1. Music Basics Acadeca

2. Music is sound organized in time It consists of soundwaves: Amplitude and frequency Amplitude= how loud or the decibel level Frequency= the pitch

3. Instruments Chordophones: sound from plucking/strings. ex. violin Aerophones: sound from breath. ex. Flute Membranophones: sound from outer membrane. ex. Bass drum Idiophones: sound from body. Ex xylophone

4. Sound Musical sound has four distinct properties: Pitch Duration Volume Timbre Pitch- highness or lowness of a tone– ½ the Hz of one pitch is one octave Harmony- two or more simultaneous pitches Timbre- tone color or quality

5. Pitch Pitches are named after the first seven letters of the alphabet (A B C D E F G). Treble and Bass clef-

6. Note Values Each note/rest is named after the number of beats associated with it

7. Equal Temperment Tuning According to this, there are 12 equal parts in every octave. These 12 parts may also be called a chromatic scale Flight of the Bumblebee– one of the worlds most famous chromatic pieces by Rimsky Korsakov http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6QV1RGMLUKE&featu re=related Sharps and flats are enharmonic

8. Scales Western music is based on 7 pitches: the scale A scale is an arrangement, in ascending order, of the 7 basic pitches from which music is constructed-- ScalesScales 1^- half step 2^-whole step 3^-minor third 4^-major third 5^- perfect fourth 6^-augmented fourth, tritone 7^- perfect fifth 8^- minor sixth 9^-major sixth 10^-minor seventh 11^major seventh 12^-octave

9. Scales The seventh note is the leading tone– the scale will not be resolved until eighth note Tonic= Do or first note Dominant= fifth note Distance between pitches– intervals Half step= one key on a keyboard Sharps and flats are one half step– sharp, up. Flat, down

10. Types of Scales Major– seventh to eighth is a half step Natural Minor– the seventh tone is sharp Melodic Minor– pull down the fifth tone Relative Major and Minor– Same pitches, different tonics Parallel scales– major and minor with same beginning tone Oscillation between major and minor is common in Russian music– peremennost

11. Chords & Symbols Triad A triad is a group of three notes having a specific construction and relationship to one another. Each member of the triad is separated by an interval of a third. The triad is composed of a Root, Third, and Fifth. There are four types of triads: major, minor, diminished and augmented.

12. Positions Root Position Triad- If the triad root is in the lowest voice then the triad is in Root Position. 1st Inversion Triad If the third of the triad is in the lowest voice the triad is the 1st inversion. If the 5th of the triad is in the lowest voice, the triad is in the 2nd inversion.

13. Basic Terminology Terms to Know Largo-- Very slowPianissimo--Very soft Adagio--Slow, leisurelyPiano-- Soft Moderato-- ModerateMezzo piano--Moderately soft Allegro-- Moderately fastForte-- Loud Presto-- Fast, rapidFortissimo-- Very loud