But I wanted to make it specifically relevant to the student's piece of music, so the following week we played a quick game. Music Tech Teacher Ties and Slurs Game is a fun way to check and make sure a student understands this concept. The starting or ending note that a slur connects can be the same, but because of the notes in between that form a 'slope' you know it is a slur. The 2 or more notes connected by a slur have different pitches (move up or down like running up and down a slope). Imagine a runner staying in the same track lane (line or space) on the staff and touching the 'target notes' in his lane. To identify ties pretend you are walking on the noteheads in your music. So I handed over the pencil and had him color the ties one color and the slurs another after a brief explanation about the visual difference.Ī tie connects 2 notes that are the same pitch (same line or same space). His piece was filled with multiple ties and slurs on every line. This week as one my students turned the page to unveil his next piece he said, 'these lines are so confusing!'
