Music and Noise
We hear sound due to vibrations in the air around us. Rapid vibrations produce sound Eg:
o The buzzing of a bee, where as, slow vibrations do not produce sound…
o Movement of the wings of a butterfly, with regular vibrations a tone can be heard, when the vibrations have no regular, only noise produced…
Music is pleasant to the ear. Noise is unpleasant. Music can be enjoyed in various forms, (Playing instruments, Singing, Listening to recorded Music etc)
Music too can be noise at times. When it is not needed or when one is not in the mood to listen to it.
High and Low Pitch
The height or depth of a sound is called pitch. The pitch of a note as how high or how low a note depends on the number, of vibrations occurring in a second. With more vibrations the pitch of a note will be high while with less vibrations, the pitch will be low. Let's take a note of 440 vibrations per second, the note an octave higher has 880 vibrations and the note an octave lower has 220 vibrations per second. Play on a keyboard from left to right and from right to left to experience the high and low pitch.
Phrases in Music
Phrases is musical sentence a phrase usually has four bars or eight bars is indicated with a long slur. The note under the slur must be sung or played smoothly (legato)
Simple Binary Form
Music is written according to a plane. By form of a piece of music, we mean the general plane or design. That is we think of it as consisting of so many divisions or principle parts. The followings are some of the basic elements of musical forms
1) Repetition
2) Variations
3) Contrast
Repetition
Hearing melody just ones is often not enough for it to be remembered. This is because we tent to forget quickly. A reminder is achieved by way of repetition.
Variations
Variations are necessary to avoid hearing a melody over and over again which cases 'Monotony'
Contrast
There should be contrast in the repetitions. Therefore contrast is important for the ear and the mind.
The simplest of all musical forms is called "Binary Forms" This is consist of 2 sections and is a two part forms (A, B)
The plan of binary is as follows
Section A
This opens in the tonic key and ends usually in the dominant key.(C major to G major) If the piece traits in a minor key, it usually ends in the relative major. (A minor to C major)
Section B
This opens in the key in which part it ends and goes back to end in the tonic keys with a perfect cadence. This section is usually longer than section A.
A chord is added at the end of the piece give it a more satisfactory ending (codetta is a short chord)
Some times section A and B are separated by a double, bar and they have no strong contrast of material. Though the two part are delineated as A and B. This not means that they consist of two different themes. Part ii is building on the same idea as Part i.
This form is also known as "movement themes" Binary forms is not suitable for very long pieces. A number of nursery rhythms, folk tunes and neatly. All the dances is Buch's suites are in Binary Form. Eg:
Lavender's Blue
Air form Mozart
John Peel
I'm a Little Tea Pot
Here We Go Round the Mulberry Bush
