Music Fundamentals Pt. 1 Flashcards
Pitch
Frequency i.e high or low
Music
Organized sounds
Dynamic
Volume i.e. loud or soft
Rhythm
Duration; short or long sounds
Timbre
Tone color; uniqueness or quality of the sound
I.e. pure, harsh, tense
- has a lot to do with the frequency of sounds
Interval
Measurable distance between frequencies or notes
Octave
An arrangement of 8 notes
*octave can be divided differently according to each culture
Scale
Mode; Arranged notes from low to high or vice versa
- mode is related to mood
- we use 7 notes in our scale from the 12 notes that we have
- our scale is from low to high
Modulation
A change from one mode or scale to another
Melody
The succession of notes
Motion
How the melody moves
Conjunct
Smooth and connected notes
Disjunct
To skip or jump around in pitch
Syllabic
One syllable to one note relationship
Melismatic
More than one note per syllable
*mainly done one vowels
Theme
The main melody or main idea in piece of music
- there can be more than one theme in a piece of music
- the main emphasis of the piece
- is always used a point of departure and return
Climax
A point in time where the notes are intense, very high
Phrases
The smaller chunks of melodies in between breaks(the breathing points)
Cadence
The pauses or breathes in the melody, where the melody stops
Counter melody
A melody against another melody
Motive
Short (usually 2 or 3) notes that repeat and combine that create something bigger
- characteristic
Contour
The shape of the melody
- goes up or down or stays the same
Ascending
Melody goes up
Descending
Melody goes down
Static
The next note is the same as the previous
Tonic
1st and last note of the scale
The last note is an octave above the first note
Supertonic
2nd note of the scale
Mediant
3rd note of the scale; the note that mediates
- halfway between the lower tonic and dominant
Subdominant
4th note
- supposed to be named a dominant that is lower than the tonic
- halfway between the high and low tonic
Dominant
5th note
- halfway between the high and low
Submediant
6th note; lower mediant
- between the higher tonic and subdominant
Leading tone
7th note
- leading us to the tonic
Melodic contour typology
A bunch of symbols used to analyze melody
- creator (Charles Adams) created 15 different shapes to describe a melody
A rhythm
Combinations of time values; a combination of long and short values
Meter
Grouping of numbers or making music into countable units
Measure
1 unit of meter
Beat/pulse
Steady unit that repeats that we count
Downbeat
The first beat
Upbeat
The last beat
Offbeat
The emphasis between the beats
Subdivide the beat
Breaking your beat down into smaller units
Simple subdivide
Into units or multiples of 2
Compound subdivide
Into units or multiples of 3
Syncopation
A deliberate upsetting of the music; a rhythm that pulls us away from the beat
- to create a little tension
Non-metric
Music that is difficult to find or sense a beat from; free music
Ostinato
A repeated pattern that defines the piece
Hocket
Interlocking pattern; interlocking rhythm
- a rhythm or melody, usually done between two or more people
Polyrhythm
Multiple rhythms; a rhythm against a rhythm
Ex. African music
Ghana drum ensemble
- community is very important
—may not be a drummer, but are participating by dancing or singing or clapping
Gankogui
Two bells
- one is higher than the other
- function is similar to a metronome
Atoke
A bell that is shaped like a pea pod or a taco
Axatse
A shaker made from a gourd with a net of seeds or beads around it
Kaganu
Small drum, referred to as the child
- plays a simple pattern much like a child learning to drum
Kidi
The mother
- a little larger than the Kaganu
Sogo
The father
- kidi and sogo are on equal footing in the ensemble; listens to each other
- respond to each other, play patterns against and with each other
Gboda
Referred to as the uncle or the big noisy uncle
- larger drum and plays more sophisticated patterns that are loud and noisy
Atsimevu
Referred to as the grandfather/the elder
- plays the most complicated patterns or rhythms
- the leader of the ensemble
Tempo
The speed of the beat
Harmony
Two or more notes at the same time
Chord
Three or more notes at the same time
Tone clusters
Chords where notes are very close together
Chord progression
Sequence of passage of chords; movement of one chord to another chord
Consonance
State of very little tension; pleasing sounds; sounds that you don’t really disagree with
Dissonance
Move away from consonance by adding more tension
Resolution
The return to consonance
Triad
A three-note chord that is built of thirds
Third
A type of interval
Key
The use of a specific scale in a piece of music
Chromatic
12-step arrangement of notes; a type of scale
