KS2 Music: Macbeth - Info

Welcome to Macbeth! Whatever your musical experience this resource can help you and your Key Stage 2 pupils enjoy Music in the classroom while exploring one of Shakespeare’s most famous plays. We’ve created a special adaptation of Macbeth which you can watch in eight short video episodes; we’ve written eight songs based on the story episodes which Nigel Pilkington teaches in the tutorial videos; and we’ve also provided a playscript to download, which you can use to stage your own musical performance of the play.

Macbeth and the Weird Sisters

Shakespeare set Macbeth in 11th century Scotland. Macbeth is the Thane of Glamis, a successful soldier and loyal to King Duncan. However, he is returning from battle with his comrade Banquo when they meet three strange creatures on a heath - the Weird Sisters - who prophesy that Macbeth will become first Thane of Cawdor and later King of Scotland. When the first part of the prophecy comes true Macbeth becomes ambitious for power...and his wife, Lady Macbeth, is determined he should do whatever is necessary to seize the crown...

The content for Macbeth is structured on the eight songs to learn. Each song appears on its own dedicated page and includes the following resources (with links to examples from Song 1: 'Sonic battle'):

• Song tutorial video (in two parts, each 5 - 7 minutes in length)
• Karaoke full vocal version of the song (for rehearsal)
• Karaoke backing track version of the song (for performance)
• A video of the story episode that links to the song
• Lyrics to display or download
• Music to display or download
• A transcript of the story episode
• Notes describing the content of the tutorial and how best to use it
• The Pupils' Pamphlet with all lyrics, information and activities

Additionally there is a Clips page where all of the video content has been aggregated and a Resources page where the following additional resources can also be found:

• A transcript of the tutorial video
• A link to download all the music and SFX cues for your performance
• A link to download the video of the full vocal version of the song (mp4)
• A link to download the video of the backing track version of the song (mp4)
• A link to download audio of the vocal version and backing of the song (mp3s)

To download the videos you will need to right click on them and then select the appropriate option for PC or Mac.

Use the Tutorial video to begin learning each song: Nigel Pilkington guides pupils through each song methodically, giving extra attention to any difficult passages or activities in groups. Refer to the Teacher's Notes for each song to establish whether the class needs to be split into groups before starting the tutorial (for example to sing in harmony).

Use the Story video to watch an episode of the story. Each episode links to the song on the same page and is about 6 minutes long.

Use the Full vocal and Backing track versions of the songs to revise them in preparation for a performance.

Download the SFX file and use the cues for your performance of our Macbeth musical. The cues have been labelled to match the titles used in the playscript.