Educators Resource

Blue Man Group: Making Waves features a playful and accessible approach to the science of sound, utilizing extraordinary JBL technology and dynamic Blue Man Group as our guide. Onstage, the Blue Man is one part inquisitive child, one part trickster, and one part superhero on a journey of discovery. This same approach guided the creation of Blue Man Group: Making Waves, encouraging playful learning through sensory engagement and interactive entertainment. This shared experience is a multi sensory exploration of sound for the whole family.

Exhibit Overview

• Entry tube - A sound and light tunnel beckons visitors into the exhibit while sonic tubes play elements of a tribal rhythm.
• Intro Wall - Blue Man Group appears on a monitor bopping their heads rhythmically in time with the music. This exhibit introduction also gives us our first glimpse of the Blue Man character.
• Tube Phones - "Tube Phones" demonstrate the different characteristics of sound and how it can be manipulated. A visitor speaks into a microphone and hears his voice played back through lengths of tubing with different effects added.
• Seeing Sound - What does sound look like? Here visitors can play a Theremin organ - an eerie sounding instrument played by moving closer or farther away. An oscilloscope shows the sound waves created.
• Slide/Build-u-lum - In this area, visitors put together PVC tubes - a signature Blue Man experience - to create instruments. At the Slide-u-lum, percussion meets the slide trombone. Visitors slide PVC tubes into long or short configurations then strike their new instrument to produce a note.
• Sand Drum - See and feel that sound is a physical force with the ability to move things.
• PVC's - Play PVC instruments just like Blue Man Group. Three sets of pipes let kids experiment separately - or join together in their own Blue Man performance
• Belly Drum - Learn from the Blue Men how to use the human body as a percussion instrument.
• Surround Sound Theater - The whole experience comes together in the intimate surround sound theatre. The Blue Men perform a song created specifically for this exhibit maximizing the use of surround sound technology while putting together the elements of sound showcased throughout the interactive exhibit .The musical crescendo like the Blue Man show itself, will leave visitors asking for more.

Tips for Teachers

The lessons learned from this exhibit focus on the science of sound, art, and non-verbal communication.

• Prepare your students for visiting the museum by practicing listening and echoing rhythm patterns.
• Explain to your students that Blue Man Group communicates without words. Try some nonverbal games of modeling actions or facial expressions.
• Very young children may at first be intimidated or frightened by the appearance of Blue Man Group.
• Enrich your classroom with these activity stations:

1. Found object instruments that can be plucked, struck or shaken - buckets, lids, boxes, etc. with wooden spoons, metal spoons, rubber mallets, etc. to use for strikers and beans, cereal, rice, etc. to use inside shakers.
2. Provide headphones and disc players with different musical/instrumental selections. Include paper and crayons/markers so that children can draw pictures of how the music makes them feel.
3. A collection of items such as wooden blocks, cookie sheets, doorbell, etc. that can be used to create different sound effects to help tell a story (as in an old style radio show.)

Sound Activity - Glass Xylophones

Materials: 6 glasses of the same size and shape, water, a metal spoon, eye droppers

Step 1: On a flat surface, place the 6 glasses near one another without touching.

Step 2: Fill each glass with a different amount of water.

Step 3: Tap each glass gently with the spoon. Listen to the different tones.

Step 4: Tap on different parts of one glass and listen to the changes.

Step 5: Experiment with using the eye droppers to add or take away water. Try to adjust the amount of water to get the right notes to play a song.

This activity can be presented in one of two fashions, either as a free-form activity encouraging children to interact with materials and consider the relationship between the amount of water in a glass and the sound that they hear. Or as a more structured activity, having children measure out the water and systematically observe the different tones produced by the varying amounts of water. Depending on the age/ability of the child, you may or may not want to have them participate in such a regimented and skill-dependent activity.

Label each of the glasses, 1 - 6, and fill them to the following levels:

1 - 5 3/4 inch

2 - 5 1/2 inch

3 - 4 3/4 inch

4 - 4 1/2 inch

5 - 3 3/4 inch

6 - 3 1/4 inch

Once filled, organize the glasses by number, increasing in quantity from left to right. To play the instrument, lightly tap the side of each glass with the spoon.

Allow visitors to play the instruments and experiment with the different sound each glass produces.

Once they feel comfortable with the instrument, you have the option of presenting them with song sheets.

Song Sheet Samples:

Hot Cross Buns:

Hot cross buns - Hot cross buns - One a pen-ny - Two a pen-ny - Hot Cross Buns

3        2       1            3      2        1             1  1  1  1         2  2  2  2                 3     2         1

Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star:

Twin-kle, Twin-kle, lit-tle star - How I won-der what you are

1          1      5      5   6   6   5          4    4   3   3         2     2      1

Up a-bove the world so high - Like a dia-mond in the sky

5    5     4     4        3    3       2        5    5  4       4      3    3       2

Twin-kle, Twin-kle, lit-tle star - How I won-der what you are.

   1      1        5     5    6   6    5        4    4  3       3     2       2     1