A QUICK REVIEW - “WHAT IS MUSIC”

Simply: Music is a SONG... voiced from our soul using some instrument, or many.
Music is expressed within MELODY... HARMONY... & PULSE

MELODY RISES + FALLS

HARMONY GOES ALONG
ADDING DIMENSION
You are my SUNSHINE my only SUNSHINE

OO OOOOOOOOOOOOO O PULSE IS A STEADY BEAT,

LIKE OUR
1 2 3 4 56 7 8 1 2 34 5 6 7 8
v v v ---------- ------------- v v v --------- --------------- VARIATIONS ARE RHYTHMS

MUSICAL NOTES
SUN SHINE MY LY
ARE MY ON SUN SHINE
YOU

We SING AND PLAY MUSIC AND LIKE TO SHARE EITHER “BY EAR” OR IN WRITING.
WHAT WE SING OR HEAR, WE TRANSCRIBE USING MUSICAL NOTES WHICH HAVE NAMES:

DO RE MI FA SOL LA TI DO A SCALE
A B C D E F G A

7 notes & one on “octave” above

our western scales use “whole” & “half” steps between tones (notes).
_
the scale notes climb on a ladder of lines called the staff _
_
 a piano with its white + black keys shows us the pattern of whole + half steps.
roughly in the middle of the harp strings is a red c string.
harp strings are like white keys on piano.
sharping levers are like black notes.
though a little different, they help create 1/2 steps

C
WE CAN USE RAINBOW COLORS
TO IDENTIFY NOTES OF THE EIGHT NOTE SCALE
C

WE MOSTLY PLAY THESE NOTES WITH RIGHT HAND

B C
A
DO F G
TI E
RIGHT HAND

LA D
FA SOL C
B
MI A
RE G
F
E
D

DO C

B
A
LEFT HAND

G
TI F
LA E
SOL D
FA C
MI B
RE A
DO G F
E C
D
 MAJOR MINOR

PIANO

{ C
D
E
F G
A
B C

A
B
C D
E
F G A

C MAJ RELATIVE AM

{
STEPS IN THE SCALE

H
W
W W W
H H W
H W W
W W W

W= WHOLE H=HALF

e.g.: C to C# to D e.g.: E to F

{ ON HARP THE RELATIVE MINOR IS THE 2ND STRING LOWER

(TUNED TO C) FROM YOUR “TONIC” OR NOTE OF SCALE

e.g.: D major - relative is Bm Emaj relaticve is C minor

{ ON HARP, IN C TUNING, A IS ALSO AEOLIAN MODE AND

P.S. THERE ARE 3 KINDS OF MINOR BUT WE MOSTLY USE

NATURAL MINOR

{ HOWDY! I C YOU! C MAJ CHORD C MAJ TRIAD AM CHORD AM TRIAD

LEFT HAND
A major CHORD
C MAJ CHORD

A minor TRIAD

A CHORD:
C MAJ TRIAD

3 notes played together, not separately

or 4 or 5
{ C, E, F C, F, A C, E, A

C, F, G A, C, E
TRIADS HAVE IDENTITY
BASED ON INTERVALS WITHIN THEM

{ intervals SPACIOUS, SILENCE BETWEEN TONES!

PRIME, SECOND, THIRD, FOURTH, FIFTH, SIXTH, SEVENTH, OCTAVE

{
INTERVALS OF 2 TONES PLAYED TOGETHER CREATE TONE QUALITY; COLOR!!!

{ THE THIRD IS SPECIAL - IT IDENTIFIES

MAJOR THIRD: W W MINOR THIRD: W

MAJOR + MINOR KEYS

H
(SCALE)

sharps
{ TO TURN A MAJOR TRIAD TO MINOR WE NEED “ACCIDENTALS”

SHARPS + FLATS HELP US CREATE THOSE NEEDED HALF STEPS!

flats

{ C, E , G C, E , G

C MINOR CHORD IN KEY OF E

THESE NECESSARY FLATS ARE CALEED THE KEY SIGNATURE!

 RED HARP STRING
(TREBLE) MIDDLE C

B C E F REEDOM
G A C D ESERVES
E F A B UTERFLY
D F GLORIOUS
E EVERY
SPACES

LINES

(BASS) C D E F G A B C
RED HARP BLUE HARP

CD E F GAB C
HARP

HARP STRINGS ARE

WHITE KEYS ON PIANO

STRING STRING
SHARPING LEVERS
G#/A
C#/D

F#/G

A#/B
D#/E

act like black keys on piano

C F C

PIANO KEYS
STEPS
{
{
{
{
{
{
{

MAJOR KEYS
W W H W W W H
CHROMATIC
SCALE
W = WHOLE
H = HALF

C
{
{
{
{
{
{
{
{
{
{
{

H H H H H H H H H H H
 JINGLE BELLS example
1 2 3 4

RH
4
4
2 2 2 2 2 2 2 1 2
MELODY 4 3

1 G
2 E
LH
3 C

CHORDS - 3,2,1 FINGER POSITION ALL TROUGH THE PIECE

5 6 7 8

4
4
1 1 1 1 1 2 2 2 2
2 3 2 3 3 1
G
C E
A G
C
F E
D
C
B
G

REPEAT 9 10 11 12

4 MEASURE

4
1, 2, 3, 4 1 1
1 1 1 1 1 2 2 2 2 2
3
4
C
A
G G
C
E E
D
C C
B
THEN
G
BRACKETS MEANS PUT THE NUMBERED FINGERS IN BRACKETS
4321 = THOSE 3 FINGERS ALL ONTO STRING BEFORE PLAYING THE NOTES

© SUNI ROBIN