key terms Flashcards
what is melisma?
when many notes are sung to one syllable of text
what does syllabic mean?
a word used to describe music where each syllable of text is set to only one note
what is a half diminished seventh?
a type of seventh chord consisting of a root, minor third, flattened fifth and flattened seventh
what is a seventh chord?
a chord consisting of three intervals of a third
what is a non functional harmony?
chords and chord sequences that do not follow the logic used in Western Art Music from the period 1650 to 1910
what is phasing?
a technique used by minimalist composers where two parts move gradually out of sync with each other
what is a twelve- tone?
sometimes known as serialism, this style of music is based around tone rows that use all of the pitches of the chromatic scale in an order determined by the composer
what is a cluster?
a chord consisting of three or more adjacent notes a tone or semitone apart
what are consecutive chords?
any harmonic progression containing parrallel intervals such as perfect fifths and octaves, or parallel or chords
what is an extended chord?
a chord, such as a seventh, ninth, eleventh or thirteenth, in which there are three or more superimposed intervals of a third
what is improvisation?
when the performers invent the music on the spot. they may draw on exisiting material for inspiration
what is klangfarbenmelodie?
this word means tone colour melody in German. The melody or tone row is fragmented and split between different instruments.
what is lyricism?
a cantabile, singing quality, often associated with a legato melody
what is a major seventh chord?
a chord with a root, major third and major seventh. there is also usually a fifth
what is a minor seventh chord?
a chord which contains a minor third, perfect fifth and minor seventh above the root
what is a modal harmony?
chords that use the notes of medieval scales such a as Aeolian and Dorian
what is octatonicism?
the use of a twelve-note scale where each adjacent interval is alternately a tone or semitone. It may be used to create harmonies or melodies
what are parallel harmonies?
these occur where a chord is transposed to different pitches, so that all the chords in the progression contain the same harmonic intervals
what is a tristan chord?
this wagner harmony contains the intervals of an augmented fourth, augmented fourth, augmented sixth and augmented ninth above the bass
what is a whole tone?
based around a scale where the interval between each consecutive note is a major second
