Pitch in music: Lesson 3

Pitch

By Cameron Spike-Porter

What is pitch?

​Pitch

Pitch refers to how high or low a sound is. Every note you play or sing has a pitch. High notes sound lighter or thinner (like a flute), and low notes sound deeper or heavier (like a tuba). Pitch is a key part of music because it helps create melody and harmony.

Part 1: Melody

​How pitch creates melody

When pitches are put in a certain order, they form a melody — the part of the music you often hum or sing. Melodies can move step by step (called stepwise) or jump between notes (called leaps). The way the pitch moves helps create the feeling or mood of the music.

Part 2: Harmony

​How pitch creates harmony

When two or more pitches are played at the same time, they create harmony (chords). Playing chords = harmony. Chords are built from stacked pitches and can sound happy, sad, tense, or relaxed. The pitch of each note in a chord affects how the whole chord sounds.

Part 1: Melody

Multiple Choice

What word best describe the pitch of the vocal melody?

• Baritone
  (low)

• Tenor
  (mid range)

• Soprano
  (high)

Multiple Choice

Describe the pitch of the vocal melody

• Soprano
  (high)

• Alto
  (mid-high)

• Tenor
  (mid-low)

• Baritone
  (low)

Listen,
then
Answer

Draw

Draw the pitch contour (direction / motion) of the vocal melody

Multiple Choice

What word best describes the contour (motion) of the melody?

• Mostly ascending

• Mostly descending

Multiple Choice

What is main melody line doing?

• Descending slowly

• Ascending: modulating higher each round

• Moving up and down

• Staying the same key each time

Multiple Choice

What best describes pitch?

• How loud or soft music is

• How slow or fast music is

• How high or low the melodic notes in music are

• How good or bad music is

Multiple Choice

Which note is lower in pitch?

Multiple Choice

Which note is higher in pitch?

Multiple Choice

If a melody goes from high to low, we say it.....

• Ascends

• Descends

• Stays the same

"Wide" vs "Narrow" pitch melody

We can also describe pitch melody as wide or narrow. Wide pitch melody uses large intervalic jumps whereas narrow pitch melody uses short, stepwise motion.

Multiple Choice

What term best describes a narrow melody that moves up or down by small steps?

• Stepwise motion

• Skipping motion

• Leaping motion

• Counterpoint

Multiple Choice

What word best describes the pitch melody in this example?

• Wide

• Narrow

Multiple Choice

Which word describes the way a melody moves up or down in pitch?

• Bounce

• Contour

• Rhythm

Multiple Choice

What motion describes this vocal melody?

• Stepwise
  (small / narrow intervalic steps)

• Leaping
  (wide intervalic skips)

Multiple Choice

What motion describes this vocal melody?

• Stepwise
  (small / narrow intervalic steps)

• Leaping
  (wide intervalic skips)

Multiple Choice

What motion describes this vocal melody?

• Stepwise
  (small / narrow intervalic steps)

• Leaping
  (wide intervalic skips)

Part 2: Harmony

Multiple Choice

What is harmony?

• Rhythm

• Different notes played at the same time (i.e. chords).

• A melodic line

Listen,
then
Answer

Multiple Choice

What word best describes the pitch in this intro?

• Consonant
  (pleasant sounding)

• Dissonant
  (clashing sound)

​Dissonant vs. Consonant

Consonant pitch means notes that sound smooth and pleasant together. They feel calm or finished. Dissonant pitch means notes that clash or sound tense. They feel like something needs to change or resolve. Music often uses both to make it more interesting and emotional.

Multiple Choice

What best describes the harmony in this piece?

• Consonant

• Dissonant

Multiple Choice

What best describes the harmony in this piece?

• Dissonant / Angular

• Consonant / Pleasant

Chord 'tonality'

​Major and Minor

Chords that have a major tonality are said to sound 'happy', whereas chords with a minor tonality are said to sound 'sad'.

Multiple Choice

What tonality is the harmony (chords) in the verse section of this song?

• Minor

• Major

Multiple Choice

What best describes the tonality of the harmony?

• Major

• Minor

Multiple Choice

In a pop / rock band, what instruments usually provide the 'harmony'.

• Singer

• Drummer

• Dancer

• Guitars

Multiple Choice

Which genre often uses complex harmony?

• Jazz

• Pop

• Hip-Hop

• EDM

Open Ended

Discuss the pitch in this excerpt.
Identify -> (tonality - major / minor?)
Identify -> (harmony - consonant / dissonant)
Describe -> (contour - stepwise / leaping?)
Describe -> (range - narrow / wide?)

Open Ended

Discuss the pitch in this excerpt.
Identify -> (tonality - major / minor?)
Identify -> (harmony - consonant / dissonant)
Describe -> (contour - stepwise / leaping?)
Describe -> (range - narrow / wide?)

This concludes our lesson on pitch.

Poll

How well do you feel you understand the concept of pitch?

• Exceptionally well

• Mostly well

• Average

• Not very well

• Didn't understand anything