Download Experiencing Music - Petal School District

One of the most pleasurable AURAL –
or hearing related – experiences is
listening to music.
 Different levels of attentiveness impact how we listen
to music. There are 3 types of listening that we will
explore in this chapter.
 Casual listening – when music blends in with the
background, considered “elevator music”
 Sensuous listening – when the listener becomes
completely absorbed in the music, considered “goose
bump” music.
 Perceptive listening – listening to and appreciating
music for its full range of technical and expressive
qualities
 The more we understand music, the more apt we are to
have a “peak experience.” Many people call this an
AESTHETIC experience.
 Aesthetic is characterized by a heightened sensitivity
to the content, form, or emotional impact of an artistic
work or event.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pOCxegQupMU
 Situation 1: sitting in the reviewing stand at a July 4th
parade, noisy crowd, hawking vendors, band is
approaching in the distance
 Situation 2: band arrives at the viewing stand,
musicians face the crowd, people are emotionally
stirred by the music
 Situation 3: in class analyzing the musical aspects of
the march, focusing on the social function of the
music.
Becoming a Perceptive Listener
 We rely on the aspects of music we know about to
analyze the music we listen to, including melody,
rhythm, harmony, timbre, texture, and form.
 The more you know about these elements the easier it
is to understand the music you hear.
 Most of the music you hear is based on a scale.
 A scale is a sequence of tones arranged in rising
pitches. Most of the music we hear is based on major
or minor scales.
 Major scales are sequences of eight pitches built on the
pattern of 2 whole steps, 1 half step, 3 whole steps, 1
half step (WWHWWWH)
Intervals
 Just as in math, an interval is the distance between two
objects - in this case, two pitches.
 A melody can move up or down, by step or skip. We
memorize the sounds of the intervals to link the notes
together.
 Perfect 4th –
 Perfect 5th –
 Major 6th –
 Octave -
How we experience music…
 Experiencing music alone – we choose music to match
our mood
 Experiencing music together – how we react to music
depends on the type of music, how it is being used,
and where you hear it
 “Musicians work hard to communicate the expressive
qualities and technical demands of the music they are
performing.” – AGREE OR DISAGREE?
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YzTCUOJKmmk
Performing Music Alone
 Guitar – Libby Larsen has called the electric guitar the
most important musical instrument of the past 50
years.
 The method for tuning a guitar was developed so
musicians could minimize movement of the left hand.
In MOST situations, the left hand pushes down the
strings to change chords while the right hand strums.
 Native American Flute – Today, there is a renewed
interest in the instrument. Artist: John Rainer Jr.
Performing Music Together
 Texture - the way sounds are woven together
 Ensemble – cooperative musical expression
 Monophonic – in unison with everyone sounding the
same pitch or octave at the same time
 Mariachi – a musical group with several violins,
trumpets, large bass guitar, and special 5 and 6 string
guitars.
 Virtuoso – a performer with brilliant, flawless
technique
Criteria for Critiques
 More than one’s opinion, it’s presenting facts about the
performance
 Critics look at many different criteria for critiques:
 Timbre –
 Expressiveness –
 Technique –
 Presentation –
 Impact -
 Critics DO have an impact on the success of an artist.
 Virtuoso – a performer with brilliant, flawless
technique