The power of tempo in music cannot be overemphasized. Before a thing is called “the influencer,” it must be a big deal. It must have a lot to do with the subject. That is why; it’s quite barbaric to start […]
Tempo: The Influencer of Rhythm In Music
Category: Musicology
The Concept of Leading Tone and Subtonic
What is the difference between a leading tone and a subtonic? What do you know about the term, ‘subtonic’? How do you understand it? Have you ever heard anything about it? If I should say, “the concept of leading tone […]
The Eight Standpoints of Music
The word ‘standpoint’ means ‘point of view’, ‘perspective.’ This article sets out to affirm the fact that music is not just a sound that is pleasant to the ears. It can be defined from different perspectives. Music is Academic; It’s […]
What Is the Leading Tone of Ab Harmonic Minor Scale?
In answering this kind of question, theoretical proof is needed. You have to start by asking yourself some useful questions. What do we mean by leading tone? What is the relative major of Ab minor? Music in Ab minor is […]
The Concept of Modulation
In the domain of music, modulation can be simply defined as a shift from one key to another and then, returns back. It differs from transposition because it involves temporal departure and the return. Transposition is a complete lifting of […]
The Concept of Scale
Definition of a Scale A Scale is known as series of notes that can be played successively in both ascending or descend order. It forms the basis of melody. Diatonic scale for instance, usually spans an octave. There is no […]
Neapolitan 6th Chord
What is Neapolitan 6th chord? Neapolitan 6th chord (often abbreviated as N6) is a major chord built on the lowered second degree (supertonic) of a major or minor diatonic scale. It is the same whether in major or minor key. […]
Augmented Sixth Chords
Augmented sixth chords are (chords that) usually built on the flattened sixth degree of the scale. They function as pre-dominant chords (chords that lead to the dominant). They resolve to the dominant. Types of Augmented Sixth Chord There are three […]
The Characteristics and Resolutions of Secondary Dominant Chords
What is the difference between secondary dominant triads and secondary dominant 7th chords? Secondary dominant 7th chord is an extension of a secondary dominant triad. Secondary dominant triad can also be called secondary dominant chord – a triad is a […]
The Concept of Seventh Chord
It is impossible to have seventh triad because a triad is a chord of three notes. When the notes are more than four, it cannot be called a triad. A seventh chord is formed by adding another third above the […]
The Concept of Triad
Definition of Triad Triad is simply a three-note chord. The note on which a triad is built is known as the root. A common chord consists of the root, the third and the fifth. Root is the note on which […]
Tonal Harmony: Learning Principles/Prerequisites
Harmony is an art especially when it comes to homophonic music. if you want to study it, there certain things you must be aware of. Some those things are the knowledge of the concept of scale, interval, chord, voice leading, […]
Music and Other Disciplines (Part Two)
Music as physics Sound is the medium of music. Since sound is the medium of music, most of the physics of music is the physics of sound. In other words, music is sound and time, sound is one of the […]
Non-harmonic Tones
These are tones or notes used in harmony, but they are not part of the chords used in creating such harmony. They can also be called non-chord tones since they are notes that are not part of a chord in […]
The Rules of Four-Part Harmony
What is harmony? From the academic perspective, harmony is the study of tones sounding together. It is literally known as two or more notes played or heard simultaneously. Whereas, melody implies the linear (horizontal) aspect of music, harmony implies the […]
The difference between Modulation, Transposition and Intonation In respect to pitch
What is modulation? The below are different ways of defining modulation: A change of key in a piece of music. A change from one key to another in a piece of music. A full transfer of tonal center in a […]
Music and other disciplines (Part one)
There is a relationship between music and the Sciences (music and Computer Science, Mathematics, Physics and Engineering). There is also relationship between music and Social Sciences (music and Sociology, Anthropology, Psychology, Evolutionary Biology and Archeology). Without a doubt, there is […]
Music and Other Disciples (Part Three
Music as sociology & Anthropology Can you see music as a voice of the minority? Music has had an impact on society as long as people have made music and listened to it. Music has acted as a means for […]
The Acoustics and Psycho – Acoustics of Music
Sound is a tone produce by the regular vibration of an elastic material. The vibration make the human ear drum vibrate and cause the tone to be heard. When there is a sensation, there is always a hearing. Acoustics is […]
Temperament Systems
The word ‘temperament’ means a tuning of an instrument. There are four systems of temperament. These are: Pythagorean, just intonation, mean-tone temperament and equal temperament. Pythagorean System In the Pythagorean system, all the tones of the scale are derived from […]
Selected Twentieth Century Composers (STCC)
Introduction By the turn of the century and for the next few decades, artists of all nationalities were searching for exciting and different modes of expression. Composers such as Arnold Schoenberg explored unusual and unorthodox harmonies and tonal schemes. French […]
The Concept Of African Pianism.
African pianism is a technique and style which involves the conscious employment of the Western piano in the performance or composition of African music (African instrumental traditional songs and African popular music). It fuses, combines or juxtaposes the musical elements […]
The Conditions that Promote the Selection and Preparation of Repertoire for Choral Performance
The place where all the songs that a choir has rehearsed and performed are kept for subsequent performance is known as repertory. Repertoire is the list of songs or collection of songs which a choir has rehearsed and is prepared […]
Definition of Selected Terms Associated with Choir
Choir/Chorus/Chorale These terms mean the same thing but differ depending on the usage. They connote an ensemble of singers – a group of people who come together for the purpose of singing. They are not synonymous to ensemble in terms […]
The Role of a Conductor in an Ensemble
An ensemble of singers is known as choir, choral group or chorus. Choir, choral and chorus mean the same thing, it depends on the usage. An ensemble of instrumentalists is known as an orchestra. The combination of choir and orchestra […]