Unit Plan 34 (Grade 8 Orchestra): Justifying Musical Choices

Focus: Explain how interpretation choices (tone color, bowing style, string choice/position, dynamics, phrasing, instrument roles) affect character, meaning, and audience experience, and connect those choices to personal interests, experiences, and goals as a string musician.

Grade Level: 8

Subject Area: Orchestra (Interpretation • Expression • Musician Identity)

Total Unit Duration: 5 sessions (one week), 50–60 minutes per session

I. Introduction

In this unit, Grade 8 orchestra students learn to talk about and defend the musical choices they make as performers. They compare different interpretations of the same piece, experiment with changes in tone color, bowing style, string choice, and dynamics, and listen for how these choices shift the mood and meaning of the music. Students then connect interpretation to their own interests, experiences, and goals—explaining why they prefer certain sounds or styles and how those decisions shape the audience’s experience. The unit culminates in a short Justification Statement in which students explain and support interpretive choices for a passage they perform.

Essential Questions

• How do tone color, bowing style, string choice/position, and instrument roles change the character and meaning of a piece?
• In what ways do dynamics, phrasing, and articulations influence how an audience feels and understands the music?
• How do my personal interests, experiences, and goals affect the interpretive decisions I make as a string musician?
• What does it mean to justify a musical choice, and what kinds of evidence can I use to support my interpretation?
• How can learning to explain my musical decisions help me grow as an independent, thoughtful performer and leader?

II. Objectives and Standards

Learning Objectives — Students will be able to:

1. Describe how changes in tone color, bowing style, and string choice/position alter the mood and meaning of a musical passage.
2. Explain how different instrument roles (melody, harmony, accompaniment, texture) contribute to overall character and audience experience.
3. Connect specific interpretation choices to their own personal interests, experiences, and musical goals.
4. Use musical vocabulary and evidence (measures, sound descriptions, comparisons) to justify why a chosen interpretation fits the piece and their artistic voice.
5. Create a brief Justification Statement that clearly explains and defends interpretive choices for a selected excerpt.

Standards Alignment — Grade 8 Orchestra (custom, NAfME-style)

• OR:Re7.8b — Explain how tone color, bowing style, string choice/position, and instrument roles contribute to character and meaning in string music.
  • Example: Students explain how melody in violins with tremolo accompaniment changes mood.
• OR:Cn10.8a — Describe how personal interests, experiences, and goals influence musical growth, leadership, and decision-making as a string musician.
  • Example: Students set a goal (clean shifting, expressive phrasing, leadership) and explain how it supports future music plans.

Success Criteria — Student Language

• I can explain how changing tone color, bowing, or string choice changes the character of a passage.
• I can describe what role my part plays (melody, harmony, accompaniment, texture) and how that affects my choices.
• I can connect my interpretive decisions to my own musical interests, experiences, or goals.
• I can use musical vocabulary and specific examples to justify why I chose a certain way to play a passage.
• I can write or speak a clear Justification Statement that would make sense to another musician or an audience member.