Themed Lesson: Flowers

Enjoy four pieces of music, each inspired by a different flower. Use active listening skills to play a matching game.

1. Today you will listen to four pieces of music, each inspired by a different flower. The four flowers are:

  a. Heather
  b. Roses
  c. Daisies
  d. Violets

2. Look at the chart below. There is a picture of each flower. Look at each picture and think about what music that flower might inspire.

3. Now listen to the four pieces below. Can you match each piece of music with the correct flower picture? The titles might have clues to help you get some right answers. Maybe you want to draw your own grid, draw your own flowers, and add the titles of the music, along with a description. Answers at the very end of this lesson.

• Daisies, Op. 38, No. 3, by Sergei Rachmaninoff
• Bruyeres, by Claude Debussy
• Le Violette, by Alessandro Scarlatti
• Les Roses d'Ispahan, op. 39, No. 4, by Gabriel Faure

4. Finally, here's one more piece that is not about flowers, but one of the performers plays on flower pots. This is a good example of found object percussion.

5. Answers:

• Heather goes along with the music by Debussy.
• Roses go along with the music by Faure.
• Daisies go along with the music by Rachmaninoff.
• Violets go along with the music by Scarlatti.