Chapter 3 Experiencing Music

Listening to Music One of most pleasurable aural experiences is music Levels of Listening Different levels of attentiveness Sensuous listening – actively listening and becoming absorbed in music Perceptive listening – analyzing how elements and musical structure combine to form unified composition Peak experience – heightened response to music (aesthetic)

Becoming a Perceptive Listener Perceptive listening relies on knowledge of music Elements used to create it Scale – 12 major scales on which most music is based Intervals – combination using notes of a scale create melody

How We Experience Music Experiencing Music Alone Headphones/earbuds High volume levels can damage hearing Choose music to match mood Experiencing Music Together Listening in the company of others Audience can be made up of diverse individuals (i.e., sporting events)

Performing Music Alone Need to express ourselves and our feelings People enjoy expressing themselves with or without an audience Solo performers become their own audience Guitar – called most important musical instrument of the past 50 years by composer Libby Larsen Native American Flute Flute common to many cultures throughout the world Can be made from natural or manufactured materials

Performing Music Together Group expression and social communication More than one person needed to create harmony and texture Ensembles allow musicians to function cohesively together Monophonic, Call and Response, etc.

Performing Music Together (cont.) Mixed Ensembles Usually start by beginning together then featuring soloist, duet, etc. (smaller groups from within larger ensemble) Those not soloing provides harmonic and rhythmic backup Mariachi Tradition Music ensemble from Mexican state of Jalisco Two types of Mariachi styles: son jalisciense and canción ranchera

Critiquing Music Criteria for Evaluating Performance Timbre – quality of tone, range, variety, appeal of musical sounds Expressiveness – interpretation, style, and phrasing Technique – performer’s skills Presentation – choice and appropriateness of the music, and whether the performance meets your expectations Impact – artist’s charisma, familiarity or newness of what you hear, comparisons to other performances

Critiquing Music (cont.) The Role of the Critic Does more than condemn or rave about a performance Gives arguments to support claims Must be perceptive listeners Also takes into account nonmusical aspects of performance Influence public opinion, can make or break musicians’ careers Colorful language – descriptive words

Musical Artistry in Schools Teen years are when musician goes from beginners to experts Some may become professionals or virtuosos Band, Orchestra, Choir, Musical Theatre, etc.

Vocabulary Aural – hearing- related Perceptive Listening – listening to and appreciating a musical work for its full range of technical and expressive qualities Aesthetic – characterized by a heightened sensitivity to the content, form, or emotional impact of an artistic work or event Scale – a sequence of tones arranged in rising pitches Major Scale – a sequence of eight pitches built on the pattern of two whole steps, one half step, three whole steps, and one half step Interval – distance in pitch between two tones

Vocabulary (cont.) Texture – the way sounds are woven together Ensemble – cooperative musical expression Monophonic – in unison with everyone sounding the same pitch or octave at the same time Mariachi – a musical group with several violins, trumpets, large bass guitar, and special five- and six-string guitars Virtuoso – a performer with brilliant, flawless technique