Question and Answer
Composition scaffold · Classroom · Grades 4-12 · 15 to 25 min
Write two four-measure phrases that talk to each other: the first ends on a note that sounds unfinished (the question), and the second answers it by landing squarely on the home note (the answer). The building block nearly every melody in every genre is made of.
The rights, in plain language
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How to use this composition scaffold
Hand it to a student for independent work, or walk the whole class through it together. Read it here, or print it — or save it as a PDF — straight from your browser. It is free, with nothing to sign.
What this scaffold is
The single most common building block in tonal melody: two four-measure phrases that talk to each other. The first phrase (the QUESTION) ends on a note that sounds unfinished, like a sentence that trails off; the second phrase (the ANSWER) uses similar melodic material but lands squarely on the home note, resolving what the question left open.
What you need
Blank staff paper or a notation app, a pencil, and a major or minor scale of your choice written at the top of the page.
The template, step by step
- Pick your key and write out the scale you will draw notes from at the top of the page.
- The question (4 measures): write a four-measure melodic phrase starting anywhere comfortable, but ending on a scale degree that does NOT feel finished -- the 2nd, 5th, or 7th step of the scale are good unresolved landing spots.
- The answer (4 measures): write a second four-measure phrase that starts by echoing the RHYTHM (or the melodic shape) of the question, but ends squarely on the home note (the 1st step of the scale) -- a clear, resolved landing.
- Play both phrases back to back. The question should sound like it needs something more; the answer should sound like it delivers exactly that. If it does not, try changing the question's ending note or the answer's opening notes until it does.
Teaching tips
- Sing the pair before writing it down, if that is easier -- many students hear a satisfying question-and-answer shape before they can explain why it works on paper.
- The answer should feel like a relative, not a stranger -- reusing the question's rhythm or opening shape is what makes the pair sound like one connected idea instead of two random phrases.
- Play the answer alone, then the question alone, so students hear how incomplete each one sounds without its partner -- that is the whole lesson in one demonstration.
Extensions
- Write a second answer: keep the same question and write TWO different answers, then decide which resolves it better and why.
- Chain three pairs: write three question-and-answer pairs in a row to build a full sixteen-measure piece.
- Swap questions: have students trade their question phrase with a partner and each write an answer to someone else's question.
What it builds
An ear and an eye for phrase structure -- the sense of tension and release that shapes almost every melody a student will ever sing, play, or write from here forward.