MUSC 175-001 Basic Theory & Musicianship - Final Exam

Musical alphabet

A, B, C, D, E, F, and G

Octave

Pitches separated by 8 letter names

Octave equivalence

Pitches an octave apart sound similar

Middle C

The C closest to the middle of the keyboard

BCEF

No black key appears between E and F or between B and C

Ledger lines

Extra lines drawn to accommodate notes above or below the staff

Grand staff

A treble staff and a bass staff connected by a curly brace and a bar line

Register

The highness or lowness of a pitch

Accidental

Sharps, flats, naturals

Sharp

Raises a pitch by a half step

Flat

Lowers a pitch by a half step

Natural

Cancels a sharp or a flat

Enharmonic notes

Notes that sound the same but are notated differently

Interval

The distance between any two notes

Half step

The interval between any pitch and the next closest pitch

Whole step

Two half steps

Diatonic half steps

Half steps that are spelled with two adjacent letter names (G to A flat)

Chromatic half steps

Half steps that are spelled with the same letter names (G to G sharp)

Double sharp

Raises a pitch by two half steps

Double flat

Lowers a pitch by two half steps

Simple meter

Music with beats that divide in two

A work’s meter tells us the following

• How beats are divided

• How beats are grouped

Duple meter

When beats are grouped into twos

Triple meter

When beats are grouped into threes

Quadruple meter

When beats are grouped into fours

In duple meters…

The first beat is strong and the second beat is week

In triple meters…

The pattern is strong weak-weak

In quadruple meters…

The pattern is strongest-weak-strong-weak

Top number of the meter signature (time signature)

Shows the number of beats in a measure

Bottom number of the meter signature (time signature)

Represents the note that equals one beat

In simple meter…

The beat divides into twos and subdivides into fours

Beaming…

Should reflect the beat unit

Tie

An arc connecting the note heads of two identical pitches

Slur

An arc connecting the note heads of two different pitches

Syncopation

An expected accent is displaced/moved to another beat or part of a beat by dots, ties, rests, or accent marks

Triplet

a three-part division of the beat in a simple meter pace

Two-beat triplets

Written with quarter notes and span over two beats

Swung eighth

…The score shows two even eighth notes, but in performance, the performer plays them just a bit unevenly. 

Compound meter

Each beat divides into three parts

Simple meter

 The beats may group into twos (duple), threes (triple) or fours (quadruple)

Duplet

A beat divided into two parts instead of the usual three in compound meters

Asymmetrical meter

A meter where the beat units are of unequal duration

Changing meter

When the meter changes from measure to measure in a piece of music

Scale

An ordered collection of pitches

W-W-H-W-W-W-H

The pattern of whole and half steps for an ascending major scale

H-W-W-W-H-W-W

The pattern of whole and half steps for a descending major scale

Scale degree/scale step

A pitch of a major scale

Transposing

Renotating a melody or harmony in a different key, but maintaining the intervals between the pitches. 

Tonic

The first note of a scale

Supertonic

The second note of a scale

Mediant

The third note of a scale

Submediant

The fourth note of a scale

Dominant

The fifth note of a scale

Subdominant

The sixth note of a scale

Leading tone

The seventh note of a scale

Key signature

Represents the sharps or flats of the scale on which the piece is based and applies to pitches in all octaves

Order of sharps in a key signature

F, C, G, D, A, E, B

Order of flats in a key signature

B, E, A, D, G, C, F

Circle of Fifths

The relationship between keys represented by a circle

Chromatic scale

Scales in which all pitches are equally spaced a half step apart

Relative key

Keys that share the same key signature but different tonics

Harmonic minor scale

The natural minor scale with the 7th raised a chromatic half step creating the leading tone

Melodic minor scale

Raises the 6th and the 7th scale degrees by a chromatic half step (ascending); converts back to a natural minor scale (descending)

Parallel major/minor scales

• Share the same tonic but have different key signatures

• To write a Natural Minor Scale you need to lower the 3rd, the 6th and 7th of a Major Scale by half steps

Two possible tonics for key signature

One for its major and one for its minor

Pentatonic scale

A five note scale that does not have the 4th or 7th scale degree, thus eliminating the half step

Intervals are identified by…

• Their size (1-8)

• Their quality (Major, minor or perfect)

Melodic intervals

Intervals that are measured between two successive pitches

Harmonic intervals

Intervals between pitches that are heard at the same time, simultaneously

Interval size “landmarks”

• For thirds the lines or spaces are adjacent

• For fifths, skip one line or space

• For sevenths, skip two lines or spaces

Interval qualities

• 2, 3, 6, and 7: Major or Minor

• U, 4, 5, and 8: Perfect

A major or minor interval…

Retains its quality when matching accidentals are added to both notes

Minor intervals…

Are a chromatic half step smaller than the major interval

When inverting an interval…

Keep one pitch stable. Move the lower note up one octave or move the upper note down one octave:

• Perfect intervals remain perfect

• Major intervals invert to minor

• Minor intervals invert to major

The two interval sizes always sum to 9

…

Augmented interval

A major or perfect interval that is made a chromatic half step larger

Diminished interval

A minor or perfect interval that is made a chromatic half step smaller

Consonant intervals

Intervals that are pleasing to the ear or tonally stable

Dissonant intervals

Intervals that sound jarring or clashing

Resolution

The motion toward consonance

Examples of consonant intervals

• PU

• P5

• P8

• m3

• M3

• M6

• Melodic P4

Examples of dissonant intervals

• m2

• M2

• m7

• M7

• Any augmented or diminished interval

• Harmonic P4

Homophonic

When all voices in a musical texture move together with nearly identical rhythm

Triad

A 3 note chord

Root

Lowest note in a chord

Third

Middle note of a chord

Fifth

Top note of a chord

Major triad

Has a M3 between the root and the third of the chord and a m3 between the third and the fifth of the chord

Minor triad

Has a m3 between the root and the third of the chord and a M3 between the third and the fifth of the chord

Diminished triad

Has a m3 between the root and the third of the chord, a m3 between the third and the fifth of the chord and a diminished fifth between the root and the fifth of the chord

Augmented triad

Made up of two M3’s

Inversion

Triads not written in stacked thirds

Root position

When the root of the chord is in the bass

First inversion (6 or 6/3)

When the third of the chord is in the bass

Second inversion (6/4)

When the fifth of the chord is in the bass

Third inversion (4/2)

(Seventh chords only) when the seventh of the chord is in the bass

Seventh chord

A chord with a third, fifth and seventh above the root

Dominant 7th chord

The chord built upon the fifth note of the scale

Lines in the treble clef

EGBDF

Spaces in the treble clef

FACE