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Writer's pictureKaymery Swart

Listening Outlines, Vocal Music Guides, and the Properties of Sound


Hearing no music when studying music- pitch, elements, and tone- is excessively conceptual. Listen for them: this is wjat we need to do when trying to comprehend and perceive the properties of musical sound, or sound in general.


In the upcoming blogs Listening Outlines ( for instrumentals) and Vocal Music Guides (vocal texts) will assist with concentrating on melodic events as they transpire. Listen to the music these guides and frameworks deal with as you go through them. Not doing so will restrict their worth.


Every item in a Listening Outline portrays some melodic sound such as dynamics, mood, and pitch levels.

(Keep in mind, however, that signs of moods are subjective. One may perceive something as "victorious," while another person describes the mood as "determined")

Marginal notes accompany vocal texts in a Vocal Music Guide. Their purpose is to demonstrate the connection among words and music- this assists the audience with following the overall idea or story.


The music's fundamental features' depictions precede the outlines and guides. Timings within these are at the left side. Instrumentation and recording notes are present in the outlines.

Scanning over an entire Vocal Music Guide or Listening Guide will be useful. Split your attention to what follows next while hearing one section.


Many times only notable instruments are jotted down and not the rest. E.g. in Lohengrin's Listening Outline, the second item is "Soft (p)", contrasting the oboe melody. Melody repeated by flute. Clarinets and violins continue". The aim is to center attention to the specific instruments performing the melody, despite the sound of other instruments that can be heard.



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