JOROPITO DE TRES NOTAS

Lesson 9

Teaching Artist: Juan Manuel Trujillo

SUMMARY

This is the ninth lesson from the Strumming Through The Americas ukulele course. Students will visit Venezuela to learn the unique components and rhythmic style of joropo. They will perform the song “Joropito de Tres Notas” and its accompanying melody and strumming pattern.

OBJECTIVE

  • Students will be able to locate Venezuela on a map and relate it to their geographical location.

  • Students will be able to distinguish the important elements of the joropo musical style.

  • Students will be able to explain the basic rhythmic context underpinning the joropo style.

  • Students will be able to utilize the three melody notes learned previously in a new melodic and rhythmic context.

  • Students will be able to adapt a new strumming technique/pattern to the chord progression/cycle of “Joropito de Tres Notas.”

  • Students will be able to blend melody and accompaniment for a musical performance.

MATERIALS

EXPLORE

  1. Introduce the lesson by showing Venezuela on the Map. Ask: Can everyone tell me what continent Venezuela is in? (South America! That’s right, the same continent as Brazil, where we visited for the last lesson) Have you ever visited Venezuela? Drag the cursor to show the distance between Venezuela and the location of your lesson. 

  2. Using the Joropo Handout, give students a brief background into the joropo style. Point out the two images of instruments often used in the music – Addressing the “Venezuelan Cuatro” in, due to its shared history with the Ukulele. 

  3. To help provide the students with a rhythmic context for the style, play them The Rhythms of Joropo video, beginning from 0:49. Pause the video at 1:26. Ask the students: Does the rhythm of the joropo feel different than some of the other styles of music we have learned about? Did anyone have a guess at how we count it? Continue the video from 1:26 and stop playing at 3:15. Ask: Was everybody able to hear the pulse of the joropo there?

  4. Play Alma Llanera for the students. Point out that this song is known as the unofficial anthem for the people of Venezuela (it’s a classic!). While the song plays, tell the students to pay special attention to the Venezuelan Cuatro and the rhythm it is playing in the song. After the song has played, explain to the students that the rhythm they heard is the same we will be using in today’s lesson - only a little slower.

LEARN

  1. Play the Joropito de Tres Notas Melody video for the students. Pause the video at 0:27 to give the students some time to practice the three melody notes needed for the song. Resume from 0:27 (pausing at 0:36, 0:43, and 0:50 to isolate each phrase). Point out to the students that in essence the whole melody is two phrases that are both repeated - the latter with a slightly different ending. Once the students are comfortable with each phrase individually, repeat the video from 1:02 to allow them to practice the melody in full.

  2. Tell the students that the new song will utilize G and D7 chords. Give students some time to practice sounding out both chords individually. As noted in the previous lesson, some students may still be struggling with these two chords due to their difficulty. Allow some time to assist these students, modeling the correct hand posture and finger placement. Play the Joropito de Tres Notas Chords video. Mr. Juan will guide the students through the chord progression/cycle of the song using the G and D7 chords. Repeat the video from 0:17 as necessary.

  3. Play the Joropito de Tres Notas Strumming video for the students. Pause the video at 0:33 to allow time for the students to practice the strumming pattern just using the G chord. This strumming pattern, within the rhythmic context of the joropo (being in an “odd meter” of 3 or 6, as opposed to the common meter of 4) may prove difficult for the students. It may help to instruct the students to first try clapping the strumming pattern before applying it to the ukulele. Once students are comfortable with the pattern, resume the video from 0:33 and Mr. Juan will guide them through the chord progression with the strumming pattern. Repeat from 0:33 to allow for more practice time as necessary.

PERFORM+SHARE

  1. Use the music backing track and video from Mr. Juan in Joropito de Tres Notas Performance to create a class performance video of “Joropito de Tres Notas.” Students may choose to play either the melody or the chord accompaniment. Play the video a second time from 0:08, so students can alternate parts. Play along to assist with the rhythm of the melody and chord accompaniment. 

  2. Create a video of the performances, and share via the S’Cool Sounds Padlet.

  3. Tell students that in the next lesson, they will travel to Mexico to learn another new song