Performing Media: Voices & Instruments 8/24/17 Part 1, Section 2

Voices Unique ability to fuse word with musical tone In many cultures, poetry & singing are inseparable Most music was vocal music until the late 1600’s Singing well is difficult Use wider range of pitch & volume than in speaking Hold vowel sounds longer Greater supply of breath Range of singers Untrained voice: 1.5 octaves Professional: 2+ octaves Voices

Voice Types Women: Soprano (highest) Mezzo-Soprano (medium) Alto* (lowest) *May also hear Contralto Men: Tenor (highest) Baritone (medium) Bass (lowest)

How We Sing: The Physical Breakdown Air from lungs is controlled by lower abdominal muscles & diaphragm Air makes vocal cords vibrate Pitch of tone varies with tension of the vocal cords Tighter = higher pitch Lungs, throat, mouth & nose help produce desired sound

Musical Instruments -Any mechanism, other than the voice, that produces musical sounds

General Information about Instruments Often in different sizes that produce different ranges I.e. saxophones - soprano, alto, tenor, baritone, bass Instrument’s tone color may vary with the register Definition of register: part of the total range Most instruments have a wider range than the voice (often 3-4+ octaves) Instruments have been used for communication Drums with the military, hunters blow horns, announce time by sounding brass instruments from towers Musical instruments have been status symbols 1800-1900’s - Proper young ladies played, “middle class” houses had one

String Instruments Form the symphony orchestra’s string section String instruments are usually played with a bow Slightly curved stick strung tightly with horse hair Violin (highest) Viola (medium high) Cello (medium low) Double Bass (lowest)

String Terms Pizzicato - plucked strings Double stop - two notes at once (a chord) Vibrato - creating pitch fluctuations & making the tone warmer by rocking left hand while pressing string down Tremolo - rapidly repeat tones by quick up-and-down strokes of bow, creates a sense of tension when loud or shimmering when soft Harmonics - high-pitched tones (like a whistle) produced by lightly touching certain points of the string *NOTE: Don’t forget, the Harp & Guitar are also string instruments!

Produce vibrations of air within a tube that traditionally was made of wood Families of woodwinds sound very different compared to string instr. Flute Family Piccolo & Flute Clarinet Family Clarinet & Bass Clarinet Oboe Family Oboe & English horn Bassoon Family Bassoon & Contrabassoon Saxophone Family Alto & Bari Saxophone Woodwind Instruments

Woodwinds Continued Most woodwind instruments require a reed Reed - Thin piece of cane that is set into vibration by a stream of air Single & Double-reed instruments Tone colors vary between instruments & between registers Only produce one note at a time

Brass Instruments Vibrations come from the musician’s lips as they blow into a cup or funnel-shaped mouthpiece Vibrations are amplified as they travel through the coiled tube & out the bell Modern brass instruments are made of metal, but earlier horns were made of animals horns, elephant tusks, wood, or even glass The pitch of brass instruments is regulated by varying lip tension & by using slides & valves to change the length of the tube Brass players can alter the tone color of their instrument by inserting a mute

Trombone Trumpet French Horn Tuba Brass Instruments

Percussion Instruments Most are struck by hand or with sticks/hammers, but some are shaken or rubbed Definite Pitch: Timpani Glockenspiel Xylophone Celesta Chimes Indefinite Pitch: Snare Drum Gong Bass Drum Tambourine Triangle Cymbal

This group are quite different from one another in terms of how the sound is created All can play several notes at once All have a similar keyboard top Keyboard instruments include: Harpsichord - plucked strings Pipe organ - air blown across pipes, includes pedal keyboard, dynamic changes require more/less pipes, many tones, static Piano - hammered strings, has dynamic flexibility Accordion - steel reeds vibrate by air pressure from a bellows Keyboard Instruments

Keyboard Terms Pianoforte - soft-loud Damper - felt damper that comes down on string of piano to end the tone Damper pedal - right, sustain tones even after keys are released Una corda pedal - left, veils the sound, “soft pedal” Sostenuto pedal - middle, often missing, sustains some tones without sustaining others Plectra - little wedges of plastic/leather/quill that pluck strings of harpsichord

Electronic Instruments Synthesizers- systems of electronic components that generate, modify & control sound Analog synthesis - mixture of complex sounds that are shaped by filtering Effects devices - reverberators, echo devices, stereo splitters; used in almost all recorded music & live Computers - used as control devices to MIDI equipmt. Computer music - some or all sounds are generated & manipulated by computer