Musc 200 1st Edition Lecture 3 Outline of Last Lecture I Song Plugging II Economics of TPA III TPA and New Media Technology a Cylinder records b Radio c Movies IV Musical Style in TPA Outline of Current Lecture I African American Music II Musical Styles a Instrumentation b Song over singer c Melody and Harmony d Rhythm e Lyrics f Song length g Form i Verse Chorus form III Verse Chorus Structure IV Changes in TPA V Listening 1 Current Lecture African American Music 1890s white people were not aware of music made by African Americans o Took several years for new styles to catch on in the white population o First a small group of whites would start listening o Some people would freak out about it o They would realize there was nothing wrong with it and elements of African American music made their way into TPA ragtime blues jazz R B These notes represent a detailed interpretation of the professor s lecture GradeBuddy is best used as a supplement to your own notes not as a substitute Musical Styles Instrumentation set of instruments or voices used in a particular song o Emphasis on song over singer o Money was made by selling sheet music o Singers were simply a delivery mechanism o Multiple versions interpretations of the same song sung by different singers would play on the radio Melody notes in a series the part of a song that is sung o TPA Instrumentation vocals accompanied by a piano or a small orchestra TPA Early Melodies simple memorable and singable melodies mostly in the major scale Harmony notes at the same time in chords o TPA Early Harmonies straightforward basic chords of the major scale Main singer sings melody back up singes sing harmony Rhythm temporal dimension how notes are arranged with respect to time o TPA Early Rhythm not much percussion had regular pulses not highly rhythmic o 1920s some songs now had drum kits had a regular danceable beat business man s bounce smooth light beat rhythmic texture Lyrics Song Texts the words in a song o TPA 1890s formal poetic not everyday speech o TPA joined with Vaudeville romantic everyday speech o 1920s 30s wordplay played with the language using poetic devices but using everyday speech See Changes in TPA for more info Length of Songs shrinks over time o 1890s up to 4 5 minutes o 3 minute pop song became the standard See Changes in TPA for more info Form how a piece is organized across the entire span of music o TPA zeroed in on one form that already existed and made it their focus o Verse Chorus Form TPA made it their defining mark Intro prepares draws the listener in quite short Radio made intros especially significant because listeners had the opportunity to switch the channel if they didn t like what was playing So a strong opener was important to grab people s interest Verse In a narrative song tells a story each verse tells a different episode or part of the story o In a lyric song explores a theme each verse gives a different illustration of the theme o Example Ironic by Alanis Morissette Every verse has the same melody but different words o Example basically any love song Could be in a different key the tonic center of the melody Bridge takes the song from the verse to the chorus The bridge could have the same or different lyrics Bridges act as transitions musicians often add novelty elements here change key modulation add new instruments drop instruments out etc Chorus In a narrative song the chorus focuses on a single theme that ties the song story together In a lyric song the chorus articulates the central theme If there were background singers they would sing only during the chorus Every chorus has the same melody and words o Again could be in a different key Outro a short piece ending the song giving the listener a clear sense of closure Hook a small unit of musical material that can happen anywhere in the song Can be anywhere from 2 8 notes either vocal or instrumental though vocal is much more common The purpose of hooks is to stick in your head earworm and make you remember the song hooks sell songs Hooks often appear in the chorus because the intensity level is higher so listeners are paying more attention There can be many hooks in one song but the best hook is in the chorus o No hook in the chorus song won t get much attention TPA figured that out and their form and structure was driven by the desire to sell music and get money The Verse Chorus form is a delivery mechanism for the hook Examples o Vocal don t stop believing somebody that I used to know o Instrumental guitar in Smoke On the Water Verse Chorus Structure I V B1 C B2 V B1 C B2 V B1 C O Bridges B1 and B2 are not required Not all songs have a bridge B2 going from the chorus C to the verse V Could have a bridge going from intro I to verse or from final chorus to outro O While this is a simple structure musicians began to play with it and vary it to make it more interesting o Example some 70s rock artists would drop the first chorus starting out with an intro and two verses This teased the listener by building up to a chorus but then not delivering it until later o Some musicians cut out the intro o Some make the third verse instrumental only o Some have a series of choruses at the end before the outro Intensity Level not tied to one feature of sound o Increase intensity by getting louder adding more instruments changing the tempo etc o Intensity builds up through the verse to the chorus where the best hook is drops down builds up etc until the final chorus es build it up one last time before the outro closes it out Changes in TPA 1890s 3 verse songs up to 5 minutes in length 1910s 20s slow death of the verse songs changed to only have 1 2 verses and by the end of the 1920s many songs were just a string of choruses o Why cylinder records could only record about 2 5 3 minutes of a song so verses had to be dropped Choruses had to stay because they deliver the hook 1920s new style of singing emerged due to technological advances in microphones o Previously Vaudeville singers were known as belters they had to project and sing very loudly to be heard over the orchestra o Crooning developed due to the creation of microphones allowing singers to sing in a soft intimate and romantic way Late 1920s 40s lyric change o Lyrics turned from formal to everyday language o Witty and employed the use of poetic devices o Portrayed the image of wealthy glamorous urbane and sophisticated young people TPA Melody and Harmony progressed from simple in the 1890s and 1910s