Music

Music is an art form whose medium is sound and silence. Its common elements are pitch (which governs melody and harmony), rhythm (and its associated concepts tempo, meter, and articulation), dynamics, and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture. The word derives from Greek (mousike; "art of the Muses").[1] The creation, performance, significance, and even the definition of music vary according to culture and social context. Music ranges from strictly organized compositions (and their recreation in performance), through improvisational music to aleatoric forms. Music can be divided into genres and subgenres, although the dividing lines and relationships between music genres are often subtle, sometimes open to individual interpretation, and occasionally controversial. Within "the arts", music may be classified as a performing art, a fine art, and auditory art. There is also a strong connection between music and mathematics.[2] To many people in many cultures, music is an important part of their way of life. Ancient Greek and Indian philosophers defined music as tones ordered horizontally as melodies and vertically as harmonies. Common sayings such as "the harmony of the spheres" and "it is music to my ears" point to the notion that music is often ordered and pleasant to listen to. However, 20thcentury composer John Cage thought that any sound can be music, saying, for example, "There is no noise, only sound."[3] Musicologist Jean-Jacques Nattiez summarizes the relativist, postmodern viewpoint: "The border between music and noise is always culturally definedwhich implies that, even within a single society, this border does not always pass through the same place; in short, there is rarely a consensus ... By all accounts there is no single and intercultural universal concept defining what music might be."[4]

Musical symbols
Measures A measure is a section of the staff that comes between two bar lines (or barlines). Each measure satisfies the time signature; music written in 4/4 time will have four quarter-note beats per measure. Double Bar Lines A double bar line is used to separate different sections of a song, and may mark the transition into a different time signature, key signature, or overall style. A bold double bar line is a final bar line, and marks the end of a song or movement. Treble Staff The top staff is the treble staff, which is marked with the treble clef (or G-clef). Its notes are generally higher than middle C, and are played with the right hand.Bass Staff The bottom staff is the bass staff, marked with the bass clef (or F-clef). Its notes are around middle C and below, and are played with the left hand. Pitch is expressed by a notes placement on the staff. When a note has fallen off the staff, it is placed on a ledger line. Duration depends on the notes length (or value), which is specified by its color, stem, or flag(s). Whole Note (U.S.), Semibreve (U.K.) Covers every beat in 4/4 time. In common time, a whole note takes all four beats. Half Note (U.S.), Minim (U.K.) Is half the length of a whole note. Covers two beats in common time. Quarter Note (U.S.), Crotchet (U.K.) Is 1/4 the length of a whole note. Is one beat in common time. Eighth Note (U.S.), Quaver (U.K.) Is 1/8 the length of a whole note; half the length of a quarter note. Two eighth notes make one beat. Sixteenth Note (U.S.), Semiquaver (U.K.) Is 1/16 the length of a whole note; half the length of an eighth note. Four sixteenth notes equal one beat of common time. Thirty-Second Note (U.S.), Demisemiquaver (U.K.) Is 1/32 the length of a whole note; 1/4 the length of an eighth note. Eight thirty-second notes equal one beat of common time. Sixty-Fourth Note (U.S.), Hemidemisemiquaver (U.K.) Is 1/64 the length of a whole note; 1/8 of an eighth note. Sixteen sixty-fourth notes equal one beat of common time. Music Rest Lengths A music rest marks the absence of a note, and indicates there will be no note played in the measure for its duration. Rests are written in lengths, just like notes; a rest with the duration of a quarter note is called a quarter rest. Dotted rests are used in the same manner as dotted notes: A rest of 1 1/2 beats may be written as a dotted quarter rest. In the event of notation overlap such as a half-note chord written in a measure full of eighth-notes rests and notes may appear simultaneously despite each other (see example, above). An accidental is a symbol that turns a note into a sharp, a flat, or a natural: Sharp (): Makes a note higher in pitch by a half step. Flat (): Makes a note lower in pitch by a half step. Natural (): Returns a note to its original pitch after having been sharpened or flattened. Naturals also cancel out sharps or flats implied by a key signature. Double-Accidentals Double-sharps (x) and double-flats () occur in certain chords and scales. Double-naturals () cancel out a double-accidental in traditional sheet music, but a single natural sign may now be used.

A time signature is a fraction found at the beginning of a piece of music, after the clef and key signature. Time signatures regulate rhythm by organizing beats in two ways: The top number shows how many beats occur in each measure. The bottom number shows the length of the beats: A 4 means each beat is a quarter note long; a 2 indicates a half note, etc. Therefore, a 4/4 time signature has four beats per measure, with each beat equalling the length of a quarter note. A 3/4 time signature has three quarter-note beats per measure. Common Time 4/4 time is also called common time because, you guessed it, its so common. Youll see it a lot, so keep in mind: 1. It may be written 4/4, or with a c-shaped half-circle (this symbol does not stand for common time; learn its true meaning). 2. Its also called quadruple meter or imperfect time. 3. Cut common time is represented by the signature 2/2, or with a symbol similar to a cent sign. Cut time changes the rhythmic feel, but is mathematically equal to 4/4 meter. Time signatures organize beats, but the speed of a song depends on its tempo. Staccato A small dot placed above or below a note, making it brief in duration (not to be confused with a rhythm dot, which is placed after a note-head). Staccatissimo A small wedge or straight comma above a note that creates an exaggerated staccato; a very brief note. Marcato Also informally referred to as simply an accent, a marcato makes a note slightly more pronounced than surrounding notes. Sforzando Makes a note considerably louder than surrounding notes. When a single note is affected, the abbreviation sfz is written. * Sforzando is also considered a dynamics command. Tie A curved line that joins two or more notes of the same pitch. In piano music, notes connected by a tie are struck as one note, and are held for the total duration of all the tied notes. For example, in the image above, the F is held for three beats. * Ties may also be considered tempo marks, since they modify rhythm. Legato or Slur Connects two or more different notes. In piano music, the individual notes must be struck, but there should be no audible spaces between them. Fermata An indication to hold a note or chord for any desired length. A fermata is also called a hold or a birds eye. * A fermata may also be considered a tempo mark. Arpeggio A squiggly vertical line next to a chord means its notes are not played simultaneously; the notes are hit quickly in order, creating a harp-like effect. Arpeggiated chords usually go from low to high, unless marked by a downward arrow. An arpeggiato is a fast-moving arpeggio.

Musical notation
Music notation or musical notation is any system that represents aurally perceived music, through the use of written symbols.The earliest form of musical notation can be found in a cuneiform tablet that was created at Nippur, Iraq in about 2000 B.C. The tablet represents fragmentary instructions for performing music, that the music was composed in harmonies of thirds, and that it was written using a diatonic scale.[1] A tablet from about 1250 B.C. shows a more developed form of notation.[2] Although the interpretation of the notation system is still controversial, it is clear that the notation indicates the names of strings on a lyre, the tuning of which is described in other tablets.[3] Although they are fragmentary, these tablets represent the earliest notated melodies found anywhere in the world.[4] Modern music notation originated in European classical music and is now used by musicians of many different genres throughout the world. The system uses a five-line staff. Pitch is shown by placement of notes on the staff (sometimes modified by accidentals), and duration is shown with different note values and additional symbols such as dots and ties. Notation is read from left to right, which makes setting music for right-to-left scripts difficult. A staff (or stave, in British English) of written music generally begins with a clef, which indicates the position of one particular note on the staff. The treble or G clef was originally a letter G and it identifies the second line up on the five line staff as the note G above middle C. The bass or F clef shows the position of the note F below middle C. Notes representing a pitch outside of the scope of the five line staff can be represented using ledger lines, which provide a single note with additional lines and spaces. Following the clef, the key signature on a staff indicates the key of the piece by specifying that certain notes are flat or sharp throughout the piece, unless otherwise indicated. Following the key signature is the time signature. Measures (bars) divide the piece into groups of beats, and the time signatures specify those groupings. Directions to the player regarding matters such as tempo, dynamics and expression appear above or below the staff. For vocal music, lyrics are written. For short pauses (breaths), retakes (looks like ') are added. In music for ensembles, a "score" shows music for all players together, while "parts" contain only the music played by an individual musician. A score can be constructed from a complete set of parts and vice versa. The process can be laborious but computer software offers a more convenient and flexible method.