![]() A small jazz combo with a bass, a piano, and a drum set providing the “rhythm” background for a trumpet improvising a solo.A singer accompanied by a guitar picking or strumming chords.Most traditional Protestant hymns and most “barbershop quartet” music is in this category. Choral music in which the parts have mostly the same rhythms at the same time is homophonic.are not independent) or because their main purpose is to fill in the chords or harmony (i.e. But when they are sung or played with the melody, it is clear that they are not independent melodic parts, either because they have the same rhythm as the melody (i.e. They may follow many of the rules of well-written counterpoint, and they can sound quite different from the melody and be interesting to listen to by themselves. In most well-written homophony, the parts that are not melody may still have a lot of melodic interest. All other parts provide accompaniment or fill in the chords. Homophony has one clear melodic line it’s the line that naturally draws your attention. More informally, people who are describing homophonic music may mention chords, accompaniment, harmony or harmonies. Homophonic music can also be called homophony. Think of a favorite pop or gospel tune that, near the end, has the soloist “ad libbing” while the back-up singers repeat the refrain. Music that is mostly homophonic can become temporarily polyphonic if an independent countermelody is added.Most music for large instrumental groups such as bands or orchestras is contrapuntal at least some of the time.Much late Baroque music is contrapuntal, particularly the works of J.S. ![]() (Even if there is only one melody, if different people are singing or playing it at different times, the parts sound independent.) Rounds, canons, and fugues are all polyphonic.If more than one independent melody is occurring at the same time, the music is polyphonic. Polyphonic music can also be called polyphony, counterpoint, or contrapuntal music. A fife and drum corp, with all the fifes playing the same melody.A group of people all singing a single melody together without harmony or instrumental accompaniment.This texture is used very little in music of the Western European tradition after the Middle Ages. Monophonic music can also be called monophony. There may be rhythmic accompaniment, but only one line that has specific pitches. Monophonic music has only one melodic line, with no harmony or counterpoint. Here are definitions and examples of the three main textures you will encounter in our class. There are many informal terms that can describe the texture of a piece of music (thick, thin, bass-heavy, rhythmically complex, and so on), but the formal terms that are used to describe texture all describe the relationships of melodies and, if present, harmonies. Below you will find some of the formal terms musicians use to describe texture. It might be made up of rhythm only, or of a melody line with chordal accompaniment, or many interweaving melodies. For example, the texture of the music might be thick or thin, or it may have many or few layers. When you describe the texture of a piece of music, you are describing the relationship of melodic and (sometimes) harmonic elements with each other. Texture is one of the basic elements of music. At the end of the reading assignment you’ll find links to three pieces you can listen to see if you can identify the textures of the pieces based on your reading. Texture is an element you will use when identifying pieces from all the periods of music history so you’ll want to study this material very carefully. This document covers the three musical textures we will encounter in our studies: monophony, polyphony, and homophony.
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