ANTH 205 / MUH 205 Music in World Cultures

Elements of Music
Acoustics
Acoustics the scientific study of sound / a branch of Physics
Sound Waves pure wave (tone) / chaotic wave (noise)
Amplitude (decibels) = wave size / Dynamics (loud & soft)
Frequency (cycles) = wave speed / Pitch (high & low)
Duration = wave length / Rhythm (long & short)
Overtones = wave quality / Timbre (pure & complex)
Rhythm
Rhythm a sequence of sounds and silences of different durations in musical
time / when a sound happens (musical time) & how long it lasts (duration)
Pulse / Beat the basic underlying unit of musical time
Tempo the speed of the basic pulse
Meter a recurring pattern of weak & strong pulses
Meter Types Duple (2) / Triple (3) / Additive (2+3) / Non-metric (pulseless)
Metric Subdivision Simple (2) / Compound (3)
Syncopation a reversal of normal pattern of weak & strong pulses
Pitch
Pitch Names letters, numbers & syllables / accidentals
Interval the distance between two pitches / Melodic & Harmonic
Intervals Types octave (simplest ratio 2:1) / twelve parts (chromatic scale) /
whole-step & half-step / micro-tones
Register pitch range or level
Scale a set of pitches
Scale classification size (quantity) / mode (quality & shape)
Size Types pentatonic (five notes) / hexatonic (six notes) / heptatonic (seven
notes) / octatonic (eight notes)
Mode Types Major & Minor (Western) / Maqam (Arabic) / Raga (Indian)
Key the basic tonality & modality of a musical piece
Tonality a central pitch (Tonic) in a scale / the tonic gives the other notes in
scale a sense of order and function
Modality the mode of a scale / quality & character
Modulation a shift or change in the tonality or modality of a musical piece
Melody
Melody a sequence of pitches of different durations in musical time
Motive (Motif) a fragment of a melodic or rhythmic sequence
Phrase a larger subsection of a melody / antecedent & consequence
Cadence a pause or stopping point in a melody / full cadence & half
cadence
Song a melody with words

Harmony
Harmony the interaction between two or more notes sounded
simultaneously / Consonance (rest) / Dissonance (tension)
Chord two or more notes sounded simultaneously
Chord Progression a recurring sequence of chords that provides harmonic
accompaniment for a melody
Texture
Texture the weaving together of various elements (melody & harmony) into a
musical piece / the number of melodic lines played at one time (one or
two/more) with or without harmonic accompaniment
Texture Types
Monophony = single melody without harmonic accompaniment
Polyphony = two or more melodic lines played simultaneously
Homophony = single melody with harmonic accompaniment
Heterophony = two or more versions of a single melody played
simultaneously
Form
Form the structure of a musical piece / blue print & road map
Elements of Form Repetition (AAA) / Variation (A1A2A3) / Contrast (ABC)
Timbre
Timbre / Tone Color the characteristic sound or tone color of an instrument or
voice / sonic thumbprint shaped by overtone series (strong & weak partials
above the fundamental pitch)
Organology the study of musical instruments / instrument classification
systems based on various elements (e.g., sound production, material
construction & performance context)
Sachs-Hornbostel Instrument Classification System
Aerophones (wind) = sound produced by vibrating column of air / basic
aerophones = flutes, reeds & trumpets
Chordophones (string) = sound produced by vibrating string / basic
chordophones = lutes, harps, lyres & zithers / fretted & fretless
Idiophones (substance itself) = instrument itself vibrates to create sound /
basic idiophones = plucked (lamellophone), struck & shaken
Membranophones (skin) = sound produced by vibrating membrane /
drums
Corpophones (human body) = sound produced by human body
Electronophones (electricity) = sound produced electronically
Mechanophones (machine) = sound produced mechanically