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Music: an academic

Matt Spencer
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Music; an academic
Music consists of many facts, figures, and events. Although there are so many of these,
the main idea of music goes unnoticed so much so that the facts, figures and events are
forgotten. Music is an expression and an academic. Society places so much emphasis on the
expression of music that the academic portion is often forgotten. Music is a useful tool to
overcome emotional distress but the expressive element of it is, at the same time, over used.
When a listener listens to a song, he/she listens to the melody, lyrics or both. Quite often the
theory behind the song is ignored. The music must be composed or the lyrics must be set to a
certain rhythm or melody. The academics of music are appreciation (history) and Theory. This
article will focus on music theory, sound and articulation. Music theory is the study of how
music works. Articulation is the performance of a song. The fundamentals of music theory are;
pitch, rhythm, dynamics, and color tone.
Section 1
Pitch
“Pitch in music refers to the highness or lowness of a sound” (Kostka 3). In music,
musicians name pitches with the letters A, B, C, D, E, F, and G. These notes are put onto a staff
which consists of five horizontal lines (Example 1-1)

Example 1-1

======== The Five lines make up staff

Cleffs appear at the beginning of the staff to indicate which pitches are to be played.
Notes can go on the lines or spaces of the staff (Example 1-2).

Example 1-2

Reading basic notes on the treble cleff

Picture: Lillian Cheng
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These are the basic notes on reading all music. Pitches can be exteneded throught ledge lines

about or below a staff. To get more practice on reading music you can go to the following

website: www.musictheory.net/exercises.

The pitches in the picture above can be altered in a musical piece by the use of an

accidental. Accidentals are natural, flat, and sharp (Example 1-3).

Example 1-3

Sharp #

Natural n

Flat b
Common, basic accidentals

Accidentals raise or lower a note by a half or whole step. The most common accidentals are

listed above in Example 1-3.

Accidentals also appear after a clef but before a time signature (See section 2) to

indicate a key signature. The key of G major has one sharp at the beginning of each staff system
(Example 1-4).

Example 1-4

Key of G major
Source:
http://wpcontent.answers.com/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1
3/G-major_e-minor.svg/100px-G-major_e-minor.svg.png
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Every key signature has either sharps or flats. The accidentals can make some key signatures

major or minor. Major keys sound happy, while minor keys sound sad. This system of

accidentals can be expressed through the circle of fifths (Example 1-5).

Example 1-5

The circle of fifths, these are major and minor key signatures.
Major keys are red, minor keys are blue.

Source: http://blogs.sbschools.org/fossamusic/files/2009/02/fifths2.gif
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Section 2

Rhythm

“Rhythm is a general term used to refer to the time aspect of music…” (Kostka 25).

Rhythm is a system of notes mathematically based. Each note is a subtraction/addition of half

the original. A few examples of notes are listed in the chart below (Example 2-1).

Example 2-1

Value Note

1 w
½ h
¼ q
1
/8 e
Dotted notes are seen often in music. A dotted note adds the duration one plus a half

the values of a note (Example 2-2).

Example 2-2

Equation Dotted Note

w +h w.
h+q h.
q +e q.
These are just a few examples of dotted notes. Here is one more complex example.

(Example 2-3).

Example 2-3

w + h + q = w..

(Makes a double dotted whole note)

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Notes not only are just put onto the staff but they also have to have a certain count. A

time signature is very useful in modern music. A time signature shows the meter of the piece.

Here is an example of some common time signatures (Example 2-4).

Example 2-4

Common Time signatures:

Source:
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/64/Common_ti
me_signatures.gif

“The upper number tells how many beats fall in a measure; the lower number tells what kind of

note gets the beat” (Kamien 40). This lets the musician count the notes and keep in beat.

Time signatures do not indicate if something is fast or slow. To indicate how fast

something is a musician must understand tempo, which tells the musician how fast something

is. To specifically indicate a tempo, the musician would look at the beginning of a piece to

understand it. This will most often be located at the left hand, top corner of the score. Here is a

list of simple tempo indications (Exampls 2-5)

Example 2-5
Term Meaning
Largo Very slow, broad
Grave Very slow, solemn
Adagio Slow
Andante Moderately slow, a walking pace
Moderato Moderate
Allegretto Moderately fast
Allegro Fast
Vivace Lively
Presto Very fast
Prestissimo As fast as possible
Source: Music: An Appreciation (Kamien 34)
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Section 3

Dynamics

“Dynamics denotes the degree of loudness or softness at which the music is played”

(Machlis 22). Dynamics let the musician know what notes/phrases to play loudly or softly. If the

instruments of an orchestra all played at different volumes the listener would not be able to

listen to the music easily. Here is a chart that includes some common dynamics and what they

mean (Example 3-1).

Example 3-1
Dynamic Meaning
Pianissimo pp Very Soft
Piano p Soft
Mezzo Piano mp Moderately soft
Mezzo Forte mf Moderately loud
Forte f Loud
Fortissimo ff Very loud

Other dynamics are not just symbols such as the symbols above, but can include

crescendos, decrescendo/diminuendo, or sforzandos. Crescendo means to “grow louder”.

Decrescendo/ Diminuendo means to “grow softer”. A sforzando is a sudden stress, and accent

of a single note or chord. The cresendos and decresendos look like the >, < signs. A sforzando is

abbreviated as sf. Here are the symbols (Example 3-2).

Example 3-2
Crescendo

Decrescendo/ Diminuendo

sforzando
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Section 4
Tone Color
Tone color is not music theory but is a very important aspect of the sound.
We can tell a trumpet from a flute even when they are playing the same tone at
the same dynamic level. The quality that distinguishes them – our third property
of sound – is called tone color or timbre (Pronounced tam’-ber). Tone color is
described by words like bright, dark, brilliant, mellow and rich (Kamien 5).
Different instruments can “open” different tone colors. “...specific instruments can reinforce a
melody’s emotional impact…” (Kaimen 5). Tone color is what makes songs emotional. Not only
do specific instruments make the music emotional but so does the whole band, ensemble, etc.
Some composers understand dynamics and tone color very well and others don’t. The
interpretation of music varies so much that sometimes the main idea of the song is lost. In
other words; tone color is what makes music happy or sad. Major and minor key signatures also
add to this effect (see Example 1-5 for circle of fifths major and minor).
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Section 5

Articulation

Some songs in music are very boring. These songs have no character. Other songs are up

beat, lively and have some very striking phrases. The part of music that can create this effect is

called articulation. Here are some articulations (Example 5-1).

Example 5-1
Example 5-1-1
Accents (Left to right: Staccato, stacatissimo, marcato, accent, tenuto)

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Accent_(music)
Example 5-1-2
Ornaments (Left to right: Trill, Mordent, turn)

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ornament_(music)

In music there are ornaments and accents. There is a difference in them even though

they are both articulations. Accents put a certain emphasis on a note. Ornaments change a note

and how that piece of music is played. Ornaments are note nessecary but give the music more

character. In orchestra music these articulations are seen much more than they would be in

church music.
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Section 6
Importance of Music
Music is a whole different system of thinking. Music gets the creative side of a person
out. To be creative, a person must not only know how to play or compose music, but they also
need to expression of one’s self in a controlled way. Music is a useful tool to let emotions flow
from one’s self in a controlled manner. Music is shown in religion and society.
Music is a talent that, no matter what, everyone and anyone can take part in. If the
average person reads in the bible (Ps. 96:2 New American Bible) “Sing to the LORD, bless his
name; announce his salvation day after day.” Saint Augustine says “He, who sings, prays twice.”
These quotes are both powerful words. Music is a form of praise to God, and as stated before
anyone can take part in it. Music plays an important role in religious history but what about
regular society?
In society music is ubiquitous. There are IPods, MP3 players, YouTube, radio, etc. Society
cannot get away from music. But what are the musicians adding? They are adding the music
entertainment to society. Let’s think about it; if all performers and composers gave up, would
society have the music? No, it would not because there would be no one to create it in the first
place, nobody would be there to provide the music. The job of a composer is not to give himself
pleasure, many times it is to give the general public pleasure, also for the composer to earn
money and live a comfortable lifestyle. Why is music unique?
With music you have many options, for example: on the piano a person can play
numerous songs and every song can be completely different some fast, slow, major, minor, etc.
In music nothing is ever the same.
What is makes music so popular to listen to, but rejected when it comes to the music
education? The simplest answer to the question is, it’s academic. Most people will think, “Music
isn’t going to help me in life.” Wrong! It is a huge part of our lives. “Sounds bombard our ears
every day… we need them to communicate” (Kamien 2).
In conclusion, to fully express one’s the academics of music are a vital piece of
information. With proper instruction of music education, music can be a lifelong passion. No
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person of 70 years old can play baseball or run track like they could when they were 20 years
old. Music is an experience that lasts a life time. When someone grows old and becomes out of
shape music is one of the few jobs that could support the person. Let music be like a second
language. Everyone has the potential to learn it, they just have to take the time.

“Music is the universal language of mankind.”

~Longfellow
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Bibliography
Kamien, R. (1998). Music: An Appreciation, Third Brief Edition. New York: McGraw Hill
Companies, Inc. Print.
Machlis, J. (1984). The Enjoyment of Music: An introduction to Perceptive Listening: Fifth Edition
Shorter. New York: W. W. Norton & Company. Print.
Stefan Kostka, D. P. (2004). Tonal Harmony: with an introduction to twentieth-century music,
fifth edition. New York: McGraw-Hill Companies, inc. Print.
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Images

Example 1-2. Lillian Cheng, K. B. (n.d.). Retrieved June 18, 2010, from Piano teacher Newcastle:
http://www.piano-teacher-
newcastle.com.au/modules/gallery/albums/piano_teacher_newcastle_trebleclef
stave/img/piano_teacher_newastle_trebleclefstave
Example 1-4. http://wpcontent.answers.com/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/13/G-major_e-
minor.svg/100px-G-major_e-minor.svg.png
Example 1-5. http://blogs.sbschools.org/fossamusic/files/2009/02/fifths2.gif
Example 2-4.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/64/Common_time_signatures.gif
Example 3-2. http://www.mymusictheory.com/grade1/lessons/16_dynamics.html
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5f/Music-sforzando.png
Example 5-1-1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Accent_(music)
Example 5-1-2. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ornament_(music)