Music Research Project

Elements in Music - What are the different elements of music?
It doesn’t matter what country or race you belongs to, there must be an appreciation or love for some genre of music. When we listen to our favourite style of music it definitely has some physical and emotional effect on us. But do we take time to identify the different components that exist in all the different styles of music we listen to?
The music we love listening to has special pack of ingredient which is referred to as musical elements. Today we will look at some of the main elements of music and what they mean to us as listeners.
Some of the main elements of music are rhythm, timbre/instrumentation, melody, harmony, texture, musical form, genre/style, pitch, tempo and articulation.
Rhythm
Rhythm is one of the most important elements of music. According to Roger Kamien in his book, Music: An Appreciation (4th Edition), Rhythm is the flow of music through time; the pattern of durations of notes and silences in music. So therefore rhythm is an arrangement of sounds and silences to create specific musical patterns during a particular time or duration. Rhythm also includes beat, meter, accent, syncopation and tempo.
Timbre/Instrumentation
Timbre (which is pronounced tam’-ber) refers to the quality of sound that differentiate one from another. We are able to identify a trumpet different from a saxophone in music because of the timbre or tone colour of the instrument.
Instrumentation includes the wide variety of musical instruments that exist based on an era and culture of the composer. All musical instruments have its purpose and time in music. Some categories of musical instruments are; voice, brass, keyboard, electronic (electrophone), percussion, strings and woodwind.
Melody
Melody is a series of notes that are place at different pitch creating a tune. When you hear a saxophone playing “Marry had a Little Lamb” you will recognize the song because of the tune or melody. A good melody has a beginning, development and an ending. Some important aspects of melody are tonality (the key of the music), intervals, phrasing, articulation and cadence.
Harmony
Harmony refers to harmonic notation that accompanies the melody of a song. For example; when an individual is singing and the piano is playing in the background supporting the soloist, the piano that accompanies the singer is creating harmony. One interrelated aspect of harmony is chords. A chord includes three or more notes playing at the same time. Harmony can be created by other musical instruments even voices.
Texture
According to Roger Kamien in his book, Music: An Appreciation (4th Edition), texture refers to how many different layers of sound are heard at once, whether they are melody or harmony, and how they are related to each other. Monophonic, polyphonic and homophonic are three popular textures that can be identified easily in music.
Musical Form
Most music that we listen to is designed so that we can identify the verses and chorus. Musical Form is the way in which a musical piece is structured or designed. In musical form music can have repetition, contrast and variation. There are different types of form; however, two popular types of forms are Three Part (Ternary) ABA and Two Part (Binary) AB.
Genre/Style
Genre/Style simply refers to the type of music. The types of music are based on culture and geographical location. Some genres of music are; Hip hop, R&B, Souls ballad, Reggae, Rock and Gospel.
Dynamics, Pitch, Tempo and Articulation
Dynamics, pitch, tempo and articulation can be classified as part of the expressive features in music.
Dynamics is how soft or loud the music is.
Pitch is the highness and lowness of sound in music.
Tempo refers to the speed of the music, how fast or slow the music is been played.
Articulation refers to how notes in music are been played. Notes can be played short and detached (staccato) and smooth flowing into each other (legato).

Cite: Google.com. Music Lessons Revealing all the areas in music. Monday, 13 June 2011. Elements of Music. What are the different elements of music?. Web.
1. musiclessoncentre.blogspot.com/.../elements-in-music-what-are-different....‎
Cached
Similar
Jun 13, 2011 - But do we take time to identify the different components that exist in all ... of the main elements of music and what they mean to us as listeners.

Big 6 Elements of Music
The Big 6 Elements of Music
Rhythm
(Time Signature) the interference of sound against an underlying pulse
(background beat)
Melody
(Key Signature)
# = sharp b = flat two or more notes (pitches) arranged in a particular order
Roadmap
(Form, Layout, Architecture) the plan or organization of a piece of music
Tempo
(Speed) how fast or slow a piece of music is performed
Dynamic
(Volume) how loud or soft a piece of music is performed
Articulation
(Emphasis)

the distinct pronunciation of each note, how each note is performed

1. studentweb.region10ct.org/groups/dconroy/wiki/afb91/‎
Cached
Similar
Sep 7, 2012 - of a piece of music. Tempo. (Speed). how fast or slow a piece of music is performed. Dynamic. (Volume). how loud or soft a piece of music is ...

Professor
ENC 1101 2:00-3:15pm
9 September 2011
River Flows In You: Yiruma
“River Flows In You” by the South Korean composer Yiruma is a calming and beautiful contemporary classical melody. The song is presented very simply, a single artist with a piano, but this simplicity effectively reaches the audience and creates for them a mood and background to the song. In essence, this work is a love story that is translated into a romantic refrain that combines the use of the senses and dynamics to convey the feeling of the melody.
Like many other pieces of classical music, when words are not there to convey emotion the composer wishes the audience to rely on their senses and the feelings that come to when listening to their piece of work. In this piece Yiruma’s melody taps into the senses by giving images of beauty and safety to the audience. When listening to the melody a warmth is felt throughout the entirety of the piece. This warmth is directly related to the theme of love that most audience members feel. The tune conjures up images that relate to love, whether it be a romance between a woman and a man, a widowed lover remembering a moment with their lost loved one, or a mother for her son. The tune is the exact mixture of love and loss in a set of notes repeated in phrases and can be interpreted into the many different forms of love that a person feels. Because the song is an instrumental piece the listener must use their own lyrics that they feel as well as the composer’s tools to translate the meaning of the song.
In this piece of music Yiruma relies heavily on the use of dynamics throughout the work. The calm feeling that settles the audience in the beginning of the song is created by the slow tempo and as the song progresses the tempo then increases to a slight climax before going back to its original pace. This use of dynamics in the tempo sets the mood for the entire song, starting with a calmness that relaxes the listener, then as the tempo... [continues]
CITE: "River Flows in You-Yiruma" StudyMode.com. 10 2012. 2012. 10 2012 .

Dynamics – At the beginning of the piece its supposed to be played quite softly, my sheet music says ‘mezzo piano’. The piece gets louder and louder in a gradual crescendo and then roughly two minutes through (depending on how slowly or quickly you play it) there is a diminuendo, which is emphasized by the change from arpeggios to chords in the bass part.

Tempo – It starts off quite slowly and then picks up on the second line and continues at that speed until the quavers in the right hand begin giving the piece a slightly faster feel. Then it slows down again and in a similar time frame picks up again until it drops back to a very slow ending.

Form - After a 4-measure introduction, a theme is presented. This theme is played over a 2-measure ostinato bass, consisting of the chords F# minor, D major, A major, and E major.

Texture – The texture is maximized and minimized by the bass part. At the more textured parts the bass part plays arpeggios of the chords, and in the more minimal sections the bass part is simply just the chords.

Harmony – ‘River Flows In You’ is in the key of A major.

Instruments – It was written for the piano but I have found versions of it being played on the acoustic guitar, the violin, the flute and the harp.

Mood – The mood of the piece is very calm and almost sedative. The chord F# minor is used to give a nice comparison and extenuates the more uplifting parts of the song which use major chords. The differences in dynamics and tempo throughout the piece are quite minimal which I think gives the piece a steady quality. Much like that of a lullaby, which is the most definitive element of this piece for me. I often play this piece to calm myself and everyone I have played this for has fed back a similar impression of the piece. [continues]
CITE: "River Flows in You - Analysis" StudyMode.com. 09 2013. 2013. 09 2013 .

River Flows in You a piano piece composed and performed by Yiruma (Lee-Ru-Ma), a New Age artist. It is part of his second album First Love which was marketed in 2001. In accordance to this, River Flows is popular for weddings and was also used the pop film Twilight. Piano, the instrument Yiruma first played, is the only instrument used to play the piece.
As heard in the recording, River Flows in You, begins with an andante tempo. The tempo gradually heightens up as the song progresses. It gives contrast to the piece that is still light and soft to the ears of listeners. Despite of the varieties in tempo the piece still concludes with andante. The way Yiruma ended his piece gives a sense of satisfaction and content to the listener for it made the song sound complete and natural. Every phrase is played in a crescendo- decrescendo way. River Flows in You given variety in tempo and dynamic brings about the theme of the music: romance. The introduction sounds pure and soft, simple yet captivating. Its theme can already be felt and emphasized at the beginning.
Its base becomes the heart of the song; every other note revolving around it. The piece’s key is in the A Major with a 5/4 time signature. River Flows features finger positions indicated in numbers. In the musical score, the piece uses fermata and grace notes. The positioning of the fermata notes bring about the needed “rest” or “breathing” since the piece generally sounds fast-paced. On the other hand, grace notes add interesting resonance in River Flows in You. Aside from these, the musical score also indicated the finger positioning of the instrumentalist.
Its rhythm and base of the song is played by the left hand, seen in the F-cleft, is consistent all throughout. The rhythm though is not easy to identify if one does not listen closely to it. This is due to the fact that the piece has a lot of overlapping sounds and notes.
When listened to as a whole, River Flows in You genuinely sounds as if it is a... [continues]
CITE: "River Flows in You Musical Analysis" StudyMode.com. 08 2013. 2013. 08 2013 .