[Introduction Music by Terry B. Ewell]

Well, welcome, this is my first video on how music makes sense. In this lecture we are looking at smaller forms in music and in particular repetition. By the way, some of this content is from the cnx.org website. However, Rice University has made changes to the website so that portions of the materials are no longer available.
Music makes sense through repetition because it is time-art. It is an art that takes place in time. This means that music cannot be understood in one instance. Also, music is ephemeral, it does not exist in concrete physical form.

Take for instance, this famous painting by Vermeer titled, “The Milkmaid.” Here the entire artwork can be viewed all at once. Your eye grasps the maid, the room, and the milk jug all in a glance. The items in the painting can be compared at the same time. The picture is located in one place and even if the museum lights are turned off, the painting is still there. Music, however, is very different. It unfolds through time relying upon the person’s memory to make sense of what has occurred.

A musical work is meant to progress from beginning to end. Repetition is very important in order to bring meaning to the music and to help the listener remember and make musical connections.

Let’s take a look at this famous composition by Ludwig van Beethoven. The Fifth Symphony starts with this four-note idea. It is the knocking of fate on the door: tap, tap, tap, tap.

Beethoven uses that little musical idea, we call it a “motive.” For my Music 116 and 355 students, it is OK if you can’t read the music, but just examine the similarities.
Here I have highlighted the repeated notes so that you can see that the four notes are used like building blocks or bricks to construct the composition.
Here we have notes in the opening in the strings. They are repeated again. Here we have the little building blocks separately in the music.

[Music: Opening to Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony]

Did you hear that motive going over and over again? [singing motive] Then it started in a sequence of the motive going up [singing motive]. So the motive is like a brick. It is part of the construction of this music. Beethoven uses this brick over and over again in different positions and different places to create a structure. The brick is the local, little thing and then you add bricks to make a bigger structure.
In Music 116, I just introduced the song “We Will Rock You.” This song has a recurring rhythmic pattern that has become a sort of “musical meme” that recurs in several situations. Maybe you have heard it at football games or anywhere else. Let’s just listen to the opening of this a bit.

[Video: Queen, “We Will Rock You” Opening]

See how that rhythm—stomp, stomp, clap, stomp, stomp, clap—is the building block for the composition. It unifies the work just as the fate motive in Beethoven’s Fifth.
Now, some composers are quite innovative with the way they create repetitions. Take for instance, this keyboard work by J. S. Bach. Here the work is played piano.

[Music: Bach, C Major Invention, first seven notes]

So, that was just the first seven notes in the opening. Those first seven notes become the building blocks. Let’s listen to just a bit more. First you will have the upper notes and then the notes down here.

[Music: Bach, C Major Invention, opening measures]

So, we have that same repetition just in what we call different octaves, in different locations: upper, lower, upper, lower. But then Bach does something quite unusual. He takes this motive, this little brick, and he flips it, he inverts it. Instead of [singing] going up [singing] see how it goes down there? Up and down; each of these green blocks are the flipped version of this motive. Let’s listen to all of that.

[Music: Bach, C Major Invention, opening measures]

That is quite inventive, isn’t it? Well, that is why these are called “inventions.” Bach is showing his musical creativity here.
Well, repetition is used quite often in popular music. Pete Seeger repeats a musical idea over and over again in this folk tune, a children’s song. This is “Alligator, Hedgehog.”

Music: Seeger, “Alligator, Hedgehog”

Notice that the music moved upwards, but with the same rhythmic and skip in the melody. It went [singing], then it went up a step [singing], then it went up again [singing]. So, it was stepwise with some repetitions in the melody.

Now, if you concentrate, you will be able to hear repetitions in your favorite music as well. Here is an example from that amazing vocal talent Mariah Carey in her song “Emotions.”

[Video: Carey, “Emotions.”]

So, why is this important? Well, for Music 105 students you will need to be able to recognize important features in melodies and then repeat them in your responses, in your compositions. These repeats may at time be exact, but mostly will be different in some ways. For Music 116 students, your compositions in the course will also feature some repetitions. You will also need to be aware of the larger forms, which will be presented in the next video. For Music 355 students, you should understand that musical ideas, even small motives or memes, can be copyrighted. In all my courses, understanding what makes a musical idea memorable is important and will give you insights into how music is constructed.

Well, I hope that this has been helpful for you and you have gained a little bit from this video. Bye.