Words to Describe Music Pitch

Words to Describe Music

Pitch Pitch is the degree of highness or lowness of a sound. Pitch frequency is measured by the number of vibrations that occur in a second. In music, every note has a distinct pitch.

Melody The melody of a song is the music that stands out in the foreground of a song. In many popular styles of music, the melody is sung by a lead singer, which makes it very easy to pick out from the other parts.

Harmony When two or more notes are played or sung together, the resulting sound is harmony. Harmony can be described as consonant-when the notes sound pleasing together-or dissonant-when the notes sound unresolved. Consonance and dissonance are subjective terms-what sounds pleasing to one person may sound unpleasant to another.

Texture Texture refers to the combined effect on many parts being sung or played simultaneously. Some songs have a very simple texture-a singer accompanied by guitar would be an example of this. A symphony orchestra with strings, brass, woodwinds, and percussion would play music with a much more complicated texture.

Beat In music, the beat is the steady pulse. When you dance or tap your foot to a song, you are feeling the beat. The beat in music is generally consistent and does not change.

Tempo Tempo is the Italian word for time, and it is a measure of a song's speed. It can be measured in beats per minute, or it can be described in subjective terms like fast and slow.

Meter Meter, or time signature, is the grouping of strong and weak beats. Beats are often grouped together in fours, threes, or twos (although other combinations are possible.

Timbre Timbre is the tone quality that is unique to every voice and instrument. Timbre is described with adjectives-words like bright, hollow, rough, shrill, or warm. It is a somewhat subjective term, and a timbre that one person finds pleasing might not be enjoyable to another.

Dynamics Dynamics refer to the variations in a song's volume. A song that is soft has a different impact from one that is loud. Dynamic variations are an important part of a song's emotional expression.

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