Program Offerings from Marquis Studios
This is our list of core workshops. Individual adaptations for your school are encouraged. All programs can be adapted for any age group from kindergarten through 12th grade. We are happy to discuss workshop ideas that do not appear on this list. Also, we encourage integrating programs into the curriculum.

If you don't see it here, please ask us!

THE VISUAL ARTS

ABSTRACT ART
This program encompasses techniques of collage, painting and drawing. In this course students will learn about representing their ideas and feelings through the use of abstract art using geometry, spatial relationships and color fields instead of literal representations of the world around them. Students will learn about balancing composition and space in their creations. They will be inspirited by music as well as by the works of various famous artists. Students will finish this course of study knowing that the paint Jackson Pollack used was not just thrown down randomly, that much thought and planning goes into seemingly simple works of art. Marquis Studios’ teaching artists have taught this program to students from 1st grade and up. Understanding and using Abstraction is not intellectually daunting for students; it is intellectually stimulating.

ARCHITECTURE OF THE NEIGHBORHOOD
Students will explore the history and social fabric of their neighborhood through the eyes of an architect. They will learn how to judge a building’s age based on its architectural style and features. Students will study the meaning of the built environment to those who live in it and either through model building or drawing reproduce neighborhood features. Skills taught -- dependent on age level of students and previous exposure to architecture -- will include drawing to scale, scale model building, drawing buildings as pictures (rendering) and drawing buildings to scale (elevation).

ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN
Through hands-on model building and design projects, students learn that the architectural process is multifaceted, incorporating mathematics, vocabulary, history, sociology, culture, design, and problem solving. Students are divided into teams to fulfill their project designs. Often in conjunction with a study of a neighborhood or as part of the social studies curriculum, each team will choose which type of building it will propose. Previous examples have included choosing between a memorial, sports center or school. Each team designs the project in both plan and elevation and makes a presentation, including materials, to classmates. Following the critique each team makes a scale model from cardboard and a variety of materials. Skills taught -- dependent on age level of students and previous exposure to architecture -- will include drawing to scale, scale model building, reading architectural plans, creating architectural plans, presentation as a group, drawing buildings as pictures (rendering) and drawing buildings to scale (elevation).

ARCHITECTURE AS A STUDY OF CULTURES
Students can come to better understand the aesthetics of various cultures by studying the traditional architecture of that region (e.g. Mexican pyramids, Islamic Architecture, etc.). The architectural choices of styles and materials will also reveal much about a region’s environment. The weather and natural materials of a region greatly affect the architectural choices, which in turn reflect the cultural aesthetic. Inuit make Igloos, Nomadic Mongolians live in Yurts, and a house in the Middle East uses high outside walls to shield its inhabitants from strangers’ eyes.

BOOK MAKING
In this course students will be exposed to the art of book making and will explore the ways in which images and text can be presented in a bound form. Utilizing a variety of assembly methods, books will be created in which pages, covers and bindings come together in both traditional and unexpected ways. Creating forms such as a codex, accordion and pop-up book, young artists will use skills such as folding, cutting, measuring, aligning and pasting to create personalized artist volumes. Students will develop book content and learn how arrangement and layout through two-dimensional applied design effects the visual communication of their subject matter. The role of book making through history and across cultures will be examined and important developments put into context as they relate to the modern book form.

COLLAGE
Students will be introduced to collage as a means of creating layered pictures both representational and abstract. Paper and other materials will be used as a means to consider pictorial relationships of shape, edge, size and placement. By cutting, tearing and layering paper, classes will create pictures that probe the ways artists organize an image through the principles of design. Through an examination of collage beginning with the Cubists, the role of the medium in modern and contemporary art will be discussed, with students creating examples of photomontage, assemblage and found- material works.

DRAWING with pen, pencil,marker, and oil pastel
This course offers an introduction to basic drawing from observation and imagination. Students use a variety of drawing materials in a structure that ensures a sense of accomplishment and freedom that permits individuality and creative expression. As drawing is a foundation skill for all pictorial representation, a child’s comprehension of the way in which a surface can be affected by drawing choices empowers the child to broaden their visual vocabulary and more effectively represent his/her artistic intentions across a spectrum of two-dimensional media. Students will learn how the elements of art are intrinsic in their depictions and will gain an understanding of the decisions possible when using line, shape, value, form, color and texture. A range of drawing techniques, both linear and tonal, will be covered, including contour, gesture and mass drawing. Integral throughout all projects will be a recognition of the way in which artists arrange the parts of a drawing through design and composition.

ORIGAMI
The ancient Japanese art of paper folding is both a cultural and an artistic form of expression. Enshrined in Shinto, the national religion of Japan, it is practiced by young and old alike. Students will learn the history and practice of this tradition by making objects such as animals, geometric figures, and decorative items out of square sheets of paper. A plastic art, origami allows students to influence three-dimensional form by altering paper to create relationships of folds, angles and planes. Participants will acquire skills that creatively utilize ideas of geometry and will learn how shape, volume, symmetry, division, and proportion play a key role in transforming flat pieces of paper into objects in-the-round. Students will learn specific terminology and concepts, including the mountain and valley fold, the bases, reverse folding and the interpretation of folding diagrams.

MASK MAKING (see also MASK THEATER)
Masks are representations of human or animal faces and can be appreciated as objects of beauty or worn in performance. A feature in pageants, plays, ceremonies, rituals and festivals the world over, the study of masks offers a unique opportunity for students to be engaged with a range of multicultural traditions in fun and exciting way. Students will handle a variety of materials, such as paper, wire, plaster and foil, to create three-dimensional works which can be worn. The role of features, expression and exaggeration will be explored and students will work as sculptors to use form, space and proportion to alter the qualities of these attributes in their work. In addition, both paint and applied materials will be used to consider how two-dimensional design components such as color, value and pattern effect the visual presentation of their work.

PAINTING with tempera, acrylic, pastel or watercolor
Painting plays an important role in a child’s artistic development by introducing new media and tools that allow for the possibility of representation in a broad, nonlinear manner. In this course, students will use oil pastels, watercolor, tempera and acrylic paint to create pictures that use color to depict observations and experiences taken from the world around them. As a focus of learning, color will be considered in many ways; the color wheel, primary and secondary colors, hue, value and intensity, tints, shades, temperature and color schemes will be surveyed through several thematic projects. Through the use of brushes and other tools, students will acquire an understanding of how to mix, blend, layer and apply paint in varying degrees of opacity to broaden their visual vocabulary and realize a new expressive capacity.

POETRY AND ART
This multimedia workshop challenges students to make symbols out of their experience, to express their feelings and say with words and images what it is like to be themselves. Students will be exposed to a variety of poetry reflective of different cultures to inspire their own writing. The goal is to promote interaction with language, poetry and art (drawing/watercolor/printmaking/collage) culminating in a book. Poetry in this course can be created in many ways by using free verse; the important aspect is each student’s personal expression. Students will write a poem which will inspire a drawing. The image can emerge from the text, or vice versa. Students will experiment with syntax, rhythm, and repetition to enhance the musical qualities of the words. Students make a visual synthesis of their subject by selecting the most appealing words to guide the illustration. In turn the drawing will be the basis for a printing plate. The illustration is printed, the text is handwritten and students will put together a book with text and printed/painted image. This process can be repeated several times to create an individual or a class book.

PERSONAL POWER BANNERS
This residency introduces student to the power of symbolism in the art forms of many different cultures. We will observe and discuss the symbolic creations of cultures as diverse as Native Americans, Japanese Shamans, Indian mystics as well as Christian, Muslim, Buddhist, Hindu and Jewish religions. Students will closely examine the many symbols, both mystical and secular, appearing on a one-dollar bill. Finally, each student will create a six-foot-long self-portrait on a banner, incorporating individual “personal power symbols” created by the student.

PRINTMAKING
Printmaking is a unique artistic technique in that it allows for the creation of numerous copies of a master image from a plate. Students will experience printmaking through relief, intaglio, planographic and stencil methods by creating several types of plates from which multiple impressions are printed. Introduced to printing methods ranging from stamping and rubbing to multi-color Styrofoam relief prints, students are immersed in the printmaking process through exposure to a variety of tools, materials and procedures. The role of printmaking throughout history and the work of artists who have used printmaking for expressive purposes will provide theme focus for investigation of the graphic possibilities of the medium. Throughout the course, students will learn how the visual qualities of their prints are dependent on the manipulation and arrangement of artistic elements such as line, shape, texture, color and space.

SCIENTIFIC ILLUSTRATION
Scientific illustration is the art of drawing from direct observation. Practiced by Darwin and Audubon, among others, it was the method used to provide accurate depictions of nature’s wonder in an age before high-resolution photography. What the students learn is to observe, look for details and the render the most accurate picture they can without adding the embellishments of imagination. The techniques of scientific illustration teach the student accuracy and fine drawing skills. The connections to biology and botany studies are obvious, but we also make connections to the artist as observer rather than interpreter of what he/she sees. In many ways Scientific Illustration is the antithesis of Abstract Art. Depending on their ages, the students will start with pencil and move on to chalk, watercolor and even pen-and-ink drawing. With young children we might start with making a “fish print,” using an actual fish; with older children we might start with the works of a master such as Audubon.

SELF-PORTRAITS
As a process of self-discovery, self-portraits enable the young artist to creatively blend observation and subjective expression to present a first-person account of themselves to the world. Working with mirrors, students will create pictures which visually communicate impressions of the personal qualities that make them distinct individuals. Through a variety of media, such as drawing, painting and collage, students will explore the different ways that facial features, expression and emotion can be visually represented. Students will observe and discuss works of art to learn that artists can manipulate shape, form, color, value and proportion to represent themselves in a variety of ways, ranging from strict verisimilitude to purposeful expressive divergence.

SCULPTURE
Students will create three-dimensional low-relief sculptures using a variety of materials such as wire, cardboard, found objects, popsicle sticks and paper mache. Students will experience creating and assembling three-dimensional objects as elements of their design (tubes, corks, ribbons, rocks) so that they learn to perceive the world around them as a collection of shapes. We will look at the work of sculptors from Calder to Brancusi, keeping a focus on the 20th Century. Students will acquire understanding of, vocabulary associated with. and skills in spatial problem solving, achieving balance and proportion in a completed piece, understanding form, volume and shape. As they carve, cut, and assemble the elements to achieve a sculptural effect, the students will advance their ability to manipulate materials physically as well as to look ahead to a desired result.

SCULPTURE WITH PAPER
As a sculptural form, paper can be manipulated to create functional and aesthetic three-dimensional objects. Students will modify different kinds of paper through folding, curling, bending and scoring to create sculptures in several formats. Chairs, tables, buildings, faces, flowers and abstract forms can all be built as students learn to assess three-dimensional relationships of form, volume and space. Using a variety of techniques for building and joining, students will make examples of low- and high-relief sculpture as well as sculpture in-the-round. Encountering the work of artists and craftsmen from various cultures, classes will learn about the history of paper and will observe and analyze how sculpture has evolved to the present day.

THE PERFORMING ARTS

CIRCUS ARTS (please note: this program generally has a waiting list)
Students learn techniques of clowning and physical comedy as well as study the significance of circus in many cultures. This program promotes physical education, gross motor skills and improved hand/eye coordination. Skills learned include juggling, feather balancing, tumbling, comedy, improvisation. Students learn the different types of clown character (Auguste, boss clown, sad clown, silly clown) and compare and contrast these styles as they develop their individual clown characters. Skills learned include role play, mimetic representation of animals, and balancing a feather on hand, finger, nose and chin. For older students we add plate spinning, scarf juggling, comedic improvisation, use of clowning in a variety of cultural/religious contexts, advanced juggling with koosh balls or bean bags, and pratt falls and tumbles. The program usually ends with a shared performance.

CIRCUS ARTS - Clowns and Culture (please note: this program generally has a waiting list)
This adaptation of the Circus Arts residency has students undertake a comparative study that explores the cultural and social roles of clowns. Activities involve reading circus themed texts, storytelling, creative dramatics, improvisation, circus skills (the same ones outlined in Circus Arts), clowning techniques and creative improvisation as students create their own clown stories and compare and contrast the different types of clowns from a variety of cultures.

In the younger grades students are read to more than asked to read independently. A visual arts component has students drawing some of their responses. For older students the visual art component includes each student making a book, and students are asked to do independent research on the various societies and performing-art forms under discussion. The program usually ends with a shared performance.

CREATIVE DRAMATICS
Students will be introduced to basic aspects of the dramatic arts. Participants learn appropriate methods of self-expression and cooperative skills. Improvisational techniques and scene creation will be explored. This program teaches self-confidence and builds the students’ ability to project their voices. Students learn to be attentive audience members while their peers are on stage. Students explore their own lives as reflected through the lives of the characters they create. By presenting their creations to parents and peers they learn greater self-confidence while reinforcing the concept of the art form as a form of communication an idea to others. Students learn the difference between “becoming” an animal or different person rather than just “playing at” being that animal or person. Group cooperation and the concept of personal space are taught. Students are introduced to “The Actor’s Toolbox,” a conceptual way for young actors to access the various skills they learn in class, including character building, mimetic movement, story structure, etc. Students learn to respond to others creations, reflect upon their own and then rework their scenes to achieve their intent with more clarity. The program usually ends with a shared performance.

CREATIVE MOVEMENT
Students develop coordination, enhance body awareness, and explore ways to be in contact with others through cooperative physical exercises. We encourage students to use these exercises or skills to better understand the world around them. This program does not teach a specific dance technique, such as ballet, but draws strongly from modern dance with emphasis on the creative process. By presenting their creations to parents and peers, students learn greater self-confidence while reinforcing the concept of the art form as a form of communicating an idea to others. In an adaptation of this program, we engage in an exploration of dance as it is used in different cultures both artistically and socially. Traditions of dance movement and their meaning can be explored based on cultures the classroom teachers are studying.

In the early-childhood grades we teach making shapes with our bodies as well as making shapes with others. We learn skills of controlling our bodies to move with intention, moving to express feelings and ideas. Students will engage in movement games that build spatial awareness and group cooperation. As we engage students they learn to dance more complex movements and movement combinations with a greater emphasis on spatial awareness, learning basic dance vocabulary and concepts.

In older grades students will learn the terminology, form, and functional movement of human anatomy as it pertains to a healthful practice of modern dance. Students will learn dance vocabulary that is consistent in the wide vocabulary that is “modern dance.” Students will learn what choreography is and its key related elements--dynamics (force), contrast (flow), musicality (time), narrative and emotion, and pathway (space). Students will explore dancing with physical and expressive commitment, relating to the audience actively, collaborating with an ensemble in rehearsal and performance decisions and exhibiting attentive audience learning behaviors when viewing other students work. The program usually ends with a shared performance.

INSTRUMENT BUILDING
Using found objects and recycled materials, the students will construct their own instruments and then play them as an ensemble. This course will teach an appreciation of the variety of music produced by indigenous cultures around the world as well as build student skills of both musicality and instrument construction. The construction techniques will mostly involve assembling objects to create an instrument or altering an existing object to enhance its tonality. Students will explore the physics of sound as well as the vibratory qualities of different materials. Students will learn how to combine strings and solid objects to create sounding boards. They will explore the difference between plucked and bowed strings as well as the various sound qualities of objects when they are struck by different objects (hand, finger, mallet, covered mallet, stick). The class will look at different examples of folk instruments from around the world and listen to the complex music that even seemingly simple instruments can produce. After constructing our instruments the class will create an ensemble piece to share with others. The program usually ends with a shared performance.

MASK THEATER
Students will make their own simple masks or use masks supplied to them. Students will create and perform in a group theater piece. The class will study movement techniques specifically for use with masks and mimetic-movement techniques. We van focus on any one of a variety of masked theater traditions from a variety of cultures -- Commedia D’ell Arte, African Dance, Native American religious practices, among others. Students will learn about the use of masks in different cultural festivals; such as The Day of the Dead, Carnivale, Venetian masked balls, and Spanish ritual processions. Students will study masks that hide identity, create identity or physically protect the wearer -- from Billy the Kid to Batman, from Welders to Fencers, from Mickey Mouse to Halloween. Classes will examine the ‘trickster” traditions of various cultures as well as the evolution of specific tricksters, as the African rabbit character becomes B’rer Rabbit, etc. The program usually ends with a shared performance.

MIME
Students will learn how to communicate and express thoughts and feelings through the universal language of the body. They will analyze how the body works by slowing down and carefully studying simple movements and human interactions in a theatrical setting. Students will learn that Mime is much more than “acting without talking” and will learn the differences between miming the handling of objects (opening a door) and miming emotions (sad/happy/angry) and ultimately how to combine the two to tell a story to the audience that clearly communicates the characters feelings as well as the actions they undertake. Similar to dance training, students will learn about body control and physical self-awareness. Students will learn the art of stillness. They will strengthen their skills in body control. We will examine mime in different cultural contexts, from Balinese dance to Marcel Marceau, using a variety of source materials. Students will compare and contrast comedic theater versus tragic theater. With some classes we will emphasize a study of the styles, traditions, and characters of the Commedia D’ell Arte and the works of William Shakespeare. Some residencies will emphasize the techniques of masked theater. Students will acquire skills in juggling, balancing and equilibrium techniques, ensemble cooperation techniques and rehearsal skills. The program usually ends with a shared performance.

MUSIC AND RHYTHM
Musical styles have common roots that become apparent through listening. Apart from the music, the concepts discussed in the class will help students learn important lessons about diversity and the power of working together. Integrating music into literature, social studies, language, and visual arts curricula is an important part of this residency. Students compare and contrast different styles of music making through both listening and performing. We use percussive instruments and our own bodies, hands, feet, and breath to make music in a variety of cultural styles. Musical genres studied are a process of the pre-planning meeting with the school staff to determine which cultures and/or musical genres they wish to explore. As students make their musical discoveries, we will encompass many of the basic concepts of music comprehension and appreciation. We will use percussion instruments, including our bodies, to explore the question “What is music?” Younger students will learn to read and compose their own music using symbolic notation; older students will learn or expand their familiarity with solfege, depending on their previous musical training. Since we use a variety of recycled cans, bottles and plastic buckets alongside our purchased instruments the students get an exposure to practical materials recycling. Students will explore the relationship between vibration and sound. Students will arrange different sounds into patterns and perform those patterns based on visual cues. Students will learn the meaning of “orchestration.” Students will establish procedures for working with instruments, applying the concepts of following a conductor to instrumental performance. Students will learn to create a score. Students will observe, perform and conduct various dynamic levels. Students will compose and perform an instrumental piece using dynamics. Students will compose and perform pieces containing 2 instruments and different tempos. The program usually ends with a shared performance.

RESPECT - an Anti-Bullying Course for Grades K to 4
Originally developed at the request of the DOE’s Region 7 Office of Youth Development, this program uses movement and theater exercises to strengthen student awareness of the causes of bullying and aggressive behaviors. To help catalyze discussion, the teaching artist uses age-appropriate children’s books that deal with the topic of bullying, making friends and respecting others’ feelings. Then, students explore discussed themes through movement. Students learn both theatrical and movement based skills to convey emotion through body language. Students learn to cooperate and value the creativity in others as they share their own creative dance movements. They explore and make body shapes that relate to emotions and feelings, identify ways of showing respect and disrespect through body language when communicating or listening in classrooms and with peers, and observe each other’s created movement responses to teacher-led discussions in small groups. Using movement, students grow to understand how we communicate, both physically and verbally, with one another. They will learn how to compare and contrast what different movements may convey emotionally to the audience. They will develop skills that will allow them to use movement to tell a story and learn how varying a sequence of movements changes the overall story conveyed. Students learn to respond to others’ creations, reflect upon their own and then rework their dance to achieve their intent with more clarity. “The students have been more aware of trying to treat each other with respect. They have continued to respect all adults in the building and are making an effort to respect each other.” - 2nd grade teacher.

PERCUSSION OF THE WORLD
A multi-cultural exploration of the use of drumming in many different parts of the world. This residency involves hands-on instrument playing and fosters a sense of community and self-confidence. With broad-based creativity as the focus, these programs also incorporate simple movement, literacy, global studies and mathematics in the course curriculum. Students will learn to play percussion in several cultural styles so that, for example, they would by the end of the course be able to identify and play the different percussion styles of Sicily, Egypt and Turkey in order to compare and contrast these cultures. For older students we would use source materials and the Internet to study the historical context and cultural evolution of drumming, an example being the path from African drums through slavery to the Samba of today. Classes sometimes divide into separate samba “schools’ and learn the dance movement as well as the drumming that accompany each school’s annual appearance at Carnivale. Since we use a variety of recycled cans, bottles and plastic drums alongside our purchased instruments, the students get an exposure to practical materials recycling. Students will explore the relationship between vibration and sound. Students will arrange different sounds into patterns, and perform those patterns, based on visual cues. Students will learn the meaning of “orchestration.” Students will establish procedures for working with instruments, applying the concepts of following a conductor to instrumental performance. Students will learn to create a score. Students will observe, perform and conduct various dynamic levels. Students will compose and perform an instrumental piece using dynamics. Students will compose and perform pieces containing 2 instruments and different tempos. The program usually ends with a shared performance.

PUPPETRY
Through this residency, each child will create original puppets to use in an original performance. Students will create either paper mache hand puppets or “toy theaters” that use two-dimensional puppets cut out of card stock, In both cases the students will learn how to create a puppet that clearly shows who the character is through the creation of costume and props and what the puppet’s character is by creating faces that convey through facial expression and shape of features the puppet’s basic emotional state. Paint, collage, assemblage and are all part of the creation of the physical puppet. Script creation, rehearsal, building vocal projection and theater skills are all incorporated in the creation, rehearsal and performance aspects. When the students rehearse and perform with the puppets they have each created, they will make use of the skills specific to the processes of puppetry, as well as the basic artistic skills of drawing, color, composition, sculpture and drama. In all classes, there will be a strong emphasis on vocabulary-building. Performances will be given for parents as well as peers in the classroom. Students will learn about different types of puppets – shadow, glove, stick, finger, marionette as well as the history of international puppets. Each student will develop the various skills of the puppetry art: designing a puppet, sketching, sculpture, painting, collage, etc. – and the basic concepts behind mastering these skills. They will gain a greater knowledge of puppetry terminology and vocabulary and produce a finished project suitable for show and/or display. Students will learn the elements of puppet show production: stage, scenery, music, sound effects, audience involvement, etc. In all classes we have a strong emphasis on building the vocabulary and art concepts of puppetry. These will be repeated and reinforced through a wide variety of projects and materials (puppet making, backdrop/scenery making, invitation design). Performances will be given for parents as well as peers in the classroom.

SHADOW PUPPETRY
The ancient art of shadow puppetry uses cut-out forms to create beautiful visual effects as the puppets are held against a cloth screen and lit from behind. Students learn to create representational puppets starting from geometric shapes. Specific skills are designing and executing puppets in cardstock combined with tissue paper and colored gels for colors and details. Like the puppetry residency, this residency will end with a performance of an original scripted work written by the students. Student will be exposed to the many cultures who use shadow puppetry, from Turkey along the spice routes back to Asia. We will compare and contrast the use of puppets in Indonesian religious-ritual performances and the rough-and-ready Kargouz of Turkey. While the basic construction and manipulation techniques stay much the same, the puppets themselves, and the scripts, grow in complexity as we move from lower to higher grade levels. When the students rehearse and perform with the puppets they have each created, they will make use of the skills specific to the processes of puppetry, as well as the basic artistic skills of drawing, color, composition, sculpture and drama. Students will learn the elements of puppet show production: stage, scenery, music, sound effects, audience involvement, etc. In all classes we have a strong emphasis on building the vocabulary and art concepts of puppetry. These will be repeated and reinforced through a wide variety of projects and materials (puppet making, backdrop/scenery making, invitation design). Performances will be given for parents as well as peers in the classroom.

SONG WRITING
Students will work both individually and in groups to create their own lyrics. Students will practice singing techniques appropriate to their age level and previous musical experience. While writing songs the students will make choices about both the tempo and the style of the accompanying music. Various rhyming structures will be taught and students will make choices about which structure to use for their own compositions. As a vocal music course the students will learn techniques of breath control, projection, singing on key and not straining their vocal apparatus. As the culminating activity, classes will perform for each other and parents with percussion instruments and guitar as the accompaniment. Previous activities have included writing songs relevant to making connections to other curriculum and creating an original school song.

STORYTELLING
Students explore the oldest form of theater there is - storytelling, part of all culture’s transmission of oral traditions. We will discuss why people tell stories and how stories have been used throughout the world’s history to impart knowledge and to convey a society’s ethics and beliefs. Students will learn to create and tell their own stories. Skills learned will include speaking with self-confidence, the creation of character and environment through controlled use of the voice. Story structure and the uses of dramatic conflict in a story. Students learn to respond to others’ creations, reflect upon their own and then rework their narratives to achieve their intent with more clarity. The program usually ends with a shared performance.

TAIKO DRUMMING
The word Taiko means simply "great drum" in Japanese. Outside Japan, the word is often used to refer to any of the various Japanese drums and to the relatively recent art form of ensemble Taiko drumming. This physically charged style of drumming is extremely engaging for the students. The ensemble aspect builds group dynamics. Each student will learn how to play the three basic kinds of Taiko drum, each with its own playing style and rhythms. Since Taiko is a precision ensemble art form, the students will learn to work in as a group and in teams. Since the drumming is so physical, students receive instruction in the importance of maintaining good physical health. The residency includes a variety of aspects: learning about Japanese culture and religion, giving students a small vocabulary of related words in Japanese, opening them to an appreciation of the value of other cultures; creating their own Hachimakis, the traditional headbands worn by Taiko drummers. Since we use a variety of recycled cans, bottles and plastic drums alongside our purchased instruments, the students get an exposure to practical materials recycling. Students will explore the relationship between vibration and sound. Students will arrange different sounds into patterns and perform those patterns based on visual cues. Students will learn the meaning of “orchestration.” Students will establish procedures for working with instruments, applying the concepts of following a conductor to instrumental performance. Students will learn to create a score. Students will observe, perform and conduct various dynamic levels. Students will compose and perform an instrumental piece using dynamics. Students will compose and perform pieces containing 2 instruments and different tempos. The program usually ends with a shared performance.