Octave

Have you ever wondered why a song became so popular? Or why you always happened to get that one song stuck in your head? Well, those questions have been answered by Robert Jourdain in his nonfiction book Music, the Brain, and Ecstasy. Jourdain begins his book with the simplest aspect of sound, the first puzzle piece of how music became a worldwide sensation that can be seen in basically every culture on Earth. That puzzle piece is hearing, and how our ears have evolved to understand, interpret,…

here and there but nothing special. I watched my feet step on the dark gum stains on the sidewalk and found my feet on the homeless man’s cardboard. I looked up at him startled. “I'm so sorry. I wasn't paying attention.” I felt my voice raise three octaves because I was so nervous. As I stared at his ‘home’ I heard a voice behind me. “Honey, be careful, there's a scary man on your right side. You dont know whats in his head, so be careful!” I hoped the man didn't hear but his head dropped in…

Ludwig Van Beethoven was a German composer and the predominant musical figure in the transitional period between the Classical and Romantic eras. He was born in Bonn, Germany on December, 1770. Although his exact date of birth is uncertain, Beethoven was baptized on December 17, 1770. With Beethoven’s father and grandfather being musically talented, Beethoven proudly followed in their footsteps, studying the violin and clavier with his father and anything else he could in his town. Beethoven…

At 10 years old, my sisters and I were taken away from our mom. We then isolated and were sent to other relatives as opposed to going to foster care. My grandma took me in on my mom's side. She was a piano player, a minister, and as a result of her I learned of Beethoven and every single other sort of music. It was at ten years old that my adoration for music happened. I played each melody I could discover about having a broken heart, depression, absolution, meanings of adoration and family,…

Music from the past has had a tremendous effect on what modern music is today. This is shown through the use of word painting and dynamics in the Renaissance period, instruments and Operas in the Baroque Period, primary triads and homophonic compositions in the Classical Period and finally, the utilisation of tone poems and heartfelt passion in the Romantic Period. If it wasn’t for these periods, music would not have evolved in such a immense and progressive way. The Renaissance Period which…

The best way to track the evolution of an organism is to observe the changes that occur to it over the span of several generations. Similarly, in music it can be possible to track its evolution by observing changes to a style, genre, or concept. In this report, the focus will fall on movements from two violin sonatas. For the purposes of this discussion, a violin sonata will be defined as a work specifically written for violin and piano with the purpose of it being a chamber piece. By analyzing…

During that time, African Americans are considered as the lowest class. Most of the white characters in the novel stereotype black people that they are dirty, stupid, lazy, and have diseases. “Hilly raises her voice about three octaves when talking to black people. Elizabeth smiles like she's talking to a child, although certainly not her own. I'm starting to notice things.” We can see from the quote here of how white people think that black people are more stupid than them. They…

bright levels in matter revealed by colors through spectrum scales all up and down the quantum ladder in fireworks of the inner horizons, each zone voicing its wavelength with choirs in the tiny stadiums of harmony of the deeper galaxies, ancient octaves and intervals, lit cities within every speck of substance.…

when a tone is played but not necessarily heard, that lends to a uniform euphonic sound. Each tone in a key is separated by a set of intervals specific to that key, with each interval being numbered according to its ascending order in the relative octave. The tritone is the fifth interval of any minor key moved down halfway between the fourth and fifth intervals, creating a dissonant sound. The fifth interval is considered to be one of the most consonant intervals in music, so just moving it…

Franz Jospeh Haydn was crucial figure within musical history. Born 1732, he was an essential figure in the growth of chamber music and his influence within musical form earned him the name of the father of the classical period. A symphony typically refers to a large work for an orchestra that was usually in four movements. During the 18th century, the symphony had been developing and by this point most composers had established a pattern of four sections that became known as movements.…