Medieval and Baroque Music: Chords, Contrasts, and Instruments

Medieval and Baroque Music

Chords and Melodies

Arab Music

Arab Music: Originating from Northern Africa to Iran, through Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey.

Features:

  • Heterophony
  • Improvisation
  • Ornamentation
  • Based on melodic and rhythmic modes

Gregorian Chant

The evolution of Western music from medieval chant, part of the church, called Gregorian chant, in honor of Pope Gregory I, who was the first collector.

These Gregorian chants formed by uniting all religious songs from the areas in which Christianity had influence.

Read More

German Opera, Nationalism, Impressionism & 20th Century Music

German Opera

The origin of German opera lies in the development of Mozart’s Singspiel, which gave it a distinctly German character. Beethoven’s traits, though not inherently romantic, influenced Weber, who established the national characteristics. Wagner’s characteristics include striving for total art, operas in German, themes of myths and Germanic legends, and masterful orchestration with leitmotifs. His use of dramatic works is evident in his operas. His first opera, Rienzi, was based on the life

Read More

Latin Dance Sport: Samba, Cha-Cha-Cha, Rumba, Paso Doble, and Jive

Latin Dances: Origins and Evolution

Latin dances have been practiced in Europe since the early twentieth century, although their origins can be traced back to the late nineteenth century, when musical styles from Spain, Portugal, Africa, and Indigenous America began to blend and mix.

Of all the existing Latin dances, only five have been included in DanceSport. They are: Samba, Cha-Cha-Cha, Rumba, Paso Doble, and Jive. Below, we introduce each dance:

Samba

Originally discovered in Africa but developed

Read More

The Evolution of Jazz Music: From Work Songs to Be-Bop

The Origins of Jazz Music

Origin of Jazz: Jazz originated from the songs of enslaved people who worked on plantations in the southeastern United States. There are three primary genres: Work Song, Blues, and Gospel song.

Work Songs

Work Song: Work songs helped slaves coordinate their efforts on plantations. The pace of work provided the basis for the chants, accompanied by the sound of the tools. These songs had a sad and melancholy character, but were rhythmic. One worker would start singing, and the

Read More

Classical Music: History, Features, and Key Composers

Classical Music: A Historical Overview

Some news: Classical music emerged between the 17th and 19th centuries. This era saw the rise of public concerts, accessible through paid musical tickets, and the advent of music journalism. Numerous books and studies were written to facilitate learning musical instruments.

Key Features of Classical Music

Features classical music: The basso continuo largely disappeared, replaced by accompaniments featuring repeated chords and arpeggios. The rhythmic accompaniment

Read More

Medieval Music: Texture, Gregorian Chants, and Troubadours

Medieval Music

Texture is the way in which different voices (melodies) in a musical piece are arranged. There are four main types of textures:

  1. Monophonic (Monophony): A single voice (melody) without any accompaniment. It is the oldest type of texture. Example: Gregorian chant.
  2. Homophonic Texture (Homophony): Several voices (melodies) that sound simultaneously with the same rhythm, even the same notes. It is the simplest type of polyphony. Example: Protestant Chorale.
  3. Polyphonic Textures (Polyphony):
Read More