🎵 Music: BBC Ten Pieces

Benjamin Britten – Storm Interlude (from Peter Grimes)

In music this term, we are listening to and exploring Storm Interlude by Benjamin Britten, as part of BBC Ten Pieces.

This piece of music tells a story without using words. The composer uses the orchestra to describe a powerful storm at sea.

You can listen to the piece here:
🔗 BBC Ten Pieces – Storm Interlude

🧠 What We Are Learning (Musical Knowledge)

By the end of this unit, you will understand that:

• music can tell a story or create an image – this is called programme music

• composers use musical elements to create mood and atmosphere

• Storm Interlude uses changes in:

  • dynamics (loud and quiet)

  • tempo (speed)

  • texture (how many instruments play together)

  • timbre (the sound of different instruments)

• different orchestral instruments are used to represent the power and danger of the storm

• composers carefully structure music to build tension and drama

You will learn and use musical vocabulary such as:
tempo, dynamics, texture, timbre, crescendo, orchestra, structure

🔍 How We Think Like Musicians

When listening to Storm Interlude, we are learning to think like musicians.

This means we will:

• listen carefully and describe what we hear using musical vocabulary

• identify how musical elements change throughout the piece

• explain how the composer creates mood and atmosphere

• share opinions and give reasons using evidence from the music

• reflect on how music makes us feel and why

Musicians listen closely and explain their ideas clearly.

❓ Questions to Think About

As you listen, think about these questions:

• How does the music make you feel at the beginning?

• Which instruments sound like wind or waves?

• How does the composer show the storm getting stronger?

• What happens to the music as the storm begins to calm?

🚀 Musical Challenges (Choose One)

🌊 Sound Picture Challenge
Draw a picture of the storm as you listen.
Label parts of your picture with musical words (e.g. loud, fast, quiet).

🥁 Rhythm and Dynamics Challenge
Use percussion or body sounds to create your own short “storm” sequence.
Can you include:

• quiet sounds

• loud sounds

• fast and slow parts

🎼 Composer Challenge
If you were writing music about a storm, which instruments would you choose and why?

🌍 Big Question

How can music tell a story without using any words?

⭐ Remember

Composers use musical choices to control how the listener feels.