Elements of Music
Definition of Music
1. A time art
2. *An art based on the organization of sounds in time
3. A form of energy. We can't see it, but we can feel the way it moves our spirits
Pitch
1. Highness or lowness of a sound
2. *Highness or lowness of a sound, a tone, or a note
3. Position of a sound on a range from very low (the bass register) to very high (the soprano register)
Duration
1. "Rhythm" - The orderly flow of music through time
2. "Rhythm" - the ordered flow of music through time
3. "Rhythm" - the ordering of music through time; patterns of longer and shorter sounds
4. *Rhythm is a pattern of shorts and longs. Duration is the element of time in the many ways it is used in music. Length of a work, length of a section, phrase, note; it also includes the speed of a work, the beat and how it is grouped (meter), accents, syncopation, and rhythm.
Beat
1. Regular pulse found in most music
2. *The regular, recurrent pulsation in most music
3. An underlying pattern that maintains itself consistently throughout a work
Dynamics
1. Levels of loudness in music
2. Levels of loudness and softness
3. Degrees of volume; the volume of a sound
Timbre
1. Tone quality, its color
2. Not defined. Term used in the text is Instruments
3. The color of music; the character of a sound
4. *A description of what you are hearing. What instrument(s)? Can you identify what is producing each sound? Does it sound harsh, brassy, mellow, brown, or brittle (or some other adjective)? You will want to use your own words for this.
Sources:
1. Music Listening Today by Charles Hoffer. Thomson, Schirmer. 2007.
2. Experience Music by Katherine Charlton & Robert Hickok. McGraw-Hill. 2009.
3. Listen to This by Mark Evan Bonds. Prentice Hall. 2009.
4. Don Reese observations and definitions. 2012.