1. The Elements of Music Terms You Must Know

2. What Is Music? l Scientific Definition: “Sound organized in time.” l Actual Definition: add “For the expression of thoughts, ideas and emotions” to above l Music is special because it affects people without requiring participation

3. Why Music? l “The Mozart Effect”: A 1993 study showed that student test scores improved after listening to Mozart l Retailers use music to put shoppers in a better mood so that they will spend more l Relieves stress, reduces pain, helps growth

4. The Elements of Music l These are the basic parts of music that can be heard l They are used in all forms of music across all points in history and across all cultures l These are the most basic things to be heard

5. Rhythm l This is the way the beat is broken down l The center of rhythm is the beat or pulse l The way the pulse is grouped is called the meter l When the pulse is subdivided, rhythm is created

6. Melody l This is the main line of music l It is the part that is sung in pop songs l It moves up and down by pitch l It can move by steps, skips or leaps l This is the horizontal placement of pitch

7. Harmony l This is how sounds are blended together l They can be consonant (sound good-blend) l They can be dissonant (sound bad-clash) l These are the chords l The way music is put together vertically

8. Form l This is the structure of a piece l Traditional forms are binary (AB) and ternary (ABA) l The verse, chorus form used in pop songs is binary l Other forms are round, theme & variation, sonata

9. Dynamics l This is the volume of music l Terms are Italian l Fortissimo-Very Loud l Forte-Loud l Mezzo Forte-Med. Loud l Mezzo Piano-Med. Soft l Piano-Soft l Pianissimo-Very Soft

10. Tempo l This is the speed of the pulse l Terms are Italian l Presto-Fast l Andante-Medium l Largo-Slow l Some music can give different feels based on tempo

11. Timbre/Tone Color l This is the unique sound that each instrument makes l Just like each of your friends’ voices sound different, so do instruments l Differences can be great or very detailed

12. Style l The overall characteristics of sound in a piece l Musical style is more diverse today than in any other time in history l Style is influences by time, culture and technology