Ch. 8: MUSIC & WORDS

Question 1

A songs text can convey the meaning of the words or simply sounds. Some composers use the voice as an instrument, AS IN……

Answer 1

VOCALISE or melodies sung in neutral sound like “ah” or…

SCAT-SINGING (In Jazz) — (to made up syllables)

Question 2

Secular (non religious)

Answer 2

Music is sung in the LANGUAGE OF THE PEOPLE -traditionally being “vernacular”

Question 3

Sacred (religious)is also LATIN

Answer 3

(Mostly western) — language of the ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH

Question 4

Composers may set an “already written” text to music,

OR, as in opera and musical theatre,

Answer 4

They work together with LYRICISTS as a songwriting teams

**poems are written in rhymed STANZAS or STROPHES
—strophic form=the same music is repeated for EACH stanza
*the song MIGHT feature a “Refrain” or chorus (words or music that RECUR after each stanza)

Question 5

Each syllable of a song text may get ONE NOTE called?

Answer 5

**SYLLABIC SETTING

Question 6

ONE syllable may get FEW Notes called?

Answer 6

**NEUMATIC SETTING

Question 7

One syllable may get TOO MANY NOTES called?

Answer 7

**MELISMATIC SETTING

Question 8

Composers use ___________ to emphasize the text, perhaps with a DRAWN-OUT WORD over

“many” notes =
MELISMA): with a melody that PICTORIALIZES a “word”

Answer 8

WORD-PAINTING