Music Revision

Melody

Melody means tune with a rhythm Notes of a melody are from a scale such as major, minor and modal The contour is how the pitch changes and it can go through the

notes of a chord The range is the gap between the lowest and highest note of a

melody Phrases are a group of bars An upbeat is called an anacrusis A group of phrases is called a section

Melody Patterns

Melodic Inversion – Flipping the Music along the stave based on their intervals

Retrograde – Playing the notes in reverse order Retrograde Inversion - Playing the notes in reverse order and flipping

the music along the stave based on intervals Sequence – Same pattern at a different pitch Imitation – Repeated phrase with slight changes each time, often

overlapping Ostinato – Keep a repeating pattern and change the rest of the piece

Ornaments

Trill – Start on the note above the written not and quickly move between the two

Appoggiatura – Quick note that clashes with the written note, the note after is always a resolution

Passing Notes – Link the note before and after Turns – Go to the note above, then the original note, then the note

below and then back to the original note

Musical Structures

Binary In two parts Often in Baroque Dances AABB - Each section is repeated B is contrasting to A Contrast is created using modulation Minor is modulated to Major Major is modulated to Dominant

Ternary In three parts AABBAA - Each section is repeated Section A ends in the tonic using a perfect cadence, so it sound like an

individual piece Section B modulates to a relative key and goes back to the main key

before it ends The last section often has small variations to add interest to the piece ‘Menuet and Trio’ is a type of Ternary music from the Baroque/

Classical period The ‘Menuet and Trio’ is often used in the third movement of a

symphony or sonata

Rondo Can have any number of parts ABACADAEAF… Always returns to A Every section other than A contrasts with A A is called the refrain and the other sections are called episodes The refrain is in the main key and the episodes are in a relative key

Variation in Structure Notes can be added Notes can be removed Metre can be changed A countermelody can be added Tempo change Key change Chord change Accompaniment change

Ground Bass The melody and harmonies constantly vary The only part that remains the same is the bass line

Dance Music

Metre The time signature or pattern of beats Duple – 2 beats per bar Triple – 3 beats per bar Quadruple – 4 beats per bar

Tempo Speed of the music Dance music often has a set tempo Dance music for listening has a varying tempo

Rhythm Some dances have a set rhythm for a set movement Phrases are usually 4 bars long The movements are repeated every phrase

Types of Dance Ceremonial – Important Occasions Court Dance – Official Occasions Social Dance – Ballrooms, Clubs and Discos Folk Dance – Dances for public events Dance that tells Stories – Ballet Instrumental Dance Music – Music in the style of dance, but not for

dancing

Pavan and Galliard

Background

Elizabethan (1550-1600) Was a popular dance for formal parties Famous composers include John Bull, William Byrd and Thomas

Morley

Features Specific to Pavan Duple Metre Slow Tempo Steady, Walking Pace Grand and Stately Movements

Features Specific to Galliard Triple Metre Fast Tempo Syncopation High Jumps and Kicks

About both Structure is normally A,A1,B,B1,C,C1 Variation used was called division where longer notes are divided into

smaller notes Last chord is repeated for time to bow The band is called a consort A consort with a single type of instrument (strings) is called an

“unbroken consort” A consort with multiple instruments is called a “broken consort” Instruments include the lute and theorebo (fretted strings), recorder,

viol (bowed strings), crumhorn (oboe-like), pipe and tabor (a tabor is a drum) and virginals (Keyboard with an awesome name)

Viennese Waltz

Background

Started in Vienna in 1790 One of the most popular dances of the 19th century worldwide First dance where people held each other closely

Features Specific to the dance Triple metre Fast Oom Cha Cha rhythm The rhythm is emphasised by the accompanied chords Strong clear tune Homophonic Texture Simple Primary Chords (I,IV,V) Slow harmonic rhythm (chord changes) Use of appoggiaturas and chromatic notes Large Orchestras A lot of brass and woodwind

Structure 3 Binary parts to make a Ternary (A,A,B,B,A1,A1,B1,B1,A,A,B,B) Starts with a slow introduction with wavering (Tremolo) Strings Five different waltz tunes in relative keys A Coda which ends the piece by drawing from every other piece

Locations Ballrooms Home on the piano Ballets Orchestral Works Operettas Musicals

Plainchant

Background Written by monks for singing in their monastery churches Lyrics are Latin religious text and sung in a church

Plainchant is also called plainsong and Gregorian chant 800-1500s

Features Specific to the type Only voices Monophonic Contour is mostly by step Free Metre Antiphony - Melody can pass between two choirs at opposite ends of

the church Call and Response – Melody can pass between a solo singer and a full

choir

About the Modal system There are multiple modes, based on the gaps between the notes Modes are always a set of eight notes The note which is revolved around in a mode is called the final

British Folk Music

Background Music of the common people Tunes are simple and work with a few instruments and voices

Survived by oral tradition Instruments were small and easy to carry Included the fiddle, the hurdy-gurdy, the bagpipes, the accordion and

the concertina

Features Specific to the type Often begin on an anacrusis Strophic – tune remains the same for each verse Usually Binary or Ternary Phrases are usually four bars Work songs are unaccompanied and were often call and response Dance music was live and dances include Morris, Sword, Scottish

Highland and Irish Dancing

About the Pentatonic Scale Only have 5 notes A major pentatonic has the 1,2,3,5 and 6 of a regular major scale A minor pentatonic has the 1,3,4,5, and 7 of a regular minor scale No semitone intervals making harmony easier

Baroque Music

Background Use of major and minor scales 1600-1750

Features Specific to the type Modulation for contrast Wrote in Binary, Ternary and Rondo Stepped dynamics - Sudden changing dynamics Repetition of Motives – Short musical ideas Simple harmonies using chords I and V Very Ornamental Texture is often polyphonic Harpsichord was used 99% of the time Harpsichords were either solo or played the continuo part of an

orchestra, filling harmonies Bach, Handel, Purcell, Vivaldi

Classical Music

Background Evolved from Baroque Ornaments were reduced from the baroque period 1750-1820

Features Specific to the type Tunes are balanced often with two bar questions and two bar answers Wrote in binary, ternary, rondo and variation NEW sonata form Subtle dynamics with crescendos and diminuendos Piano and Clarinet were popular Larger orchestras Mozart, Beethoven and Haydn

Fusion

Combining Musical Styles Examples are Salsa, Bhangra and Minimalism Borrowing Ideas and mixing them, often from separate cultures Mozart and Haydn used the Bass drum and the cymbals from

turkey

Debussy and Ravel used sounds from Indonesian Gamelan Music An example of Fusion is classical with folk music. Classical copied

dance rhythms and melodic intervals

Indian Classical Music

Raga Raga is Indian classical Music Traditionally played at Hindu events and can last whole nights and

days. Improvised with a basis of traditional tunes

A Raga school is called a Gharana Raga isn’t typically written, it is passed on by imitation

Raga Scale There are hundreds of raga scales named after times and seasons A set of ascending and descending notes

Sitar The sitar is a long-necked plucked string instruments Out of the seven metal strings, five are for the melody while two are

for the drone Sitars have sympathetic strings that vibrate when the main strings

are played Frets are adjustable Glissandos or sliding is known as a mind Strings can be pulled to bend notes

Tambura The tambura is similar to the sitar, but is a backing instrument

Tabla A pair of drums – the small drum is called a tabla and the larger one a

baya

Structure Melody – Played by Sitar improvised from a raga scale Rhythm – The rhythm is played by the tabla, the rhythm is called a tala The first beat of a tala is called a sam The bars are called vibhags Harmony – Tambura plays a drone which is a simple rhythmic pattern Sitar works around the tambura

The four phases Alap - Introduction to the scale with free improvisation and tambura

drone Jhor – The music speeds up and the sitar player takes on a steady

beat Jhala – Much faster and more exciting Gat/Bhandish – Tabla player enters and the group play a precomposed

piece with small improvisation through question and answer Gat is instrumental and Bhandish includes voices

Bhangra

Bhangra Folk Music from Punjab played at harvest as celebration Key Instrument is the Dhol, a double-headed barrel shaped drum Two key rhythms are the Chaal and the Bhangra Rhythm

Modern Bhangra

Developed in the UK in the 1980s Fusion of the Chaal rhythm with western styles like disco and hip-hop Use of Western Instruments like the Bass and the synthesizer

Modern Bhangra and Music Tech

Samples from other tracks Drum Machines – Not Dhols Scratching and DJ Techniques Musical Layering

Minimalism

Western Art style developed in the 1960s Made of constantly repeated patterns called loops No Tune Harmonies are made by layering patterns Artists include ‘Steve Reich’, ’Philip Glass’ and ‘Terry Riley’

Main Techniques

Additive Melody – Adding notes on each repetition Metamorphosis – Small changes to single notes or single parts of the

rhythm Phrase Shifting – Adding and removing rests to desynchronize Layering – Playing loops of different length over each other

Minimalism and Music Tech

Once done by using old tape recorders and cutting tape Sampling Multitracking or Multitrack Recording Recorded Backing Tracks for Live performance

World Ideas

Polyrhythm – Using complex cross-rhythms Rhythm more than tune – West African Music Layering – Gamelan has layered parts Harmonies Change Slowly – Raga Drone Long Pieces – Indian Pieces often go on for days Looping – Tala rhythm in Raga

Disco

Disco is dance music of the 1970s Rooted in Soul, Jazz and Funk Used Amplifiers, Turntables and Loudspeakers DJs became common Emphasis on Solo dancing Light Technology was important with flashing lights and effects They are mostly 4/4 and 120 bpm

Simple beats make Disco easy to dance to A hook is a part of the tune, a word or a phrase that is most memorable

in the tune

Structure

Introduction – Grabs attention, often uses the best part of the song Verses – Same Tune , Different Lyrics Chorus – Different Tune to the Verses, Lyrics don’t change Middle 8 – 8 Bar sections with different chords and lyrics Outro – Different to the verse and chorus and

Instruments

Lead Guitar plays Solo Tunes Rhythm Guitar strums Chord alongside the beat and are often palm-

muted Bass Guitar plays short, rhythmic, heavy-sounding bass riffs Sweeping strings fill gaps The Brass often creates stabs on the offbeats Bass drum plays every crotchet Snare plays on beats 2 and 4 The hi-hat is on the offbeat quavers The Basic Drum rhythm is repeated Music tech is used to add claps Music tech is used to add loops and sequences

Salsa

Salsa is a mix of Cuban son and jazz

Son

It is based on a basic rhythm called a clave The clave is played by hitting two sticks called claves More repeated rhythms are played on percussion instruments like

bongos and maracas and are often syncopated into cross-rhythms

Based on call and response between the sonero (lead singer) and the choro (chorus)

Uses mainly primary chords Harmonies are 3rds and 6ths The last note in a bar of the bass line often sets up the harmony for the

next bar There are two son claves, the 3-2 son clave and the 2-3 son clave The rumba has its own clave

Big-Band Jazz + Son = Salsa

Salsa is son with the following big band featureso Syncopations – Lively Offbeato Jazz Chords- 7ths and 9thso Imitations – One section of the band repeats a part played by a

different sectiono Walking Bass Lines –Bass parts that move in crotchetso Comping – playing rhythmic chords on piano or guitar to

accompany the tune

A traditional son band is called a sexteto The main sections of a modern salsa band are

o Two trumpets or saxophone called the front lineo One or two soneros called the lead vocalists and the choroo A rhythm section possibly made of piano, guitar, bass, congas,

bongos a standard drum kit or other Latin American instruments

Three Main Sections

Verse – Main Tune usually sung by the sonero Montuno – Chorus by the sonero or instrumentalist and choro

o Bongo player plays cowbello Timbale player also plays mambo bell

Mambo - Break between choruses using new materialo Bongo player plays cowbello Timbale player also plays mambo bell

Intro-Verse-Break-Montuno-Mambo-Montuno-EndingRomantic Music

Background After the Classical Period Music moved away from tonality and was no longer confined to a key Structures such as Binary and Ternary did not work as they relied on a

key 1820-1900

Features Specific to the type

A lot of chromatic scales No key – Atonal

Debussy and the Whole Tone Scale

Debussy pioneered the whole tone scale, where there is a tone between every note

This scale made songs sound hazy and dreamy Debussy’s music was described as impressionist Debussy added to this effect with colourful chords (9ths and 13ths) Debussy also ensure instruments of the right timbre were used Referred to as 20th century art music

20 th Century – Serialism

Background To the start of the 20th century Started by Schoenberg A move from highly chromatic tonality to atonality It is called Serialism because the notes are in a series It is also known as the 12 note system as it uses 12 notes

Parts of Serialism A prime order is set up of atonal notes The prime order is retrograded The prime order is inverted The prime order is retrograde inverted The prime order is transposed

Making Serialism The prime order can be played in the bass line, melody or octave Notes can be played together in a chord Notes next to each other could be stacked by verticalisation The prime order could be designed to be in triads

20 th Century – Microtonality

Gaps between notes can be as small as the composer wants, not limited to semitones

Notes do not have to be evenly spaced Can sound weird as we are used to semitones Usually done by a synthesizer as it is hard to work out by ear

20 th Century – The Blues

Background Combination of African and European styles Lyrics were often gloomy about hardship 1860-1920

Features Specific to the type Call and Response European Chords The Blues Scale – Flattening the 3rd and 7th of a major scale

The flats are called blue notes Have a swinging offbeat rhythm Syncopation 12 Bar Blues (I-I-I-I-IV-IV-I-I-V-IV-I-I) Often 3 vocal lines per 12 bars

Instruments Harmonica Guitar Banjo Violin Piano Double Bass Voice