Wednesday, September 9, 2009

Blog #4 - String Instruments

Hello class,

This week, you will be listen to FOUR videos to the right. As you listen, you should think about how the timbre (the tone color) and pitch (highness/lowness) of the instruments are different. Which one creates the highest sounds? Which one creates the lowest sounds?

Here are some good timbre words:light or heavy; dark or bright; breathy; punchy; clear; focussed or unfocussed; piercing; harsh; warm; mellow; resonant; flat; vibrato (do you hear it vibrating?) or no vibrato

Write four sentences: One sentence about each instruments that describes how it is uniquely different than the other three.

You WILL be graded on your spelling, punctuation, and use of complete sentences. Each sentence will be worth 25 points for a total of 100 points.

Please write and submit your post for this assignment by Monday, September 14 for full credit.

In case you can't watch the videos to the right, here are the URL's for the videos:

Violin: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P0pkigApKEw

Viola: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HQ_BQa1NHa8

Cello: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GczSTQ2nv94

String Bass: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I4Hx0VfUbTw

20 comments:

Mr. Ward said...

I am able to leave a comment from Room 407!

monnique carpenter said...

first video is very fast and is in the medium stage of pitch and it got a type of dancing beat ............. the second video is and the type of pitch is this one is bass i guess and its a soothing relaxing state of mind when you think bout it ........ Man yo_yo ma is my man i love all his music but this music is a child's song and the instruments is bass and high and its linda dancing type music and the message of this song is to get your child to know you'll be there whenever there's problems........the last one is well i really dont know but its bass and i couldn't really find the beat that much........

Christina Wallace said...

The first video with the violin has a Middle Eastern sound to it. The pitch varied constantly from moderate to high. I think of this piece as being improvisational because the violinist doesn’t seem to be playing a specific piece of work. The timbre is light and punchy. It has the highest pitch. In the second video, the viola plays classical music. The timbre is mellow and warm. It differs from the first video because the tempo is slower. In the third video, the timbre is focused and green. It is improvisational because McFerrin’s part is freestyle. The cellos sound like their part has been rehearsed. It differs from the first two videos because more than one person is the focus of the source of music and there is singing in it. The third video is more of a jazz piece. I don’t particularly enjoy it because it sounds boring; maybe it’s just how the instrument sounds. There seems to be some short of freestyle happening towards the mid-end of the piece. The timbre is mellow and gray. It is different from the other videos because it has the lowest pitch.

Ariana Williams said...

In Yanni's performance, the timbre was loud and sqeaky. This is different from all of the others because it has a very high pitch. The viola is different because it sound like the music that the "Indians" play. Their music sounds sad, just like this one.The cello has a lower and deeper sound, but with the violin being added, it sounds like it balances out the heavy sounded cello.The cello performance is unique because it had other instruments joined in the give it a lighter tone color, that make the song more joyful. The jazz solo sounds more smooth that the others, Which makes it unique and to separate it for the other performances.The jazz solo's timbre sounds lighter than Yanni's violin. Yanni's violin has a darker timbre which shows its uniqueness. Yanni's music sounds like asian concert music to me.And it sound like dancing music, unlike the music that was played with the viola.The viola makes the higher sounds. The pitch is very high, higher than the others.The mans whistle in "Hush Little Baby" sounds like it has a higher pitch than all of the intruments. I hear vibrating in the "Jazz Solo", when the player pluck the srings on the cello.

Markita Kirkpatrick said...

The first video I liked very much.The timbre was very fast and the pitch changed from time to time throughout the piece.I think the sound was very focused.The second video's pitch was deeper than the first.The tone was slower also.It seemed as though it was a classic piece.The third video's timbre was playful i would say, because of the song they performed.At the end of the video, the instruments' sounds became a little unfocused.The fourth video's pitch was low as well.I think the timbre had a rich sound to it.

Torry Walker said...

The violin piece has a light timbre. It also had the highest pitches played between the three videos. From the video, the violin is capable of playing notes for the shortest duration. The viola had a vibrato tone color to it that I heard on all the longer notes. Its pitches were the second highest, with first being the violin. The timbre of the cello went from mellow to being a plucked timbre. The cello was the median pitches, but 2nd lowest between the four videos. It was also played with a hand and a bow. The string bass contained the lowest pitches and had a fully plucked timbre. The string bass is fully played with your hands rather than a bow.

armani kelly said...

The first instrument hada very high tone and the highest pitch. The second had the second highest pitch and tone. The third which I am vey familiar with had the third highest pitch and tone. The had the lowest pitch and tone since bass is one of he lowest intruents.

Aleya Washington said...

The violin created the highest sound,it had a high pitch and a bright timbre. The viola timbre was mellow and it had a low pitch. The third video had a low pitch with a clear timbre. The string bass created the lowest sound, it ahd a resonant timbre and a low pitch.

~FUISCHA~ said...

The violin is the highest played instrument. It has a fast tempo, but its timbre is light, bright, clear, piercing, focussed, and vibrato. The viola is slighly lower than the violin. It's timbre is vibrato, clear, semi-light, focussed, and warm. The cello has a heavy, clear, vibrato timbre. It's tone is lighter than that of the string bass. The string bass is the heaviest instrument. It is mellow, flat, has a vibrato feel, warm, focussed, and some what dark.

Ashanti said...

The timbre of the viola was very happy and made you want to dance.However, the string bass was extremely low and had a very dull timbre.I had a completely different though about the cello because it thought it was very low and dull also but it had a rich and fullfilling timbre.The violin had a very calm ang rich timbre and moderate tempo.

Riane Nuby said...

The first video was with Yanni, who was the violin player, I think he was the best out of the other three videos, because he kept it more lively with the other beats in the back, the timbre was warm; the second video was a little bit flat, and had a low pitch. Also the third video was nice it had a clear timbre and I didn't hear any vibrating, the last video was also nice and had a vibrating sound to it with a high pitch.

Adontis Larry said...

The Violin by Yannai had a flat timbre and the pitch was high. This was different from the other solos because the tempo was very fast.

The Viola by Bach Suite had a a very clear and focused timbre the pitch was in between high and low. The difference from this peace in the others was it had a slow tempo and a calm setting

YO-YO MA with the Cello had a mellow timbre and the pitch was a little more deep that it was high. This was different because it had someone singing so it was harder to listen to the cello

The final piece with the string bass had a deep rich timbre and the pitch was deep and low. This piece was different because it sounded more smooth than all the others

Evelyn Sims said...

The violin's timbre is piercing and extremely focused.It's pitch is the highets of all four instruments. The man playing this particular instrument seems to be very playful and is enjoying himself more than this audence. The viola's pitch various form high to low and it's timbre is warm. The man playing this seems to be focused on making a person feel welcomed or safe. Like all troubles are gone now. The cello is the second highest and it's timbre is very bright. The men playing seem to be trying to bring out one's inner child. Like being more playful and less serious. The string bass has the lowest pitch and the timbre of mellowness. The man playing seems to be trying to hard. He's trying to please the audience more instead of finding a balance between himself and his audience.

Anonymous said...

i think that the first video with the violin had a high pitch and the timbre was bright. The second video has a medium pitch and the timbre was vibrato. The third video had a low pitch and a dark timbre. The last video had a low pitch and a heavy timbre. The video I think had the hightest sound was the first video with the violin, the third video has the lowest sound.

Quentin Pittman said...

Yanni's piece was the fastest out of all the others. It was high pitched with a hip beat and the timbre was bright. The bach suite was more of a mellow timbre. It was high pitched but slowed down. Yo-Yo ma had a voice in his part. The tempo was fast and it also had a high pitch and the timbre was bright too. It kind of reminded me of the first one. The last one had the lowest pitch and was slow. Its timbre was clear.

Aaron Booth said...

The violin player played well and the timbre was light,bright,vibrato, and punchy. The viola player didn't catch my interest really,but the timbre was warm,slightly bright,clear,resonant,mellow and focused; the sound was a little bit lower than the violin. The cello player did an exceptional job, the timbre was bright,punchy,light and vibrato, it was also deeper sounding than the other two instruments. The string bass player play good as well and the timbre was dark,heavy,breathy and unfocused, it was by far the lowest in pitch.

D'Angelo Hooks said...

The violin had a light timber and it had a very high pitch. The viola also had a high pitch and it created a kind of warm feeling. The cello had a medium type of pitch and it has a mellow or laid back type of timber. Lastly, the string bass has a very low pitch and it has a relaxing or calm timber.

Devon Dobbs said...

In the first video i thouhgt that the pitch was high and the timbre was bright. The second video had a medium pitch and the timbre was clear. In the third vedio the pitch was low and the timbre was dark. In the last video the timbre was vibrato and the pitch was low. The instrument that created the lowest sound was the cello. The instument that created the highest sound was the violin.

Devon Dobbs said...

In the first video i thouhgt that the pitch was high and the timbre was bright. The second video had a medium pitch and the timbre was clear. In the third vedio the pitch was low and the timbre was dark. In the last video the timbre was vibrato and the pitch was low. The instrument that created the lowest sound was the cello. The instument that created the highest sound was the violin.

montanna ross said...

the yanni-viollin satrted with a small pitch and grew higgher and stronger. This piece was light and warm. The things that make this piece unique is the was the artist make the piece flow but keep the same pitch and even go higher. Also this pice is up-beat.
the bach suite was nice and cool. What made it intrsting to me was the way he was able to keep the notes. Whats diffrent about this piece is the way it sounds peacfule and similar to a lulliby. Also it was interesting how he changed the pice in a focused a slow-paced way.
What was interesting about the cello was how its had a vibrato wad focused and clear. The cello was unuqui because its able to go with and instrument or voice and blend in or strike out. Also the cello was bigger and i think best out of the performance.
The thing about the string bass was it seemed that it had a moderate speed and probly improvised or unfocused. The uniqe thing about the bass was u can make up any beat with just a simple flowing melody from it. But in my opinon the artist could have did better.

Evolution of Music

Background - Lecrae

Hansel and Gretel