Chapter Six: Vocal Melody

Basic Elements of Music Rhythm Melody (pitch) Harmony Sound (timbre) Shape (form)

Staff--5 line, 4 spaces Lines and spaces named Symbols of written music When a composer wants to put a piece of music down so others can “read” it, she needs a system or code which indicates which pitches to play. This code starts with the Staff-- Each line and space of the staff corresponds with a pitch. The pitches are named by the letters A-G (notice we start over at G) so each line and space has a letter name. This is the treble clef (another word for staff) and is used to indicate higher pitched notes. There is also a bass clef for pitches in the lower range.

Grand Staff Symbols of written music When both clefs are used together, such as in piano music, the two are called the Grand Staff The notes on the staff correspond with the notes played on instruments.

Scales Scales are the way we organize music. Scales give the composer the choice of notes from which to write a song. The scale below is what we think of as “Do-Re-Mi” etc.

Major Minor Western European Scales “Do-Re-Mi” is also known as the major scale in Western music.

Diatonic Major Scale The Western major scale (Do-Re-Mi) is also referred to as the diatonic major scale. Here’s another example--

Melody An organized succession of pitches that forms a coherent whole--usually (but not always) based upon a scale.

Vocal Melody Conjunct Motion Moving from note to note without leaps. Disjunct Motion Moving by leaps from note to note.

Minuet in G Allegro (120mm) Original tempo Moderato (100mm) Slower, for analysis

Parts of a Melody Phrase Regular Irregular Ornamented

O beautiful for spacious skies, For amber waves of grain, (IC) For purple mountain majesties Above the fruited plain. (IC) America! God shed His grace on thee, (IC) And crown thy good with brotherhood From sea to shining sea. (CC) (Cadences in Red) Phrase One Phrase Two Phrase Three Phrase Four America, the Beautiful words by Katharine Lee Bates melody by Samuel Ward

Melody Motive--Smallest Unit of Melody Sequence Repetition Rhythmic Motives

Minuet in G Allegro (120mm) Moderato (100mm)

Melody Cadence--Musical punctuation dividing music into two kinds of phrase endings> Incomplete cadence (IC)—makes us feel the need to go on Complete cadence (CC)—makes us feel as if we could or should stop

O beautiful for spacious skies, For amber waves of grain, (IC) For purple mountain majesties Above the fruited plain. (IC) America! God shed His grace on thee, (IC) And crown thy good with brotherhood From sea to shining sea. (CC) (Cadences in Red) Phrase One Phrase Two Phrase Three Phrase Four America, the Beautiful words by Katharine Lee Bates melody by Samuel Ward

My Country Tis of Thee

Gregorian Chant Monophonic Texture-- One melody sung either by solo voice or a group (all singing the same melody) Haec Dies Dominum

Hildegard von Bingen

 Daughter of a noble family  Went to live in a monastic community at 8 years of age  Took vows to become a Benedictine Nun at age 18  Became Abbess of Disibode Abbey in 1136 (age 38) Hildegard von Bingen ( )

When she was 42, she began dictating her "visions" of: - Music -Art Works (Illuminations) -Scriptural Commentaries In her life she composed: - 77 musical settings -Ordo Vertutum (morality play) -De Sancta Maria Hildegard von Bingen

Monophonic Texture Regular/Irregular Phrases Syllabic Melismatic Neumatic De sancta Maria