Music Day 3

What are the 3 types of minors?

Natural (or pure), Harmonic minor, and melodic minor

What do all minor scales feature?

A lowered third scale degree

In a minor scale what is the interval from the tonic to the third pitch of the scale?

A minor third

In the natural minor scale where are the half steps located?

Between 2 and 3 and 5 and 6

True or False, the upward pull from 7-8 is present in both the major and natural minor scale

False, the upward pull from 7-8 is not present in the natural minor

In order to create the pull that the major scales 7-8 leap has what do musicians use?

The harmonic minor

How is the harmonic minor created?

By raising the 7th scale degree by one half step

How do you raise the seventh scale degree?

By adding a sharp or a natural

In the melodic minor what two scale degrees are raised by a half step when ascending?

6th and 7th scale degrees

When descending what happens to scale degrees 6 and 7 in a melodic minor?

They are restored to their normal natural minor pitches

The alterations in the melodic encourage what sense?

A sense of upward motion to the higher tonic and a pull down to the fifth scale degree

The C natural minor and E♭major have what in common?

They both use the same set of seven pitches

How are the C natural minor and E♭ different?

They have different tonics

Since C natural minor an E♭ major use the same even pitches just different tonics they are called what?

Relative major and minor to each other

True or False, their relationship is still relative even when natural minor is altered to make the harmonic or melodic minor scales?

True

What are major and minor scales that begin and end on the same tonic pitch?

Parallel

What does a scale with blues inflections combine?

Elements of major and minor scales

In a blues scale what scale degrees can be lowered or raised or somewhere inbetween?

Degrees 3 and 7

How can scale degrees use a pitch somewhere in between the raised minor and normal major scale?

by using a pitch between the keys of the piano

Less commonly what other scale degree is lowered in a similar manner?

The 5th scale degree

What is a melody?

A series of successive pitches percieved by the ear to form a coherent whole

How many pitches occur at one time in a melody?

One

If two pitches occur in a melody what do you have?

Harmony or counterpoint

Most melodies use what seven notes?

Any seven notes of a single scale

True or False, scales change scale degrees

False, it follows the same scae degrees whether you use a major or any 15 minors

What is transposition?

Change the melody of a song to any major key

How do you transpose a piece?

By beginning the same pattern of intervals on a different note

What do all melodies have?

A contour

What is another word for contour?

Profile

How does a conjunct melody move?

In smooth stepwise motion

A conjunct melody is made of what steps?

Half steps and whole steps

What is a disjunct melody?

A melody that contains proportionally more leaps

What is a leap?

An interval larger than a major second

How else can you describe a melody’s contour?

By direction

How can melodies move?

They may ascend, descend, or move in a wavelike manner

What is a common contour for melodies?

An arch

True or False, contour in normally described in general terms

True

How do we indicate exactly which pitch is being discussed?

Each pitch is numbered from the bottom of the grand staff up

What is a violas range?

C3 to E6

What is a cellos range?

C2 to A5

What are the high middle and low parts of an instruments range called?

The high middle and low register

What does a melody with a high tessitura calls for what?

More pitches in the performers high register

A female singer with a high tessitura is called what?

A soprano

For men what is the high register singer called?

Tenor

What is a low register male voice?

Bass

What is rhythm?

The way music is organized in time

What is beat?

The steady pulse that underlies most music

What is the speed of the beat called?

Tempo

How many BPM is Presto and what is its meaning??

200, very fast

How many BPM is Allegro and what is its meaning?

120, fast

What is the BPM of moderato and what does it mean?

108 moderate

What is the BPM of andante and its meaning?

84, “at walking tempo”

What is the BPM of Adagio and its meaning?

72, slow

What is the BPM of Lento or Grave and its meaning?

40 very slow

Why do the Italian terms for tempo rely on expressive qualities?

They predate the invention of timekeeping

What does Allegro mean in Italian?

Cheerful

When playing in Allegro how should music be executed?

In a lively or slightly fast manner

Who invented the tempo term delirando?

John Adams

What does delirando mean?

In a delirious manner

What does delirando characterize?

The very rapid tempo of Short Ride in a Fast Machine

When tempo slows what is that called?

Ritardando

When tempo speeds up what is that called?

Accelerando

When speeding up or slowing down gradually what is that called?

Poco a poco

When speeding up or slowing suddenly what is that called?

Subito

What is unmetered music?

Music without a steady tempo, in which there is no discernable beat

If a bit exists but it speeds up and slows down for expressive effect what is that called?

Rubato

How are beats grouped?

By measures or more formally bars

What are measures separated by?

Bar lines

Which beat of a measure is strongest?

The first beat

The first beat of a measure is called what?

The downbeat or strong beat

What does meter describe?

The pattern of emphasis superimposed on groups of beats

In general terms how is meter grouped?

Duple, triple, quadruple, or irregular/assymerical

What is duple meter?

Music with groups of two beats

How does duple meter alternate?

Strong-Weak-Strong-Weak

Triple meter has what pattern?

A three beat pattern

What is the strong weak pattern of triple meter?

Strong-weak-weak-Strong-weak-weak

What is the most common meter?

Quadruple meter

In quadruple meter which two beats are the strongest?

1 and 3

In quadruple meter which beats are weakest?

2 and 4

Why is quadruple sometimes treated as duple meter by listeners?

It is difficult to distinguish the two

What are irregular/asymmetrical meters?

Other groupings that cannot be divided into steady pulsations of two three or four beats

What are the most common irregular meters?

five beat or seven beat measures

When the first word of a song falls on the downbeat what is that called?

A pickup or anacrusis

What is a whole note?

An oval note

What is the longest symbol used in notation?

A whole note

When a stem is added to a whole note what does it become?

A half note

When the oval/note head is solid black with a stem what is that called?

A quarter note

How much shorter is a quarter note than a half note?

Half of its value

When a flag is added to a quarter note what happens to the duration?

It is halved

A quarter note with a flag is called what?

An eighth note

When more flags are added what happens to a note?

it is halved again

What alternate notation exists for multiple flagged notes?

Beams

Why are beams used?

It makes it easier for a musician to ready quickly

What is customary when reading beamed notes?

Beaming together a beats worth of notes

When a dot is added to a note what does it do?

Adds half the original value to a note

A dot following a half note would do what?

Add a quarter notes value onto the half note

What connects notes of the same pitch?

A tie

What does a tie do?

It ties notes together so the note lasts as long as their combined values

What is the symbol for silence in music?

rests

A note with 2 flags is what?

A sixteenth note