Music For Voices

Tonality-


Whether the piece is in a Major, Minor, Atonal or Modal.
Major- More happy feel.
Minor- Depressing.
Atonal- All over the place.
Modal- A form of scale that a lot of traditional folk songs are written in.


Male Voies choir include- Tenor, Baritone, Bass and Counter Tenor.


Types of Music

Madrigal-

·     For between 6 and 7 voices.

·     Non-religious songs, just about normal every day life.

·     Do not have any instrumental accompaniment.

·     Copying of melody and lyrics between different voices.

·     Could be all female, or male and female. It is unlikely to hear a madrigal with all male vocalists.

·     Melisma- when you have lots of notes on for a one syllable word.

·     If you hear “Fa la la la” its usually madrigal.

Choral Music-

·     Refers to choirs- a large number of people all singing together.

·     Could be a SSA choir (an all female choir). A three part harmony.

·     Male voice choirs are more famous in Wales.

·     Also an SATB choir, mixed voice choir.

·     They can be singing a song made for a choir, like a pop song. But they could be singing as a bigger piece, like in a symphony or a oratorio.

World Music-

Indian Music

·     Tabla- A pair of Indian drums, they aren’t joined together. There are 3 different playing areas on the table. There are also 3 ways you can play the drum either with playing it with your finger tips, with the palm of you hands of your whole hand.

·     Very complex and very fast.

·     Tambura- an Indian version of a base guitar, not electric. Simply plays a drone, you play a note then twang it and that’s all you do for the whole song, like a bass line. very boring.

·     Sitar- The melody instrument for Indian music, and Indian version of a guitar, pluck instead of string, two different sets of strings. You pluck the main ones which set of the ‘sympathetic’ strings underneath, if you are a very good player of it you can play the sympathetic strings.

·     Indian songs have Rags/Ragas, which is the Indian scale or key. They only play some certain Rags in the morning or evening. The songs are referred to as Rags as well. “Have you heard the new Rag?”

·     Indian Flutes, they are wooden, but they sound pretty much the same.

·     Alap- A slow section of a Raga. Very slow and boring.

·     Gat- Fast section of a Raga.

·     Bhangra- Indian pop music, upbeat and Indians usually dance to it.

African Music-

·     Mostly made from wood and natural products.

·     Djembe- A talking drum.

·     Dunun- A classic African drum.

·     Polyrhythm- A rhythm with lots of different rhythms played together and over each other.

·     Chanting- Everybody singing the same thing with each other.

·     Call and Response- One person sings a line and everybody else responds with a different phrase.

·     A Capella- Singing unaccompanied. 

Music For Voices

Pop Ballad

A ballad is a form of slow emotional love song, often a narrative set to music. Often  accompanied by Keyboard and Guitar. Basic verse chorus structure. 

Christina Aguilera- Beautiful is a very popular Pop Ballad.

Westlife- Flying Without Wings.

Folk Song

A song that originates in traditional popular culture or that is written in such a style.

 Often has a very simple stringed accompaniment usually on guitar.

 Sometimes folk songs are sung a cappella with no instruments at all. 

Usually verse after verse, as it is telling a story, doesn't usually have a chorus.

The lyrics tend to tell a story, sometimes the story they tell are political.

Dubliners- The Irish Rover

An example of an British Isles Folk song.

Bob Dylan- Lily, Rosemary and The Jack of Hearts.

An example of an American Folk Song.

Madrigal

A part-song for several voices, no more than six singers.

Without instrumental accompaniment. Not religious it is secular.

A form of vocal Chamber Music, which originated in Northern Italy. Popular in the 1400's.