Introduction to music
Definition of music
-Music is described as the art of sound in time.
-Simply put, music is a combination of organized sounds in a specific time pattern which sounds pleasant to the human ear.
-Music is a tool through which man expresses his feelings, emotions and ideas.
Elements of Music
1.Rhytm
-This is the quick or slow movement of sound. it may be either lively ir soothing.
When this movement is regularized then, a pulse or a beat is created. The pulse or beat can be slow or fast. It may also contain sounds of different lengths. This is related to the kind of notes used in a rhythm such as crotchet, minim or semibreve among others.
2.Melody
-Melody is a succession of notes varrying in pitch, which have an organized and recognizable shape.
-The movement is horizontal because rhe notes are heard consecutively (one after another). Rhythm provides a melody with an ordered movement in a devised pattern. Therefore melody is the easy-to-remember part of a song that we hum or whistle to.
3.Pitch
-This is the location of sound on a tonal scale. it is therefore the highness or lowness of sound.
Pitch names are given to the notes of the lines and spaces on a given staff/stave. The rhythmic value of a note will determine the duration of the pitch.
4.Harmony
-This is the simultaneous sounding, that is, a combination of two or more notes.
Harmony is vertical as opposed to horizontal movement of a melody as in melody. When a choir sings in four parts, each having its own notes, then it performs in harmony.
5.Timbre
Also known as tone color, is the quality of tone distinguished in production by an instrument or singer. Timbre may be described as, light, dark, brilliant or rich.
e.g if one note is to be sounded by the trumpet and the descant recorder, the quality of the sound heard would be very different despite the notes being of the same pitch.
This difference in tone color is the difference in their timbre.
6. Form
-This is the shape, structure and design of a composition. Composers use various techniques that create musical form. These include: repetition, contrast and variation.
7.Musical style
-This is the characteristic way of treating musical elements; melody, rhythm, harmony, texture, dynamics and form. The particular way this elements are combined can result in a distinctive or unique sound. Individuals creating music can be different in a manner which their styles are treated .
8.Texture
This refers to the different layers of sound used in construction of a song.
it can be described to be:
- Monophonic texture consists of a single melodic line without supporting harmonies.
- Polyphonic texture consists of two or more melodic lines weaving along at the same time containing imitation.(also described as contrapuntal texture)
- Homophonic texture it is a single melodic line heard against a chordal accompaniment having the same pattern of motion.
Element. basic related terms
Rhythm (beat, meter, tempo, syncopation)
Dynamics. (forte,piano,[e.t.c],crescendo,decrescendo)
Melody. (pitch, theme, conjunct, disjunct)
Harmony. (chord, progression,consonance , dissonance, key, tonality, atonality)
Timbre. (monophonic, homophonic, polyphonic, imitation, counterpoint)
Form. (binary, ternary, strophic, through-composed)
Thats all for Chapter 1 oneBasic Skills form 1 music.
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