In Tom Zarecki’s discussion on rhythm, he points out the major influence that Bo Diddly brought to popular music with his unique rhythm. You can listen to Bo Diddly’s groundbreaking rhythm in the YouTube-video below.
Now listen to the series of different songs that follow. Notice how Bo Diddly’s rhythm is used in these different songs.
This rhythm by Bo Diddly has become a successful Rock ‘n Roll meme.
Remember how many songs can share the same chord progression (see “Harmony”) – so too many songs can share the same rhythm. Again, it is the melody that makes the big difference; and of course, the lyrics are also different.
In music, harmony means that more than one note with different pitches are sounded at the same time. Listen to the Gaithar Vocal Band singing in harmony (in the shower!) in the YouTube-video below.
Intervals and Chords
The distance in pitch between the notes are called the interval. When three or more notes are sounded at the same time it is called a chord. The most common chord is the triad chord – three different notes sounded together. When people learn to strum the guithar they usually learn to play different chords, and often triad chords. Popular songs are usually made up of three (sometimes four) chords that go well together. “When different chords systematically follow each other in a piece of music, we describe the musical results as a chord progression” (Crossroads in Music, p. 26). Listen to the YouTube-video below and notice how many popular songs all use the same chord progression.
Since the chord progression is exactly the same, how do we differentiate between these songs? Yes, it is the melody that makes these songs unique.
Dissonance and Consonance
Usuall when we think of “harmony” in music, we think of notes that sound nice toghether. However, harmony can be any notes sounded at the same time and does not necessarily have to sound pleasing. When notes sound pleasing together is called consonance. When notes sound unpleasing together it is called dissonance. Dissonance creates tension in music. Rock music, especially heavy metal music, makes use of a lot of dissonance to create tension. Crossroads in Music (p. 29) explains that “moving from dissonance to consonance provides resolution (rest)…”
The song “Bohemian Rhapsody”by the rock band Queen is probably one of the most famous songs of all time. This song has much emphasis on harmony by the different vocals – there is therefore lots of consonance in the song. Although there is a strong focus on consonance between the different vocals and instruments, there are also clear moments dissonance. Listen to the song in the YouTube-video below and notice how the dissonance creates tension which is resolved when the dissonance changes into consonance again.
Which instrument(s) do you think helps the most with creating those moments of dissonance in “Bohemian Rhapsody”?
Today, musicians in the fiels of electronic music, rap music, and some other musical styles do not emply harmony in a traditional sense. They rely on the intensity of sound, lyrics, or rhythmic drive to give meaning to their musical statemensts, which often come as isolated sounds rather than as part of a harmonic context. (Crossroads in Music, p. 31.)
Reread the quote above and then listen to Justin Timberlake’s “Lovestoned / I Think She Knows Interlude”. What do you think is the most important element in this song: melody, harmony, rhythm, or lyrics?
Harmony’s Effect on Your Mind
It is well known that music can put us into a certain mood. For instance, sad music can make you melancholic or upbeat music can give you energy. How do you think music with lots of dissonance, such as heavy metal music, will influence your emotional state? It is possible that long term exposure to music with a strong emphasis on dissonance (which creates musical tension) could put you into a negative – even aggressive, agitated, or depressed – frame of mind. Later in this semester we will see how certain types of music have traditions of drug abuse, violence, depression and suicide associated with them.
What effect has the music you listen to on your mind?
This blog provides some class notes for EL4234 ("Poetry in Music") at SYU, running from August 31st to December 18th, 2009.
Class Description:
The purpose of this course is to facilitate you in the listening, reading and discussion of contemporary English songs. Poetry theory, music theory and rhetorical theory will be incorporated while listening to and contemplating a number of different music genres, ranging from Hymns to Hip-Hop music.
In this class we will basically enjoy a cursory overview of contemporary music and in the process develop your skills to converse about music in general, but in particular to read, interpret, and discuss song lyrics (which are the poetry in music).
Our main textbook is:
Larsen, M. A. (Ed.), Borg, P. W., Poultney, D., Unsworth, A., and Washburn, R. 2003. Crossroads in Music: Traditions & Connections. Schirmer-Cengage Learning.
We will also supplement the course with other sources, including online links, and music that more accurately match our goals.
