RTA 180 Study Guide - Fall 2018, Comprehensive Midterm Notes -
12 Oct 2018
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RTA 180
MIDTERM EXAM
STUDY GUIDE
Fall 2018
Group #1
Pitch: how high or low a musical sound is
Note: how the pitch is labelled
Interval: distance between two notes
Disjunct: a piece that has a series of large intervals
Conjunct: a piece that has a series of small intervals
Perfect unison (P1): the same note repeated
Octave: perfect eighth (same note an octave higher)
Perfect 5th: notes five spaces apart on a keyboard (doh to soh)
Minor 2nd: half step/half tone/semitone (notes a half step apart)
Microtones: units smaller than halftones
Rhythm: the organization of musical sound as it occurs in time
Beat: musical time also referred to as a pulse
Meter: regular pattern of strong and weak beats
Syncopation: used to contradict the given pulse by creating accents on weak beats or between
beats
Tempo: speed at which musical sound occurs measured in beats per minute
Quarter note: two eighth notes, half of a half note
Half note: two quarter notes
Whole note: two half notes, 4 quarter notes
Eighth note: two sixteenth notes, half of a quarter note
***in essays notate melodies
Melody: a succession of single pitches, often the most prominent piece of the music
Melodic contour: the shape of the melodic line. Does it ascend or descend, stay level? Move in
steps of intervals (jump around or stay close in interval)? Contouring can shape the tone of the
piece
Phrase: a grouping of notes that end in a rest
Cadence: the end of a phrase
Open cadence: phrases that sound incomplete at their end (question mark, comma)
Closed cadence: phrases that sound clear and complete at their end (exclamation point)
Affect: emotional response elicited by the piece of music, or an element within it, such as the
melody
, a common affect can be experienced by diverse groups
“Doctrine of the Affections”: a system of cataloguing musical devices according to the
emotional response such melodic, harmonic, rhythmic or timbral compositional components
would stimulate a listener. Doctrine was crafted during the Baroque era (1600-1750), the theory
of emotional manipulation through musical gesture dates back thousands of years.
Leitmotif: a musical unifying device, usually a brief melody, which represents a character,
significant object, or place in a narrative
Key Centre: the main note or pitch to which 7 other notes or pitches are related to. In western
music, there are 24 key centres. Several key centres can occur in one piece of music.
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Incorporating a note from one key center into another is what often makes for interesting
melodies.
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
Counterpoint imitation: the presence of two or more equal melodies (can be sung in a round) Credited for blueprint of music to match actions. One of his most famous operas ride of the valkyries. Production: actual practicing and molding the show post -production: when the music gets added and edits are made. Source/diegetic music: music you hear eminating from a source within the picture (trumpet player in the movie=source music, band in a film, radio ) non-diagetic/underscore: music that accompanies the film (not in the scene) ***music is there to help the film (one of the parts to help the whole) Thomas edison: i wanted to do for the eye what the phonograph does for the ear . Comes from the darker regions of the mind. Music incorporates adaptations (takes already composed orchestral work and adapts it to the score) Pg 80 of textbook for reference *** use for essay reference ***
