Music expresses that which cannot be said and on which it is impossible to be silent. ~Victor Hugo
Musicians take pride in the fact that music expresses far more than what words could ever do. So what happens when you try to teach music and you need to put into words all the affects and meanings that music and its terminology has? An essential part of any music curriculum is developing a student’s understanding of music specific vocabulary and concepts relating to the elements of music. Some of the vocabulary is easy to put into words and other concepts are really not meant to be explained in words…they are best explained with sound. But as a teacher, how do I know if the students really “get” the concept that is so difficult to put into words, but so easy for me to hear and identify in the music? It seems no matter how many times I put into words those “not meant for words” concepts, I always feel I didn’t really do the concept justice and I always end up explaining the word the way it should be – with sound.
Sensing there were gaps in my student’s musical understandings I decided I had nothing to lose by adding a new check-up project regarding music vocabulary and its applications in music. If music “expresses that which cannot 
be said” and images express a thousand words, perhaps I could combine them (music and art) together. I assigned my students the task of making a video that would explain a musical concept or word via images and music. Students practiced their skills in finding appropriate Creative Commons licensed images (or created their own images) that would allow someone younger to understand their selected music concept/vocabulary topic.
Additionally students were required to compose or mix music that would demonstrate the meaning of the music word or concept that the video was about. I introduced students to CC Mixter and from this site students were able to select CC licensed music content to which they re-mixed music to show the meaning of their music word or concept. Some students composed original music and/or remixed their own compositions.
Consonance and Dissonance Student Video
On purpose we didn’t spend a lot of time making the product “perfect.” For me the purpose was just as much in using this activity to understand who needed more help understanding some critical music concepts. The fantastic part in asking the students to create this project was I felt I was able to understand more deeply whether or not they understood the music term and concept they created. Previously I could only test music concepts and vocabulary using online quizzes and listening tests. The trouble with these is that they never left me completely believing that the results showed deep understanding. The video project provided for a much more authentic assessment of student understanding.
From a curriculum stand-point I was actually able to address important music and net standards (Understanding Music Visually Project Page.) And the best part of all is that the next time I introduce a “not meant for words” music concept….I won’t need to use words, instead I will use my student’s video. I will continue to tweak the project, but plan to use this activity more frequently, hopefully increasing student understanding, listening and the creation of a video bank of concept videos that students could access as a music resource.
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