Music Theory Basics: Melody, Rhythm, Notation, and Form

A set of practice flashcards covering key concepts from the music theory lecture, including melody, phrases, cadence, intervals, rhythm, notation, and meter.

What is the melody in music?

The primary theme of a piece; the main tune which can be long or short and is what you typically follow sung or played.

What is a musical phrase?

A short unit of a melody that, when combined with others, forms the larger melodic line and often ends with a cadence.

What is a cadence?

An arrival moment signaling the end of a section or phrase in music; it gives a sense of closure.

What does conjunct motion mean in a melody?

Notes move close together, typically stepwise; easy to follow and sing.

What does disjunct motion mean in a melody?

Notes move by leaps between non-adjacent scale degrees; less smooth and more jumpy.

What is an interval in music?

The distance between two notes, named by the number of scale steps (second, third, fourth, fifth, etc.).

How is a note defined by frequency?

A note corresponds to a pitch defined by its frequency, measured in hertz (Hz).

What is the standard tuning pitch for A, and its frequency?

A is tuned to 440 Hz (A4 = 440 Hz).

What happens to frequency to move an octave up or down?

To move an octave higher, double the frequency; to move an octave lower, halve the frequency.

What is a staff in music notation?

Five horizontal lines where notes are written; uses clefs to designate pitch.

What is a grand staff?

The combination of the treble and bass staves used together, typically for piano.

What are ledger lines?

Additional lines used to extend the staff so notes outside the standard range can be notated.

What is timbre?

The tone color or quality that distinguishes different instruments (e.g., trumpet vs. clarinet).

What is a chord?

Multiple notes sounded together, creating harmony.

What is a countermelody?

A secondary melody that accompanies the main melody.

What is rhythm?

The organization of time in music—the pattern of note durations and the beat across measures.

What is a whole note?

An open note head with no stem, representing a basic long duration.

What is a half note?

An open note head with a stem; half the value of a whole note.

What is a quarter note?

A filled note head with a stem; typically one beat in simple meters.

What is an eighth note?

A note with one flag (or beamed) indicating half the value of a quarter note.

What is a sixteenth note?

A note with two flags, indicating a quarter note's subdivision.

What is a bar line?

Vertical lines that divide music into measures.

What is a time signature?

Two numbers before the first bar line; the top number indicates beats per measure, the bottom number indicates the note value that gets one beat.

What is the beat in music?

The regular pulse you feel and often tap along to.

What is the downbeat?

The first (and usually strongest) beat of a measure.

What is an upbeat (offbeat)?

The beats between the main beats, often counted as 'and' (one-and-two-and…).

What is simple meter?

A meter with one strong beat and one weak beat per measure, creating a straightforward duple feel.

What is compound meter?

A meter with three main beats per measure, each often subdivided into threes (e.g., 6/8).

What is cut time (common time with a slash)?

A notation indicating the beat is felt as two main beats per measure, with the subdivision of each beat into faster notes.

How can you tell if a melody is conjunct or disjunct without hearing it?

Conjunct means the motion is mostly stepwise (notes close together); disjunct means there are leaps between notes.

How do you make a melody from multiple phrases?

Use a sequence of notes to combine phrases into a larger melodic contour, with repetition and variation.