Concepts in Music Appreciation 1

Note Duration

• The length of time that a note is played is called its note duration, which is determined by the type of note.
• The whole note has the longest note duration in modern music.
• The half note has half the duration of a whole note.

• Two half notes occupy the same amount of time as one whole note.
• The quarter note is a fourth (or a quarter) of a whole note.
• Four quarter notes occupy the same amount of time as one whole note. Two quarter notes equal the duration of a half note.

• Notes smaller in duration than a quarter note have flags. Each flag halves the value of a note.
• An eight note has one flag.
• Therefore, two eight notes occupy the same amount of time as one quarter note.
• A sixteenth note has two flags, having the value again.

• Two sixteenth notes equal the duration of an eight note.
• Four sixteenth notes occupy the same amount of time as one quarter note.
• Although its possible to have notes with three or more flags, they are seldom used.

Rest Duration

• Rests represent periods of silence in a measure.
• Each type of rest shares a duration with a certain type of note
• For example, both a quarter rest and a quarter note occupy the same amount of time.

• While the note would make a sound, the rest is silent
• To demonstrate this, let’s fill a measure of 4/4 time with quarter notes.
• When played, all four notes sound.

• A whole rest occupies the same amount of time as a whole note.
• It is drawn as a box descending from the fourth staff line.
• A half rest occupies the same amount of time as a half note.

• It is drawn as a box ascending form the middle staff line.
• Like notes, rests can have flags.
• With one flag, an eight rest has the same duration as an eight note.
• With two flags, a sixteenth rest has the same duration as a sixteenth note.

The Staff, Cleff and Ledger Lines

• The staff is the foundation upon which notes are drawn
• The modern staff comprises five lines and four spaces
• Evert line or space on the staff represents a white key on the keyboard.

• Clefs assign individual notes to certain lines or spaces
• Two clefs are normally used: the Treble and Bass clefs
• First, we will discuss the Treble Clef (also called the G Clef)
• The staff line which the clef wraps around (shown in red) is known as G. Any note placed on this Ledger Lines will solve the dilemma.
• A ledger line is a small line that extends the staff when we run out of room.
• With the ledger line drawn, we can place the A.

• Next, let’s discuss the Bass Clef (also called the F Clef)
• The staff line in between the two dots of the clef is F.
• We can now fill the rest of the staff with notes.
• Finally, we will discuss the Grand Staff, a theoretical staff consisting of eleven lines.

Steps and Accidentals

• A half step (or “semitone”) is the distance from one key on the keyboard to the next adjacent key.
• A whole step (or “white stone” or simply “tone”) is the same distance as two half steps.
• Key 1 to Key 3 is a whole step.

• An accidental is a sign used to raise or lower the pitch of a note.
• The first accidentals that we will discuss are the flat and the sharp.
• The flat lowers a note by a half step while the sharp raises a note by a half step.

• Whenever a certain pitch has multiple names, it is called an enharmonic spelling.

Generic Intervals

• An interval measures the distance between two notes.
• We will first discuss generic intervals, which are measured on the staff.

When two notes occupy the same line or space, they are first (or a prime) apart