FINE 9c.2

• “Music expresses that which cannot be put into words and that which cannot remain silent.” ~Victor Hugo, poet, dramatist, novelist, 1802-1885

• “Take a music bath once or twice a week for a few seasons, and you will find that it is to the soul what the water bath is to the body.” ~ Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr., US Supreme Court Justice (1841‑1935)

• "Next to the Word of God, this noble art [music] is the greatest treasure in the world! The riches of music are so excellent and so precious that words fail me whenever I attempt to discuss and describe them." ~ Martin Luther (1483-1546)

Announcements

• Chapter 9 Journal due Sunday
• Next: Chapter 10 - Dance
• Don't forget Museum Project

Getting 2 Know U

• What song do you want played at your wedding?

• What song do you want played at your funeral?

• What song will always remind you of high school?

• What song do you absolutely hate?

• What song always makes you dance?

Listening to Music

Blues & Jazz

Rock & Roll

Blues: "The Thrill is Gone"

Jazz: "What About Me?"

Blues came from African-Americans in the south, reflecting the aftermath of slavery and discrimination, but was NOT always sad

Jazz developed out of the Blues, first in New Orleans and later throughout the US

Both styles feature "blue" note scales and improvisation

B.B. King & Eric Clapton

Born from the Blues, but with folk and country & western musical influences

Invention of electric guitar (1931) and other amplification tech eventually allowed performances in large auditoriums and arenas

Buddy Holly, Elvis Presley, the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin, etc. garnered huge followings worldwide

Snarky Puppy (We Like It Here album)

Media and Elements for the Listener

Elvis: "Don't Be Cruel"

The Beatles: "I Want to Hold Your Hand"

The Rolling Stones: "Satisfaction"

Musical Forms

• Based upon repetition and contrast
• Necessary because of the serial nature of music - musical sounds occur in linear progression over time
• Structure helps us comprehend the music
• Repetition provides recognizable anchor points
• Contrast provides variety and interest
• Together they help the listener achieve understanding and participation

Form:

Theme and Variations

• A tune is presented plainly
• The same tune is presented with changes, or variations

Form:

Fugue

• Similar to a “round," but much more complex
• First a tune is heard, then the same tune (more or less) is played, starting on a different note or in a different way
• The tunes overlap, and other melodic material can also be inserted

Collegiate A Capella Clubs

The Dartmouth Aires

Pop - with Percussion

Pentatonix

...or just one great voice!

Peter Mellens

Subject Matter of Music

Mixed Contemporary

Rajaton

• Feelings – emotions, passions, moods
• Sound
• Some philosophers have argued that music has no subject; however, music is art, and art has content that is revealed by form – must have subject in order to have content
• Content of music may be the interpretation of feelings through sound
• “Music sounds the way feelings feel.”

Mixed Voices

Sorrow

Beethoven, Symphony 7, Mvt. 2

Soprano

Alto

Tenor

Bass

"SATB"

Barbershop Chorus

The Vocal Majority

http://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2013/07/09/200390454/when-choirs-sing-many-hearts-beat-as-one

Joy

Beethoven, Symphony 9, Mvt. 4

SATB Choral

St. Olaf University Choir

Benediction

Conclusion

Terminology Review

• Beat – the steady pulse underlying most music
• Rhythm – sounds of short or long duration organized by the beat
• Tempo – the relative speed of the beat
• Dynamics – the relative loudness of musical sounds

“Singing has always seemed to me the most perfect means of expression. It is so spontaneous. And after singing, I think the violin. Since I cannot sing, I paint.”

~ Georgia O'Keefe, artist (1887-1986)

Vocal Music

• Tone – a sound with a definite wave frequency that translates into pitch
• Pitch – the relative highness or lowness of a tone
• Melody – a recognizable group of tones occurring in order, with a beginning, middle, and end
• Theme – a segment of melody that undergoes modification or development
• Counterpoint – two or more melodies occurring simultaneously

“Singing I was at peace, Above the clouds, outside the ring:

For sorrow finds a swift release in song, And pride its poise.”

~ Cecil Day Lewis, Irish poet (1904-1972)

“This precious gift has been bestowed on men to remind them that they are created to praise and magnify the Lord. ...He who does not find this an inexpressible miracle of the Lord is truly a clod."

The human voice is God’s most perfect musical instrument, and the one we carry with us everywhere.

“If music does reveal feelings and sounds, the way it does so is still one of the most baffling problems in the philosophy of art... There is mystery about music, unique among the arts; that is part of its fascination.”

• Harmony – more than one tone sounding simultaneously – chord
• Consonance – tones that sound good together
• Dissonance – tones that clash with each other
• Cadence – series of chords leading to stability
• Form – organization of melodic & harmonic material into patterns
• Contrast – a way for composers to maintain the interest of the listener while establishing recognition

Male Voices

Female Voices

"You can cage the singer but not the song."

~Harry Belafonte (1927 - )

Soprano

Tenor

Contrasts in Music

Alto

Baritone

Fast / Slow

Loud / Soft

High / Low

Short / Long

Thick / Thin

Consonance / Dissonance

Tempo

Dynamics

Pitch

Rhythm

Texture

Harmony