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6.0 Triquetrae Zones

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Zones, or Musi-Zone for the primary age students, are seven sections that Find is where you find out what the symbols mean. Create is where a student can use their musical voice, Grow is where concepts are introduced that help develop the musician. The Develop Zone takes the basic concepts and develops each concept to provide character and colour. Achieve is focusing on the student being able to say, “I Can!” The Explore Zone takes journeys into concepts and influences on music that change the effects and finally the Build Zone is where a student learns all the fundamental scale and chord-based skills. 

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The zones are sections which focus on one nuance of the TQ programme, like facets of a jewel, all must bring the sparkle, but each item is focused on as an independent unit. These units have been called Find, Create, Grow, Develop, Achieve, Explore and Build. The first letter of each word produces the procession of sharps that are found after the clef in a piece of music, or the order of increments on the Circle of Fifths. This subliminal learning allows the teacher or tutor to reinforce this concept. Triquetrae is a teaching Academy and TQ Teachers are completing the TQ Teaching Diplomas. TQ Tutors are time-served and qualified within the TQ structure either as specialist tutor or a TQ tutors.

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The included instrument-specific breakdowns are generic starting points and should be used unless there are specific reasons to do otherwise. The published music for the zones is written in these keys and note ranges. If you need an item in a different key or note range, please email the R&D department seven days before you need it.

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Each Zone is worth twelve credits. These credits are combined with the level to count towards a formal, regulated, TQ Qualification. These are like the traditional grades in so much as they are music based and regulated. 

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The Find, Develop and Build Zones promote the understanding of playing an instrument. While each instrument has areas that are the same (duration of notes and rests) there are aspects of sound production and relating to pitch range that are instrument specific. The similarity is there to encourage multi-instrumentalists to develop skills that transcend all instruments. The Grow and Explore Zones motivate awareness of other styles and cultures; for instance, Level One research may be into “The Origins of Pease Porridge,” while Level Two one topic focuses on the origins of “Folk Songs in the Appalachian Mountains.” A Level Three research topic on “The Twelve Bar Blues” can be completed while Level Four includes a possibility to investigate “Latin American Rhythms.” These zones inspire students to listen with an open mind and be aware of sonic variations. The Find Zone reassures students that their musical voice is valid as Mozart, Bach, The Beatles, or Elvis. This zone emboldens the student to try and keep trying. 

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It is important to understand that these zones do not have to be completed in any order. There is a logical order for certain sections, however each zone can be started at any time, and completed in any order as required by the student. Each zone complements the other, this means that before you play Pease Pudding Hot in the Achieve Zone you ensure you know all the note names and values from Find, the dynamics from the Develop Zone, you can look at the history in the Grow Zone and document your progress, you can be a Musical Detective in the Explore Zone and locate the Rhythm Patterns and Sound Patterns (from the Find Zone) and in the Build Zone you can play the scale and chords this piece uses. Finally, when you have learnt the piece in the Achieve Zone you can write your own piece about your favourite (or least favourite food) in the Find Zone and add it to your Grow Zone portfolio to contribute to your final mark. 

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The interconnectedness of the zones is also clear in this structure. The Build Zone uses a foundational element to construct more complex concepts. The Find Zone focuses on understanding that element in isolation. The Grow Zone expands upon the element exploring its potential. The Develop Zone teaches students how to manipulate the element to achieve different musical outcomes. The Explore Zone encourages students to discover the full range of possibilities inherent in the element. The Achieve Zone integrates all the learned skills, culminating in the student's ability to reinterpret existing musical works. Finally, the Find Zone empowers students to use the element as a tool for their own musical expression, creating something entirely new.

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6.1 Find Zone: Decoding the Language of Music

The "Find" zone, appropriately beginning with the letter "F" (the first sharp in the key signature, a point students often overlook), focuses on developing the foundational skills of musical literacy. Here, students learn to find, read, and interpret music through a variety of engaging activities, including written exercises, instrumental practice, and listening tasks.

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This zone can be likened to learning the alphabet, reading, and spelling in language acquisition. Students begin by learning individual note names and symbols (notes), and the duration of sounds and silences. These fundamental elements are then combined to create two-note sounds (intervals), analogous to two-letter blends in language. Finally, the "Find" zone introduces selected three- and four-note patterns, or musical motifs, enabling students to recognize recurring musical "words" within a text.

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The "Find Star" icon features a magnifying glass, symbolising the careful study and examination of musical elements until they are thoroughly understood.

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6.2 Create Zone: Discovering Your Musical Voice

The Create Zone is where students learn to express their unique musical ideas, from rhythmic patterns to melodies. Students explore and perform their own musical creations, gaining confidence in their individual musical voices and developing their creative potential. This section introduces a set of rhythmic patterns for each level, instruction in reading and singing tonic sol-fa, and guidance on combining sounds to create two-, three-, and four-note chords to support melodic ideas. Students learn to combine rhythmic groupings with sounds to form melodic statements and musical question-and-answer phrases. The Achieve Zone encourages a student to explore the skills of reinterpretation while the Develop Zones into their compositions.

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The Create Star icon features a conductor's baton, symbolizing the act of bringing musical creations to life. Just as composers historically conducted the premieres of their own works, students in this zone can experience the same sense of ownership and creative leadership.

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6.3 Grow Zone: Nurturing Musical Growth and Discovery

The "Grow" zone marks a significant step in a student's musical development, where they begin to explore new and evolving concepts. Students cultivate research skills to deepen their understanding and awareness of various aspects of their musical journey. Personal development skills are nurtured through journaling and planning activities. This zone also offers TQ Challenges focusing on symbols, rhythms, three- and four-note patterns, chords, key signatures, and the Circle of Fifths.

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The Grow Zone introduces the concept of a personal portfolio for the TQ assessment, and a personal music journey summary, both of which can be accessed via the Academy's cloud storage.

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The "Grow Star" icon is depicted with a stack of notebooks, showing the importance of journaling. Journals can be kept in traditional notebooks (whether standard, personalized, or TQ-branded), or through online cloud storage and virtual learning environments.

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6.4 Develop Zone: Refining Musical Skills and Expression

The "Develop" zone is where students begin to refine their musical abilities and explore diverse ways of using musical elements. The skills cultivated here contribute to the character, colour, and rhythmic stability of music, including pulse, beat, and tempo. Students develop harmony and phrasing skills, expand their understanding of bass patterns through exercises and demonstrations of different patterns applied to the same melody, and refine their posture to enhance dynamic control. Music listening skills are honed to develop awareness of beat subdivisions within a bar and the placement of musical signs.

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The "Develop Star" icon is represented by a pair of glasses, symbolizing the student's need to look beyond the surface of the musical language to understand how each note should be performed.

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6.5 Achieve Zone: Celebrating Musical Success

The "Achieve" zone is where all the learning culminates in the performance of a final piece. These pieces are not designed for learning new concepts; rather, they give an opportunity for students to show their accumulated skills and experience a sense of accomplishment. In this zone, students can confidently declare, "I can!"

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This is the zone of personal achievement.

 

The "Achieve Star" icon features a mortarboard, traditionally worn at graduations, symbolizing the successful completion of a level of study. This echoes the adage, "The proof is in the pudding," meaning that true learning is proven by the ability to achieve a goal independently.

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6.6 Explore Zone: Embarking on a Musical Adventure

The Explore Zone invites students to embark on a musical adventure, exploring diverse rhythms, musical themes, genres, and cultures. Students learn how to listen attentively to details and understand the concepts essential to each musical style. This section introduces musical form, themes, cultural rhythms, and the joy of musical discovery.

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This zone promotes personal confidence in researching, developing resources, and presenting musical information with knowledge and assurance.

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The "Explore Star" icon is depicted with wide eyes and a quill, symbolizing the recording, and sharing of musical adventures and stories. This section opens students' eyes to the vast world of music and its influence on everyday life.

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6.7 Build Zone: Constructing a Musical Foundation

The Build zone is where students learn the keys and tonalities that form the foundation of music, like the bricks used to build a house. The Circle of Fifths is explored and mastered as each stage introduces two major and minor scales and their associated chords. Students learn various patterns developing their ability to navigate their instrument with increasing fluency. These exercises are not merely scales; they are presented as engaging activities designed to develop essential skills in understanding keys and tonalities.

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The "Build Star" icon depicts a figure engaged in bodybuilding, emphasizing the importance of consistent practice with scales and chords. Just as physical fitness requires dedication, so too does musical ability. These foundational elements are crucial for musical growth and will enable students to practice more effectively.