Download File

Musical Sounds
4 Characteristics of Music
•
•
•
•
Pitch
Duration
Volume
Timbre
Pitch
• Musical sound is the result of a definite & steady
vibration
• This definite & steady vibration produces a TONE.
• 7 letters used to represent tones/pitches
• ABCDEFG
• Pitch is indicated by writing NOTES on a Grand Staff
– The higher the place on the staff = high pitch
– The lower the place the on the staff = lower pitch
High pitches are written on the Treble Clef (AKA
the G-Clef)
Low pitches are written on the Bass Clef (AKA FClef)
Musical symbols
• ♭ = lowers the pitch of a note (flat)
• ♯ = raises the pitch of a note (sharp)
• ♮ = cancels a sharp or flat (natural)
The Grand Staff
Treble
Clef or
G-Clef
High
pitch
notes
Bass Clef or F-Clef—low pitch notes
Identifying Notes on the Grand
Staff
When reading notes on a musical
staff, start from the bottom line &
read going up.
Duration
•
•
•
•
This is the passage of time thru the flow of music.
How long a note should be played/held.
Note Values: see handout
Silence also has value; a period of silence in music is
called a REST.
• Rests also have the same value as notes (whole,
half, quarter, eighth, sixteenth, etc.)
Tempo (fast or slow)
• Very slow:
• Slow:
• Moderate
• Fast
Largo (broad)
Grave (grave, solemn)
Lento
Adagio (leisurely)
Andante (walking pace)
Moderato
Allegretto
Allegro
• Very fast:
Vivace (vivacious)
Presto (very quick)
Prestissimo
(as fast as possible)
• Modifications
– Molto = very
– Meno = less
– Poco = a little
– Ma non troppo = not too much
Volume
• AKA Dynamics
• How loud or soft the music is to be played.
• Dynamic instructions are written in Italian.
Dynamics/Volume
Pianissimo (
pp) very soft
p
Piano ( ) soft
Mezzo piano (mp) moderately soft
Mezzo forte (mf) moderately loud
f
Forte ( ) loud
ff
Fortissimo ( ) very loud
• Crescendo (cresc.) = gradually get louder <
• Decrescendo (decresc.) gradually get softer
• Diminuendo (dim.) gradually get softer
>
Timbre
• Tone color
• The distinctive sound quality of an instrument.
• Can be affected by the material of the instrument
or the playing instructions written by the composer.
• Instruments differ in tone color on several levels:
– Between families of instruments
– How the instrument is played
– The materials that the instrument is made of
Periods of Music History
1600-1750: Baroque
1750-1825: Classical
1820-1900: Romantic
1900 to present: Modern
***Remember that style periods will overlap;
the new will exist side by side with the old.
The Time Signature