The Musical Elements

Can You Remember What These All Stand For…? The Musical Elements Melody Structure Tonality Timbre Can You Remember What These All Stand For…? M R S I T T T T Rhythm Instrumentation Tempo Texture Dynamics Pitch D P

Melody Melody = A number of notes in succession A Melody is the tune that you hear within the music. It is the melody that people sing/hum after hearing music and enjoying it.

Rhythm Rhythm = The arrangement of notes in a given time This means the way in which the notes are fitted into a bar of music. It is rhythm that uniquely identifies a particular style of music. Latin Rhythms are unique to South America Swing is unique to the Big Band Era …etc… Rhythms can be described as syncopated if they make the notes off the beat.

Structure Structure = The layout of the music (horizontally) How music is laid out is very important… Think of a Pop Song – the chorus keeps coming back. Are there repeated sections of music...? Are the sections clear…? Verse  Chorus  Verse A very good example of A B A (Ternary form)

Instrumentation Instrumentation = The combinations of instruments used What instruments can you hear…? How many instruments can you hear…? Are the instruments playing in sections…? Brass Woodwind Strings Percussion Keyboards

Tonality Tonality = The ‘key’ or sound of the music What harmony is being used…? Is there an obvious ‘tone’ to the music…? The most common ‘keys’ or sounds are: Major - Happy / Bright Sounding Minor - Sad / Dull Sounding Major keys are often used to portray moments of happiness or light hearted events Minor keys are often used to represent mystery or sadness.

Tempo Tempo = The speed of the music How fast or slow is the music…? Tap your foot along with it to see… Tempo is usually shown using Italian terms: Fast = Allegro Moderately = Moderato / Andante Slow = Largo / Adagio / Lento

Timbre Timbre = The tone colour of the music Timbre is the way an instrument sounds: ‘It’s Quality of Sound’ Different combinations of instruments sound very differently… It is these differences that give music it’s ‘colour’ Metal instruments sound very different from wooden ones A trumpet sounds very different to a tuba

Texture Texture = The layers of sound (vertically) When more instruments play together the texture becomes much ‘thicker’ and affects the sound of the music. Texture is varied by adding or taking away instruments. Most commonly we describe texture as THICK or THIN The main types of texture to listen for are: Monophonic = One sound (a solo line) Homophonic = A melody with accompaniment Polyphonic = Many melodies playing together

Dynamics Dynamics = The volume of the music Volume affects the way music is interpreted. Loud Sounds vs. Quiet Sounds – how does it affect the music…? Italian terms are also used to describe dynamics: Quiet = piano Moderately Loud = mezzo forte Loud = forte

Pitch Pitch = How high or low the music is Pitch can greatly affect the mood of the music. High / piercing sounds get very different reactions than low / resonant sounds. Some music needs high sounds, others need low ones. Most music is created using a contrast of high and low pitches. Without it there would not be any musical contrast.

Use these elements to listen to all music from now on! The Musical Elements Melody Structure Tonality Timbre Use these elements to listen to all music from now on! M R S I T T T T Rhythm Instrumentation Tempo Texture Dynamics Pitch D P

Composition Task Pick 3 of the Musical Elements Using a MIDI Sequencer, such as Cubase Studio 4 create a short composition that ‘shows off’ or illustrates your 3 chosen elements Your composition must follow these rules: You must use between 3 & 6 instruments One instrument must be able to play chords One instrument must be able to play a bass line You must include a percussion instrument There must be at least one instrument capable of playing a melody. You must create your composition in simple ternary form (A  B  A) or (Verse  Chorus  Verse) Each section must show off a particular Musical Element eg: Pitch  Structure  Rhythm You must use very simple chords to base your piece upon: Use C major / F major / G major Your piece must have a proper ending (don’t just stop!) Each section must be a maximum of 12 Bars Long