Homework Task

Watch video An effective melody

Make notes
Questions you may have
Check using post it notes 3 things
you are confident
about/useful/relevant, 2 things you
would need more information on/not
sure about, 1 thing you
Tools for composing an effective melody
 Toni Mediant Dominant Leading
c Supertoni Tone
Subdominan Submedi Toni
c t ant c
RED = most resolution, release
GREEN most tension, forward moving force
BLUE not the same restful quality or the need to move the music
forward
*** Tonic at the beginning and the end - bringing your music to a
close for completing a musical sentence
 Conjunct - Conjunct melodic lines are
step based lines or scale lines. They
do not skip but instead move along a
scale. Conjunct lines are frequently
seen in places of relaxation and
tension relief, but they can be used
in places of building tension as well
In Griegs Morning the undulating scale line leaves you with a
very peaceful feeling. (Yes I know there are a few skips in there,
but overall, I consider the line a conjunct line).
 Disjunct - They are not stepwise and
dont follow the scale as conjunct
lines do but instead skip around.
They can create a lot of tension and
be very powerful

Prokofiev Romeo and Juliet Dance of the Knights

 Focus on the rhythmical aspects of
your melody line
Rhythmic motif

Stravinsky The Rite of Spring,

Holst Jupiter
Beethoven Symphony No. 5
 Form AABA
Repetition make it memorable,
short motive or an entire phrase can
also link phrases
Sequences
Question and Answer phrase
Think of your melody like a sentence
2 x 4 bar phrases or 4 x 2 bar
phrases - chunking
 Do something daring, break the rules
Rhythmic dotted notes, triplets
Change the dynamics make some
notes louder than others Surprise
Symphony
Add notes outside the scale
Staccato
 Some words of advice
Melody is around you and within you as
well
Follow your instinct Be natural
Accept the ideas you create
Dont think too much! Free your mind
Let it go! Let it flow!
Find a good rhythm that you like
Humming, Trial and error, Inspiration from
nature bird song, rhythm of speech
Phrase Storming
Write as many 2 bar
phrases as you can in 5
minutes
If something doesnt
sound great dont
worry you can throw it
away later
After take your ideas
and manipulate them
 Compose 3 different melodies one
showing repetition, one variation,
one contrast