Intervals - lesson 1

Intervals 1

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An interval

• Is the distance between two notes

• Can be ascending (going up) or descending (going down)

• Can be melodic (one after the other) or harmonic (played together)

Odd intervals (unison, 3rd, 5th, 7th)

• Go from line to line, or

• Go from space to space

• Never alternate from line to space

Even intervals (2nd, 4th, 6th, 8ve)

• Go from a line to a space

• Go from a space to a line

• Never go from line to line or space to space

There are a few ways to count intervals:

• Count every line and space (can be tricky if the image is small)

• Figure out the 2 notes and count from the first to the next on your fingers (be careful to count backwards for descending intervals

• Figure out if it's odd or even, and then start to eliminate - a 2nd is clearly different from all the other even intervals; octaves are also fairly distinctive

• If in doubt, use all three methods to i) figure it out, ii) check your work, and iii) DOUBLE check your work

Multiple Choice

Is this interval odd or even:

• Odd

• Even

Multiple Choice

Is this interval melodic or harmonic:

• Melodic

• Harmonic

Multiple Choice

Is this interval odd or even:

• Odd

• Even

Multiple Choice

Is this interval melodic or harmonic:

• Melodic

• Harmonic

Multiple Choice

Is this interval ascending or descending:

• Ascending

• Descending