MELODY

Definition: A series of pitches that move
forward (the sing-able part) within a piece
of music.
Types of Melody

There are two types of Melody.
CONJUNCT

A conjunct melody is a melody that
moves in stepwise motion.
DISJUNCT

A Disjunct melody is one that moves with
more leaps (jumps) than steps.
PITCH

Definition: The degree of highness or
lowness of a sound.
Melodic Line
•
Melody is a timely arranged linear sequence
of pitched sounds that the listener perceives
as a single entity. It's the notes that catch your
ear as you listen; the line that sounds most
important is the melody. First of all, a melodic
line of a piece of music is a succession of
notes that make up a melody.
Melodic Pattern
•
a melodic pattern is an intervallic and
rhythmic repetition of notes, which you
usually sequence through a scale or arpeggio.
Melodic Contour
•
Melodic contour is the direction of tones
ascending and descending in a melody
without regard to the rhythm of the actual
notes.
Notes can move upward
If you think of the lines as a ladder, it is easier to understand them. The
higher you climb on the ladder of lines, the higher the notes will sound. The
spaces count as steps on the ladder too.
Notes can move downward
Notes can repeat or stay the
same
Notes can move by step
•
This means there will be a note on every line
and space, consecutively
Notes can move by skip
This means that notes are placed on the staff, or sounded by
a pattern of skipping every other note.
*In the example below, the space notes are skipped, so the
notes move up by skip.
Notes can move by leap
•
•
This means that the distance between the
notes is farther than a skip.
Notes that move by leap will sound far apart
as well.