What makes a song What makes a song

What makes a song…?

What makes a song…? This unit will explore what is needed to create a song and some of the more technical musical ideas behind this. By the end of this unit, you will: Describe what you think is required in a song, identifying musical ideas which can be used Demonstrate your understanding of musical ideas and concepts covered by creating your own original song / music Work effectively both within a group and independently As well as working through this unit in class, you should use this power point to help you revise a lot of the key concepts from the listening section of the course.

What makes a song…? Creating and Designing – What do we have to think about? If you were asked to design a building for a new school, we would have to remember to include a lot of different things and ideas. What would we need to include and think about if we designed a new school?

What makes a song…? We could approach designing a song in a similar way to designing a school. There will be a lot of big and small ideas and things to include. What should we think about and include when we design / create a new song?

What makes a song…? Th e l l T a H r e d e I o n m n w v a s R e a f p t n o r r h o u o e d u e y t m r p e h t c t t e y h w T u n n T mb e e m hm ill b ts str the m o p e u f c u l u f i o s N tr aye s u i s Which d c s n m I What will musical the “Key” Lets look at some of these notes of the ideas in more detail… should be music be? played Possible ideas may have included…

Instruments How many Instruments can you name? Use the following headings to help you… Instruments of the Orchestra (Woodwind, Brass, Strings, Percussion) Guitars Keyboards Voices

Instruments of the Orchestra Copy the table below – It includes all of the sections of an Orchestra. Modern artists still use Orchestras and the different instruments in their music. Section Instruments How they are played Strings Violin, Viola, Cello, Double Bass, Harp etc. Bowing (Arco), Plucking (Pizzicato ), Muted Woodwind Flute, Clarinet, Oboe, Saxophone etc. Blowing, Flutter - Tonguing Brass Trumpet, Trombone, Tuba, French Horn Blowing, Muted Percussion Drum Kit, Cymbals, Xylophone, Timpani Drum Striking, (Drum) Rolls Find out more here. . .

Guitars Types of Guitar Techniques Used Bass Guitar Plucking, Walking Bass , Ostinato , Riff , Distortion Acoustic Guitar Strumming, Finger-picking, Chords, Riff, Ostinato Chords, Strumming, Distortion , Ostinato , Riff Electric Guitar

Keyboards Piano Synthesiser Organ

Voices Think of an example of a singer for each of the following ranges of voices Soprano Mezzo Soprano Alto Tenor Baritone Bass SATB

Structure of a Song How could a song be structured…? Activity: Question Pair and Share You will be placed into a circle with a group on the inside and a group on the outside. The person on the outside should ask their question first and the person on the inside should try to answer. Once they have, the outside person can share their answer. If they were correct, give them a point! Repeat this with the person on the inside asking the question. Before you move on, swap questions!

Structure of a Song – How many can you define? Binary Ternary Verse and Chorus Middle 8 Bridge / Link Strophic Coda Instrumental Break Pause Drum Fill

Structure of a Song Binary AB - A structure in which the music is made up of two different sections (or tunes) labelled A and B. Each section may be repeated. Ternary A B A – 3 part form or structure: an A section (tune) followed by a B section (tune), which is a different melody, than a return to the A section (tune). Verse and Chorus A structure/form popular in many songs. The music of the verse is repeated, often with different words, and (between verses) the chorus is normally repeated, featuring different music to the verse.

Structure of a Song Middle 8 In popular music, a section which provides a contrast to the opening section. It is often eight bars long - Example - Monty Python Bridge / Link Section A short musical section used to ‘bridge’ or link different sections of a song, i. e. between a verse and a chorus. (Similar to a Middle 8) Strophic A song which has the same music repeated for verses/choruses, therefore the music will be heard repeating throughout the song (The opposite would be the music continually changing). Coda A passage at the end of a piece of music which rounds it off effectively

Structure of a Song Instrumental Break A section in a song without any vocals / singing where the instruments play. Pause The music is held or ‘paused’ for a short period Drum Fill A short rhythmic decoration played on the drum kit to help link to the next section of a song.

Rhythm / Tempo Question: What can we do to the Rhythm or Tempo of a song? How could it change?

Rhythm / Tempo Rhythm and Tempo Sheet 1. With a shoulder partner, try to define / answer as many of the terms as you can. 2. With your group of 4, take it in turns to share or expand on the definitions and ideas you came up with in your pair. 3. Groups will be mixed up – Take it in turns to share or expand on the definitions and ideas you have on your sheet – be prepared to share ideas and answers with the rest of the class.

Rhythm / Tempo Adagio Italian term meaning a slow tempo (speed) Moderato Italian term meaning a moderate / medium tempo (speed) Allegro Italian term meaning a fast tempo (speed) Accelerando The music gradually gets faster Rallentando The music gradually gets slower Ritardando (rit) The music gradually gets slower A Tempo The music should return to the speed that was played before the tempo changed. For example, if the music is allegro, then has a rallentando, followed by the instruction 'a tempo', it means that after the rallentando the music should return to allegro.

Rhythm / Tempo Accents Accented notes are notes which sound louder than others. They are marked with a > sign above or below the note. BPM (Beats Per Minute) 2, 3 or 4 beats in the bar Syncopation Gives an indication of the speed – describes how many beats are in the music each minute (The more beats, the faster the music) Pause The music ‘pauses’ i. e. a note or rest is held on longer than is actually written. Anacrusis The music begins before the first beat of the bar – an upbeat Cross Rhythms Two different rhythms played against each other (i. e. 3 beats vs 2 beats) How many beats naturally fall into each bar The music or notes are ‘off the beat’ - Strongly accented notes playing off or against the beat.

Music Notes Bass Clef Understand more by going to BBC Bitesize and Through this Treble Clef and Bass Clef video.

Music Keys – Major or Minor MAJOR: The music sounds in a major key (tonality) – often described as having a cheery, happy feel to it – Listen Here MINOR: The music sounds in a minor key (tonality), often described as having a sadder feel than major - Listen Here

TASK: Demonstrate what you have learned by planning and creating your own piece of music. 1. Start by filling in the attached planning sheet 2. Create a piece of music between 30 s – 2 minutes long. Use a wide range of musical effects,