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Preparing for the Musicology/Aural skills examination

Pitch

Pitch refers to the relative highness and lowness of sounds. Important aspects include high, low, higher and lower pitches, direction of pitch movement, melody, harmony, indefinite and definite pitch.

Aspects of pitch	Words and phrases applying to pitch
Students should be able to discuss the following aspects of pitch as relevant to the music studied: High/low: pitches can be comparatively high or low. Direction of pitch movement: up, down, same level. Melody: a horizontal succession of pitches. Harmony: two or more pitches sounding together. Indefinite pitch: untuned sounds, for example, the speaking voice. Definite pitch: tuned sounds, for example, the singing voice. Students should understand and apply the following (where appropriate to the musical context): definite and indefinite pitch pitch direction and contour pitch patterns pitch range and register harmony methods of notating pitch, both traditional and graphic various scales, modes and other ways of organising pitch.	Melody The style of a piece of music will often indicate melodic and harmonic characteristics which may appear in a piece of music. Aspects of melody include: melodic contour scalic, stepwise melodies chordal melodies repetition of melody sequence melodic motifs, riffs, ostinati (and their development) imitation countermelody melodic ornamentation vocal melisma phrasing (length, even, symmetrical, asymmetrical, anticipated cadence points, question and answer etc) strophic or through-composed songs balance use of unity and variety. Tonality (melody) diatonic major/minor modal pentatonic whole tone modal chromatic blues atonal. Tonality (harmony) major/minor chords chordal patterns, e.g. 12 bar blues added note chords as used in jazz (7ths, 9ths, 11ths etc) atonality/polytonality parallelism (organum/impressionism) chromatic harmonies modulations dissonance.

Aspects of pitch

Words and phrases applying to pitch

Students should be able to discuss the following aspects of pitch as relevant to the music studied:

High/low: pitches can be comparatively high or low.
Direction of pitch movement: up, down, same level.
Melody: a horizontal succession of pitches.
Harmony: two or more pitches sounding together.
Indefinite pitch: untuned sounds, for example, the speaking voice.
Definite pitch: tuned sounds, for example, the singing voice.

Students should understand and apply the following (where appropriate to the musical context):

definite and indefinite pitch
pitch direction and contour
pitch patterns
pitch range and register
harmony
methods of notating pitch, both traditional and graphic
various scales, modes and other ways of organising pitch.

Melody
The style of a piece of music will often indicate melodic and harmonic characteristics which may appear in a piece of music.

Aspects of melody include:

melodic contour
scalic, stepwise melodies
chordal melodies
repetition of melody
sequence
melodic motifs, riffs, ostinati (and their development)
imitation
countermelody
melodic ornamentation
vocal melisma
phrasing (length, even, symmetrical, asymmetrical, anticipated cadence points, question and answer etc)
strophic or through-composed songs
balance
use of unity and variety.

Tonality (melody)

diatonic major/minor
modal
pentatonic
whole tone
modal
chromatic
blues
atonal.

Tonality (harmony)

major/minor chords
chordal patterns, e.g. 12 bar blues
added note chords as used in jazz (7ths, 9ths, 11ths etc)
atonality/polytonality
parallelism (organum/impressionism)
chromatic harmonies
modulations
dissonance.