Intro (1/10)

The summer is here.  Every June, my employment status as a piano teacher goes from part-time to less, which usually results in some sort of crisis.  Last summer I lent myself out to medical experiments, and the summer before that I went through bartending school.  The inability to flirt and a lack of experience in the industry resulted in a net financial loss.  This summer, I will blog a textbook instead.  This is for everybody who never took a music course as a freshman.  Mom.

The Enjoyment of Music
by Joseph Machlis and Kristine Forney

Summarized by Yours truly with references from
Secret Lives of Great Composers
by Elizabeth Lunday

I:  The Elements of Music

     The term pitch describes how high or low a note is.  Intervals measure the distances between pitches.  For example, a very high note and a very low note are separated by a large interval.  The melody is the most important line in music, characterized by pitches and intervals.  Supporting pitches that occur simultaneously with the melody are called harmony.  Rhythm organizes music in time.  Textures describe how these elements are combined.  Form is the organization of music, built upon repetition, contrast, and variation.  Expressive markings that describe speed or character are tempo markings, and those that describe volume are called dynamics.

II:  Musical Instruments

     Timbre or tone color describes the sound produced by different instruments.  Sound is produced through vibrations in the air called sound waves.  Aerophones are instruments that use air to produce vibrations, whereas chordophones use strings.  Percussion instruments that produce sound from themselves, such as the cymbals, are known as idiophones.  Those that have a tightly stretched membrane, like the drums, are known as membranophones.
     String instruments include the violin, viola, cello, double bass, and guitar.  Woodwinds are not necessarily made of wood, and examples include piccolo, flute, oboe, English horn, clarinet, bassoon, and saxophone.  Brass instruments such as the trumpet, French horn, trombone, and tuba have cup-shaped mouth pieces.
     The best instrument ever invented is the piano.  Not closely related is the electric piano.

III:  Ensembles

     Ensembles are performance groups.  Choirs are small group of singers; larger groups are called choruses.  Chamber ensembles have one instrument on each part and range from two to twelve players.  Common chamber ensembles are duos with piano, trios, quartets, and quintets.  In contrast, symphony orchestras are quite large and often require more than one hundred members.  Symphony orchestras have string, woodwind, brass, and percussion sections.  Bands describe many types of ensembles, but most feature winds and percussion.  Concert bands or wind ensembles range from forty to eighty members.

MUSICAL STYLES IN HISTORY:

Middle Ages/Early Christian: 400-600

Middle Ages/Gregorian Chant: 600-850

Middle Ages/Romanesque: 850-1150

Middle Ages/Gothic: 1150-1450

Renaissance: 1450-1600

Baroque: 1600-1750

Rococo: 1725-1775

Classical: 1750-1825

Romantic: 1820-1900

Post-Romantic and Impressionist: 1890-1915

Twentieth Century: 1900-2000

Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra

Variations and Fugue on a Theme of Purcell

Final Movement: Fugue

By Benjamin Britten

Performed by Edna Everage, John Lanchbery, and the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra