Pitch is how high or low a sound is.
Now our students are singing softly and sweetly we are able to tune into their pitch awareness.
We tackle this in two ways.
Firstly using higher and lower speaking voices. Linking them to two contrasting character soft toys is very effective.
Secondly singing just a couple of high and low pitches within a single song or game to develop their awareness of melodic contour, or the shape of the melody.
In Kodály-inspired classrooms we use what are called so-mi songs. These songs have two pitches that use a child’s playground call. Universally sung because that particular pairing is innately easier to pitch accurately. So why not start there? Black Crow is my own song, written to introduce the terms high and low and link to these pitches.