The Power of Music

• Why did you sign up for this course?• What does music mean in your life?• What does music mean in our culture?• How does music reflect the views of a society?• Is anyone really listening?

Music and Identity• When and where did you hear your very first

rock/pop song?– Radio, car, MP3 player, CD– Parent, sibling, friends, teacher

• School Music and Social Identity• Adolescence and music

– Comfort– Emotional outlet– Ethnicity

• Adults and Music– Memories– Soundtrack to our lives

Music Stereotyping• Stereotypes are found in lyrics and

videos– Women as sex objects– Men as violent– African American men as playboys

and gangsters– Southern white musicians as rednecks

• Others break the stereotypes– Charley Pride – black country singer– Stevie Ray Vaughan – white blues

musician

• Think outside the box. Be careful of stereotypes

• At the physiological level music evokes impressive responses:– Changes in pulse– Respiration– Blood pressure

Music’s power to persuade

• What are some places or events that use music to persuade us?

• Calming – MRI machines, Spas, dentist• Energizing – Gym, athletic events• Persuasion – Musak• Religion – spiritual state• Military Use of Music – Torture, interrogation

Using Music to influence

• Legal defense – Does listening to certain types of music induce violent behavior?

Charles Manson

Dylan Klebold & Eric Harris

How We Experience Music

• The Greeks believed music had immense emotional power.– The Doctrine of Ethos

Ancient Greece

Ancient Greek instruments include the Lyre and Aulos

LyreAulos

Rock & Roll and Music’s Role

• How does Rock & Roll define generations?– 1960s, 1970s, 1980s and forward

• Is Rock music an element of politics?• What role does music play as part of a protest?

– Anthems– History– Narrative– Fashion

Popular Culture vs. The Voice of Social Change

• Pop Culture– “Cultural activities or commercial products

reflecting, suited to, or aimed at the tastes of the general masses of people.” – Dictionary.com

– “The types of entertainment that most people in a society enjoy, for example films, television programs, and popular music.” - MacMillan Dictionary.com

• Mass Appeal• Trendy• Commercial• Image over substance?• Fashion

Music

An art of organized sound

Basic Concepts

Rhythm

Melody

Harmony

Beat vs. Rhythm

• The Beat is the steady pulse of music (what we often tap our feet to).

• Rhythm is the arrangement of long and short sounds in music.– Other instruments besides drums also contribute

rhythm

• Rhythm is the earliest and most basic element of music.– Rhythm is one of the most prominent aspects of Rock

& Roll

Rhythm• Meter – organizes beats/rhythm into

groups called measures or bars.– The most common meters are

• duple (2 beats per measure) - marches• triple (3 beats per measure and - waltzes• quadruple (4 beats per measure) – many rock

songs

• Backbeat = Extra emphasis (accent) on the second and fourth beats in a quadruple meter– a main element of rock music

Additional Rhythmic Terms

• Accents – Placing emphasis on a specific beat or tone in music.

• Downbeat – the first beat of a measure. It is indicated by the downward motion of a conducting pattern.

• Upbeat – the last beat of a measure. It is indicated by the upward motion of a conducting pattern.

• Syncopation – rhythmic patterns emphasizing weak beats. Prominent in jazz, ragtime.

Downbeat

Upbeat

Upbeat

1 measure, or bar, of music

The Entertainer by Scott JopinSyncopation

MelodyAn organization of musical tones.

A succession of tones (a melody) creates a linear pattern on the music staff.

Melodies (good ones) stick in our heads

Scales

• Melodies are built from a group of tones in a fixed pattern contained within a range of an octave (8 notes). These are called scales.

• The two most common scales in Western music are major and minor scales

– Rock & Roll is often centered on a blues scale.

• Blues Scale = a scale that does not fit into the category of either major or minor. Blue notes are the 3rd, 5th and 7th note of a blues scale that have been lowered.

The Thrill is Gone – B. B. King

Chromatic Scale – comprised entirely of half steps. Creates a sense of tension.

↑ ↑ ↑↑Half steps

Pentatonic Scale – A five note scale with a range of an octave. – The most common is playing a group of five

black notes on a keyboard– The most universal global scale

• Simple melodies lie within a comfortably vocal range

Harmony

Two or more different tones sounded together.• Provides support for melody. • Melody is horizontal (linear)• Harmony is vertical in music.

Chord – a combination of 3 or more pitches sounded simultaneously. A series of chords is called a chord progression.

Chord progressions create forward movement in music.

• 12 Bar Blues – A classic blues form – three, four-bar (measure) phrases– follows a particular chord progression based

on chords built on the first chord (1), the forth chord (4), and the fifth chord (5) of a scale.

1 4 5

Twelve-Bar Blues Form

Some Characteristics of RockElectric guitar: rhythm and lead

Electric bassDrum set (or kit)

Keyboard – either electric or acoustic – Not always usedAmplified vocals via microphone

RiffsCall & Response

BackbeatBlue notes

High volumeWestern harmonic chord progressions

RebellionProtest

Social commentaryOppression

Unit 1 Rock Terms

These will be posted on Blackboard

No need to write them down

Terms

• Riff – a repeated pattern that creates rhythmic movement– The Rolling Stones “Satisfaction” – guitar riff– Queen “Another One Bites the Dust” – bass guitar riff– Styx “Grand Illusion” – keyboard riff

• Hook – a memorable musical phrase or pattern, often in the chorus – it literally “hooks” the listener.– The Beach Boys “Surfin’ USA”– U2 “With or Without You”

Terms

• Slap bass – slapping the strings of an acoustic bass with 4 fingers of the right hand in time with the drummer or plucking an acoustic bass string so hard that it bounces off the fingerboard. It is very prominent in rockabilly.– The Stray Cats “Rock This Town”– Red Hot Chili Peppers “Suck My Kiss”

• Reverb – short for reverberation – a prolongation of a sound. Can be produced by sounds bouncing off hard, reflective surfaces.

“Spanish Harlem” Ben E. King

Terms

• Shouter – vocalists who purposely add a harsh, raspy sound to their voice by over-singing. It is found in R&B and carried over into rock music. Little Richard was a shouter.– Howlin’ Wolf “Smoke Stack Lightning”– Little Richard “Tutti Frutti”

Terms

• Distortion – a buzzing, crunchy, or “fuzzy” tone color originally achieved by over-driving the vacuum tubes in a guitar amplifier. This style can be simulated today with digital processors.– Jimi Hendrix “The Star Spangled Banner”

• Fuzz box – a distortion affect for electric guitar which gives a heavy synthetic or rough sound.

Terms

• Feedback – a naturally produced, sustained, distorted squeal created when high-volume sound coming out of an amplifier is taken in by the pickup on the guitar (or microphone) and then fed back into the amplifier.– The Beatles song "I Feel Fine", starts with a feedback

note produced by plucking the A-string on McCartney's bass guitar, which was picked up on Lennon's semi acoustic guitar. This was the very first use of feedback on a rock record.

Terms

• Call-and-Response – a singing style tracing back to African “field hollers” where the lead singer alternates with a chorus of singers. A vocal style in R&R inherited from the blues.– African tribal music– Muddy Waters “Mannish Boy”– Led Zeppelin – “Black Dog”

• Blue notes – expressive notes found in the blues and jazz that do not correspond exactly to major or minor scales. They are referred to as flat or lowered notes such as lowered 3rds, 5ths and 7ths.– B.B. King – “The Thrill is Gone”

Terms

12 Bar Blues – A classic blues form – three, four-bar (measure) phrases– follows a particular chord progression based

on chords built on the first chord (1), the forth chord (4), and the fifth chord (5) of a scale.

– Big Joe Turner “Shake Rattle & Roll”

“Shake Rattle & Roll” 12 bar blues

C (I)A - Get outta that bed, wash your face and hands

F (IV) C (I)A - Get outta that bed, wash your face and hands

G (V) F (IV) C (I)B - Well, you get in that kitchen, make some noise with the pots 'n pans

Shake Rattle & Roll – Big Joe Turner

Musical Form

• The overall design of a piece of music– The big picture– How the song is organized

• Two main principles– Repetition– Contrast

• Many elements can create contrast• Lyrics, tempo, melody, harmony, rhythm, timbre,

texture

TermsIntro – Music that introduces a piece of music. It

establishes the overall tempo, key and style of the song to follow

Verse – The part of the song after an introduction that tells the story of the song. Each verse is denoted with a capital letter A.

Chorus – In popular song it denotes a recurring structural unit, with unchanging words, which follows a verse or series of verses. In popular song it is synonymous with refrain. Refrains tend to be shorter than choruses.

Bridge – An additional verses or section in a song that contrasts with the main verses, and that is often heard as transitional between verses or other sections of a song. Bridges are usually denoted with a capital letter B.

Outro – extended ending or short concluding section of a song

Song Forms

• AAA Song Form – Also called one-part song form. It consists of a several verses with no chorus or bridge, but a short refrain (which is often the title) and is repeated at the end of every verse.– “The Times They Are A-Changing” – Bob

Dylan

The Times They are A Changing – Bob Dylan

Come gather 'round people wherever you roamAnd admit that the waters around you havegrownAnd accept it that soon you'll be drenched to thebone.If your time to you is worth savin‘Then you better start swimmin' or you'll sink likea stoneFor the times they are a-changin'. (Refrain)

Come writers and critics who prophesize withyour penAnd keep your eyes wide the chance won't

comeagainAnd don't speak too soon for the wheel's still inspinAnd there's no tellin' who that it's namin'.For the loser now will be later to winFor the times they are a-changin'.

Come senators, congressmen please heed the callDon't stand in the doorway don't block up the hallFor he that gets hurt will be he who has stalledThere's a battle outside ragin'.It'll soon shake your windows and rattle your wallsFor the times they are a-changin'.

Come mothers and fathers throughout the landAnd don't criticize what you can't understandYour sons and your daughters are beyond yourCommandYour old road is rapidly agin'.Please get out of the new one if you can't lend yourHandFor the times they are a-changin'.

The line it is drawn the curse it is castThe slow one now will later be fastAs the present now will later be pastThe order is rapidly fadin'.And the first one now will later be lastFor the times they are a-changin'.

A

A A

A

A

Song Forms• Tin Pan Alley Song Form – a collection of New

York City music publishers and songwriters of popular music in the late 19th and early 20th centuries – AABA – song form– Section A establishes the melody and chord

progression. It is immediately repeated with new lyrics– Section B, or the bridge, presents a new melody,

chord progression and lyrics• It maintains the overall length of the A section

– Section A is repeated but again with new lyrics– The entire form is then repeated

Hey Good Looking – Hank Williamshttp://grooveshark.com/s/Hey+Good+Looking/45qL7y?src=5

Hey, hey, good lookin', whatcha got cookin'?How's about cookin' somethin' up with me?

Hey, sweet baby, don't you think maybe We could find us a brand new recipe?

I got a hot-rod Ford and a two-dollar billAnd I know a spot right over the hill. There's soda pop and the dancin's free, So if you wanna have fun come along with me.

Hey, good lookin', whatcha got cookin'? How's about cookin' somethin' up with me?

Instrumental break

I'm free and ready, so we can go steady.How's about savin' all your time for me?

No more lookin', I know I've been tooken.How's about keepin' steady company?

I'm gonna throw my date-book over theFenceAnd find me one for five or ten cents. I'll keep it 'til it's covered with age'Cause I'm writin' your name down onevery page.

Hey, good lookin', whatcha got cookin'?How's about cookin' somethin' up with me?

A

A

B

A

A

A

B

A

Song Forms• Verse-Chorus Form – A basic rock song form.

One or more verses followed by a chorus. This form is centered around the chorus.

• “Maybellene” – Chuck Berry

• Verse-Chorus-Bridge (Release) Form – A extension of simple verse-chorus song form. This form often uses this pattern: Verse-Chorus-Verse-Chorus-Bridge (Release)-Chorus. – It's important to understand that the bridge or release

section in a verse/chorus/bridge functions different than a bridge in an AABA song form. The length is almost always shorter than the verse section.

You’ve Got A Friend – Carole King

V = Verse, C = Chorus, B = Bridge

When you're down and troubled and you need ahelping hand, and nothing, whoa nothing is going right.Close your eyes and think of me and soon I will be there to brighten up even your darkest nights.

You just call out my name, and you know wherever I am I'll come running, oh yeah baby to see you again.Winter, spring, summer, or fall, all you got to do is call and I'll be there, yeah, yeah, yeah.You've got a friend.

If the sky above you grows turn dark and full of Clouds and that old north wind begins to blowKeep your head together and call my name out Loud soon you’ll hear me knocking at your door.

You just call out my name and you know where ever I am I'll come running to see you again.Winter, spring, summer or fall, all you have to do is call and I'll be there, yes I will.

Hey, ain't it good to know that you've got a friend? When people can be so cold. They'll hurt you yes and desert you. Well they'll take your soul if you let them. Oh, but don't you let them.

You just call out my name and you know wherever I am I'll come running to see you

again.Winter spring summer or fall, all you've got to do is call. Lord, I'll be there, yes I will.You've got a friend.You've got a friend.Ain't it good to know you've got a friend.Ain't it good to know you've got a friend.You've got a friend.

V

V

C

C

C

B

Blues Form

• AAB – two repeated phrases followed by a contrasting response phrase. This form is an extension of Call & Response form.– “Cross Road Blues” – Robert Johnson

Cross Road Blues – Robert JohnsonA I went to the crossroad, fell down on my knees

A I went to the crossroad, fell down on my knees

B Asked the Lord above "Have mercy, now save poor Bob, if you please"

A Yeoo, standin' at the crossroad, tried to flag a rideA Ooo eeee, I tried to flag a rideB Didn't nobody seem to know me, babe, everybody pass me by

A Standin' at the crossroad, baby, risin' sun goin' downA Standin' at the crossroad, baby, eee, eee, risin' sun goin' downB I believe to my soul, now, poor Bob is sinkin' down

A You can run, you can run, tell my friend Willie BrownA You can run, you can run, tell my friend Willie BrownB That I got the crossroad blues this mornin', Lord, babe, I'm sinkin' down

A And I went to the crossroad, mama, I looked east and westA I went to the crossroad, baby, I looked east and westB Lord, I didn't have no sweet woman, ooh well, babe, in my distress