Mid-Term Review
Miss O’Connor
Music Technology
Grades 8-12
Genre Review:
In order to prepare for your upcoming Mid-term test, here’s a small summary of the
genres we have studied thus far. This will be your study guide, remember to also
listen and identify genres of music through sound versus facts.
Classical: Written in “works” or long pieces.
- Orchestra based, or some kind of small instrumental ensemble.
- Some classical artists are: Mozart, Bach, Beethoven, Handel, Chopin, Belioz
- Instruments consist of: strings (violins, violas, cellos, basses, harps), woodwinds
(flutes, clarinets, oboes, bassoons), brass (trumpets, French horns, trombones,
tubas), percussion (snare, bass drums, xylophones, cymbals, pianos).
Tribal: Music from a tribe or group of people experiencing folk music in the most
simple, direct matter. Most tribal music has some sort of unique characteristic. Some
examples of tribal music or tribes are Native American, African and Hawaiian. All
involve stories of their ancestors or specific things about their cultures. All tribal
music has influenced music today; music of our ancestors has trickled down to
today.
- African: drum circles and vocal emphasis.
- Native American: flute and percussion based.
- Hawaiian: vocal, ukulele and drum based.
Jazz: Jazz showcased improvisation. Improvisation: skill of soloing over music,
following a chord pattern the song is constructed out of.
- Jazz cats: Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, Miles David, Duke Ellington, Count Basie,
Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday, John Coltrane
- Shows off talented performers in small instrumental ensembles. Also showcases
developed musical theory knowledge.
- Instruments consist of: bass, drums, guitar, horns (trumpets, saxophones, etc),
vocals (sometimes but not always), and piano.
Blues: 12- Bar Blues Pattern consists of a chord pattern that can be applied to every
key and song, giving the musician a layout to play and solo over.
- Originated from troubled African Americans during segregation and slavery. Lyrics
are usually about trouble, or sadness over repeated chords and rhythms.
- Blues was a building block for Rock and Roll and soul music.
- Blues Artists: BB King, James Cotton, Buddy Guy, John Lee Hooker, Muddy Waters.
- Instruments consist of: Rock band set up: (bass, drums, guitar, vocals), horns
(trumpets, saxophones, etc), vocals (sometimes but not always), piano, harmonica,
slide guitar
Gospel: Based out of the Christian faith. Gospel music tells stories and praises Jesus
Christ as the savior of the Christian religion. Gospel music branched from tribal
music and worship practices.
- Gospel is directly related to blues music, especially the development of the
technique called the “call & response”, where one “leader” or preacher poses a
question (either figuratively or musically) and receives a response from his/her
audience (again either figuratively or musically).
- Gospel music was key in developing early Motown, Rock & Roll, Blues and Jazz
music.
- Examples of Gospel music: hymns and Christian worship songs.
- Instruments consist of: Organ/keyboards, choir singers, with a lead singer and
occasionally Rock band set up: (bass, drums, guitar, vocals), horns (trumpets,
saxophones, etc).
Latin: Latin music began with the colonization of South America. Portuguese,
Spanish, African and Caribbean natives were all slaves and
expressed/communicated through music. This blending of cultures and music
created Latin music. Latin music surfaced popular music when it was featured in
jazz music in the early 1940’s.
- Latin music has a strong connection with dancing, a few styles of Latin
music/dancing are: mambo, tango and the salsa. Because of its’ strong connection
to dancing, Latin music has strong beat patterns and expressive melody lines.
- Instruments consist of: There are so many subgenres of Latin. But for our purposes
we’ll be looking at Latin Jazz: bass, drums, guitar, horns (trumpets, saxophones, etc),
vocals (sometimes but not always), piano, acoustic guitar, cymbals and claves.
Motown: Birth of Motown in the early 1960’s, titled Motown Records, founded by
Berry Gordy Jr., in Detroit. Motown titled after “the motor city”
- Motown was a combination of soul, gospel, pop and blues music.
- Played important role in the Civil Rights movement, brought African Americans
into the music business.
- Some famous Motown stars: Stevie Wonder, The Jackson 5, The Supremes, The
Four Tops and Marvin Gaye.
- Instruments consist of: Rock band set up: (bass, drums, guitar, vocals), horns
(trumpets, saxophones, etc), vocals, piano, background singers
R&B (Rhythm & Blues): R&B is a combination of blues, soul, jazz, lighter rock and
funk.
- R&B originated in the 1940’s, with a heavy African- American influence.
- Topics in R&B have changed through the decades, but can be narrowed down to
relationships, freedom, economics, aspirations, and sex.
- Recent artists: Mariah Carey, Ray Charles, Etta James, Mary J. Blige, Alicia Keys and
Usher.
- Instruments consist of: Rock band set up: (bass, drums, guitar, vocals), sometimes
horns (trumpets, saxophones, etc), piano.
Ska: Ska music, “the original reggae”, has an upbeat guitar pattern. Ska music was
created out of clubs in Jamaica for dancing purposes.
- Ska made a comeback in the 80’s and 90’s through Ska Punk, which is a mixture of
faster tempos and frontline horn lines.
- Some Ska artists: The Mighty Mighty Bosstones, Reel Big Fish, Sublime.
- Instruments consist of: Rock band set up: (bass, drums, guitar, vocals), horns
(trumpets, saxophones, etc), piano/keyboards.
Reggae: Reggae started in Jamaican “dancehalls” or club. Reggae was down-tempo
rock music that Jamaicans danced to in the hot weather. Reggae was influenced by
traditional folk music of Jamaica and American jazz and R&B.
- The first form of reggae was ska music, which became popular later in the 80’s and
90’s.
- Reggae has a slower tempo and an upbeat guitar rhythm. Reggae content consists
of stories of Jamaica and political movements.
- Reggae artists: Bob Marley & The Wailers, Ziggy Marley
- Instruments consist of: Rock band set up: (bass, drums, guitar, vocals), horns
(trumpets, saxophones, etc), piano/keyboards.
Rock & Roll: Rock and roll came about in the 1950’s. Rock was a combination of
blues, jazz and gospel music. The British invasion was key in bringing rock and roll
to America and directing attention to African- American blues artists.
- Rock and roll topics: love/relationships, drugs & rebellion, everyday relatable
topics and heartbreak.
- Rock and roll helped shape various other genres, and dominated the pop scene
through the 80’s and 90’s. Rock & roll has various sub genres: a few include:
rockabilly, hard rock, grunge, metal, punk, experimental
- Instruments consist of: Rock band set up: (bass, drums, guitar, vocals), sometimes
horns (trumpets, saxophones, etc), piano.
Country: Country is a blend of southern rock, blues, folk and western music.
- Country music has folk like tendencies in simple melodies, and telling a story.
Country music began with the blending of Celtic folk music, pop, blues and western
music. Country music is popular today for its relatable topics and focus on
dancing/having a good time.
- Country music showcases American themes throughout history and musical
instrumentation.
- Instruments consist of: Rock band set up: (bass, drums, guitar, vocals), Country
utilizes string instruments such as slide guitar, mandolin, banjo and acoustic guitar
and bass. Harmonicas, like blues music can also be included in a country song.
Funk: Funk music infused rock, gospel, soul and R&B into one groovy genre. Funk
focuses on driving bass lines and a steady groove from the drummer. Funk
showcases dancing and is all about a powerful, soulful melody.
- Funk is directly related to Disco, but has more of a soul base rather than a pop
base.
- Famous Funk Musicians: James Brown, George Clinton & Parliament Funkadelic,
Earth, Wind & Fire.
- Instruments consist of: Rock band set up: (bass, drums, guitar, vocals), horns
(trumpets, saxophones, etc), piano/organ.
Disco: Disco was club music in the 70’s geared towards dancing. Emphasis on bass
and drum beats.
- Simple vocal melody, complex rhythmically instrumental lines.
- Instruments consist of: Rock band set up: (bass, drums, guitar, vocals), emphasis
on vocals and a catchy melodic passage, (sometimes) horns, and synthesizers.
Folk: Folk music is originally inspired by various cultural backgrounds and varies
based off the country. Folk music made a comeback during the post Vietnam
political movement in the 60’s and 70’s. The main message was peace, love and
music!
- Folk music tends to tell stories, and carries simple melody lines.
- Some influential Folk artists are: Bob Dylan, Pete Seeger and Joni Mitchell.
- Instruments consist of: Rock band set up: (bass, drums, guitar, vocals), sometimes
the harmonica and various acoustic string instruments like mandolin.
Punk: Punk was created in the UK and US between the late 60’s and early 70’s. Punk
focuses on fast, hard-edged music, typically with short songs often political, and
outrageous lyrical content.
- Punk was a lead into metal, and usually is confused to be the same thing. Punk
started in New York City and was created in rebellion of Disco and the Pop era.
Driving drums and bass lines create a harder rock sound.
- Punk Artists: The Ramones, The Misfits and The Sex Pistols.
- Instruments consist of: Rock band set up: (bass, drums, guitar, vocals).
Alternative: Alternative Rock became a popular alternate rock listening option in
the 90’s. Alternative rock branched off from the “mainstream” rock feel, with more
grunge tendencies and lyrics, being very nonchalant and aggressive. Alternative
became popular through college radio stations, playing music that wasn’t
“mainstream”.
- Through the 90’s and early 2000’s, alternative can also be associated with indie or
emo rock, again, a more mainstream alternative rock.
- Alternative rock can use electronics and multiple layers of rock instruments.
Heavily influenced by UK rock musicians.
- Alternative Artists: Radiohead, Franz Ferdinand, The Killers, and Modest Mouse.
- Instruments consist of: Rock band set up: (bass, drums, guitar, vocals). Can use
electronics, and different layers of rock instruments.
Metal: Metal blossomed out of hard rock and blues in the 80’s.
- Metal has many subgenres but most contain, fast, heavy bass drum and bass beats.
Along with a powerful strong message and faster tempo. Metal heads have
something to prove!
- Metal topics usually include political, sexist, and religious viewpoints.
- Instruments consist of: Rock band set up: (bass, drums, guitar, vocals).
Pop: Pop stands for “Popular”, or most popular streamed/downloaded/played
music. Pop can be a number of different genres, solely based off of the genre simply
means most popular.
- Pop music is geared towards dancing, and what’s appealing or relatable at the
time. Most pop songs contain some sort of relationship story or love theme.
- King and Queen of Pop: Michael Jackson and Madonna- both shattered records and
were most influential to other upcoming superstars through the 80’s and 90’s.
- Pop is usually somewhat catchy and tends to linger in ears.
- Instruments consist of: Rock band set up: (bass, drums, guitar, vocals), emphasis
on vocals and a catchy melodic passage.
Rap: Began out of Hip- Hop “MC’s” were inspired to write their own lyrics and
branch out from hip- hop.
- Came from African American roots, and “beat poetry”
- Also called “rhythmic speaking”, lyrics have to have some kind of flow to them.
- Instruments consist of: synthesizers, turntables, Rock band set up: (bass, drums,
guitar, vocals), rappers (MCs)
Hip- Hop: Culture defined in: MC’s, Graffiti, DJ’s & Break dancing artists.
- Hip Hop came from the Bronx, in the 1970s.
- Hip Hop introduced the idea of “sampling”- or taking beats and sounds from older
songs and incorporating them into different songs.
- Hip-hop incorporates rap, producing and beat making.
- Instruments consist of: synthesizers, turntables, Rock band set up: (bass, drums,
guitar, vocals), rappers (MCs)
Electronic: Music of today’s generation. Some subgenres: dubstep, techno, trap,
trance and house music.
- Started in the early 1900’s, grew more popular in the 1960’s due to the
affordability of electronic machinery.
- Synthesizers, keyboards and other computer-based instruments are essential
instruments when creating electronic music.
- Electronic music is generally dance driven and carries strong beats. Electronic
music also has a buildup of tension and release or otherwise known as the climax or
drop of the song.
- Some electronic artists are: Skrillex, Avicii, Deadmau5, Daft Punk, Calvin Harris,
Moby, and Zedd
- Instruments consist of: synthesizers, turntables, Rock band set up: (bass, drums,
guitar, vocals), sampling other various sounds/music, that might incorporate
various other instruments.
Experimental: Music that does not have a set formula for structure. Created in the
mid-20th century, particularly in North America, of music composed in such a way
that its outcome is unpredictable.
- Experimental music has many subgenres: rock, jazz, electronic etc…
- Experimental Artists: John Cage and Pierre Schaeffer (real pioneers of the genre).
- Instruments consist of: Experimental music can consist of any kind of instrument
or sound.