Embedded Files
Lesson Objectives
Lesson Objectives
By the end of this lesson, students will be able to:
Describe techniques for phrase expansion and contraction, including repetition, stretching, the "one-more time technique," the use of prefixes and suffixes; as well as identify examples of each in excerpts from the repertoire.
Recompose a musical example to either add or remove a phrase expansion.
Identify two-part, three-part, and four-part (srdc) phrase structures in popular music and diagram the structure using lowercase letters (e.g. aa'b, aabb, etc.).
Compare and contrast approaches to phrase structure in popular music with that of Western art music.
Preparation for Class
Preparation for Class
Read:
Read:
In-Class Activities
In-Class Activities
Discussion
Discussion
Phrase Expansion & Contraction: What are some of the techniques that composers use to expand a phrase? The Music Theory Online reading described four techniques for internal expansion and two categories for external expansion. Describe each type of expansion technique. How does this differ from phrase contraction?
Phrase Structure & Lyrics in Popular Music: How do song lyrics affect phrase structure? Or, how might phrase structure be used to affect our perception of song lyrics?
Activities
Activities
SRDC Phrase Structure in the Beatles: Open the analysis activity in the Google slideshow here to practice analyzing SRDC phrase structures using lowercase letters (e.g. aaba, aabb, aabc)
Once you've completed this activity, explore a few of your favorite popular music songs. Do you hear a 2-part, 3-part, or 4-part phrase structure? How would you describe the structure using lowercase letters (a, a', b, c, etc.)?
Analyzing 2-, 3-, and 4-Part Phrase Structure in Popular Music: Work through the worksheet here in groups or as a class. A link to the playlist is provided.
Analyzing Phrase Expansion & Contraction: Open the worksheet here. For each example provided, identify the type of phrase structure used and, using the terminology from the reading, describe any examples of phrase expansion or contraction that you observe.
Two more examples are included here for additional practice. These examples include multiple expansion techniques.
Phrase Recomposition: Recompose a few of the examples that you identified in the previous activity as examples of expansion. Your recomposition should remove the expanded material to reveal a standard period, sentence, or phrase structure. Use the worksheet here as a guide.
Now, try the same activity in reverse. Navigate to the anthology section from the last class, Unit 3-2. Select an example of a parallel period or sentence and recompose the example to include at least one type of phrase expansion.
Repertoire for Practice
Repertoire for Practice
Phrase Structure ID: Identify examples of 2-, 3-, and 4-part phrases in popular music in the anthology.
Want to learn more?
Want to learn more?
This article explores the development of phrase structure in film music from the early 1930's to now, with examples and audio for listening and comparing:
Mark Richards, "Film Music Themes: Analysis and Corpus Study," Music Theory Online 22, no. 1 (2015).
Another great read is this article by Robin Attas that digs into some of the differences and idiosyncrasies of phrasing in popular music, using Sarah McLachlan's music as an example:
Robin Attas, "Sarah Setting the Terms: Defining Phrase in Popular Music," Music Theory Online 17, no. 3 (2011).
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