Unit 5 (Modern Era) Flashcards
1
Q
symphony
A
- a multi-movement orchestral work, typically in 4 movements
- developed in the 18th-century especially by Haydn, Mozart, and Beethoven
2
Q
cyclical structure
A
- a material heard in one movement recurs in later movements
- creates structural unity in a multi-movement work
3
Q
glissando
A
- on the harp, a quick strumming of all the strings with a broad sweeping hand movement
- on the piano, a rapid ascending or descending “strumming” of the keys
4
Q
whole tone scale
A
- a non-traditional scale that consists of 6 different pitches, all spaced a whole tone apart
5
Q
pentatonic scale
A
- a scale consisting of 5 different pitches
- common to the folk music of many European and Asian cultures
6
Q
changing meter
A
- a common trait in 20th-century music
- the time signature changes frequently and unpredictably
- a rejection of standard metrical patterns in favour of non-symmetrical groupings
7
Q
ostinato
A
- a short rhythmic or melodic pattern repeated throughout a section or a work
8
Q
polytonality
A
- the simultaneous use of 2 or more keys
9
Q
quotation in music
A
- music that parodies another composition or style
- draws a melody from a pre-existing work and presents it in a new guise
10
Q
ballet
A
- a highly stylized type of dance that often interprets a story
- first developed in the 17th-century; 19th-century ballet reached its zenith at the Russian court
- Russian dancers dominated the ballet scene
11
Q
choreography
A
- the art of designing the dance steps and movements in a ballet (or musical)
12
Q
en pointe
A
- French for “on point”
- a challenging dance technique practiced by ballerinas and used in traditional requires the dancer to dance and balance on their toes with the help and specially constructed dance slippers
13
Q
twelve-tone music
A
- a method of composition developed by Schoenberg
- an approach used to organize atonal music
- based on a fixed order of the 12 chromatic pitches forming a tone row
14
Q
tone row
A
- fixed order of the 12 chromatic pitches
- basis of a 12-tone composition
- undergoes manipulation: transposition, inversion, retrograde, retrograde-inversion
15
Q
canon
A
- a strict imitation of a musical line at a fixed interval throughout
- can be a complete polyphonic composition or a technique used within a work
16
Q
Klangfarbemelodie
A
- German for “tone-colour melody”
- a concept developed by Schoenberg
- individual notes of a melody are distributed among several instruments
- creates angular melody and sparse sound
17
Q
Sprechstimme
A
- German for “speech-voice”
- a vocal technique developed by Schoenberg and used for the first time in his song cycle Pierrot lunar
- sounds like “pitched-speaking”
18
Q
rondeau
A
- poetic form developed in the 14th-century
- the musical rondeau often took its shape from the poem’s structure
19
Q
celesta
A
- a percussion instrument resembling a small upright piano
- metal bars struck by hammers that have been activated by a keyboard
- produces delicate, silvery sound
20
Q
cluster chord
A
- a dissonant chord consisting of major and minor seconds
- often employed in atonal music
21
Q
mode of limited transposition
A
- a scale that is limited to fewer than the usual 12 transpositions; some can only be transposed once
- first mode limited transposition: whole tone scale
- second mode: octatonic scale
22
Q
sourdine
A
- French for “mute”
- an instruction given to string and brass instruments to use their mutes
- creates softer dynamics, subdued instrumental effects
23
Q
micropolyphony
A
- developed by Ligeti
- the weaving of many separate melodic strands into a complex polyphonic fabric
24
Q
tintinnabulation
A
- from Latin word for “bell”
- a minimalist compositional style developed by the Estonian composer Arvo Part
- music generally characterized by 2 voices: 1 voice arpeggiates tonic triad, other voice moves diatonically
25
Q
minimalism
A
- musical style developed in 1960s
- repetition of melodic, rhythmic, and harmonic patterns with little variation
- generally tonal, often trance-like
