EDUQAS GCSE MUSIC Revision checklist Music theory ...

EDUQAS GCSE MUSIC

Revision checklist

Music theory

Vocabulary and key words

AREA OF STUDY 1 – Musical Forms and Devices.

SET WORK: Menuetto and Trio from Eine Kleine Nachtmusik - W.A.Mozart

Name the notes in the treble, bass and alto clefs.

Comment on the instrumentation for Eine Kleine Nachtmusik.

Describe and explain the structure of Eine Kleine Nachtmusik.

Describe the melody used for the minuet and for the trio.

Comment on the key of the minuet and trio and the type of harmony/cadences used.

Comment on the time signature, tempo, duration and rhythmic devices.

Describe the textural changes in both the minuet and trio.

Explain an appoggiatura and trill.

Name the four movements in the set work. Which movement is the Minuet and Trio?

Describe what you understand by the term 'Chamber Music'.

Describe the main features of BAROQUE MUSIC.

Describe the main features of CLASSICAL MUSIC, explain how this is different to

Baroque.

Describe the main features of ROMANTIC MUSIC, explain how this is different to

Classical.

Explain how a Classical orchestra is different to a Baroque orchestra

Name the four movements of a String Quartet.

Describe what 'arco' and 'pizzicato' mean.

Explain what the term 'double stopping' means.

List as many different structures as you can.

Explain what a 'cadence' is.

Explain the difference between a 'perfect' and 'imperfect' cadence.

Name the major keys that have up to four sharps.

Name the minor keys that have up to four sharps.

Name the major keys that have up to four flats.

Name the minor keys that have up to four flats.

Explain the term 'counterpoint'

AREA OF STUDY 2 - Music for Ensemble

Explain what is meant by the term 'ENSEMBLE'.

List and describe the different types of TEXTURE used in ensemble music.

Describe what is meant by the term SONORITY/ TIMBRE and give examples.

Explain what a Basso continuo is and name the instruments that play it.

Explain what 'figured bass' is and which instrument plays it.

Name the differences between a CONCERTO and SYMPHONY.

Musical Theatre

Explain how musical theatre evolved.

Describe the different types of ensembles used in musicals.

Comment on and describe the instrumentation used in musical theatre.

Name the main features of musical theatre.

Describe the terms: colla voce, recitative and declamatory writing.

Blues and Jazz

Explain where jazz originated.

Describe the chords used in a typical 12 bar blues.

Describe the term 'improvisation'.

What is meant by the term 'call and response'?

Name the main rhythmic features of jazz music, using the correct terminology.

Write definitions for each of the following terms:

What is an arpeggio?

What does the term 'comping' mean?

Explain the term 'syncopation'.

What is a blue note?

AREA OF STUDY 3 - Film Music

Evaluate why music is important in film music.

Name four composers who have written film music.

Describe the difference between conjunct and disjunct melodic lines.

Explain the term 'balanced phrases'.

Describe the use of motif in film music. Evaluate the importance of leitmotif

with examples.

Evaluate the impact of the use of diatonic and chromatic harmonies in film

music.

Explain how dissonant and diatonic chords create suspense and resolution.

Describe the term 'tritone' and evaluate the use in film music.

Explain what a 'cluster chord' is and explain its use in film music.

Evaluate the impact of atonality in film music.

What are simple time signatures? Give three examples.

What is meant by dotted rhythms?

What is compound time? Give examples.

Explain the use of cross-rhythms in film music.

Describe syncopation and evaluate its impact in film music.

Explain how a composer can create a sorrowful/reflective mood in film music.

Make at least five points using the musical elements.

Explain how a composer can create suspense in film music. Make at least five

points using the musical elements.

Explain how a composer can use sonority, technology, and harmony for horror

music.

Explain how the musical elements including melody/ pitch, dynamics, tempo,

instrumentation/ timbre/ sonority, harmony, texture and contrast are used by

composers to create a mood in descriptive music.

Describe and explain how composers use leitmotifs and thematic transformation to

develop thematic material.

Explain how minimalistic techniques can be used in film music

MUSIC THEORY

AREA OF STUDY 4 - Pop Music

SET WORK: Since You've Been Gone - Rainbow

Explain what a 'RIFF' is and how it is used in 'Since You've Been Gone'.

Describe the structure of 'Since You've Been Gone'.

Name the chords in the introduction of 'Since You’ve Been Gone'.

Name the chords in the verse of 'Since You’ve Been Gone'.

Name the chords in the chorus of 'Since You've Been Gone'.

Name the chords in the bridge of 'Since You've Been Gone'.

Comment on the rhythm patterns used in 'Since You've Been Gone'.

Describe and comment on the instrumentation used in 'Since You've Been Gone'.

Describe the melody of the vocal line in 'Since You've Been Gone'.

Describe the tonality used in 'Since You've Been Gone'.

Describe the BASS LINE in THE VERSE. How has this bass line been achieved?

Compare the chords of the final CHORUS to the original CHORUS we hear first.

What is the relationship of the second chorus to the original key?

Give a word for the speed at which the chords change in a piece.

Explain the difference between melismatic and syllabic writing.

Explain what Strophic form is.

Explain what a 32 bar song form is.

Explain how samplers are used in popular music and give an example.

Define the following: loop, vocoder, panning, reverb, doubletracking, chorus,

overdub

Explain what a fusion is and give an example.

Explain why FOLK ROCK is a fusion.

Name and describe five instruments that are traditional in FOLK ROCK.

Describe the main features of BHANGRA.

Name four traditional Indian instruments. Explain how they are played.

Key

Order of Flats and Sharps

Father Charles Goes Down And Ends Battle

Sharp major key Find the last sharp in the key signature, go up one semitone.

That is your key.

Last sharp = F# Up one semitone = G major

Flat major key Find the penultimate flat in the key signature. That is your key.

Penultimate flat = Bb Key = Bb major

Minor key Go down three semitones from the major key.

Major key = Bb major Down 3 semitones = G minor

Sharps

Cadences and Harmony

Perfect V-I. Sounds finished. Used most of the time.

Imperfect Finishes on chord V, e.g. IV-V or I-V. Sounds unfinished.

Plagal IV-I. Sounds like ‘Amen’ in a hymn. Sounds finished.

Interrupted Sounds like it will resolve in a perfect cadence, but finishes on an unexpected chord, e.g. V-

vi.

Dominant 7th chord Chord V in a key, with the added seventh on top.

Chords: Write out a chord chart for the key (with all 7 chords and also add sevenths onto chords II,V, VII)

e.g. Chord Root

(a) Third

(b) Fifth (c)

Seventh (d)

I C E G

ii D F A C

iii E G B

IV F A C

V G B D F

vi A C E

vii B D F A

Reading notes

Treble clef A high register overall. Used for instruments such as flute, violin

Bass clef A low register overall. Used for instruments such as cello, bass.

Alto clef A middle register. Used for viola mainly.

Lines: Green Buses Drive Fast Always

Rhythmic features

Metre Tells you how many beats in a bar and how long each beat it.

Anacrusis Where the music starts on a beat other than beat 1.

Dotted rhythms Use of dotted note values to increase the length by half the length again.

Rhythmic values The note lengths/values that are most common

Melodic Features

Sequence Repetition of a melodic pattern, up or down a note.

Chromatic scale A scale that uses every note (black and white notes).

Legato Notes are played smoothly with no gap between them.

Staccato Notes are detached (with a small gap between them). The notes are played slightly

shorter.

Conjunct Where the notes of the melody move by step (to the note next to it)

Disjunct Where the notes of the melody move by leap to notes further away.

Ornaments

Trill Rapid alternation between two notes.

Mordent rapid single alternation between an indicated note, the note above and the indicated

note again

Turn a short figure consisting of the note above the one indicated, the note itself, the note below

the one indicated, and the note itself again

Appoggiatura the grace note takes half the value of the main note and often the note above or

below

Acciaccatura a very quick note before the main note

Glissando a slide between two notes

Structure

Binary form Two clear sections – usually with each section repeated

Rounded Binary form Two clear sections – with each section repeated. The theme from the A

section comes back at the end of the B section

Ternary form Three clear sections. The middle section contrasts greatly with the first section.

Each section sounds like its own piece. The middle section is often in a contrasting key.

Minuet and Trio form Like ternary form, with 3 clear sections. The minuet (dance) first

section, a Trio (reduced texture and orchestration) and then a return to the original minuet. Each

section is usually structured in binary or rounded binary form.

Minuet Trio Minuet

Rondo form The A section (refrain) keeps returning, in between episodes (contrasting sections).

The episodes are usually in different keys and have a different style or character to the refrain.

Strophic form Each verse is sung to the same music (with no contrasting section)

Variation form Each verse is sung to the same music (with no contrasting section)

A B

A B (a)

A B A

A B C D A B

A B A C A

Verse 1 Verse 2 Verse 3 Verse 4 Verse 5

Theme Variation 1 Variation 2 Variation 3

Texture features and accompaniment

Monophonic A single line of music (either one voice, or several at one pitch or doubled at

octave.

Homophony Where there is a clear tune, over the top of chords or an accompaniment

Polyphony Several independent melodies that work against each other. May sometimes have

imitation of ideas.

Octaves The duplication of a musical line up or down an octave simultaneously

Unison Duplication of a musical line at the exact same pitch

Broken chord Playing the notes of the chord one after the other in a repetitive pattern

MUSIC VOCABULARY AND KEY WORDS

VOCABULARY DEFINITION/DESCRIPTION

Musical devices/

Compositional devices

used by composers to develop their music

sequence a pattern repeating on a lower or higher starting note

each time

ostinato repeated rhythmic or melodic pattern

riff as above, usually in rock & pop e.g. guitar riff

drone a note or notes which is held over a number of bars

(e.g. bagpipe)

imitation repeating a melodic pattern in a different voice, can

be on a different note

canon one part starting after another, playing the same

melody

fugue very specific type of canon, usually melody is played

on the tonic-dominant-tonic-dominant while the other

voices fill in with countermelodies

leitmotif a distinctive musical idea, often linked to a

character in film music

pedal a sustained note in one part (see also drone)

inverted pedal a sustained note in one part which is higher pitched

than the melody

anacrusis a beat or beats played before the bar

conjunct next door notes, a melody moving up and down in steps

scalic a melody moving up in steps, or down in steps

disjunct far apart notes, a melody moving up and down in leaps

arpeggio/ broken chord the notes of a chord played one after the other

Alberti

bass

a specific bass note pattern – low high middle high

low high middle high

ornamentation/

decoration/ grace notes

adding embellishments to a melody line

appoggiatura

a slow ornament; takes half the value of the following

note

acciaccatura

a fast ornament; a note or notes slipped in before the

following note

mordent the note, the note above (or below) and the note (like

a mini trill) e.g. cdc

trill the note and the note above (or below) played

repeatedly e.g. cdcdcdcdcdc

turn

the note above, the note, the note below, the note

e.g. dcbc or bcdc

Rhythm and metre the duration of note lengths and silences and how they

are arranged

pulse/ beat the steady “heartbeat” underneath the music

syncopation off-beat rhythm

cross-rhythms rhythms that cross the bar/ expected metre

metre the pattern of stresses within a bar e.g. strong-weak

Dynamics volume

ff - fortissimo very loud

f - forte loud

mf - mezzo forte moderately loud

mp - mezzo piano moderately quiet

p - piano quiet

pp - pianissimo very quiet

sotto voce soft (literally “under the voice” – like a whisper)

crescendo gradually getting louder

diminuendo gradually getting quieter

più/ meno more/ less

Instrumental techniques how the instruments are played/ sung

glissando sliding from one note to another e.g. up the string or

across the keys

tremolando repeatedly playing one note (or alternating between

two notes) very quickly

mute (con sordino) adding a solid mute to a string or brass instrument to

muffle the sound

pizzicato plucking the strings

arco bowing the strings

double stopping playing two or more notes at once on stringed

instrument

falsetto a male singing in an unnaturally high register – a

“false” voice

melisma/ melismatic more than one note to a syllable

syllabic one note per syllable

Tempo speed

prestissimo very fast indeed

presto very fast

vivace lively

allegro fast

allegretto fairly fast

moderato moderate speed

andante walking pace

adagio fairly slow

lento slow

largo broad

grave very slow

accelerando gradually getting faster (accelerating)

stringendo gradually getting faster (accelerating)

ritardando (rit)

rallentando (rall)

ritenuto (rit)

gradually getting slower (decelerating), holding back,

pulling back

rubato being flexible with the tempo, slowing down and

speeding up

poco a poco little by little

simple time each beat can be divided by two – into pairs of

quavers

compound time each beat divides into three quavers

phrasing dividing the music into natural sections, often

question + answer

articulation how the notes are played

accent > ; marcato ^ accented, stress on each note; heavy “hammered”

staccato . short

legato long - smooth

slurred a curved line over a group of notes to indicate they

should be played legato

tonality major, minor

degrees of the scale pitches of the scale from note I (the tonic) to note

VII;

I = tonic, II = supertonic, III = mediant, IV =

subdominant, V = dominant, VI = submediant, VII =

leading note

diatonic based on the Western major/ minor key system

major “happy” key, with a major third

minor “sad” key, with a minor third

modal not diatonic, not following the major or minor scale

pattern

atonal no obvious key centre – totally random set of tones/

s-ts

bitonal two keys at once

chromatic using semitones (black and white notes on the piano)

pentatonic using a 5-note set e.g. all the black notes

blues scale notes used in blues music – flat 3rd & 7th, sharpened

4th

modulation changing key

Texture the layers in music

unison all parts playing the same melody at the same time

octave the same melody playing 8 notes apart

monophonic a single melody line (could be solo or unison)

heterophonic two or more lines which are decorated versions of the

melody

homophonic two or more parts moving in harmony, with the same

rhythm

melody & accompaniment a melody line with an accompaniment (which could be

chords)

polyphonic interweaving melody lines with different rhythms

polyrhythmic interweaving rhythmic lines e.g. Samba music

canon/ canonic one part starting after another, playing the same

melody

imitative imitating fragments of the melody in different voices

at different times

antiphonal call & response, melody split between voices,

“answering” each other

counterpoint/

contrapuntal

having a countermelody or countermelodies

countermelody a second melody designed to fit with the first

(harmony or descant)

Structure how the music is arranged

binary two contrasting sections A B (B may be in a different

key)

rounded binary two sections, but the B section refers back to the A

to give A B (A)

ternary three sections A B A (B may be in a different key)

da capo (aria) form as ternary, with the singer adding ornamentation to

the repeat of B

Minuet and Trio form as ternary – Minuet Trio Minuet BUT the Minuet and

Trio may also be ternary or rounded binary

rondo where the opening section keeps repeating A B A C A D

A E A F…

theme and variation an opening theme and a series of variations on it A A1

A2 A3 A4

cyclic form patterns or phrases that keep repeating, usually World

music e.g. Indian

popular song/ verse-

chorus form

intro/ verse/ prechorus/ chorus/ bridge/ outro

strophic same melody, different words e.g the verses of a song,

hymn, carol

through composed no clear structure – music starts, goes through to the

end, stops Bo Rap

symphony large scale work for orchestra with 4 movements –

fast, slow, Minuet +Trio, fast

concerto large scale work for soloist and orchestra with 3 mvts

– fast, slow, fast

sonata work for solo instrument, usually with 3 or 4

movements

Music technology

Multi track recording studio recording on more than one track in order to

layer up sounds

synthesised/

synthesiser

played on an electric instrument, usually a keyboard

Sampler/sample a short motif or sound taken from another piece and

inserted/ reworked

MIDI musical instrument digital interface – how an

instrument talks to a PC

Looping repeating a phrase over and over again using

technology

Remix a new version of a piece creating using technology

Sequencer/sequence using technology to create music, through insert and

manipulating tracks

Vocoder a device to change the sound of the voice

Reverb; delay adding extra “echo” to a sound; adding a delay/ longer

echo to a sound

Distortion; overdrive created using an effects pedal or sequencer; a

distorted, “dirty” sound

Double tracking duplicating a track to give the effect of more than

one instrument/ voice being played

Panning moving the sound from left to right speaker

Overdub dubbing a second or subsequent sound onto an existing

track

Balancing adjusting the volume of individual tracks to create

the best mix