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RAP BATTLES
RAP BATTLES
Preparation and improvisation are both rooted in call and response. Preparation gives you time to consider the ebb and flow of a story. Improvisation forces you to respond to the story in ways that may be unpredictable.
One artistic genre that uses both preparation and improvisation is rap - specifically a rap battle. Watch the video below for an example of a Rap Battle (start at 35:35).
Jot down your responses to these questions:
Jot down your responses to these questions:
How did the students use active listening and response?
What kind of preparation did they do for this battle?
What story were they telling about science?
What is the difference between having a framework for your rap and having a full production? How would this battle have been different using one over the other?
ORAL FORMULAIC COMPOSITION
ORAL FORMULAIC COMPOSITION
Storytelling is at the root of all rap. In fact, storytelling is one of the oldest traditions in human history. In works like The Odyssey, which were spoken stories passed down for generations before ever being written down, poets actually used a formula (or framework) for their works.
The key idea of the Oral Formulaic Composition theory is that poets had a store of formulas for their stories and that by linking these together, they could rapidly compose verse. [source]
MAKING THE CONNECTION
MAKING THE CONNECTION
Musicians use this same type of basic "formula" when creating new compositions. Jazz music is grounded in a basic structure established at the beginning which the musicians can then "riff" (improvise) off of and continue the story.
Watch this video of Bobby McFerrin as an example.
Did the music create a story "arc"?
How did they know what to sing?
How did they know when it was time to end?
PULLING IT ALL TOGETHER...
PULLING IT ALL TOGETHER...
How is the warm up you created and shared both a prepared and an improvised composition? What components/formulas could you have used to help revise that original work? Write a brief paragraph to describe your reflections.
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