Download AS Music Technology - NW 14-19

The Musical Elements
The Musical Elements
Melody
Structure
Tonality
Timbre
Can You Remember What These
All Stand For…?
M
R
Rhythm
S
I
Instrumentation
D
Dynamics
T
T
T
Tempo
P
T
Texture
Pitch
Melody
• Melody = A number of notes in succession
• A Melody is the tune that you hear within the music.
• It is the melody that people sing/hum after hearing
music and enjoying it.
Rhythm
Rhythm = The arrangement of notes in a given time
• This means the way in which the notes are fitted into
a bar of music.
• It is rhythm that uniquely identifies a particular style
of music.
– Latin Rhythms are unique to South America
– Swing is unique to the Big Band Era
…etc…
• Rhythms can be described as syncopated if they make
the notes off the beat.
Structure
Structure = The layout of the music (horizontally)
• How music is laid out is very important… Think of a Pop
Song – the chorus keeps coming back.
• Are there repeated sections of music...?
• Are the sections clear…?
• Verse  Chorus  Verse
A very good example of A B A (Ternary form)
Instrumentation
Instrumentation = The combinations of instruments used
• What instruments can you hear…?
• How many instruments can you hear…?
• Are the instruments playing in sections…?
–
–
–
–
–
Brass
Woodwind
Strings
Percussion
Keyboards
Tonality
Tonality = The ‘key’ or sound of the music
• What harmony is being used…?
• Is there an obvious ‘tone’ to the music…?
• The most common ‘keys’ or sounds are:
– Major
– Minor
-
Happy / Bright Sounding
Sad / Dull Sounding
• Major keys are often used to portray moments of
happiness or light hearted events
• Minor keys are often used to represent mystery or
sadness.
Tempo
Tempo = The speed of the music
• How fast or slow is the music…?
Tap your foot along with it to see…
• Tempo is usually shown using Italian terms:
– Fast
– Moderately
– Slow
=
=
=
Allegro
Moderato / Andante
Largo / Adagio / Lento
Timbre
Timbre = The tone colour of the music
• Timbre is the way an instrument sounds:
‘It’s Quality of Sound’
• Different combinations of instruments sound very
differently…
• It is these differences that give music it’s ‘colour’
– Metal instruments sound very different from wooden
ones
– A trumpet sounds very different to a tuba
Texture
Texture = The layers of sound (vertically)
•
When more instruments play together the texture becomes
much ‘thicker’ and affects the sound of the music.
•
Texture is varied by adding or taking away instruments.
•
Most commonly we describe texture as THICK or THIN
•
The main types of texture to listen for are:
– Monophonic
– Homophonic
– Polyphonic
= One sound (a solo line)
= A melody with accompaniment
= Many melodies playing together
Dynamics
Dynamics = The volume of the music
• Volume affects the way music is interpreted.
• Loud Sounds vs. Quiet Sounds – how does it affect the
music…?
• Italian terms are also used to describe dynamics:
– Quiet
=
– Moderately Loud =
– Loud
=
piano
mezzo forte
forte
Pitch
Pitch = How high or low the music is
• Pitch can greatly affect the mood of the music.
• High / piercing sounds get very different reactions
than low / resonant sounds.
• Some music needs high sounds, others need low ones.
• Most music is created using a contrast of high and low
pitches. Without it there would not be any musical
contrast.
The Musical Elements
Melody
Structure
Tonality
Timbre
Use these elements to listen to
all music from now on!
M
R
Rhythm
S
I
Instrumentation
D
Dynamics
T
T
T
Tempo
P
T
Texture
Pitch
Composition Task
•
•
Pick 3 of the Musical Elements
Using a MIDI Sequencer, such as Cubase Studio 4 create a
short composition that ‘shows off’ or illustrates your 3
chosen elements
•
Your composition must follow these rules:
– You must use between 3 & 6 instruments
•
•
•
•
One instrument must be able to play chords
One instrument must be able to play a bass line
You must include a percussion instrument
There must be at least one instrument capable of playing a melody.
– You must create your composition in simple ternary form
(A  B  A) or (Verse  Chorus  Verse)
– Each section must show off a particular Musical Element
eg: Pitch  Structure  Rhythm
– You must use very simple chords to base your piece upon:
Use C major / F major / G major
– Your piece must have a proper ending (don’t just stop!)
– Each section must be a maximum of 12 Bars Long