what is music and elements of music

what 3 components are needed for sound to be perceived?

vibration ➡ medium ➡ receiver

what is music?

arrangement of sounds in time

broca’s area

controls the physical production of speech

wernicke’s area

deals with the comprehension of laguage

pitch

• highness/lowness of a sound

• frequency of vibration

staff

series of five lines and four spaces to represent different pitch names in western classical music

clef

symbol indicating the placement of certain pitches on a musical staff

western classical music notation

• 7 letter names to classify notes on a staff

  • A B C D E F G

rests

indicate silence

interval

distance or difference between 2 pitches

octave

pitch doubled (or halved) in frequency (2:1 frequency ratio), the eighth pitch in a diatonic scale, or the span of eight notes.    

half step

a distance of one semitone

whole step

a distance of two semitones

key

• a collection of pitches used to centralize (tonicize) a specific pitch in western music

  • these pitches receive functionality based on their distance from the tonic (home pitch)

diatonic

notes included in the given key

chromatic

• notes outside the given key

  • the smallest division of the octave in western music (12 half steps)

accidentals

• symbols places in front of a note to temporarily raise or lower its pitch by a half step or whole step

  • sharp, double sharp, flat, double flat, natural

scale

a collection of pitches in ascending or descending order that follow a prescribed pattern

leaps

distance greater than a step

major mode/key

associated as sounding bright, cheerful, or happy

minor mode/key

associated as sounding sad, clouded, or subdued

diatonic scale

• consists of seven pitches and the doubled first pitch

• the intervals of this is a series of ordered whole and half steps; not symmetrical

chromatic scale

• consists of twelve (12) pitches whose intervals are all half steps

• it is symmetrical

modulation

change in key or home note (tonic)

melody

organized series of pitches with rhythms that forms a perceivable musical line

conjunct

melodic motion that is scalar and stepwise

disjunct

melodic motion that leaps

phrase

• a relatively complete thought that exhibits trajectory toward a goal, arriving at a sense of closure

  • smaller sections within a tune/melody

motive

a short, distinctive fragment of melody

theme

in longer works: topic or main idea (can be a melody, phrase, motive, tone color, etc.)

harmony

the sound of 2 or more notes heard simultaneously

chord

a group of pitches sounded together that often work well in combination

triad

2 superimposed thirds

diad

harmonies with less than 3 notes

consonant

intervals can sound stable, pleasant or at rest

dissonant

intervals can sound tense, unpleasant, or restless

beat

regular, recurring division of time in music

meter

the organization of beats into regular groupings

measure

a complete group containing a fixed number of beats

time signature

indicates the number of beats within a measure

what does the top number in a time signature represent?

how many beats in each bar

what does the bottom number in a time signature represent?

what type of beats they are

simple meters

beat divides into 2 (and further subdivides into 4)

duple

2 beats (march)

triple

3 beats

quadruple

4 beats

compound

meters in which the beat divides into 3 (and then further subdivides into 6)

rhythm

the particular arrangement of note lengths in a piece of music

syncopation

when notes are played off the beat

tempo

the speed of the beat; the pace of the music

tempo markings

indicated at beginning of a piece frequently in Italian

dynamics

degrees of loudness and softness in music

articulation

• describes the inflection or emphasis given to a note; “how SPECIFICALLY to play it.”

  • how pitches: begun, sustained, released

crescendo

• louder

  • p<f

decrescendo

• softer

  • p>f

expression

how a piece sounds and feels

cadence

a place of pausing or stopping in music, with varying degrees of finality; a sense of coming home, rest or resolution

homophony

musical texture with one melody (of clear interest) with harmonized accompaniment, oftentimes chords

monophonic

one melody only

heterophonic

• many versions of the SAME melody (rare); not in unison

  • special type of monophonic texture

  • more common in non-western music

polyphonic

2 or more independent melodies sounded together

timbre

unique quality of sound that lets you tell different instruments and voices apart even when they are playing at the exact same note and volume

chordophones

instruments that produce a sound via a vibrating string

aerophones

instruments that produce sound through a vibrating air column

membranophones

produce sound primarily via a vibrating membrane

idiophones

creates sound primarily by the vibration of the instrument itself (without

airflow, strings, membranes, or electricity)

texture

how different layers of sound, melodies, and rhythms combine and interact with each other in a piece