pitch

Who or what plays the melody?

State what instrument OR voice performs the melody. If the melody swaps between instruments state from what to what and when.

What is the key of the piece?

Check the key signature at the beginning and identify what scales it may be. Look at the last note of the melody and see if it fits with one of the key signatures at the beginning. Make sure the piece does not modulate other wise this will be different.

Are there any accidentals in the piece?

Look through the work and check to see if there are any sharps, flats or naturals. This could indicate a new key signature or alternatively just a change in a chord or for melodic interest.

Does the piece modulate?

Modulate means to change key. Look for a distinct key signature change or alternatively accidentals for an extended period of time.

Is the melody conjunct or disjunct?

Conjunct – melody moving mainly in steps Disjunct—melody moving mainly in leaps

List any PITCHED instrument you can hear.

List ALL of the instruments of pitch. This DOES NOT include drums or untuned percussion instruments. Instrument can be— voices, string instruments, woodwind instruments, brass instruments and tuned percussion—xylophone, glockenspiel and timpani

Are there any melodic ostinatos and if so what instrument performs it?

A melodic ostinato is a repeated musical pattern that has pitch. In popular music it is also known as a riff. State what instrument and in which section it happens.

What is the phrasing?

Count the phrasing and listen for the little breaks or pauses where the vocalist or soloist takes a breath/break.

It is usually even numbers—2, 4, 6 or 8 bars long. Phrasing can change between sections of the music. Is there

any use of call and response?

Is there any use of ornamentation? If so what type, when, how and what instrument?

Voices—melisma, bends, slides, turns, trills, and cadenzas. Guitar/Bass guitar or strings— slides, hammer ons, pull offs, glissando, turns, trills. Aerophones—flutter tonguing, growling, turns, trills, slurs, glissando

Identify the highest and lowest notes in the piece. Describe the range and register of the melody

Range—wide—more than an octave, medium—approximately an octave, narrow—less than an octave. Register—lower bass, upper bass, lower treble, upper treble

Describe the melodic contour.

Jagged, smooth, jumpy, flowing, even, balanced, symmetrical, unbalanced, uneven, asymmetrical, ascending,

descending,etc….

Identify intervals.

Find the largest interval and the smallest interval in the piece. Look for other intervals at important junctures I.e. at the end of the phrase or the climax point of the phrase/piece.

Identify the instruments that play the harmony.

List the instruments that are playing the harmonic accompaniment in the piece.

How are the chords presented in the piece?

Block chords, arpeggios, broken chords, Alberti bass, drone, alternating between single notes and multiple notes, Waltz bass

What chords are used in each section?

Provide the Roman numeral for the chords used

Is there a pattern in the chords used?

Is there a pattern in the way that the chords have been used in the piece? i.e. the same chord progression used in the verse or the chorus