The Strings – with Arcangelo Corelli

La Follia is the name of a famous melody and dance that has been used in many variations by different composers since the 16th century. The origin of the melody is unclear, but it was primarily spread in Spain and Portugal. The name means “the foolishness” or “the madness”, and refers to the fast and wild nature of the dance.

One of the most famous composers to adapt La Follia is Arcangelo Corelli (1653-1713), an Italian violinist and composer of the Baroque period. He wrote a violin sonata in D minor entitled La Follia, No. 12 of his 12 Violin Sonatas Op. 5, which he published in 1700. The sonata consists of a theme and 23 variations, all based on the same harmonic progression. The variations demonstrate Corelli’s virtuosity and ingenuity.

Skills: Students…

… improvise their own movements inspired by ‘La Folia’ by composer Archangelo Correlli.… move in tempo to the music.

… identify different tempos while listening to ‘La Folia’ and distinguish them from each other.

…  set a piece of fabric into motion as a group, following the different tempos of ‘La Folia’.

Skills: Students…

… extend their knowledge of string instruments by playing the ‘Grandpa Stradivarius’ level on the Fortissimo app.

… learn two ways of playing the violin: with a bow and with the fingers (pizzicato).

… tap rhythmically following music.

… interpret ‘La Folia’ by Arcangelo Corelli. (emotions)

… learn about the structure and the sound of the violin.

… recognise the differences between the string instruments (violin, viola, cello and double bass) and their place in the orchestra.

… follow an aspiration meditation.

Skills: Students…

… explore how string length impacts pitch on string instruments.

… learn more about the similarities and differences between the violin, viola, cello and double bass.

… recognise the different instruments in the string family while listening to music.

… explore the link between pitch and string length further.

Skills: Students…

… experiment playing with boomwhackers.

… learn to play a simple rhythm sequence with boomwhackers.

… play the rhythm sequence in different tempos following a conductor.

… order tempo indications.

Skills: Students…

… learn about some of the features of the Baroque period.

… are introduced to different ways of playing percussion instruments.

… become more familiar with different playing techniques on percussion instruments.

… use percussion instruments to translate words and images into sound.

… create a soundtrack to a story inspired by the Baroque period.

When you download your teaching resources, you will also receive your licence key, which you can use to access audio and video tracks. Simply go to the Fortissimo app (or the online version online-version of the Fortissimo app ), tap the musical note icon on the top left of your screen and enter your licence key. You will then be able to access the audio and video tracks.

When you click on an audio or video track, it will automatically play. You may have to wait a little while until all the data is loaded.