Continuation of the free music lesson we started the other day to help you learn to read music form fast and easy…

Melodies and complementing phrases mark larger sections of a composition.  Composers build pieces from these sections by repeating them, varying them, or contrasting them with new material.  Some patterns of repetition and contrast are so frequent that we think of them as specific musical forms. Some of the simpler forms themselves can become building blocks for larger compositions.

 Binary form is probably the most basic compositional form.  It is in two sections, typically with repeats for each section.  We often use letters to identify its sections as an A section, and a B section.  Each section has repeat markings.  The A section is usually two phases of four measures each, not unlike the Mozart above.  The B section may be two or more phrases and the opening material may appear here in some variation.

We’ll be back soon with the next installment of this free music lesson!

Learning to Read Music


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