Rhythm
This is the steady pulse you can tap on your knee that doesn't change during most of a song
What is a steady beat such as a heart beat.
This note lasts for one steady beat and is our "home-base" when counting in 4/4.
What is a quarter note.
This word describes whether a sound is high or low.
This is the musical element that is a sequence of single notes you can sing (the "tune").
What is Melody?
A measure (or bar) groups beats together. If a song is counted "1-2-3-1-2-3" it is in this time signature.
What is 3/4 time.
Which note is twice as long as a quarter note and gets two steady beats?
What is a half-note.
This term describes how loud or soft a sound is.
What is intensity or volume?
This is when two or more pitches sound at the same time and create chords.
What is harmony?
Name two ways rhythm and melody work together in a song.
What is rhythm provides timing while melody gives pitch; rhythm can make a melody feel faster or slower; rhythm and melody combine to make a song recognizable
How many eighth notes fit in one measure of 4/4 time?
What is eight (8).
This describes timbre.
What is the unique sound quality of an instrument or voice?
This is how many different pitch names there are on a piano before the pattern repeats (how many unique notes in one octave)?
What are twelve (12) unique pitch names in one octave?
What is rhythm (the faster notes are the rhythm played over the steady beat.
Write the names (whole, half, quarter, eighth, sixteenth) in order from longest duration to shortest duration.
What is Whole, half, quarter, eighth, sixteenth.
This explains the difference between 2 instruments that play the same pitch but sound different.
What is timbre?
The major scale uses the pattern W‑W‑H‑W‑W‑W‑H (W = whole step, H = half step). If you start on C and follow that pattern, this is the note a whole step above C.
What is D?
Explain in one or two sentences how the steady beat, measure, and time signature help musicians play together.
When the steady beat is the consistent pulse; measure group a set number of beats; the time signature tells how many beats per measure. These let musicians count together and stay in time.
A measure in 4/4 contains one half note, one quarter note, and a set of eighth notes. How many eighth notes must fill the remainder of the measure? Show your reasoning
one half note = 2 beats; one quarter = 1 beat; total is 3 beats
2 eighth notes are needed.
This describes how pitch, intensity, and timbre help to make a song expressive.
Example: A high, soft flute note (high pitch, low intensity) with a bright timbre sounds different emotionally than a low, loud trombone note (low pitch, high intensity) with a dark timbre — together they create contrast and feeling.
This explains how melody and harmony are "best friends" — one example of how harmony supports a melody in a song is this.
What is how the melody sings the main tune while harmony (chords) played under it supports and fills out the sound, making the melody sound fuller and more satisfying.