Understanding dynamics and articulation

Hello, and welcome to today's music lesson. I'm Miss Mansel, and I'm gonna be your teacher for the day. Let's get started. Today's lesson outcome is "I can identify dynamics, dynamic changes, and different types of articulation accurately." Let's look at some keywords for today's lesson. Crescendo, when the dynamics gradually increase and are getting louder. Diminuendo, when the dynamics gradually decrease, the music is getting quieter. Accented, a note that is emphasized shown with this symbol. You can see that on the screen there. Sforzando, a sudden, loud type of accent, marked with the abbreviation sfz. Tenuto, a note that is held for its full length, though still detach from surrounding notes. Today's lesson on understanding dynamics and articulation is in two parts. Part one is understanding dynamics and part two is understanding articulation. Let's get started with part one. In Western classical music, dynamics are indicated using Italian terms. The most common terms are piano, which means soft or quiet, and forte, strong or loud. They're usually abbreviated on notated music like this, so you can see a p or an f. Piano and forte are very broad terms, so composers often want to give more precise instructions to performers. Can you think of any other dynamics that you've seen? Have a think. Most common dynamics are these. Pianissimo, which is very quiet and abbreviated with two Ps. Piano, which means quiet. That's one P. Mezzo piano, moderately quiet, mp. Mezzo forte, moderately loud, mf. Forte, which means loud and abbreviated with an f. And fortissimo, very loud and two Fs. Let's do a check for understanding. Match each abbreviation to its meaning. So match mp, ff, and p. What did you get? Hopefully you matched mp with moderately quiet, ff with very loud, that's fortissimo, and p with quiet, that's piano. What does the dynamic marking f stand for? Is it A, forceful? B, farca? C, frappe? Or D, forte? Which do you think? It's D, forte. Composers change the dynamics to change the mood, energy, and character of music. Two key terms are crescendo, which means getting louder, and diminuendo, which means getting quieter. Which of these symbols indicates crescendo and which indicates diminuendo? Which do you think? The first one indicates crescendo, getting louder, and the second one indicates diminuendo, getting quieter. A crescendo or diminuendo can be any length. Here's an example of a long gradual crescendo. Here's an example of a short crescendo. It can also be indicated with the words cresc. or dim. as shown here. For a very long dynamic change, the phrase poco a poco, little by little can be used, Although a crescendo takes place over eight bars in this example, it is marched with crescendo poco a poco. Here you can see the example and now listen to it. (gradually building music) (gradually building music continues) To create a sudden change in dynamics, the term subito, or sudden, can be used. This sudden change from f, forte, to p, piano, is marked with subito to show the sudden change. So you can see it there and have a listen to it. (classical music) If a composer uses a crescendo then a diminuendo immediately afterwards, we call this a dynamic swell, like a wave swelling up them back down in the sea. Have a listen to what that sounds like. (swelling classical music) Let's still check for understanding. Which term means decrease in volume? Is it A, subito? B, poco a poco? C, diminuendo? Or D, crescendo? Which term? Well done if you've got C, diminuendo. What does subito mean? Is it A, stop? B, start? C, gradually? Or D, suddenly? What does subito mean? Well done if you've got D. It means suddenly Let's have a look at Task A. So question number one is going to be add a symbol to create a four-beat crescendo to this score. Question two is to add a term to this notation to indicate that the diminuendo should happen gradually. Question three, you'll need to listen to this clip. We want you to describe the dynamics, using Italian terms where possible. And then for question four, listen to the next clip. Describe the dynamics again using, Italian terms where possible. So why don't you pause the video and have a go at Task A. How did you get on with that? Let's have a look at the answers. You should have added a symbol that looks like this to show a four-beat crescendo. You could also have added "poco a poco" to the second question. That's little by little to show that the diminuendo should happen gradually. For question three with the clip, you could have written something like this, "The clip starts piano, but there is a sudden (subito) dramatic shift to fortissimo. The dynamics continue jumping suddenly between piano or pianissimo and forte/fortissimo." And then for question four, you could have written something like this, "The clip starts piano, but there are a series of dynamic swells caused by a crescendo than an immediate diminuendo. The dynamics never get louder than mezzo forte." I hope you also identified some of those dynamics. Let's move on to part two of our lesson, understanding articulation. Articulation refers to how notes are played. Staccato and legato are examples of different articulations. Staccato notes are short and detached. You can see how it's written here in the score and then have a listen to how it sounds. (staccato music) And then legato notes, or slurs, are played smoothly and linked together without gaps. You can see what that looks like here and have a listen to how that sounds. (legato music) Accents are another type of articulation. You can see the symbol used here. An accented note is played with emphasis. Listen to the accented notes in this melody. (trumpet music) Did you hear them? The sforzando is a type of articulation similar to an accent, but is more sudden and dramatic. It's usually indicated with this abbreviation, sfz. Listen for the sforzando in this melody. (classical music) Did you hear it? You can see it in the score there. Marcato, meaning marked, is an accent commonly used on stringed instruments. Extra pressure is placed on the bow, and the note is released suddenly and explosively. How many notes use marcato in this clip? Have a listen. (violin music) There were three notes and they're highlighted there. Tenuto, which means held, is a type of articulation where the note should be held for its full duration, giving a subtle difference to the note. Have a listen to a clip without tenuto notes. (classical music) And now listen to a version with tenuto on every note. (classical music) In the last example, the notes are held for their full value and they feel heavier. Let's do the checks for understanding. Which type of articulation is shown by this abbreviation? Well done if you got sforzando. And which type of articulation is a sudden, strong accent? Is it A, legato? B, tenuto? C, sforzando? Or D, staccato? Which do you think? It's C, sforzando. Which is a type of articulation is a specific technique used on string instruments, meaning marked? Is it A, tenuto? B, accent? C, legato? Or D, marcato? Well done it you got D, marcato. Let's move on to Task B. So we're asking you to label each type of articulation in this notation. And then for question two, listen to each clip and identify articulation used by the different parts. Choose from legato, staccato, accented, sforzando, marcato, and tenuto. Pause the lesson video now and have a go at Task B. How did you get on? Let's have a look at the answers to question one. So label each type of articulation in this notation. So that set of semiquavers is legato. You can see the slur there. Then you can see an accent, Few staccato quavers and a tenuto on that crotchet. And then for question two, example one used staccato, accented, and marcato notes. Example two used marcato, sforzando, accented, and staccato. And example three used staccato, accented, and legato in the woodwind. I hope you managed to identify the different articulation. Let's summarize today's lesson on understanding dynamics and articulation. Dynamics and articulation have a big impact on musical mood and character. The most common dynamics are piano and forte. Dynamic changes are indicated with crescendo, diminuendo and subito, which means sudden, and poco a poco, little by little. Staccato and legato, which means slurred, are the most common types of articulation. Different kinds of articulation include accents, tenuto, marcato, and sforzando. I hope you've enjoyed today's lesson.