Tonal Element of Music

Teaching Music in Elementary Grades

 Melody

 The combination of the tonal and temporal

elements is melody.
 The term melody is often erroneously used to
indicate only the pitch aspect of music.
 In its meaningful usage, however, a consideration
of melody embraces both pitch and rhythm.
 Tone

 The basic unit of the tonal element in music is the tone, a musical sound
with a fixed pitch or regular rate of vibration.
 From the total spectrum of frequencies perceivable by the human ear (20
to 20,000 cycles per second), music employs only a selected number of
pitches which correspond approximately to the 88 tones of the piano.
 The term “note” is often used as a synonym for tone even though, in the
strictest sense, note should refer only to the written symbol and tone to
the heard pitch.
 Scales

 A scale is a prescribed arrangement of

successive pitches, usually running from the
lowest pitch to the highest in ascending order
(or vice versa) like the steps of a ladder
(Latin: scala, ladder).
Major Scale
Pure Minor (Natural Minor)
 Scale Properties
Scale Degree Name Characteristics
First Tonic Often the beginning and ending tone of a composition, and
usually the most frequently used tone in music. Feeling rest,
stability or “home base.”

Second Supertonic Active or unstable tone, generally leads to first or third degree.

Third Mediant Rest tone, important in distinction between major and minor.

Fourth Subdominant Active or unstable tone, usually leads to third degree

Fifth Dominant Rest tone usually second most frequently used tone; often used
for upbeats.
Sixth Submediant Active tone, often leads to fifth degree
Seventh Leading tone Active tone, usually leads to first degree.
Key Signatures