Great news for Clarion users. You can now access Figurenotes colours and patterns within the instrument.
“Figurenotes is an incredible resource, and we’re thrilled that it’s now accessible to musicians who play Clarion. We hope this will create new opportunities for many more musicians to make music their way!”
Barry Farrimond-Chuong MBE CEO, Open Up Music
What is Clarion?
The Clarion is an innovative, accessible instrument that can be played expressively with any part of the body, including eye movement. Created by Open Up Music, it has been used within Open Orchestras and other projects for many years. Try it for free on iPad and PC. To unlock more features you can purchase Clarion Education Licences.
A Clarion pattern
BBC Ten Pieces
Excitingly, the patterns for the BBC Ten Pieces open score arrangements are already available in Figurenotes colours within the app. Clarion users can play some ridiculously fun game music in Laura Shigihara’s Grasswalk from Plants vs Zombies, as well as the mystical imaginings of Judith Weir’s Magic from Storm. To find out more about BBC Ten Pieces Figurenotes resources, see our blog explaining what is available.
How to find Figurenotes
To use Figurenotes colours within your Clarion patterns, go to Settings. You’ll find Figurenotes as an option within the Note Colours dropdown menu.
Clarion Settings
BBC Ten Pieces patterns can be found in the Library, which is shown by a folder icon. Selecting this will open options including a BBC Ten Pieces folder. You’ll find multiple patterns, with descriptions, for both pieces.
Clarion menu for BBC Ten Pieces
It is wonderful to be a part of the latest Clarion developments. Let us know if you are using Clarion and Figurenotes in your work.
We are thrilled to continue our relationship with BBC Ten Pieces this year. Figurenotes resources have featured in every list since Ten Pieces’ inception. This year is a corker! Not only are there 10 interesting and varied pieces by 10 incredible composers, but accessibility has become more of a focus.
Open Ensembles
The BBC Ten Pieces initiative has commissioned ‘open scores’ for two of this year’s pieces. We immediately loved Laura Shigihara’s ‘Grasswalk’ from Plants vs Zombies and the enchanting world of Judith Weir’s ‘Magic’ from Storm. Both are now available as open scores for accessible ensembles.
The open scores are more accessible to a wider range of instruments and players. We particularly love the inclusion of parts for digital instruments, including Thumbjam, Clarion, CMPSR, and Soundbeam. All these instruments have a strong relationship with Figurenotes and Drake Music Scotland, so we’re thrilled to be working together on this. There are Figurenotes parts transcribed for all instruments in the score, in different stages, so you can find the part that suits the musicians best. All parts are available on the BBC Ten Pieces website for free.
But we didn’t stop there!
Creative Resources
Laura Shigihara’s ‘Grasswalk’ is chock full of interesting elements to explore musically. We have created lesson plans and additional supporting resources to dive into these areas in a fun, engaging way. The lessons are divided into packs: Articulation, Chromatics, Rhythm, and Register. You can explore the lessons with a pick-n-mix approach, or work your way through more methodically. All packs are available on the BBC Ten Pieces website for free.
As ever, if you have any questions regarding Figurenotes and BBC Ten Pieces resources feel free to get in touch. Email Figurenotes@DrakeMusicScotland.org or call 0131 659 4766. Please do share your thoughts and feedback with us, as it is invaluable for future resources.
