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…?

Possible ideas may have included…

Lets look at some of these ideas in more detail…

Type and

Number

of

Instrume

nts

How Instruments will be played

The

overall

structu

re

of the

music

The Tempo and Rhythm of the

musicWhich musical notes should

be played

What will the

“Key” of the

music be?

InstrumentsHow many Instruments can you name?

Use the following headings to help you…

Instruments of the Orchestra(Woodwind, Brass, Strings, Percussion)GuitarsKeyboardsVoices

Instruments of the Orchestra

Section Instruments How they are playedStrings 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...

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.

Guitars

Types of Guitar Techniques UsedBass Guitar Plucking, Walking Bass ,

Ostinato , Riff , Distortion Acoustic Guitar Strumming, Finger-picking,

Chords, Riff, Ostinato Electric Guitar Chords, Strumming, Distortion

, Ostinato , Riff

Keyboards

Piano Synthesiser Organ

Voices

Soprano Mezzo Soprano Alto Tenor Baritone Bass

Think of an example of a singer for each of the following ranges of voices

S A T B

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 SongBinary 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 SongMiddle 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 SongInstrumental 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 and Tempo Sheet1.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

Rhythm / TempoAdagio 

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 / TempoAccents 

Accented notes are notes which sound louder than others. They are marked with a > sign above or below the note.

BPM (Beats Per Minute)

Gives an indication of the speed – describes how many beats are in the music each minute (The more beats, the faster the music)

2, 3 or 4 beats in the bar

How many beats naturally fall into each bar

Syncopation 

The music or notes are ‘off the beat’ - Strongly accented notes playing off or against the beat. 

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)

Music NotesBass Clef

Understand more by going to BBC Bitesize andThrough 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 sheet2.Create a piece of music between 30s – 2minutes long. Use

a wide range of musical effects,