Tonality

that were considered to be “prototypes brought to this country from Africa” (pg. 20, Jazz: A History). Ragtime music had a duple meter. It had a “functional diatonic harmony stressing tonic, dominant, subdominant, and applied dominants in a major tonality” (pg. 22, Jazz: A History). Its syncopations occurred on the second and fourth eighth notes with accented melody notes. Syncopation, an “interruption of the regular flow of rhythm”, was the “ chief characteristic” of ragtime melodies. Ragtime,…

Michael Sweeney’s Earth and Sky, commissioned for the 2013 Nebraska All-State Eighth Grade Band, celebrates the Omaha tribe’s belief that the sky and earth are interconnected. Prior to the 1800s, the animistic union between sky and earth permeated all aspects of Omaha culture. In fact, the tribe even developed a social structure based on the belief. During this time, the Omaha tribe was divided into two half-tribes: the Sky People (know as the Insta’shunda) and the Earth People (known as the…

is considered music, we must look at specific examples. In the piece Threnody for the Victims of Hiroshima, there is hardly a sense of tonality, but is it music according to the definition that we have formed? Was it composed: the score for this piece lists parts for violinists, though it is not composed in a traditional form. Was it for or about a purpose: this piece beings to give the…

By consciously creating with a loose stroke he is able to give an unpolished and unkempt quality to his subject matter. The blotchy tonality that the skin tone color gives off does not work in favor for the man but gives him an exposed quality as he is not idealized and highly polished as a Classical rendering of a figure would be but stripped to show authenticity. Thus, it works like…

Music has influenced all regions in different aspects of life, contributing in the making of history. A genre of music that is considered to be the basic foundation of all genres ranging from the old days to the twenty first century is the blues. When you think of the blues, you tend to think about personal adversity. A common theme in the genre of blues is that people talk about problems they are having, any feeling of regret they may have, and feelings of betrayal. However, the blues is also…

Chapter 10 ?Mabel Daniels?s Place in American Composition? Mabel Daniels and her work mirror many of the important themes of her time, reflecting shifts in American society and culture from the nineteenth to the twentieth centuries. Profound and rapid changes in technology and lifestyle provoked a range of responses from embracing the avant-garde to resisting it. In Chapter 1 I argued Daniels?s importance to the history of American music. While many of her works are powerful and merit…

Oral language is the easiest way to transmit any kind of message. African Americans in the 19th century uses the oral language to portray their sufferance and sadness as slaves, since it was the only permitted way to express themselves. African American spirituals emerge from the injustice of the masters and Christianity influence. The songs are a desperate call for a better life, a call for freedom. In fact; the impact of African American spirituals during the 19th century influences the world…

sounds create what feelings. In order to get subjects to feel happy “ fast, flowing tempos with lively, skipping, dotted rhythms with a firm pulse are required. High pitching and rising melodies are also necessary. Finally, there should be major tonality and clear structured harmonies” (Blunt 190). Not only is important for students to be able to learn about music, but it helps them figure out what paths they want to take in life. When introduced to music, students can begin to decide whether or…

in fact – seemingly sacrilegiously – include the ‘most renowned Virgin’ among these ‘girls’. The veneration of the Virgin Mary in this respect was in fact neither unheard of nor decried in the Renaissance period; even in the Late-Medieval Era, this type of imagery was commonplace (Pesce 2009: 152). However, the pre-enlightenment reverence of the physical features of the Virgin Mary can be viewed more as a stylistic and poetic custom than a sign of growing materialist and secular influences,…

Johannes Brahms was a German composer and pianist. He lived from 1833 to 1897 during the romantic music period. Many people associate him with Bach and Beethoven, considering them the three biggest influences in classical music. Brahms composed for piano, chamber ensembles, symphony orchestra, and voice and chorus. His technique roots from the Baroque and Classical styles. He is known as the master of counterpoint, symphonic, and sonata style, approaching harmony and melody in a new and…