Texture Flashcards
What does homophonic mean?
A texture where one part has the main melody (usually the highest pitch) and other parts accompany.
Beethoven has a homophonic texture
What does monophonic mean?
It is an unaccompanied melody by a soloist
It also can be monophonic if many people sing in unison or octaves.
Monophonic describes the texture of the music.
Brandenburg has brief monophonic texture at the beginning (violin plays on own for 2 and a bit bars)
What is imitation?
Imitation is a contrapuntal device where a melody in one part is copied a few notes later in a different part and often at a different pitch.
There must be some overlap.
Brandenburg uses imitation frequently, eg bars 1-4 between Violin and Flute
What does contrapuntal mean?
Where two melodies are played against each other and interweave.
Polyphonic is a similar word.
Brandenburg is Contrapuntal throughout
What does chordal mean?
A homophonic texture that consists mainly of block chords.
See also homorhythmic
Intro of Beethoven is densely Chordal
What is stretto?
A texture within a section of a fugue in which close imitation occurs.
The entries of each subject occur close together than before heightening the tension.
eg Bars .9-41 in Brandenburg between cello, bass and harpischord
What is a murky bass?
Where broken octaves are played in the bass, the lower note first followed by the octave higher
eg LH in the Beethoven at times
What is a melody and accompaniment texture?
This is a homophonic texture, but where the accompaniment has an independent rhythm from the melody.
eg the Allegro in the Beethoven
What does polyphonic mean?
A texture where two or more melodic lines occur at the same time.
It can also be seen as contrapuntal.
Music for a While feature brief polyphonic bars when the elaborate harpsichord creates counterpoint with the vocal bars in 9 and 11
What does homorhythmic mean?
Part of a homophonic texture, all parts have the same rhythm.
eg. Star Wars bars 44-50
What does antiphonal mean?
Where two or more separated soloists or groups perform alternately.
Similar to “call and response” and dialogue.
eg Guitars in Killer Queen bars 47-50, where they alternatively play the main rhythmic motif.
What does unison mean?
Everyone plays or signs the same note at the same pitch
eg in Defying Gravity, Elphaba and Glinda sing in unison in bars 101-109
What is layered texture?
A texture where different levels of repeating patterns, each with a distinctive character, are placed on top of one another.
Layers drop in and out to provide contrast.
Release has layered texture, created by 28 loops
