ELEMENTS OF MUSIC

• The foundation on which music is written, arranged, and performed.

INTRODUCTION

All people, from the earliest recorded history, have created music. Humans, like birds whales, have a natural tendency for making sounds and responding to them. When music is pleasurable, it says something to you It communicates a feeling or conveys a message.

CHARACTERISTICS OF A TONE

• a tone is identified as any type of sound
• to have a tone, there must be a vibration
• Dynamics-Loudness or softness
• Timbre-Tone Quality
• Duration - Length of the tone
• Pitch - How high or how low

ELEMENTS OF MUSIC

• All forms of music from all societies and cultures have common characteristics and elements
• Rhythm - How the beat is broken down
• Melody - The actual tune of the song
• Harmony - How sounds blend together
• Form - How the music is structured
• Timbre/tone color - How each instrument sounds
• Dynamics - How loud or soft
• Tempo - The speed of the Music
• Style - How the over all characteristics sound

RHYTHM

• Beat - Steady recurring pulse
• Beats are broken down into various note values. Each note value is worth a set number of beats and also has a corresponding rest
• Whole Note - 4 Beats
• Half Note - 2 Beats
• Quarter Note - 1 Beat
• Eighth Note - 1/2 Beat

STAFF

• 5 Lines and 4 spaces that music is written on.

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MEASURE

• Divides the staff into smaller units of measure by using bar lines

TIME SIGNATURE

• Appears at the beginning of a piece of music right after the Key Signature.
• Tells the number of beats per measure and which note value equals one beat.

SYNCOPATION

• Rhythm that puts an emphasis on a beat or a part of the beat that is not usually emphasized.

MELODY

• The actual tune of the music
• Do the notes and melody move in an upward pattern?
• Do the notes and melody move in a downward pattern?
• Do the notes repeat?

TREBLE CLEF

• Contains the Higher notes

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BASS CLEF

• Contains the lower notes

THE GRAND STAFF

• The combination of the Bass and Treble Clefs

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HARMONY

• How the notes blend together
• Consonance - Absence of tension or discord in music
• Dissonance - Discord in music, suggests a state of tension

MAJOR SCALE

CHORDS

• In musicIn music and music theory a chord is three or more different notes that sound simultaneously.
• Chords using three pitch classes are called triads.

FORM

• Musical design
• Theme - A melody that assumes importance in the development of a composition because of its central and continued use
• Sonata- Allegro Form- A large A-B-A form consisting of three sections: exposition, development and recapitulation.

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Sonata form is a musical form is a musical form that has been used widely since the early Classical period is a musical form that has been used widely since the early Classical period. It has typically been used in the first movement of multimovement pieces, and is therefore more specifically referred to as sonata-allegro form or first-movement form. Study of the sonata form in music theory rests on a standard definition, and a series of hypotheses about the underlying reasons for the durability and variety of the form.

The standard definition focuses on the thematic and harmonic organization of tonalThe standard definition focuses on the thematic and harmonic organization of tonal materials, which are presented in an expositionThe standard definition focuses on the thematic and harmonic organization of tonal materials, which are presented in an exposition, elaborated and contrasted in a developmentThe standard definition focuses on the thematic and harmonic organization of tonal materials, which are presented in an exposition, elaborated and contrasted in a development and then resolved harmonically and thematically in a recapitulation. Additionally the standard definition recognizes that an introduction and a coda may be present. Each of the sections is often further divided or characterized by the particular means by which it accomplishes its function in the form.

FORM (CONT)

• Opera - A staged drama that is predominantly sung, most often with orchestral accompaniment with three Sections
• 3 Sections of an opera
• Overture - An extended orchestral introduction
• Aria-A song for solo singer and orchestra
• Recitative - A speech-like style of singing

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CALL AND RESPONSE

• The leader sings or plays a phrase and the audience sings it back
• a call and response is a succession of two distinct phrases is a succession of two distinct phrases usually played by different musicians, where the second phrase is heard as a direct commentary on or response to the first

TWO PART: AB

• One Section followed by a completely different section
• Binary Form

THREE PART: A B A

• One Section followed by a completely different section and then a repeat of the first section
• Ternary

ROUND

• A round is a musical composition in which two or more voices sing exactly the same melody (and may continue repeating it indefinitely), but with each voice beginning at different times so that different parts of the melody coincide in the different voices, but nevertheless fit harmoniously together
• "Row, Row, Row Your Boat" is a well known children's round for 4 voices

VERSE AND CHORUS

Hymns and pop songs use this form

TIMBRE/TONE COLOR

• A distinctive tone quality of a sound
• Instruments are classified according to the source of the vibration which creates their sound
• Woodwind
• Brass
• Percussion
• Keyboard
• String

WOODWIND INSTRUMENTS

• Any instrument which sound is produced by the vibration of a wooden reed
• Flute
• Clarinet
• Saxophone
• Bassoon
• Oboe

FLUTE

• A flute produces sound when a stream of air directed across a hole in the instrument creates a vibration of air at the hole

CLARINET

SAXOPHONE

BASSOON

OBOE

BRASS INSTRUMENTS

• Any instrument which sound is produced by the vibration of the player’s lips in a mouthpiece.
• Trumpet
• F-Horn
• Trombone
• Baritone
• Tuba

TRUMPET

F-HORN

TROMBONE

BARITONE

TUBA

PERCUSSION

• Instruments that has tone produced by striking the instrument.
• Pitched - tone is a definite pitch
• Xylophone
• Bells
• Marimba
• Unpitched - tone does not have a definite pitch
• Snare Drum
• Cymbals
• Bass Drum

STRINGS

• Any instrument that has strings that vibrate
• Violin
• Viola
• Cello
• Bass
• Banjo
• Guitar

VIOLIN

VIOLA

CELLO

BASS

GUITAR

BANJO

KEYBOARD

• Instruments which are played with a keyboard. Usually have strings inside the instrument to create sound.
• Piano
• Harpsichord
• Organ

PIANO

HARPSICHORD

ORGAN

DYNAMICS

• Volume of the music
• Piano - p - Soft
• Forte - f - Loud
• Crescendo - Gradually get louder
• Descrescendo - Gradually get softer

TEMPO

• Speed of the music
• Adagio – Slow
• Allegro – Fast
• Largo-Slow & broad
• Andante-Medium Slow
• Moderato-Moderate
• Vivo-Lively and Brisk
• Presto-Very Fast
• Prestissimo-Very, Very Fast

QUICK QUIZ-TEMPO

1. The term meaning speed of the music is _______
2. The term Adagio means the speed or tempo of the music is __________
3. A tempo marking that means the speed is of moderate tempo would be called ________
4. Notes that are accented on the off-beat are called ________
5. The beat that occurs on the first beat of the measures is known as the __________

TRUE/FALSE

1. The downbeat of music occurs on the weakest beat of the measure .
2. Accented notes that do not occur on the downbeat are called syncopated notes.
3. There can be almost any number of beats in a measure
4. A whole note would never receive just one beat by itself
5. Ragtime music does not use syncopated rhythms.

KEY SIGNATURE

• series of sharp or flat symbols placed on the staff, designating notes that are to be consistently played one ½ step higher or lower than the equivalent natural notes unless otherwise altered with an accidental. Key signatures are generally written immediately after the clef at the beginning of a line of musical notation

ACCIDENTALS

• Sharp-Raises a pitch ½ step
• Flat-Lowers a pitch ½ step
• Natural-Cancels out a sharp or flat in the key signature

STYLE

• The culmination of all the elements which is influenced by culture and common techniques.

DEFINE THE FOLLOWING MUSICAL TERMS

• Rhythm
• Treble Clef
• Key Signature
• Syncopation
• Sharp

• Flat
• Rest
• Ledger Lines
• Staff

DEFINE THE FOLLOWING MUSICAL TERMS

• Melody
• EGBDF
• FACE
• ACEG
• GBDFA

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• F clef
• G Clef
• Natural
• Scale

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ANSWER THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS

1. Music is considered a ___________ language
2. The beat of music is referred to as a ________ of music
3. To assist in reading or performing music, the notation is divided in short blocks known as __________
4. Measures are separated by vertical lines called ________ lines.
5. The symbol that lowers a note or pitch by a half-step is called a ________
6. A sharp ___________ the note or pitch by a half-step.

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TRUE OR FALSE

• The Downbeat of music occurs on the weakest beat of the measure.
• In the time signature, the top number indicates what type of note will receive one beat
• Music is read from left to right
• A syncopation places an accent on a weak beat or an off-beat.

TEMPO QUIZ

1. The speed of a composition is called the __________.
2. The term Adagio means the speed or tempo of the music is __________
3. A tempo marking that means the speed is of moderate tempo would be called __________
4. Notes that are accented on the off-beat are called _________
5. The beat that occurs on the first beat of the measures is known as the ___________

MELODY QUIZ

1. The part of a song or composition that allows us to recognize what we are listening to is called the _________
2. The notes to a melody are placed in an organized ________ of notes.
3. Just as in English grammar, a melody is divided into small unities known as _______

TRUE-FALSE

1. Without the melody, a song or composition could not be recognized.
2. Melodies that do not rise or fall are generally considered monotonous.
3. There must be at least 3 phrases in a melody for it to be complete.
4. A melody will generally follow the pattern of speech much the same as when we speak.
5. The overall flow (rise and fall) of the melody is known as its shape.
6. All the possible combination of notes for creating a melody have already been written.
7. A melody that stays on the same note gets boring very quickly.

FORM QUIZ

1. The “big picture” of music is generally called its ________
2. The easiest way to map the form of a piece of music is to label each section with a __________
3. In the form known as “call and response”, an audience might provide the ____________
4. When one section of music is followed by a different section of music and then the first section is repeated, that is labeled with the letters ______
5. In the form called “verse and chorus, “ the _______ is always the same

TRUE-FALSE

• Most people know the form of a piece of music the first time they hear it.
• A composition with two different sections could be labeled AB.
• A form known as “theme and variation” means there is one basic theme and it is played several different ways.
• The form of pop songs and hymns is much more difficult to understand than the form of a symphonic piece (sonata form).
• The form known as “rondo” is one section (A) that constantly returns among new sections (ABACADA, etc.)

TIMBRE/INSTRUMENTS QUIZ

1. Instruments played with a bow are classified in the _______ family of instruments.
2. Instruments that use a reed covering a mouthpiece belong to the ____ family of instruments.
3. Instruments that’s tone is produced by the vibration of the players lips is the ______ family.
4. Instruments that has its tone produced by striking an object is the ______ family.

TRUE-FALSE

1. A violin is played with a bow pulled across the strings.
2. The string bass plays the lower notes of the music being performed.
3. The violin plays the highest musical notes in the string family of instruments.
4. The violin and the viola are the same size but play different notes.
5. Violins have a fret board (metal ridges on the fingerboard similar to that of a guitar).
6. The reed of the woodwinds is usually made of plastic.
7. The string bass is larger than the cello.
8. Violins and cellos are never plucked (picking the strings).
9. The lowest sounding woodwind instrument is the bassoon.
10. The orchestra tunes to the “A” played by the oboe.

HARMONY QUIZ

1. Two or more tones played with the melody create ________
2. In Western Hemisphere music, most harmony is based on _______
3. A chord is usually _____ or more notes.
4. Some of the basic elements of music are rhythm, melody and ______
5. “Implied harmony” means some ______ of the chord may be left out.

TRUE -FALSE

1. Harmony can only be created by chords
2. A melody does not have to have harmony
3. Two or more notes make a chord
4. Harmony can be created by having independent lines.
5. A melody may be accompanied by rhtyhms rather than sounds.

BRASS QUIZ

1. The instruments of the brass family are made of _________
2. The bitch of the French horn can be controlled by putting the _____ inside the bell.
3. The only brass instrument that does not have valves is the ________
4. The largest instrument in the brass family is the ___________
5. To start the sound in the mouthpiece of a brass instrument, the player must ______ the lips.

TRUE-FALSE

• The largest brass instrument is the trombone.
• The woodblock is a member of the brass family.

PERCUSSION QUIZ

1. The percussion instrument that looks like kettle is called a _______
2. The device used to beat a drum is called a _______
3. Marimbas and xylophones have rectangular bars that produce the tone and are arranged in the same order as a piano ___________
4. The percussion instrument that uses long, hollow tubes to create its tone is called ___________

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TRUE-FALSE

• All percussion instruments are struck with some type of “beater”.
• Drumsticks or mallets are not used to play cymbals.
• The woodblock is a member of the brass family.

VOICE QUIZ

1. The highest female voice is ___________
2. _______ is the lowest male voice.
3. A staged drama that is sung is called ______
4. A ______ is a musical line in opera that moves the action along and is in a recited style.
5. ______ is the primary solo in opera
6. The instrumental music at the beginning of most operas is the _________
7. The male voice between bass and tenor is ________

TRUE-FALSE

1. There are no sets or costumes in opera
2. The overture generally has bits and pieces of the music that will be sung or performed later in the opera.
3. Opera ha no story line.
4. The basic difference between an opera an a play is that the opera is sung and the play is spoken.
5. All operas are written and performed in English.

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DYNAMICS QUIZ

1. Dynamics in music is related to

a. Melody

b. Emotions

c. Volume

d. Style

• The exact interpretation of each dynamic marking depends on all except one of the following

a. Comparison with other dynamics in the music.

b. The size of the audience and auditorium

c. The typical dynamic range for that instrument or ensemble.

d. The abilities of the performers

• Where do the accents in music usually appear.

a. At the end of the piece

b. Listed at the beginning of the piece

c. Above or below the affected note(s)

d. Occurs only in instrumental music

TIME PERIODS OF MUSIC

• Classical Greek/Roman
• Medieval
• Renaissance
• Baroque
• Neo-classicism/Classical
• Romanticism
• Impressionism and Post Impressionism
• Modern and Contemporary

CLASSICAL GREECE AND ROMAN

• 800 BC_400 AD
• Instructs and perfects humans: Ritual worship. Presents the universal ideal of beauty through logic, order, reason, and moderation
• Pythagoras - music theory
• Part 2

MEDIEVAL PERIOD

• 400 - 1400 AD
• Instructs in Christian Faith. Appeals to the emotions, stresses Importance of Religion.
• Byzantine
• Gregorian Chant
• Beginning of Polyphony
• Dies Irae
• Sound of Silence

RENAISSANCE

• 1400-1600
• Reconciles Christian faith and reason, Promotes “rebirth” of the classical ideal. Allows new freedom of thought.
• Counterpoint-the combination of two or more melodic lines played simultaneously
• Palestrina

BAROQUE

• 1600-1750
• Rejects the limits of previous styles. Restores the power of the Monarchy/church: excess, ornamentation, contrasts, tenstions, energy
• Fugue
• Bach
• Vivaldi

NEO-CLASSICISM/CLASSICAL

• 1750-1820
• Style in music. Reacts to the excesses of monarchy and ornamentation of the Baroque. Returns to order, reason, and structural clarity
• Mozart
• Beethoven
• Haydn

ROMANTICISM

• 1825-1900
• Revolts against neo-classical order/reason. Returns to the nature/imagination: Freedom, emotion, sentimentality and spontaneity; inters in the exotic, patriotic, primitive, and supernatural
• Beethoven
• Tchaikovsky
• Wagner

TCHAIKOVSKY

• Tchaikovsky's music was marked by a sensuously rhythmic pulse and an innate melodic flow that enabled him to create some of the world's greatest ballet music; music that shows a mixture of playful classicism and romantic verve
• Some of his most famous ballets include “ Sleeping Beauty” and “ The Nutcracker”
• Tchaikovsky: Sleeping Beauty, Op. 66: Andante [Music Download] - - Christianbook.com

WAGNER

• Wagner was a German composer, conductor, and theatre director, primarily known for his operas (or "music dramas", as they were later called).
• Some of his most famous works include the operas “Tristan and Isolde” and “Lohengrin”

http://sfopera.com/look.asp

IMPRESSIONISM AND POST IMPRESSIONISM

• 1850-1920
• Shows the effects of light and atmospheric conditions. Spontaneously captures a moment of time. Expresses reality in different ways.
• Debussy
• Ravel

MODERN AND CONTEMPORARY

• 1900-Present
• Breaks with or redefines the conventions of the past. Uses experimental techniques. Shows the diversity of society and the blending of cultures
• Copland
• Stravinsky
• Ellington
• Gershwin
• Folk
• Popular
• Jazz

STRAVINSKY

• Stravinsky was a Russian-born composer, considered by many to be the most influential composer of 20th century music
• Some of his works included the ballets “ Firebird” and “The Rite of Spring”

JAZZ

• Jazz music originated around 1900 in New Orleans. Jazz music is characterized by a strong prominent meter, improvisation, dotted and syncopated rhythms.

ELLINGTON

• Ellington called his style and sound "American Music" rather than jazz, and liked to describe those who impressed him as "beyond category", including many of the musicians who served with his orchestra, some of whom were themselves considered among the giants of jazz and remained with Ellington's orchestra for decades

GERSHWIN

• An American composer. He wrote most of his vocal and theatrical works in collaboration with his elder brother, lyricist Ira Gershwin. George Gershwin composed songs both for Broadway and for the classical concert hall. He also wrote popular songs with success.
• Many of his compositions have been used on television and in numerous films, and many became jazz standards.

FOLK

• Music originating among the common people of a nation or region and spread about or passed down orally, often with considerable variation.
• Contemporary music in the style of traditional folk music.

COPLAND

• Aaron Copland was one of the most respected American classical composers of the twentieth century. By incorporating popular forms of American music such as jazz and folk into his compositions
• Two of his most famous works were ballet scores for “ Appalachian Spring” and “ Rodeo”

PURPOSES OF MUSIC

• Artistic
• Ceremonial
• Recreational

RECREATIONAL

• Recreational music focuses on the enjoyment and well-being of the participant and the group; it does not rely on the quality of any artistic outcome but is about entertainment, being social, enjoying music as a hobby or incorporating music into games

ARTISTIC

• Artistically performed music is a re-creation of what the composer meant by putting notes on paper, allowing the performer to breathe life into the composition. The performer strives for musical perfection in degrees such as, phrases, shapes, dynamics, and adhering to the style of music with minimal mistakes in notes, pitch and rhythms.

CEREMONIAL

• Ceremonial music ranges from the performance of the Bridal Chorus at a wedding to Hail the Chief to signify the entrance of the President of the United States. It is music that accompanies ceremonies and rituals. This type of music is played for funerals, commemorative ceremonies, graduations, political events, religious rituals, holidays, celebrations, and similar functions.