Barron's AP Music Theory Chapter 1-3 Flashcards

pitch

wavelength,frequency

dynamics

wave height,amplitude

articulation

envelope,consists of attack,decay,sustain, release

timbre

the color of a sound,waveform

duration

the length of time sound and silence last

alto clef

3, a clef that puts middle C on the third line of a staff

tenor clef

A C-clef positioned on a staff so that the fourth line from the bottom indicates middle C (C4)

grand staff

Two staves, one in the treble clef and one in the bass clef, connected by a curly brace; typically found in piano music.

neutral clef

A clef used only for rhythm or for pitchless/untunable instruments

which octave is middle C?

C4

ledger lines

short lines above or below the staff representing a continuation of the staff

accidental

a musical notation that makes a note sharp or flat or natural although that is not part of the key signature

measure

the unit of space between the bar lines

chromatic

based on a scale consisting of 12 semitones

enharmonic

Same in pitch but different names

cautionary accidental

An accidental which is placed in parenthesis indication the note has the same accidental in a different octave

dot

used to extend the value of a single note by one-half of its original value

double dot

lengthens the dotted note value by half the length of the first dot

tie

combines the durational values of two or more notes of the same pitch using a curved line

duration

length of time sound (or silence) occurs

beat

a regular, recurring pulsation that divides music into units of time

meter

the organization of beats in regular groups of two, three, and four (usually with strong and weak beats) and how the beat is subdivided

subdivision

the division of the beat into two or three equal parts

rhythm

series of durations, often varying, of sound and silence

tempo

the speed of the beat

duple

two beats per measure

triple

three beats per measure

quadruple

four beats per measure

meter signature (time signature)

establishes the meter and the grouping of the subdivisions within the beat

simple meter

the beat being divided equally into two parts

compound meter

the beat being divided equally into three parts

common time

frequently used to represent 4/4

alla breve

cut time is a substitute for 2/2

compound duple

a time signature of 6/16, 6/8, or 6/4

compound triple

a time signature of 9/16, 9/8, or 9/4

compound quadruple

a time signature of 12/16, 12/8, or 12/4

simple duple

a time signature of 2/8, 2/4, or 2/2

simple triple

a time signature of 3/16, 3/8, 3/4, 3/2

simple quadruple

a time signature of 4/16, 4/8, 4/4, or 4/2

asymmetrical

refers to meters that have beat units of unequal length

triplet

divides a regular duration into three in simple meter

duplet or tuplet

divides a regular duration into two in compound meter

anacrusis

pick-up notes

melodic anacrusis

very often is "So" leading to "Do" on the downbeat

syncopations

rhythmic displacements of the expected strong beats created by dots, rests, ties, accent marks, and dynamics

ragtime

a type of music popular during the turn of the twentieth century that features syncopation

hemiola

a special type of syncopation in triple meters, in which the beat is temporarily regrouped into twos

scale

an ordered collection of pitches in whole- and half-step patterns

etymology of "scale"

latin scalae; stairs, or ladder

chromatic scale

a symmetrical scale with all pitches spaced a half step apart

when writing an ascending chromatic....

use sharps

when writing a descending chromatic....

use flats

major scale pattern

w, w, h, w, w, w, h

tetrachord

Series of four notes having a pattern of whole step, whole step, half step

major tetrachord

having a pattern of whole step, whole step, half step

key

a specific set of pitches based on a pattern of whole and half steps that define tonality

tonality

the principal of organizing a composition around a key note, or tonic

tonic

a key note, not necessarily the key

modality

the category of mode that a key falls into (major, minor, or other)

key signature

shows which pitches are to be sharp or flat consistently throughout the piece, helps determine tonal center

order of sharps

Fat Cows Go Down After Eating Breakfast

order of flats

Battle Ends And Down Goes Charles' Father

exception to the down-up rule is....

when the sharp would land on a ledger line

the three forms of the minor scale

natural, harmonic, melodic

relative

major and minor scales that have the same pitches/key signature

minor pentachord

All three forms of minor(natural,harmonic,and melodic) begin with the same first five notes

parallel

major and minor keys with different key signatures but the same tonic

harmonic minor

the 7th scale degree is raised both ascending and descending,but leaves the other notes the same as natural minor so that the 7th scale degree once again leads to tonic.

melodic minor

start with the minor pentachord, then raise both the 6th and the 7th scale degrees when the melody is ascending. the descending melodic minor scale reverts back to the natural form.

scalar variance

the use of all three forms of minor in the same piece

the signals of a minor mode

the occurrence of sharps (or naturals) in a flat key

scale degree

each step of the scale, usually use scale degree number, name,and solfege syllable to identify scale members.

scale degree name

1. tonic

2. supertonic

3. mediant

4. subdominant

5. dominant

6. submediant

7. leading tone (ti) / subtonic (te)

scale degree number

1,2,3,4,5,6,7, with a caret above the number

tonic

1, the tone on which the scale is built

supertonic

2, above the tonic

Mediant

3, halfway between tonic and dominant

Subdominant

4, a fifth below the tonic, or the lower dominant

Dominant

5, dominating the tonality. it is a perfect fifth above tonic

Submediant

6, in-between the lower dominant (subdominant) and the tonic

Leading tone

leads upward toward resolution to the tonic

subtonic

the 7th scale degree in natural minor, meaning a whole step below tonic, the term leading tone is not used in natural minor.

the strongest most stable pitch

tonic

active tones

have the most musical energy to resolve

examples of active tones

Fa, La, Ti

most active tone, and what it resolves to

Ti, Do

second most active tone, and what it resolves to

Fa, Mi

third most active tone, and what it resolves to

La, So

fourth most active tone, and what it resolves to

Re, Do

resolution tones

what the most active tones move to

examples of resolution tones

Do, Mi, So

pentatonic scales

scales that has five tones (not including octave)

number of tones in a whole tone scale

7 tones (including octave)

heptatonic scales

scales that have seven tones (not including octave)

how many tones do diminished scales have?

eight tones (not including octave)

composition of a diminished scale

alternating whole and half steps

number of tones in a blues scale

six tones (not including octave)

composition of a blues scale (tone numbers)

1-b3-4-b5-5-b7-1

what are the flatted notes called in a blues scale?

the "blue" ones

mode is a synonym for...

scale