If you are looking for Danse Macabre activities for music class, then this post is for you! It’s officially fall and for my classroom, that means it’s time to pull out the Halloween activities. One classic around this time of the year is Danse Macabre by Camille Saint-Saens.
If you have always loved this song, but never knew how to incorporate it into your class, you’re in luck! I am here to share some of my favorite activities I have used to teach Danse Macabre to my students – plus some new ones I haven’t even used yet!
History of Danse Macabre
The song Danse Macabre was written by Camille Saint-Saens in the 1870s. It was originally an art song inspired by a poem written by Henri Cazalis. Later, Saint-Saens turned the piece into a symphonic poem for orchestra. The song was not well received at it’s premiere, but has gone on to become one of Saint-Saens most iconic works.
What Does Danse Macabre Mean?
Danse Macabre translates to Dance of Death. The Dance Macabre was a common theme seen through medieval art, literature and more that served a reminder of the temporary nature of our existence here on earth.
Danse Macabre Lesson Plan Ideas
Now that we know a little bit about the history of the piece and the origin of Danse Macabre, let’s talk about some of the fun music activities that you can do!
Danse Macabre Poem by Henri Cazalis
Explore the poem by Henri Cazalis. It outlines the story of Death coming out to the graveyard on Halloween night to play his violin. All the souls awaken and dance around the graveyard until dawn breaks. Then they go to rest again until next year.
I usually read the Danse Macabre poem first. Then I have students imagine the story coming to life as you listen to the piece for the first time. You could even do a dramatic reading of the poem as the piece plays!
Danse Macabre Listening Map
I love to use a listening map to help the students hear the different events that happen in the piece. Danse Macabre is a particularly good symphonic poem for storytelling, and this Danse Macabre listening map really helps students catch each part of the sound story as it happens.
Danse Macabre Lesson on Dynamics
Now that students have gotten some exposure to the piece, it’s a good time to examine it a little closer and notice some of the musical elements. Tempo, dynamics, themes and instrument timbres are some great jumping off points to discuss.
I love using this piece to examine the dynamics. It starts out so quietly, and then crescendos to a wild and crazy fortissimo and back down the nothing. It’s great piece to showcase the entire range of dynamic levels.
Danse Activity Story: Act It Out
This is probably my favorite activity to do with Danse Macabre. We’ve been imagining this spooky scene and listening to the story behind it. Who wouldn’t want to act it out? I know my students do!
I’ve created motions that I do with most of the major events in the song. I’ve included them along with a listening map in my Danse Macabre Activity Pack.
Danse Macabre YouTube Fun
You can show your students The Skeleton Dance from Silly Symphonies by Walt Disney. It does not use the same music, but it uses the same story. See if they can notice the main plot points as they happen during the video.
While you’re at it, you should probably do this awesome boomwhacker play along to The Skeleton Dance from Musication.
Danse Macabre Composer
The symphonic poem Danse Macabre was written by Camille Saint-Saens. No unit on this classic would be complete without learning a little bit about composer Camille Saint-Saens. Saint-Saens was a child prodigy who has an impressive set of classical hits under his belt including Danse Macabre and Carnival of the Animals.
Danse Macabre Lesson Plans
If you want my set of 3 Danse Macabre Activities, complete with listening map and a biography worksheet on composer of Danse Macabre Camille Saint-Saens, you can buy it now at an incredibly low price!
Think of it as a mini-unit with three sequential activities you can do. It also includes a listening map to aid students in hearing how Saint-Saens uses the instrument to tell his spooky tale.
Or if you already have plans for using Danse Macabre in your classroom, consider purchasing the Danse Macabre Worksheets & Listening Map to help enhance a student’s listening experience.
More Halloween Activities for Elementary Music
How about this fall unit for your kindergarteners all about learning about their singing voice?
Want more fun with Camille Saint-Saens? Check out this blog post about the Best of Camille Saint-Saens and how to teach it in elementary music class.
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