4._The_Elements_of_Music

The Elements of Music

Pitch

• Definition: The highness and lowness of a note.

• Relationship: Pitch combined with rhythm creates melody.

Rhythm

• Definition: The duration of all sounds and silences in music.

• Characteristics: Includes short and long sounds.

• Behavior: Rhythm changes over a steady beat.

Harmony

• Definition: The simultaneous sounding of two or more pitches.

• Role: A vertical aspect of music that supports the melody.

Form

• Definition: The plan (order and arrangement) for a piece of music.

• Purpose: Enables understanding of a piece of music and predicting what will happen next.

• Example: An example of form is ABA.

Timbre or Tone Colour

• Definition: The unique sound quality of an instrument or voice.

Texture

• Definition: Refers to whether the music is thick or thin in nature.

• Types of Texture:

  • Monophonic: One melody line with no accompaniment.

  • Homophonic: Two or three voices with different pitches but the same rhythm.

  • Polyphonic: Two or three voices with different pitches and different rhythms.

Expressive Qualities

• Dynamics

  • Markings that indicate volume levels.

    • Forte: Played loudly.

    • Piano: Played softly.

    • Changes: Indicators of gradual (decrescendo/crescendo) or sudden (sforzando) changes in volume.

• Tempo Markings

  • Indicate the speed of music.

    • Allegro: Played quickly.

    • Andante: Played somewhat slowly.

    • Speed Changes: Gradually slow down (ritardando) or speed up (accelerando).

• Articulation

  • Indicate how the music should be played.

    • Staccato: In a detached manner.

    • Legato: Smoothly.

Conclusion

• THE END