Download Elements of Music

ELEMENTS OF MUSIC MELODY **The Tune. “A succession of single notes (pitches) organized into a satisfying whole.” -­‐-­‐Melody can sound alone or be accompanied. -­‐-­‐More than one melody can sound at the same time (counterpoint). What makes up a melody? Pitches (notes): Pitch is the word used to describe the highness or lowness of a musical sound. Intervals: An interval is the distance between two pitches (notes). Melodic motion: The way a melody moves from note to note -­‐-­‐by Step -­‐-­‐by Leap -­‐-­‐by Repeated Notes Phrase: Most melodies are constructed so they can be divided into smaller sections – these are called phrases. Phrases are usually marked by a slight pause – like a comma in a sentence. Examples: “Happy Birthday” has 4 phrases “My Country, ‘tis of Thee” is a longer melody, but each phrase is the same length. “Twinkle, Twinkle” 6 phrases All are the same length All phrases have the same rhythm Last two phrases are the same as the first two, and the Two in the middle provide contrast. RHYTHM **The element of time in music. The “Beat” is the structural, steady rhythmic pulse of the music. When you tap your foot to music, you are keeping the beat. Rhythm in the music has to do with duration – how long a sound lasts -­‐ “rhythm” is distinct from the “beat.” Tempo is the speed of the beat. Meter is the organization of beats into regular, recurring accent patterns -­‐-­‐ regular groupings of strong and weak beats. These groupings are called measures. Examples: Triple meter = a grouping of three beats – “in three” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VaUyJyPekJE Duple meter = a grouping of two beats – “in two” Quadruple meter = a grouping of four beats – “in four” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JIAOUFKY4jI HARMONY Harmony is created when two or more notes (pitches) sound at the same time. Harmony is often thought of as combining notes into chords (three or more notes played simultaneously as a “block”). Chords are usually arranged into sentence-­‐like patterns called chord progressions. These often serve to accompany a melody. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VTnuGkZgaMc Scale: a series of notes arranged according to a specific scheme – a pattern of intervals. The two main types of scales are Major scales and Minor scales – each with their own specific sound. Key: When a melody or a scale or a chord progression centers around a certain note, it is said to be in the key of that particular note. Example: If a melody centers around the note “C”, it is said to be in the key of C. Keys can be major or minor. Chords can be major or minor. FORM Form is the organizing structure of a piece of music. Strophic form: The most widely used form in popular music. The melody is laid down in several phrases to match the text. The same music is used for each verse of the text. **Songs written in strophic form may or may not have a Chorus (a repeated melody with a fixed text inserted between verses) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y8pvXLVu8Yk Blues form: a 12-­‐measure song form made up of three phrases; the first two are repeated, the third is contrasting (A, A, B). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S788gj9vdp0 32-­‐bar Song form: This form is made up of four phrases of melody, each 8 measures long. The first, second and fourth are the same; the third is contrasting (A, A, B, A). The “B” section is called the Bridge – it is a section of contrast that prepares us for the return of familiar music. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PSZxmZmBfnU TEXTURE/INSTRUMENTATION Texture refers to the manner in which musical sounds/chords/melodies are combined in a piece of music. Instrumentation is simply the choice of instruments used for the song/piece. Monophonic texture Melody only, with no accompaniment https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VVYTzauIb_4 Homophonic texture Melody (prominent) with accompaniment https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0YuaZcylk_o Chordal harmony texture Melody notes and chords occurring simultaneously https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Geq210-­‐MC6w Polyphonic texture Two or more independent melodies sounding at the same time https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1w7OgIMMRc4