music & dance

• Music


  The art of arranging sounds in rhythmic succession and generally in combination
• Music


  The organization of sound through a musical composition, sometimes aided by musical instruments
• Music


  • Identified as the second category of sound a child relates to, after the voices of the parents
• In 1930's


  Music started to make a change wherein pitch, timbre and harmony were incorporated, which we call 'perceptual element'
• Elements of music

  • Pitch
  • Rhythm
  • Timbre
  • Texture
  • Melody
  • Tempo
  • Dynamics
• Pitch


  Frequency of the note's vibration (note names C, D, E, etc.); also what we sometimes refer to as register (highness and lowness of the sound). Organization of pitches with a pattern of intervals between them creates scales: words we might use to describe scales: major/minor, chromatic, gapped, and pentatonic.
• Rhythm


  Organization of music in time. Also closely related to meter. A specific rhythm is a specific pattern in time: we usually hear these in relation to a steady pulse, and mentally organize this pulse or tempo into meter (sometimes called a 'time signature"). Meter organizes beats into groups, usually of two or three: beats can be divided into small units usually 2, 3, or 4 subdivisions
• Timbre


  Sound quality or tone color; characteristic that allows us to distinguish between one instrument and another or identity one singer from another. This element is the tone color of a sound resulting from the overtones. Each voice has a unique tone color that is described using adjectives or metaphors such as "nasally", "resonant", "vibrant", "strident", "high", "low", "breathy", "piercing", "ringing", "rounded", "warm", "mellow", "dark", "bright", "heavy", "light", "vibrato".
• Texture


  Pertains to the density (thickness or thinness) of layers of sounds, melodies, and rhythms in a piece: e.g., a complex orchestral composition will have more possibilities for dense textures than a song accompanied only by guitar or piano.
• Most common types of texture:

  1. Monophony: A single layer of sound, e.g. a solo voice
  2. Homophony: A melody with an accompaniment, e.g.. a lead singer and a band; a singer and a guitar or piano accompaniment; etc
  3. Polyphony: Two or more independent voices, e.g., a round or fugue.
• Melody


  Succession of musical notes; a series of pitches often organized into phrases
• Melody


  • It is sometimes referred to as the musical line, which is a combination of pitch and rhythm
  • It is sometimes a theme of a composition
  • It can be characterized by its contour (rising or falling)
  • It can be characterized by the size of the intervals in it
• Conjunct melody


  A melody that uses mostly small intervals (or scale steps) and is smooth
• Disjunct melody


  A melody that uses large intervals
• Motif (or motive)


  A very short melody or a distinctive part of a longer melody
• Tempo


  Beats per minute; how fast, medium, or slow a piece of music is played or sung
• Dynamics


  Volume (also known as the "amplitude") - how loud, soft, medium, gradually getting louder or softer (crescendo, decrescendo)
• Dance


  The movement of the body in a rhythmic way, usually to music and within a given space, for the purpose of expressing an idea or emotion, releasing energy, or simply taking delight in the movement itself
• The two concepts of dance

  • Dance as a powerful impulse
  • Dance as a skillfully choreographed art practiced largely by a professional few
• Elements of dance

  • Theme
  • Movement
  • Music
  • Spectacle
• Theme


  The story where it conveys or evokes emotions. It is the basic element that conveys a message.
• Classical ballet themes


  • Romantic stories about mythical characters and situations
• Modern dance concert themes

  • Folklore and poetry as well as current events and social problems
• Movement


  The fundamental element of dance. Dancers can externalize an inner state or condition and communicate with the audience through movements. It results from the need to express an emotional or physical state of condition. It occurs in space and must convey a certain kind of quality that is purposive. It involves the dancers' techniques on how they execute actions or body gestures and facial expressions.
• Music


  The background which dancers would rhythmically portray with their movements. The music must relate to the theme of the dance in order to portray the full meaning of the art form.
• Spectacle


  The ability to create an impact on the audience by sequencing the movements and music it creates. Spectacle would also pertain to what the audience could see apart from movements, such as costumes, props, backdrops, and lighting.