Dynamics is the term used to refer to the amount of loudness in music. In printed music the markings for dynamics are indicated by symbols that are abbreviations for Italian words. The illustration (below) shows the range of dynamics, the markings that are used and the Italian words that they represent.
Sometimes the word volume is used for dynamics. Technically speaking, however, the correct term is dynamics.
Beyond the basic dynamic levels, the sound may gradually change in the process of singing or playing a song or other musical work. When a singer gradually gets louder it is referred to as a crescendo. When a singer becomes gradually softer (decreases) the result is called a decrescendo. Again, these are musical terms using the Italian language.
Timbre relates to the various tone qualities of instruments and voices. Tone quality is effected by the quantity and strength of the partials in the overtone series. For instance, you are able to recognize someone's voice on the telephone because you have become familiar with the timbre of their voice and the pitch at which they tend to speak.
About now you may be asking yourself, what is meant by “partials in the overtone series?” Explaining partials in the overtone series can get to be quite lengthy. The explanation that follows is rather brief. It is accompanied by an illustration which may be more meaningful to you.
A sound or tone is produced when the air around an object is set in motion. Typically, in musical instruments this involves the vibrating of a string or a column of air (like in a band instrument). When the air is set in motion in is deflected by the materials around it or the materials from which it is made (as in the case of a string on a guitar or violin). The fundamental tone that is produced is the lowest vibrating frequency we can hear. At the same time we hear the fundamental tone we also hear parts of other tones above it. Depending on how strongly those other tones are produced (overtones) helps in defining the general timbre of the sound.
In the human voice it can be explained this way. The vocal chords set the air in motion so that a fundamental pitch is produced. It vibrates at a certain frequency. The size of the person, the thickness of the walls of the throat, the length of the esophagus, the shape and size of the sinuses, the shape of the lips, etc. accounts for the timbre of our voices. The column of air set in motion by our vocal chords passes up the esophagus on it’s way through the mouth and past the lips. In the process, other tones (overtones) are also put in motion. What we actually hear as one “tone” is actually the presences of several tones that make up the characteristic (timbre) of a person’s voice.
Below is an illustration of a fundamental tone (the low “C”) and the series of overtones above it.
Another way of explaining overtones is as follows. An overtone is a resonant frequency higher than the fundamental frequency. Still, another explanation is this: Tones of higher pitch that are present in every musical sound and whose presence determines the quality of the musical sound.
Organizing the Primary Elements
My Rule # 3 about music states: “The three, primary elements of music are melody, harmony and rhythm; without these the sounds and silences make little sense.” In music it is possible to talk about the melody of a song. It is also possible to talk about the harmonies in a tune. And, it is equally easy to discuss the rhythms of a musical work. In talking about melody it is possible to discuss how the tune moves about in steps, skips, and/or jumps (leaps). In discussing harmony one may speak about the consonant and dissonant sounds produced and how these sounds are placed in relationship to each other. In referring to rhythm it is possible to state whether it is fast or slow and whether it is made up of duple or triple meter.
When discussing the elements of music separately or collectively the following three concepts are universally used. In other words, it is possible to talk about the primary elements using words to describe how the elements are organized. In essence, there are three techniques deployed in almost every composition. If I had a Rule #4 what follows would be that rule.
The organizational techniques implemented in composing music are:
The organizational techniques implemented in composing music are:
- Repetition – the same musical material is repeated
- Variation – the musical material is similar but varied
- Contrast – the musical material is very different or opposite in some way
Finally, when the melodies, harmonies and rhythms are arranged using the techniques of repetition, variation or contrast we end up with a particular musical work. The manner in which the music is arranged can be analyzed to determine its form or structure.
We, as humans, tend to like some type of structure in whatever we do. In football the structure is the “play” that is practiced and then implemented during a game. The same goes in basketball; the players need to understand what structure under which they play and the roles they are to assume relative to their positions if they are to perform as a team. Of course, in architecture it is rather obvious to see and understand that there is a form to a structure. Without form or design of the structures in which we live and would might prove to be without benefit and, of course, teams wouldn't have a winning strategy.
The same is true in music. Our songs tend to take on a certain form or structure. In fact, there are many forms that can be used. Once such form that’s rather common in concert music is the concerto. A concerto features a soloist accompanied by an orchestra. The concerto itself is commonly made up of a few movements. In a three-movement concerto the middle movement is generally slow while the first and third movements a normally fast.
In class we viewed the second movement of a concerto for guitar and orchestra by Joachin Rodrigo. I pointed out how the concerto utilized repetition, variation and contrast. Another You Tube video may be viewed here.
Mozart, a musical genius, composed many concertos for a variety of instruments and orchestra. The following video is the third (final) movement of his Concerto for Violin #3. This video was recorded in Korea. Listen for the points where there is repetition, variation and contrast. Notice also that the cadenza in this work is rather brief. It begins about 5:12 into the video. The cadenza, based on the explanation given at Wikipedia, “is … an improvised or written-out ornamental passage played or sung by a soloist … usually in a ‘free’ rhythmic style, and often allowing for virtuosic display.”
Prof. Songer,
JCTC - Downtown
