’ll be featuring one Minecraft soundtrack and highlighting some music activities you can try with your students or at home.
“Otherside” music disc, by Lena Raine
Before you try the following ideas, be sure to listen to a recording of “Otherside” music disc. And if you’d like to see how I teach this – watch my video demonstration.
Chord Progressions
First, let’s define what a chord progression is in simple terms. A chord progression sounds like the foundation or building blocks of a song. The rests of the notes in the melody are built off the same repeated chords.
In “Otherside”, listen for the bass line notes that get repeated: C-C-A-A-F-F-G-G. Once your kids become familiar with that chord progression, they can learn to play it on just about any pitched instrument you have available. Good options would be: piano, keyboard, boomwhackers, xylophone, or handbells.
As an extension, challenge your students to do some research and try to identify other songs that use a similar chord pattern. Even if the notes occur in a slightly different order (such as C, G, A, F) they should be able to find TONS of examples if they do a little digging.
Rhythmic Ostinato
An ostinato is a short, repeated rhythmic pattern that we often hear over and over in a song. This is part of what makes “Otherside” so catchy and memorable.
The following sixteenth notes/eighth notes pattern gets repeated all throughout the song:
Students can practice speaking the ostinato using the syllables, “tika-tika ti-ti”.
Now, you have a few options of how to perform this rhythm pattern. Feel free to try them one at a time, or even layer them together for a more complex performance.
- Use rhythm instruments to play the sixteenth notes/eighth notes pattern on repeat, then try adding it along with pitched instruments that play the chord progression.
- Choose body percussion to show the rhythm (patting, clapping, snapping, etc.), and let some students bounce a ball on the strong downbeats (in place of the chords).
- Have kids compose their own words that will match the rhythm correctly. If you want to stick with the Minecraft theme it could go…
“running from a creep-er”
“chopping down a for-est”
“hiding from a zom-bie”
“eating lava chi-cken”
*Disclaimer: when your students are practicing the rhythmic ostinato, whether on instruments or body percussion, don’t expect them to be able to play as quickly as the recording goes. “Otherside” has a very fast tempo, and we don’t want kids getting frustrated because they can’t keep up, so consider letting them practice or even perform without the background recording.
Discussion & Critique
I have found that kids are a lot more engaged in music lessons when they are allowed to share their opinions of a song (in a respectful way, of course). I might even draw on my own experience and say something like, “When I first heard Minecraft music I thought it was a little annoying and too repetitive. But after I did some closer listening, I realized there’s some pretty cool stuff in the music of Minecraft. Here’s what I noticed/liked about this particular song…”
Let your class or kids at home have a chance to express their musical likes/dislikes. But whenever someone shares an opinion, try to encourage them to use musical language to describe what they hear.
❌ I don’t like this song because it sounds bad.
✅ I don’t like this song because the tempo is way too fast.
Another option is to let students write a musical critique – once again using musical terminology to describe what they hear. For younger kids, you can adapt it to be a simple fill-in-the-blank activity.
The tempo I heard was ______. I do/don’t like this song because ________.
With older students who can write longer paragraphs, tell them to take on the role of a music critic and highlight the pros/cons of “Otherside.” They can also draw a picture to publish with their article.
Final Question
This one is just for giggles, because it’s fun to imagine.
If you could hear “Otherside” played on ANY instrument in the whole world, (trumpet, accordion, harpsichord, ANYTHING) – what would you like to hear? Have fun imagining the possibilities. ☺️