Elements of Music

Imitation

Imitation is when one instrument or voice plays a tune that has just been played by another. For example, a flute may imitate a tune just played by the oboe.

Sometimes imitations can contain slight changes to the tune, to make it more interesting. These changes might be :

• changes in octave. It could be played higher or lower.
• adding ornaments.
• playing at a different speed.

Riff, ostinato and loop

These three words mean the same thing. 'Ostinato' is more often used when describing serious (classical and some world and folk) music. 'Riff' is more often used when describing pop music and 'Loop' is used in Techno or modern dance music.

A Riff or ostinato is a repeated pattern of notes.

Breaks and fill-ins

A break or fill-in is when the drums play a short solo. They may do this for one of several reasons, eg

• To signal the beginning of a chorus, verse or section change.
• at the beginning of the drum part to announce their entry.
• to highlight something in the music, such as important lyrics.

Sequences

A sequence is a pattern of notes which goes up or down in pitch every time it is repeated. Sequences can be divided between instruments.

Ornaments

Ornaments are embellishments to a melody. The most common ornaments are trills and mordents. Other ornaments include acciaccaturas, appoggiaturas and turns.

Improvisation

Improvising is when a player makes up the music on the spot. It is common in jazz, popular, folk and world music.

Sometimes the musician uses the notes of a scale to improvise on, such as the blues scale or pentatonic scale.

Often, in a pop song, there will be a long improvised solo on a guitar or keyboard between verses. Jazz and blues music often contains a lot of improvisation in the form of both solos and tutti passages.

Drone

A drone is usually formed by two notes a 5th apart. For example, the notes C and G are a 5th apart.

Bagpipes always create a drone sound as an accompaniment, but drones can also be heard in early music and music from other cultures.

Pedal and ground bass

A pedal is a single note that is held on or repeated in the bass. The chords above the bass may change, but the bass note stays the same.

The term pedal comes from the days when the bass notes would be played by the pedals on an organ.

'Ground bass' is the term used in Baroque music where a bass part is repeated over and over again.

Where an ostinato pattern might be very short, a ground bass can last many bars before it is repeated.

Intervals

An interval is the distance between two notes. The smallest interval is a semitone. This is the distance between, for example C and C#.

Chords

In any major key, the 1st, 4th and 5th chords are all major. In the key of C, these are the chords of C, F and G.

All the rest are minor, except chord 7 (the notes B D F) which is diminished.

rds have notes that clash with each other. These are called discords.

Discords are often used in 20th and 21st century music and in film music to create special effects.

Phrasing

A phrase is like a musical sentence. When you talk, you take a breath after a sentence. With a musical phrase, you can almost hear a breath at the end of the phrase even when the music is played by non-wind instruments.

Cadences

A cadence is formed by two chords at the end of a passage of music.

Perfect cadences sound like the music has come to an end:

Interrupted cadences are 'surprise' cadences. You think you are going to hear a perfect cadence, but you get a minor chord instead:

Imperfect cadences sound unfinished. They sound like they want to carry on to complete the music properly:

Plagal cadences sound finished. The two chords have one note in common. Plagal cadences are often used at the end of hymns and sung to A-men

Tonality

The character of a piece of music is related to its key centre or tonality. For example, Major keys often sound happy and optimistic:

Whereas Minor keys sound sad and pessimistic:

Atonal music does not have a key centre and contains a lot of chromaticism - extensive use of sharps, flats and naturals to 'bend' it away from its key signature:

Modal music does have a key centre. Some modes make the music feel oriental or ethnic, such as this traditional Egyptian dance. Early music may also use modes such as the Aeolian mode (beginning on A) or the Dorian mode (beginning on D):

Articulation

Articulation is how smoothly or 'spiky' something is played.

Legato (Italian for 'linked together') means played smoothly.

Staccato (Italian for 'detached') means played short and sharp, and is indicated by short vertical strokes or dots above or below the note.