Teaching Choral Concepts

Review

     Throughout the world there are millions of people who never learned to read music. That's sad! If you're one of them, think of all the wonderful sounds, ideas, feelings and experiences you can enjoy once you've learned music's alphabet and vocabulary! 

Learning to read music is easy! It won't be difficult! You can learn the basics of music in just a few hours. This short book tells you exactly what you need to know. In fact. it does more than that--it organizes the information into useful groups of related ideas so you can learn music in an easily understood, orderly fashion. 

You Can Read Music is written in brief, carefully organized lessons. You can study it individually. If you do, you'll find that the concepts are explained so clearly that you'll be able to understand them without outside help. 

But You Can Read Music can be used as a brief textbook too. Elementary school teachers can use it to teach their students. Middle School and High School Choir directors can strengthen their choirs by presenting the lessons in brief segments as part of their daily rehearsal schedule. Private piano instructors can teach the lessons as part of the weekly course of study they outline for their students. Parents can use the book to teach their children, and if they don't know the basics of music, reading it is a wonderful way to acquire their own musical literacy. 

You can feel confident that when you've mastered the ideas presented in this book, you ll truly be knowledgeable in the music-reading process. You ll be musically literate, and you'll know for sure that You Can Read Music! 

Table of Contents

1. Music Scores
Definitions: Score, Vocal, Choral
Vocal Scores
Choral Part Classifications
Choral Scores
Full and Condensed Scores
Three Music Guidelines Begin Every Piece
Rehearsal Marks
Chapter 1 Review

2. Measures, Bar Lines and Repeats
Definitions: Staff, Measure, Bar Lines
Bar Lines
Double Bar Lines
Section Dividers: Heavy Bar Lines
Repeat Signs: Heavy Bar Lines with Dots
First and Second Endings
Da Capo: Repeat from the Beginning.
Dal Segno: Repeat from the Sign
Dal Segno al Coda: Repeat from the Sign, then Jump to the Coda
Chapter 2 Review

3. The Treble Staff, Bass Staff, and Clefs
Note Names
Evolution of the Grand Staff
Middle C
The Treble Clef and Treble Staff
The Bass Clef and Bass Staff
Introduction
The Moveable C Clef
Chapter 3 Review

4. Rhythm, Meters and Time Signatures
Definitions: Rhythm, Beats, Measures
Primary and Secondary Accents.
What Time Signatures Mean
Common Time Signatures
Basic Meters
Basic Conducting Patterns
Chapter 4 Review

5. Notes and Rests
Notes
Counting within Measures.
Rests
Counting: A Necessary Task of Musicianship
Chapter 5 Review

6. Note Names, and the Names of Staff Lines
Names of the Lines and Spaces
The Treble Clef
The Bass Clef
Middle C
The Inner ACEs
The Outer ACEs
Chapter 6 Review

7. Dynamics, and Basic Musical Styles
Definitions: Dynamics, Volume. Loudness. Decibels. Dynamic Markings
Eight Volume-level Terms
Signs and Terms for Sudden Accents
Signs and Terms which Request Gradual Increasing or Decreasing of Volume
Basic Niusical Performance Styles
Chapter 7 Review

8. The Keyboard, Sharps, Flats, and Accidentals
Note Names on the Piano Keyboard
Half-steps and Whole-steps and Spaces
Accidentals
Sharps, Flats. and Naturals
Key Signatures and Accidentals in Measures
Chapter 8 Review

9. Special Music Markings, a Pitch-locating System
Dotted Notes
Ties and Slurs
Triplets
8va Octave Marks
Counting Measures with Pickup Notes
Pitch-locating System
Chapter 9 Review

10. The Major Scale Pattern, Intervals, and Triads
Definitions: Interval, Prime, Octave, Chromatic Scale
Chromatic Scales
The Major Scale Pattern
Intervals
Triads
Chapter 10 Review

11. Scales, Keys, and Key Signatures
Scales
Major Keys
The Natural Minor Scale
The Harmonic Minor and Melodic Minor Scales.
Major and Relative Minor Key Signatures and Scales
Rules for Identifying Major Key Names
Chapter 11 Review

Index

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