and Temple Yards

TeachingILearning Sequence
Study Guide
Level: Grade 2 to Adult
1. Locate the Mekong River on a map. Trace its course from the Tibetan highlands to the
South China Sea, through the Southeast Asian countries of Thailand, Laos, and Cambodia
to Vietnam.
Locate the Mekong River delta and name some of the other rivers that contribute
to making this an important agricultural area.
2. Discuss the importance of the song to help alleviate the labor of paddling the boat.
Work songs, as mentioned in the introduction, have been popular in many societies.
"Michael, Row the Boat Ashore" is an example of a nineteenth-century Black American
stevedore song. Today, "muzak" is piped into stores, offices and elevators and physical
exercise is often accompanied by "work out" music. Talk about the various kinds of chants,
hollers and songs used to accompany work in different cultures. Compare the themes found
in other work songs to "D6 Doc Dd," for example love, overwork, hardship, the boss,
misfortune etc.
3. Listen to the recording:
Experiment with paddling movements. Push the water away with the imaginary
paddle. Paddle every four pulses; on the first beat only; every two pulses; alternating
hands; with the entire arm; only with the fingers; in the rhythm of the chorus phrase:
Paddle only on the "whirling water" response, "Khoan h& h6 khoan." Remain
still as the soloist sings.
While listening to the recording, sing the chorus together each time it occurs.
4. Prepare to sing.
Sing exercise #6 . The first half of the song (refrain) is based on a pentatonic scale
(five-pitch), and the second half on a hexatonic scale (six-pitch). The leader
sings the suggested tonal patterns, some of which are directly derived from
the song, followed by group imitation. Patterns can be sung on "loo" or with
solfege syllables.
Leadcr/Group: LIG: LIC: LIG:
-
La li Rc Mi Sol La Rc Mi Sol La li RC li Mi Sol La La Sol Mi Sol Mi
LIG: LIG: LIC: LIG:
LaTilhRcMiSol RelhhSol la MiSollk Re La'IFDoMiReaD La
Exercise 6
Pronounce the phrases of the soloist in the melodic rhythm.
5. Sing the song:
Older groups might have a few singers try the solo part, with the large chorus
singing its prescribed phrase. Assign individual parts in the refrain, with the
full ensemble singing the verses. Younger groups sing only the refrain.