Elements of Music and Historical Periods Overview

Melody

a single line of music, the "tune" of a piece.

Conjunct

stepwise intervals

Disjunct

wide intervals

Harmony

the underlying or supportive notes which work with melody and rhythm.

Chord

3 or more notes sounding at the same time

Rhythm

the duration of sounds.

Form

the structure of music.

Genre

category.

Texture

the density of sound, the number of simultaneously sounding lines.

Monophonic

one sounding line

Homophonic

multiple sounding lines, one or more lines support the main melodic line

Polyphonic

multiple independent lines

Phrase

a musical thought.

Cadence

a musical punctuation

Dynamics

degrees of loudness or softness of tones.

Scale

an ascending or descending series of stepwise notes that cover the span of 8 notes (octave)

Timbre

the characteristic (quality) of sound produced by an instrument or human voice.

Pitch

highness or lowness of a tone.

Meter

the organization of rhythm.

Duration

the length of time a pitch sounds.

Gregorian chant/plainchant

music written with a single, monophonic line

Pope Gregory the Great

Namesake of Gregorian Chant, credited with collection of over 3,000 plainchants

Hildegard of Bingen

German, most celebrated woman of 12th century, composed more expressive plainchant

The Mass

most important service of worship

Proper

specific to days of the week

Ordinary

never changes, same every day

Organum

Earliest form of polyphony, based off of plainchant

Leonin

Worked at Notre Dame, first known composer of polyphony

Perotin

Successor of Leonin, expanded the organum into 3-4 voices

Chivalry

glorified women and idealized kindness and refined manners

Troubadours & Trouvères

poet/composers of secular music, often depicting medieval life and unrequited love

Raimbaut de Vaqueiras

French Troubadour, wrote Kalenda maya

Italian Madrigal

Written for small groups, in the vernacular language, faster, regular rhythms, word painting, mainly depictions of love, also humor, politics, and satire

English Madrigal

Modeled after the Italian Madrigal, lighter texts used more often

Renaissance Motet

Latin text, a cappella, smooth melodies, sung by boys and men, use of imitation, consonant (pleasant) intervals

John Farmer

Helped shape madrigals into a truly native English artform

Martin Luther

Started the Protestant Revolution with his 95 Theses

John Calvin

Believed polyphony distracted from the sacred texts

Humanism

focusing on the person or the individual rather than religion

Importance of the printing press

Significant for the dissemination of music and texts

Palestrina

Composer who wrote the most amount of masses

A cappella singing

Singing (individual or group) without any instrumental accompaniment

Word Painting

Music imitates and directly reflects the text

Dance Music

Music specifically composed for dancing

Instruments

Divided into two main categories: Soft (bas, or indoor), or Loud (haut, or outdoor)

Tielman Susato

Well known printer and musician (multi-instrumentalist). Composed and arranged various secular and sacred pieces.

Baroque Opera

Large scale music drama that includes poetry, acting, scenery, costumes, singing, and instruments.

Homophonic Texture

Music with multiple voices and/or instrumental parts with a clear melodic line supported by less important accompanimental lines.

Overture

Played by the orchestra at the start of the opera; introduces all of the melodies that will be heard throughout the opera.

Recitatives

Musical passages in opera that are sung in a speech-like manner.

Arias

Solo vocal pieces in an opera, typically showcasing the singer's vocal ability.

Duo, Trios, & Quartets

Small ensemble pieces in opera featuring two, three, or four singers respectively.

Baroque Dance Suite (Partita)

Collections of dance pieces consisting of contrasting pieces in the same key, typically in binary or ternary form.

Fugue

A musical composition mainly written for keyboard instruments that uses imitation and contrapuntal lines moving in contrary motion.

Contrapuntal Lines

Musical lines moving in contrary motion.

Word-Painting

A musical technique that reflects the literal meaning of a song's lyrics.

Program Music

Instrumental music that directly depicts an extramusical narrative, such as Vivaldi's Four Seasons.

Baroque Concerto

A musical composition featuring an instrumental soloist or group of soloists, often in ritornello form.

Ritornello Form

A structure used in the baroque concerto that alternates between refrains played by the orchestra and episodes played by the soloist.

Johann Sebastian Bach

A composer and organist known for writing hundreds of hymns, cantatas, and instrumental pieces.

Allegro

A musical term indicating a fast tempo.

Adagio

A musical term indicating a slow tempo.

Antonio Vivaldi

Composer and violin virtuoso, conservatory teacher, wrote 500 concertos.

George Frederic Handel

Composer of mainly opera and English oratorio, German born but had the main part of his career in London.

Oratorio

Large scale dramatic work using sacred texts, featuring solo voices, chorus, and orchestra, not staged or costumed, originally used by the Catholic Church.

Handel's Messiah

Most famous oratorio.

Lutheran Chorales

Weekly hymns sung in Lutheran services with simple, singable melodies and homophonic texture.

Cantata

Elaborate chorale where poets and musicians add and substitute stanzas.

Arias

Lyrical, romantic songs sung by a soloist in an opera.

Recitative

Speech-like music meant to provide expositional information in an opera.

Libretto

Text used in an opera, written by a librettist.

Dynamic Ranges

Understanding soft to loud: pianissimo, piano, mezzopiano, mezzoforte, forte, fortissimo.

Allegro

Fast Tempo.

Andante

Walking pace tempo.

Adagio

Slow Tempo.

String Quartet Instruments

Violin 1, Violin 2, Viola, Cello.

Sonata Form

Structure consisting of Exposition, Development, and Recapitulation.

Theme and Variation Form

Opening theme is introduced and then embellished and altered in subsequent variations.

Franz Joseph Haydn

Famous composer with a large output, over 100 symphonies.

Minuet

Stately dance in ternary form, with a middle section called the trio.

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Austrian composer, child prodigy on violin, piano, and composition.

Rondo Form

Consists of refrains and episodes, typically concluding a movement of a sonata, symphony, or quartet, following the pattern ABACA.

Classical Concerto

Focused on one soloist, structured as Fast - Slow - Fast with the 1st movement combining ritornello form and sonata form.

Cadenza

A moment in a concerto when a soloist plays by themselves for an extended period of time, typically virtuosic.

Types of Classical Opera

Opera Seria - Serious opera; Opera Buff - Comic Opera.

Ludwig van Beethoven

Important German composer, pushed the boundaries of the Symphony Orchestra.