🎵 Year 7 Music

Elements of Music

All music can be described using these key musical elements. In the UK curriculum, these are often remembered using the acronym SHMRG DOTTI or similar.

• Pitch: how high or low a sound is. Determined by the frequency of vibration. Higher frequency = higher pitch.
• Duration: how long a note lasts. Musical notes have specific values (semibreve, minim, crotchet, quaver).
• Dynamics: how loud or quiet the music is. From very quiet to very loud: pp (pianissimo), p (piano), mp (mezzo-piano), mf (mezzo-forte), f (forte), ff (fortissimo). Crescendo = gradually getting louder; decrescendo/diminuendo = gradually getting quieter.
• Tempo: the speed of the music, measured in beats per minute (BPM). Italian terms: Largo (very slow), Adagio (slow), Andante (walking pace), Moderato (moderate), Allegro (fast), Presto (very fast).
• Timbre (tone colour): the quality or character of a sound that makes it distinctive (e.g. the difference between a flute and a violin playing the same note).
• Texture: how musical layers are combined. Monophonic (single melody), homophonic (melody with chords/accompaniment), polyphonic (two or more independent melodies). Thick texture = many layers; thin texture = few layers.
• Structure/Form: how a piece is organised. Common forms: Binary (AB), Ternary (ABA), Rondo (ABACADA), Verse-Chorus, Theme and Variations.
• Rhythm: the pattern of long and short sounds over time.
• Metre: the regular grouping of beats. Simple time: 4/4 (four crotchet beats), 3/4 (three crotchet beats, e.g. waltz), 2/4 (march feel).
• Harmony: when two or more pitches are played simultaneously. Consonant (pleasant, stable) vs Dissonant (tense, unstable).

Musical Notation

The Stave

• A stave has five horizontal lines and four spaces; notes are placed on lines or in spaces
• The treble clef (𝄞) is used for higher-pitched instruments and voices. Lines (bottom to top): E G B D F — "Every Good Boy Deserves Food". Spaces: F A C E — spells "FACE"
• The bass clef (𝄢) is used for lower-pitched instruments. Lines: G B D F A — "Great Big Dogs Fight Always". Spaces: A C E G — "All Cows Eat Grass"

Note Values

• Semibreve (whole note): 4 beats
• Minim (half note): 2 beats
• Crotchet (quarter note): 1 beat
• Quaver (eighth note): ½ beat
• Semiquaver (sixteenth note): ¼ beat
• A dot after a note increases its value by half (e.g. dotted minim = 3 beats)
• A tie: a curved line joining two identical notes; they sound as one long note

Rests

• Rests indicate silence. Each note value has a corresponding rest symbol
• Semibreve rest: hangs below a line | Minim rest: sits on a line

Time Signatures

• Written at the beginning of a piece: two numbers stacked vertically
• Top number: how many beats per bar | Bottom number: what kind of note gets one beat (4 = crotchet, 8 = quaver)
• 4/4 = four crotchet beats per bar (most common, also called "common time" ¢)
• 3/4 = three crotchet beats per bar (waltz)
• 6/8 = six quaver beats per bar (often felt as two groups of three)

Scales & Keys

The Major Scale

• A scale is a set of notes arranged in ascending or descending order
• The major scale has a pattern of tones (T) and semitones (S): T T S T T T S
• On a piano, a semitone = one key (including black notes); a tone = two semitones
• C major scale: C D E F G A B C (all white notes on a piano — easiest to see the pattern)
• All major scales use the same pattern starting from a different note

The Minor Scale

• The natural minor scale pattern: T S T T S T T
• A minor scale: A B C D E F G A
• Minor scales generally sound sadder, darker, more mysterious than major scales

Key Signatures

• A key signature tells you which notes are always sharp (♯) or flat (♭) in a piece
• It is shown at the beginning of the stave, after the clef
• G major has 1 sharp (F♯) | D major has 2 sharps | F major has 1 flat (B♭)
• The key of a piece determines the tonal centre — the note that feels like "home"

Other Scales

• Pentatonic scale: five notes (e.g. C D E G A). Used widely in folk music, blues, jazz, and pop. No semitones — sounds open and pleasing, easy to improvise on.
• Blues scale: pentatonic minor + a "blue note" (flattened 5th). Creates the characteristic tension of blues music.
• Chromatic scale: all 12 semitones within an octave.

Chords & Harmony

What is a Chord?

• A chord is three or more notes played simultaneously
• A triad is the most basic chord: a root note, plus a third, plus a fifth above the root
• Major triad: root + major third (4 semitones) + perfect fifth. Sounds happy/bright
• Minor triad: root + minor third (3 semitones) + perfect fifth. Sounds sad/dark

Primary Chords

• In any key, three chords are most important: I (tonic), IV (subdominant), V (dominant)
• In C major: Chord I = C major, Chord IV = F major, Chord V = G major
• The I-IV-V progression is the basis of blues, rock, and folk music
• The V chord creates tension that "wants" to resolve back to chord I (perfect cadence: V→I)

Cadences

• Perfect cadence: V → I. Sounds finished, conclusive. Used at the end of pieces.
• Plagal cadence: IV → I. Sounds peaceful. Used at "Amen" in hymns.
• Imperfect cadence: any chord → V. Sounds unfinished, like a question.
• Interrupted cadence: V → VI. Unexpected; sounds surprising.

Instruments & Ensembles

Instrument Families

• Strings: vibrating strings produce sound. Bowed: violin, viola, cello, double bass. Plucked: guitar, harp, lute.
• Woodwind: blown through a mouthpiece; many have a reed. Flute (no reed), clarinet (single reed), oboe/bassoon (double reed), saxophone (single reed, metal body)
• Brass: vibrating lips through a cup/funnel mouthpiece. Trumpet, trombone, French horn, tuba.
• Percussion: struck, shaken, or scraped. Pitched: xylophone, marimba, timpani (kettledrum), glockenspiel. Unpitched: snare drum, bass drum, cymbals, tambourine.
• Keyboard: piano, organ, harpsichord. Piano strings are struck by hammers when keys are pressed.
• Electronic: synthesiser, electric guitar, sampler.

Ensembles

• Orchestra: large ensemble with strings, woodwind, brass, percussion. A symphony orchestra has 60–100+ musicians.
• String quartet: 2 violins, 1 viola, 1 cello
• Concert band / wind ensemble: woodwind, brass, and percussion (no strings)
• Jazz band / big band: saxophones, brass, rhythm section (piano, bass, drums, guitar)
• Rock band: typically electric guitars, bass guitar, drums, vocals, sometimes keyboards
• Choir: group of singers. SATB: Soprano (high female), Alto (low female), Tenor (high male), Bass (low male)

World Music

African Music

• West African drumming: highly rhythmic; complex polyrhythms (multiple rhythms played simultaneously)
• Call and response: leader plays/sings a phrase; group responds
• Key instruments: djembe (goblet-shaped drum), kora (21-string harp-lute), balafon (wooden xylophone)
• Music is central to daily life: used for ceremonies, storytelling, harvest, celebrations

Indian Classical Music

• Two main traditions: Hindustani (North India) and Carnatic (South India)
• Raga: a specific set of notes (like a scale) with rules for ascending and descending; each raga has a specific mood and is associated with a time of day or season
• Tala: the rhythmic cycle (like a time signature); the most common is "Teentaal" (16 beats)
• Key instruments: sitar, sarod (plucked strings); tabla (pair of drums); bansuri (bamboo flute)
• Improvisation is central to performance within the framework of a raga

Blues Music

• Originated in the Deep South USA, developed from African-American folk music, work songs, and spirituals in the late 19th/early 20th century
• 12-bar blues: a repeating harmonic structure using chords I, IV, and V (12 bars long)
• Blue notes: flattened 3rd, 5th, and 7th degrees of the scale give the characteristic blues sound
• Call and response: often within the melody and lyrics
• Key artists: Robert Johnson, B.B. King, Bessie Smith. Influence on rock, jazz, and pop

Reggae

• Originated in Jamaica in the late 1960s; developed from ska and rocksteady
• Characteristic offbeat rhythm (the "skank") on guitar/keyboard on beats 2 and 4
• Bassline is often prominent and melodic
• Lyrics often address social issues, Rastafarianism, love
• Key artists: Bob Marley, Jimmy Cliff, Toots and the Maytals