Survey
* Your assessment is very important for improving the workof artificial intelligence, which forms the content of this project
* Your assessment is very important for improving the workof artificial intelligence, which forms the content of this project
Hamden High School Department of Fine Arts Musical Theatre Introduction to Music Theory The elements of sound that are manipulated in music include pitch, rhythm, dynamics, and timbre. 1. Pitch can be generally defined as the high or low quality of a sound, where high refers to sounds in the upper frequency range (such as a flute), and low refers to sounds in the lower frequency range (such as an upright bass). Pitch can be specifically defined using the letter names A B C D E F G. Each pitch refers to a specific line or space on the staff or a specific note played by an instrument or sung by a vocalist. 2. Rhythm generally refers to all things in music that deal with time such as tempo (speed of the pulse). A rhythm can be specifically described by a pattern of notes of various length that fit into a meter (a system of organizing beats), such as quarter note, eighth note, eighth note, half note. 3. Dynamics refers to changes in loudness, such as piano (p) and forte (f), which mean soft and loud, respectively. 4. Timbre refers to the property of sound that distinguishes the quality of different instruments or voices. This introduction to music theory will focus on pitch and rhythm, using specific meanings given to the symbols used in music notation. A list of supplemental resources is provided on the site http://hamdenmusic.org The primary source for the unit is found at http://musictheory.net The common unit that all students will cover will include: The Staff, Clefs, and Ledger Lines Note Duration Measures and Time Signature Rest Duration Dots and Ties Steps and Accidentals Simple and Compound Meter Odd Meter Level nine students and any others who have completed the common unit will also explore some or all of the following topics: The Major Scale The Minor Scales Scale Degrees Key Signatures Key Signature Calculation Generic Intervals Specific Intervals