1. An Introduction to Music as Social Experience
Chapter 2: Listening to Music

2. Active listening versus hearing
Attentiveness
Analysis
Interpretation
Music listening
Instrument sound quality
Shape of melodies
Rhythmic changes
Patterns that repeat
Cornelius-Natvig, Chapter 2: Listening to Music

3. Elements of Music Melody Rhythm Harmony Timbre Texture Form
Cornelius-Natvig, Chapter 2: Listening to Music

4. Melody Pitches (or tones) heard one after the other
The part of a song or composition you sing along with
Melodic contour: tones move up or down in pitch
Cornelius-Natvig, Chapter 2: Listening to Music

5. Components of Melody: Intervals
Pitch difference between two consecutive tones is an interval
Step intervals
Two consecutive tones close in pitch
In scale order, such as do – re
Leap intervals
Two consecutive tones significantly different in pitch
Not in scale order, such as do – sol
Cornelius-Natvig, Chapter 2: Listening to Music

6. Occurs in melodies with step intervals
Conjunct motion
Occurs in melodies with step intervals
Narrow range (distance between highest and lowest pitches)
May convey calm emotion
Disjunct motion
Occurs in melodies with leap intervals
Wide range
May convey anxiety or excitement
Cornelius-Natvig, Chapter 2: Listening to Music

7. Melodic structure A phrase is “a sentence in tones.”
Each phrase has a point of arrival or cadence.
A singer might breathe at the cadence.
Phrases ending on the tonic harmony sound finished.
Phrases not ending on the tonic harmony sound unfinished.
Cornelius-Natvig, Chapter 2: Listening to Music

8. Rhythm How music is organized in time Patterns of sounds and silences
Timing of sounds: long and short, fast and slow
Cornelius-Natvig, Chapter 2: Listening to Music

9. Components of Rhythm: Meter patterns Tempo Beat
Cornelius-Natvig, Chapter 2: Listening to Music

10. Beat Most basic time unit in music
Musical heartbeat, organizes the musical flow
The part of the music you tap your feet or dance to
Quantifies duration of musical sound: how long or how short
Cornelius-Natvig, Chapter 2: Listening to Music

11. Meter patterns Repeating patterns of strong and weak pulses
Recurring strong pulse is the downbeat
Each downbeat is followed by one or more upbeats
Each group of one downbeat + upbeat(s) is called a measure
Cornelius-Natvig, Chapter 2: Listening to Music

12. Duple meter Triple meter
Recurring pattern of one downbeat + one upbeat
Marches, most popular songs are in duple meter
Triple meter
Recurring pattern of one downbeat + two upbeats
Waltzes are in triple meter
Cornelius-Natvig, Chapter 2: Listening to Music

13. Tempo Speed or pace of the beat pattern
May remain constant throughout a composition OR
May speed up or slow down temporarily
Ask: Does the pace of your foot-tapping change?
Italian terms used in concert programs, such as:
Adagio (at ease)
Andante (walking tempo)
Allegro (lively)
Cornelius-Natvig, Chapter 2: Listening to Music

14. Harmony Two or more different pitches heard at the same time.
Ex: chords strummed on a guitar or two people singing different tones
May be consonant (stable) or dissonant (seeks stability or resolution)
Cornelius-Natvig, Chapter 2: Listening to Music

15. Timbre Specific tone color of an individual sound
Combination of three factors:
Instrument size
Instrument material (what it is made of)
How sound is produced/style of playing
Orchestration: intentional combination of instruments to create a soundscape
Cornelius-Natvig, Chapter 2: Listening to Music

16. Musical Texture How different musical parts fit together.
Blend of musical layers heard at the same time.
Four kinds of musical texture:
Monophony
Polyphony
Homophony
Heterophony
Cornelius-Natvig, Chapter 2: Listening to Music

17. Monophony
A single musical line performed by one person or a group in unison
Without accompaniment
Without harmony
Cornelius-Natvig, Chapter 2: Listening to Music

18. Polyphony Several independent musical lines heard at the same time.
Simplest kind of polyphony: round or canon
Ex: “Row, Row, Row, Your Boat” with different voices starting at different times.
More complex polyphony: different melodies interwoven, may or may not start together
Cornelius-Natvig, Chapter 2: Listening to Music

19. Homophony A melody with supporting sounds, chordal accompaniment.
In the Western tradition, most hymns, folk tunes, and popular songs are set in a homophonic texture.
Cornelius-Natvig, Chapter 2: Listening to Music

20. Heterophony
A single melody performed slightly differently by two performers
Ex: One performer embellishes the melody or changes the rhythm slightly
Uncommon in Western music
Heard often in Native American or Middle Eastern music
Cornelius-Natvig, Chapter 2: Listening to Music

21. Form Overall structure in a piece of music
Organization of musical elements builds a cohesive composition
Composers use repetition, contrast and development to create tension or relaxation
Cornelius-Natvig, Chapter 2: Listening to Music

22. Alphabet letters used to identify
Repeated parts (A A)
Contrasting parts (A B C)
Development parts (A A’ A”)
Traditional Western art music forms:
Binary (two parts: AB)
Ternary (three parts: ABA)
Rondo (refrain alternates with new material: ABACA)
Cornelius-Natvig, Chapter 2: Listening to Music