Timbre Flashcards
Name two composers well known for choosing instruments for the quality of their sound.
Debussy and Ravel
instrumentation
the instruments or voices used in a composition
specific instrumental techniques
orchestration
how the instruments are arranged together/scored - which instruments play the melody & which play the accompaniment
techniques
ways in which an instrument can be played
glissando
sliding from one note to another
pizzicato
plucking the strings
tremolando
a very quick playing of a single note
distortion
a special sound on the electric guitar
mute/con sord
a device which is put in the bell of a brass instrument to make a specific sound
arco
bowed
vibrato
subtle change in pitch
sitar
a long-necked plucked string instrument with movable frets and a gourd resonator
6/7 main strings and 12+ sympathetic strings with resonate in sympathy
characteristic shimmering sound
sarod
a plucked string instrument, shorter than the sitar and without frets
played by plucking with a large wooden plectrum
has main and sympathetic strings
slides are much easier on the sarod than on the sitar
sarangi
a fret less bowed instrument, held in the lap
3 main strings & 36 sympathetic strings
esraj
a bowed string instrument played sitting on the floor
has frets, like the sitar
has a number of sympathetic and drone strings
How is the ‘wah wah’ effect produced on a brass instrument?
by moving a hand or plunger mute in and out of the bell
Name 3 drums used in African drumming.
hand drum, don-don & djembe
talking drums
drums that imitate the rhythms and intonations of speech
tabla
a pair of small drums (dayan & bayan) mainly used to keep time in Indian classical music
dhol
a large traditional North Indian drum played with cane sticks in Bhangra music
dholak
a double-headed hand drum in Bhangra music
four-to-the-floor
four crotchets in 4/4 on the bass drum
back beat
when the snare drum plays on beats 2 and 4 of 4/4
drum roll
a rapid succession of beats sounded on a drum
rim shot
a drum stroke where the stick hits the rim and the head (usually of a snare drum) at the same time
bottleneck
sliding a tube of metal or glass along the guitar strings to alter the pitch
natural harmonic
reducing or amplifying overtones on a guitar string, producing a higher pitched overtone
pinch harmonic
when the player’s thumb or index finger cancels the fundamental tone of the string, but not the overtones, producing a high pitch squeal
pull off
picking one note and then quickly using a finger on the left hand to pull off the next note
palm mute
when a player places the side of the picking hand across the strings to be plucked, very close to the bridge, muting the sound by dampening the strings
synthesiser
an electronic musical instrument which produces a wide variety of sounds by combining signals of different frequencies
drum machine
a synthesiser designed to reproduce the sounds of a drum kit
vocoder
a machine that synthesises the human voice
turntable
a circular revolving plate on which records are played
treble
a boy’s high unbroken voice
soprano
a high female voice
mezzo-soprano
a medium high female voice
counter-tenor
male alto or soprano, sometimes falsetto
alto
a high male or low female voice
tenor
a high male voice
baritone
a medium male voice
bass
the lowest male voice
a cappella ensembles
unaccompanied choruses
lieder
german art songs from the Romantic period
aria
a solo song found in operas and oratorio
ballads
slow, often sentimental, love songs
folk songs
often simple strummed guitar accompaniment
usually in verse form (strophic)
sometimes have choruses
emphasise lyrics that tell a story/have a political message
falsetto
when a male singer sings in the soprano or alto range
belting
when a singer uses their chest voice and pushes out the sound
scat
a type of vocal improvisation using wordless or nonsense syllables
rap
when an artist speaks words rhythmically and quickly
beatboxing
when a voice imitates the sounds of a drum machine
sonority
another word for timbre
