Musical Elements, Instruments, and Forms: A Comprehensive Look

Musical Elements and Their Definitions

The following are key elements in music:

• Melody: A succession of sounds of a certain pitch and duration.
• Scales: A series of notes sorted in ascending or descending order.
• Intervals: The distances between notes.
• Chords: Three or more notes sounding simultaneously.
• Meter: The measurement of the pulse.
• Rhythm: The regularity of accents, which can be:
  • Binary
  • Ternary
  • Quaternary

Aerophone Instruments: Classification and Examples

Aerophone instruments produce sound through the vibration of a column of air. They can be categorized as follows:

Bevel Obtuseness

The vibration is obtained when the column of air collides against the bevel and is divided in two:

• Front: Recorder, Pan Flute
• Lateral: Flute

Reed Mouthpiece

The sound is obtained by the vibration of the air as it passes between the mouthpiece and reed (single reed) or between two reeds (double reed):

• Single: Clarinet, Saxophone
• Double: Oboe, Bassoon

Metal Obtuseness

The air vibrates due to the direct action of the instrumentalist's lips:

• Examples: Trumpet, Horn, Trombone, Tuba

Mechanical Air

These instruments receive air from a bellows or a fan:

• Examples: Accordion, Harmonium, Organ

Tempo and Movement in Music

Tempo refers to the speed of the music.

• The Metronome: A device that measures the speed of the music.
• Indications of Movement: Words written in the score that suggest a tempo:
  • Variable: Shows a progressive change of speed (e.g., ritardando, accelerando).
  • Regular: At a constant speed (e.g., lento, adagio, andante, moderato, allegro, vivace).

Electrophone Instruments: Sound Production and Types

Electrophone instruments produce sound through the vibration of an amplified electrical signal.

• Electronic: The vibration is generated by an electrical signal generator (e.g., electric guitar, bass, electronic organ, synthesizer).
• Electroacoustic: These transform the physical vibration of a conventional instrument using an electromagnetic cell (e.g., guitar with pickup, cello with tablet, violin with pickup).

Popular Music, Traditional Instruments, and Ethnic Music

Popular music comes from oral tradition and is manifested through:

• Dances
• Typical Instruments:
  • Bandurria, widgets, gralla, trikitrixa, txistu, bagpipes, others
• Ethnic Music: Popular music of each ethnic or cultural group (e.g., Eastern, African, Indian, Celtic, Latin American, others).

Musical Form: Structure and Composition

Musical form refers to the structure of a composition, determined by the repetition or contrast of its melodic elements.

• Binary Form: Compositions formed by two musical phrases.
• Ternary Form: Compositions formed by three musical phrases, such as Lied or A/B/A.