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Establishing the Elements of Music Groundwork
Now that you have learned about the instruments of music and several famous composers, you are ready to start your training on how to listen to music. You will do this by learning about the elements of music.
I have selected 6 elements of music that will help you learn the basic principles of how to listen to music. I have decided to split the 6 elements into two tours.
In this first tour, you will discover three elements of music that constitute the backbone of any musical work. These three elements are: melody, rhythm, and harmony.
Comic Relief from the Elements of Music
A guy walks into a pet store wanting a parrot. The store clerk shows him two beautiful ones out on the floor. "This one's $5,000 and the other is $10,000." the clerk said. "Wow! What does the $5,000 one do?" "This parrot can sing every aria Mozart ever wrote." "And the other?" said the customer. "This one can sing Wagner's entire Ring opera cycle.
There's another one in the back room for $30,000." "Holy moly! What does that one do?" "Nothing that I can tell, but the other two parrots call him 'Maestro'."
Melody Overture
Melody is one of the main elements of music. I believe that it is the most memorable of all the musical elements. Why is this? Well, just remember a pesky little melody in your mind that won’t go away and you will agree with me.
Engaging the Past
The term melody comes from the Greek words melos and aoidein. The word melos means song and the word aoidein means to sing. The combination of both words translates to something like ‘to sing a song’.
Some early Greek melodies are based on musical theoretical works of ancient major Greek writers such as Aristoxenos, Quintilianus, and Aristotle.
On the other hand, The Bible has many references to the use of music and melodies. Jewish scholars indicate that their synagogue melodies are of great antiquity as well.
This Jewish musical tradition is part of the Ashkenazic tradition of melodies from the Sinai.
Semantic Issues
In essence, the modern violin is one of the oldest stringed instruments. Presumably, the word violin derives from the Latin word vitula. Other sources claim that the word violin means small viola.
Existing pre-Classical instruments hint the current look of the modern violin. Today’s quality instruments still follow the same traditions that luthiers or instrument makers followed in the old times.
Melody Rationale
Believe it or not, there are two views of melody. One view is a simple view and the other view encompasses a broader view that assumes that melody has a cultural overtone.
The first view is the simple view that melody is defined as a succession of pitches that happen consecutively.
The second and more extended view defines melody as the aesthetic product of a given succession of pitches in musical time, implying rhythmically ordered movement from pitch to pitch.
What does this mean? It means that melodies have cultural overtones.
The aesthetic product of a melody refers to the way different cultures perceive a melody.
A melody may suggest different images or responses for different listening ears.
Cultural Melody
A melody from Bosnia has a very important meaning for Bosnians but probably means nothing for somebody from Nashville, Tennessee.
Play the audio clip below, listen to it, and try to think about why a Bosnian would respond to it differently than someone from another part of the world. The song is sung by Bosnian ladies that have reached an age where they can date.
When you play a violin string, the string is set in motion. This string vibrates at a certain speed. The speed of vibration is what determines the resulting note or notes. This is why I believe music affects our senses.
Remember that music is all about vibrations or physical frequencies.
In the graph you can see different waves that represent a diversity of sound colors in terms of pitch range.
Getting Into Color
When you listen to a sound you are actually listening to a physical frequency that has its own unique sound qualities.
The musical frequency of sound grants each note a musical color. This musical color is described as the characteristic sound of each note.
A musical scale contains several notes. These notes form a chromatic scale.
Color and Pitch
There are 12 pitches in the chromatic scale. A chromatic scale is a scale that contains the 12 different pitches or shades within the musical palette. A chromatic scale is also known as a cycle.
The graphic shows a chromatic scale that starts in C and travels through all the different color shades within the sound spectrum.
The reason why we see 13 notes is because the scale returns to C at the beginning of the next cycle then another cycle at a higher range. In reality, there are only 12 unique notes, or pitches.
The cycle allows me to introduce the concept of an octave. An octave is defined as and interval that is the distance between one note and itself, either one full cycle up, or a full cycle down.
This is how we recognize one note and its relationship with the same note at both higher and lower range.
The octave contains 12 chromatic pitches and all the letters of the musical alphabet: C, D, E, F, G, A, B. Note that in the first graphic the octave is represented in its different forms.
You can create an octave when you repeat the starting letter. For example, if a C note is repeated at a full cycle up, then the octave is recreated at a higher range.
This C sound is the eighth letter or note as described above. You can also see a representation of this in the graphic.
Frequency
Frequency is the acoustical vibration of any musical sound. Here you can see the graphical representation of the low and high waves of sound.
This vibration is measured in Hertz, which is a unit of frequency equivalent to one cycle per second.
But hertz is not a crucial element to enjoy music, although I find this to be a fascinating fact since it explains to me why music has so much power over people.
Hertz is more than just beautiful sounds. It is a combination of science and emotions. That is probably why music has magic powers over people.
Frequency and Waves
Slower moving waves produce lower pitched sounds and faster moving waves produce higher pitched sounds.
People have different preferences regarding the sounds of music. Some like low register sounds such as the ones produced by the bass instruments. Others enjoy high register sounds such as the ones produced by the violin.
But it can also work the other way around. As an interesting fact, a deaf person is only able to listen and recognize low register sounds. The middle and high registers are completely unavailable to them.
Components of Melody
Next, I will present the three main components of a melody. These are: contour or shape, range, and scales. We will explain each one in detail throughout the next slides.
Sub sounds and ultra-sounds are sounds that fall outside the boundaries of the human sound palette such as the sub sounds made by some marine creatures or the ultra- sound made by a dog whistle.
The great composers intuitively know the sounds that are most effective to create moods or paint emotions through their music.
This knowledge is most definitively a gift that we in turn appreciate by listening to musical masterpieces.
Some primitive melodies have a range of two notes. This is not unusual for some cultures. Some oriental cultures base their music on a pentatonic system.
Pentatonic systems use only five notes. On the other hand, a more sophisticated melody such as the soprano solo in the "Kyrie Eleison" of Mozart's Mass in C Minor has a range of two octaves or 16 notes.
Intervals
To recognize melodies, we must also understand about the power of intervals. An interval is the distance between any two notes or any two sounds.
The minor second interval is an example of a tension charged sound. Minor second intervals build to attention-grabbing moments, such as music in horror movies. On the other hand, the sound of a perfect fifth or an octave is more consonant and less taxing to the ears.
The example to the right shows two types of intervals, the half step interval and the whole step interval.
By looking at the keyboard, we see that a half step interval is the distance between one key and the key immediately next to it.
A whole step interval is equal to two half steps. Therefore, one must move two keys up or down in order to have a whole step.
The most common types of intervals, for the purpose of this class, are represented in the graphic. Each one paints a vivid coloration of musical sounds.
Scales
In musically sophisticated cultures, scales are formally recognized as systems of tones from which melodies can be built.
The example to the right shows the different types of scales that can be created by altering the individual notes within the scale.
This alteration provides a different mood, or flavor, for each individual scale and their corresponding and available melodies.
Scales and Tonality
Earlier, we talked about the concept of the octave. The sound of the octave is part of the system of music in western civilization.
The octave is part of the major/minor system of music that results in tonality. Tonality is the collection of notes from which melodies are built upon.
The lack of familiarity with other systems of tonality is perhaps one of the reasons why we are so prompt to dismiss music from other cultures.
As mentioned earlier, some cultures use as little as two notes while others use microtonal systems, which may have more than the 12 notes of the chromatic scale, which is the system of music from western civilization.
Concepts on Tonality
Middle Eastern music is a microtonal system that uses tones that are not part of our musical culture.
To the right, you can see the gravitational attraction box graphic that includes elements such as scales and harmony that are an important part of tonality.
Notes that belong to the gravitational field are considered consonant to the piece.
Notes outside the gravitational field will create tension that is resolved by going back to the consonant tones or notes.
If a song has a formula, you could probably express it this way: Song = melody + lyrics.
Because of this intrinsic characteristic, songs make you feel a thought.
This thought starts in the composer’s or lyricist’s mind and ends in the listener’s ears and hearts.
Conclusion
In this lecture we learned that melody is defined as a succession of pitches that happen consecutively.
We also learned about all of the components of melody.
You should now be able to recognize a melody and its components anytime you listen to music.
Comic Relief from the Elements of Music
Two rhythm guys were walking across the park when one said, “Hey, where did you get such a great set of maracas?” The second guy replied, “Well, I was walking along yesterday minding my own business when a beautiful woman walked up to me carrying a nice set of maracas in her hands. She threw the maracas to the ground, took off all her clothes and said, “Take what you want.”
The second guy nodded approvingly, “Good choice; the clothes probably wouldn’t have fit.”
Rhythm Overture
Rhythm is the element of music that helps to convey human emotions. Its power lies in the fact that it is present in every aspect of our lives such as the way we do things, the way we walk, and the way we breathe.
Rhythm is an element that is not unique to music. Other artists need rhythm as well. Dancers and poets need to have a great sense of rhythm and flow; without those elements, a dance routine would look stiff and unnatural, and a poem would read as insincere and tedious.
After completing this tour, you will be able to:
- Identify rhythm and its uses
- Identify the components of rhythm
Rhythm Rationale
Rhythm is defined as an ordered flow of music through time and space.
What does that mean? Well, from a practical point of view, rhythm is the musical execution of patterns of sounds and silence within a measured timeframe.
Unraveling Rhythm
Sounds and silence produce the beat of music, which in turn results in Rhythm.
Combinations of sounds and silence create different rhythm patterns. This is why music from different cultures sounds so uniquely different.
Pulse
During composing, performing, or listening to music, one is aware of a periodic succession of beats. This is particularly important for composers and arrangers, musicians and music listeners in general.
As a musician, my perception of the pulse of music allows me to be very effective in the performance and presentation of any piece of music.
In the picture, the rhythm figures are divided or subdivided.
The whole note is the longer duration shown on this graph. It plays for four beats. Once you play a whole note, it has to sound for four beats.
A whole note is equal to two half notes. This means that a half note sounds for two beats. Because two beats plus two beats is equal to four beats, two half notes equal one whole note.
If you continue moving down this graphic, then you will see how a whole note is equal to four quarter notes.
A quarter note sounds for one beat. Again, one beat plus one beat plus one beat plus another beat is equal to four beats which is why one whole note is equal to four quarter notes.
Meter Rationale
The second element of rhythm is meter.
Meter is defined as the organization of beats into regular groups.
These regular groups are contained within the measures. Measures have a fixed number of beats as pointed out by the graphic to the right. You can find the meter indicator in the meter section at the beginning of the composition.
Look at the example to see that the measure has a meter of 3/4 which means that there are three beats in this measure. Sure enough, there are three quarter notes in the example.
Meter Basics
The following are the most common meters in music.
Notice that at the beginning of each measure, there is a fraction number. The upper number means the amount of beats per measure.
Please note that Common time is the same as 4/4 and Cut time is the same as 2/2. Now allow me to explain some of this music nomenclature to you.
If the upper number is four, then there will be four beats in any particular combination of notes. If the upper number is two, then there will be two beats in any particular combination of notes.
The lower number refers to the unit that receives the beats.
If the lower number is 4, that means that the unit that receives the beat is a quarter note.
If the lower number is 8, that means that the unit that receives the beat is an eighth note.
If the fraction number is a 6 over 8, then this means that the piece has six beats and each unit receiving a beat is an eighth note.
A meter could be classified as either a single or compound meter.
Common Single Meters
Single meters are the most basic and most heavily used meters in music.
A single meter uses beats that are not divided.
The most common single meters are 2 over 4, 3 over 4 and 4 over 4.
A single meter means that each beat will get a quarter note.
Tempo Markings
The most common tempi used by musicians are displayed below.
Please familiarize yourself with these terms and their translations from Italian to English, since they will be used to assess your understanding of tempo indicators.
Tempo Indicators
- Adagio: Slow, leisurely
- Largo: slow, stately
- Moderato: moderate time
- Andante: Walking pace
- Allegretto: slightly slower than allegro
- Allegro: lively, fast
- Vivace: quick, lively
- Presto: very quick
Metronome Markings
In addition to tempo indicators, there are metronome markings. These markings help the performer decide how fast or how slow a composer wants them to perform their piece. You can find these markings at the beginning of the piece, and every time that the composer changes the tempo.
Accent Rationale
Accent is the emphasis placed on a note. Accent tells whether a note is performed louder or longer than another note.
In grammar, an accent places an emphasis on a word. In music, an accent places an emphasis on a musical note or a beat.
Some of the most commonly used accent markings change the interpretation of musical phrases.
Look at how the accents are marked on top of the notes that have to be emphasized. These little marks are meant for performers to place a small weight on selected notes.
For instance, the last accent mark in the graphic to the right will make the accented note longer that the other ones.
The Effect of Accents
Accents affect the meter by displacing beats, creating a sensation that we are listening to a different meter. This beat displacement affects the performance of a music score that uses accents.
Syncopation Rationale
Syncopation is the last element of rhythm.
Syncopation is the displacement of regular accents associated with a given metrical patterns.
This adds anticipation, pleasure, and thrill to the music being played. It is used quite often in popular music such as jazz, Latin jazz, rock and roll, and many other popular styles of music.
The picture shows a simple example of syncopation. Notice how the music continues through the bar lines.
Syncopation and Swing
A form of syncopation is found in swing rhythm. This is rhythm that is off-centered and uneven. Swing rhythm is a way of playing music that sounds differently from the way that it is notated.
This does not necessarily mean bad rhythm. This is actually done with a purpose. Jazz musicians will not play exactly what is written but will approximate the rhythm to what is written on the page. Jazz has its own unique sound because musicians swing the notes.
The musicians involved understand how much swing could be used in any particular piece. While swinging, musicians must keep in mind the style, period, and the place of presentation.
Classical musicians are more strict, and only play what is on the page. This is because classical composers such as Mozart wrote exactly what they wanted to be played.
Comic Relief from the Elements of Music
Two men were at a bar and one said, " Hey, I had my IQ checked and it was 175, The other responded " That's a coincidence so is mine, what do you do for a living?" " I'm a physicist." was the reply. Again came "that's a coincidence so am I."
This was overheard at a nearby table and these two compared IQ's at 160 and were surprised that they were both brain surgeons.
At another nearby table one man grievingly said to the other "Did you hear that? I had my IQ checked and it was only 52." The other said, rather enthusiastically, " Wow, that's some coincidence. We have the same IQ. Hey, so, what instrument do you play?"
Harmony Overture
In this tour, you will learn about harmony and its components.
It is my opinion that the language of music encourages the development and enhancement of our cognitive, social, physical and emotional skills. Harmony takes us in a sensorial journey that enriches our sensitivity and high regard for beautiful music.
After completing this tour, you will be able to identify harmony and identify the components of harmony.
Harmony Rationale
Harmony is defined as the interaction of three or more tones that sound simultaneously.
Notice that I said three or more tones. Remember that two tones played simultaneously is an interval.
Harmony vs. Melody
There is an important difference between harmony and melody.
Melody usually has the theme of the music piece, and is made up of single notes that are played consecutively.
On the other hand, the main role of harmony is to provide support for a melody. This is done by playing blocks of notes known as chords that are played simultaneously.
The characteristics of the chords of harmony provide the vertical aspect of music. Harmony ultimately contributes to the unity of any musical work.
Feelings of Harmony
Harmony is responsible for how a melody makes you feel. I am sure you have heard a performance of the national anthem right before any special occasion. Even though it is presented against diverse harmonic backgrounds and rhythms, it is still the same old national anthem. No matter how odd or unusual the harmony is, you can always identify the lyrics and the melody that goes with it.
Harmony gives music its three dimensional aspect since it involves many notes that serve as a musical support for melodies.
Engaging the Past
Let's take a brief look at the history of harmony.
Harmony took some of its roots from early types of music, such as Plainchant. This was a religious form of music that was most commonly sung during medieval times.
The main sponsor of the arts at the time was the church, and the chief form of music was the plainchant. This type of music was used by the church to emphasize certain moments during the mass.
The eventual development of the plainchant led to the adoption of a harmonic musical platform that eventually was used by all types of music.
Plainchant is also known as monophony, as it uses one musical line. A musical line is also known as a voice, even though it doesn’t imply that it has to be sung by a singer.
Monophonic music is music with one line of music. It could be sung by a large choir. Even if all the singers are singing, and they are singing the same melody, then the musical texture is called monophonic.
Somewhere around the year 900, early polyphony developed by accident when children’s voices were added to the musical service.
Bear in mind that women were prohibited from singing in church. So, children provided the higher range of voices for the Plainchants.
