Unit 4 - IntervalsUnit 4 - IntervalsMusic TheoryMr. Jackson

HarmonyHarmonyHarmony refers to the way notes are simultaneously sounded – creating a vertical element to music.

A single melody line or linear voice added to another line or voice is called counterpoint.

Intervals / Interval Intervals / Interval Quantity Quantity

An interval is the distance between two pitches. MELODIC INTERVALS- Sound after each otherHARMONIC INTERVALS- Sound at the same time

Intervals are described by QUANTITY (Size) and QUALITYQuantity is designated by a NUMBER (1-7)

* When counting intervals, always remember to count the bottom number as 1.

From a line to a line (or a space to a space) is always an ODD numberFrom a line to a space is always an EVEN number

Interval QualityInterval QualityWhen describing intervals, we use the following descriptors:

DOUBLY AUGMENTEDAUGMENTEDMAJORMINORDIMINISHEDDOUBLY DIMINISHED

Major/Minor Intervals can

NEVER be perfect!Perfect intervals can NEVER be Major or Minor!

Intervals in a Major ScaleIntervals in a Major Scale

ABBREVIATIONS FOR INTERVALS

A or + = AugmentedM = Majorm = Minordim or º = Dimished

For an ASCENDING MAJOR SCALE,

Intervals will be MAJOR or PERFECT!

2nds, 3rds, 6ths, and 7ths CANNOT be

perfect!!!!Unisons, 4ths, 5ths,

and Octaves CANNOT be Major/Minor!

Intervals in a Minor ScaleIntervals in a Minor Scale

For an ASCENDING

MINOR SCALE, Intervals will be

MINOR or PERFECT!

*Except for the 2nd which stays

Major….

Comparing Major / Minor Scale Comparing Major / Minor Scale IntervalsIntervals

The TritoneThe Tritone

Aug 4 +4

dim 5 º5

A 'tritone' is the name for the musical interval between two pitches an augmented 4th/Diminished 5th apart. The term 'tritone' comes from the fact that the interval between the two pitches is a full three "whole tones" apart.

Interval AdjustmentsInterval AdjustmentsLet’s take a look at what happens to intervals when we make some adjustments. How does the quality change? Watch below…

M2

Now let’s INCREASE the interval…. What is a larger quality than MAJOR? ….. AUGMENTED!

So if G to and A is MAJOR.. G to an A# is……………… AUGMENTED!

A2 or+2

Interval AdjustmentsInterval AdjustmentsNow let’s take a look at what happens when we DECREASE the interval.

M2

What is a smaller quality than MAJOR? ….. MINOR!

So if G to and A is MAJOR.. G to an Ab is……………… MINOR!

m2

Interval AdjustmentsInterval AdjustmentsAlthough we have looked at adding an accidental to the TOP note to adjust the interval, we can also add an accidental to the BOTTOM note. Let’s try going from a MAJOR to an AUGMENTED interval..

M3

If we wanted to increase this interval we COULD add a sharp to the top note, increasing it from Major to Augmented.. But how ELSE could we increase the interval…..? (Hands Please…)

YES! … Instead of adding a SHARP to the TOP note, we are going to add a FLAT to the BOTTOM note.. This results in the same interval… Make sense?

Aug 3 or+3

Interval Adjustment Interval Adjustment ResultsResults

Here are some major and perfect intervals transformed into diminished and augmented intervals. Notice what happens when the accidental is on the bottom note.

Enharmonic IntervalsEnharmonic Intervals

Enharmonic Intervals sound the same, but are spelled differently and therefore function differently.

C# and Db are the same pitch; however they are not notated the same on the staff.

THE SAME IS TRUE FOR INTERVALS!!!!

For example… F to Ab is a Minor third.

m3 aug 2 or+2

SAME PITCH, but…

More Enharmonic More Enharmonic IntervalsIntervals

GOLDEN RULE OF GOLDEN RULE OF INTERVALS!INTERVALS!

More Things to Keep In More Things to Keep In Mind…Mind…

IF an interval is perfect, THEN BOTH the top and bottom pitch is in the other’s major key.IF the same accidental is added to both the upper and lower pitch, THEN the interval remains the same.IF an accidental is added only to the bottom pitch, THEN the accidental has the opposite effect than when added to the note above:

If a flat is added to the lower pitch, the interval is larger.If a sharp is added to the lower pitch, the interval is smaller.

IF the lower note does not represent a standard key, THEN determine what the interval would be without the accidental and adjust. For example: G# to E is a minor 6th.

Because G# is not a standard key signature, we determine that G to E is a MAJOR 6th and because the bottom note is sharp, it reduces the quality by one half step to a minor 6th. ** Remember that when you are spelling intervals below a given pitch you must still associate the top note to the major key of the bottom note. You cannot change the given nore.

Simple/Compound Simple/Compound IntervalsIntervals

Intervals that are one octave or smaller are called simple intervals. Intervals that are larger than an octave are called compound intervals.

Common compound intervals are 9ths, 10ths, 11ths, and 12ths Which correspond to an octave plus a 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th.

To REDUCE a Compound Interval can be reduced to a SIMPLE INTERVAL, you subtract seven.

For example: a Major 9th (-7) reduces to a Major 2nd

To EXPAND a Simple interval to a COMPOUND INTERVAL, you add seven.

For example: a minor 3rd (+7) becomes a minor 10th

!!! THE QUALITY OF THE INTERVAL DOES NOT CHANGE WHEN REDUCING OR EXPANDING INTERVALS !!!

Inverting IntervalsInverting IntervalsSometimes when analyzing music it is helpful to INVERT intervals to make them a bit more accessible…. It’s fun, trust me..

-Major Intervals invert to Minor Intervals -Augmented intervals invert to diminished intervals-Perfect intervals invert to perfect-A second inverts to a seventh-A third inverts to a sixth-A fourth inverts to a fifth

The Rule of Nine: When any simple interval is inverted, the

sum of the ascending and descending intervals must add

up to nine.

Strategies for Difficult Strategies for Difficult IntervalsIntervals

Let’s look at a few examples and develop a strategy for identifying and building intervals that are a little more difficult.

Consonant/Dissonant Consonant/Dissonant IntervalsIntervals

Intervals are classified as either Consonant or Dissonant.

Consonant Intervals are STABLE, and sound pleasing to the ear. They are often included on the beginning and end of a section of music. P1, P5, P8, M3, m3, M6, m6 (sometimes the P4 – depending on context)

** The lack of tension in these intervals is why composers end pieces on Unisons or Octaves! **

Dissonant Intervals are UNSTABLE/TENSE! They usually want to RESOLVE somewhere. M2, m2, M7, m7 (sometimes the P4 which is generally considered to be a dissonant interval when used harmonically above the bass.)