Aural Skills in Context: A Comprehensive Approach to Sight Singing, Ear Training, Keyboard Harmony, and Improvisation / Edition 1

by Evan Jones, Matthew Shaftel, Juan Chattah

Overview

Aural Skills in Context takes a comprehensive approach to sight singing, ear training, and rhythm practice. By featuring real examples from classical music to folk and jazz, and offering melodies with their related harmonies, the text parallels the full Music Theory curriculum and reinforces the relevance of aural skills to students' other classes, as well as their performance and listening interests. In addition to a wide variety of partial and complete excerpts, Aural Skills in Context also provides a wealth of activities that range far beyond simply singing the melodies or writing them down from dictation, giving instructors and students the opportunity to engage in improvisation; performance in multiple voices; switching between melody and accompanying lines; creating new melodies above a given bass line; or even an additional "obbligato" voice above the given melody or between the outer voices.

* Rhythmic, harmonic, and melodic drills accompany musical examples and solidify students' understanding of the position of every pitch within the tonal context
* "Expanding Repertoires" sections include listening and dictation-type exercises that allow students to engage in listening beyond the traditional examples
* "Contextual Listening" assignments are accompanied with streaming audio at various tempos and an online mixer for balancing musical parts on the companion website, www.oup.com/us/jonesshaftel
* Designed so that it may be used with Finale Smartmusic, an inexpensive software program that enables students to receive immediate feedback on their sight singing, while keeping a record of their progress.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780199943821
Publisher:	Oxford University Press
Publication date:	10/12/2013
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	864
Sales rank:	937,258
Product dimensions:	8.20(w) x 10.90(h) x 1.60(d)

About the Author

Evan Jones is Associate Professor of Music Theory and Coordinator of Music Theory and Composition at Florida State University.

Matthew Shaftel is Distinguished Associate Professor of Music Theory and Associate Dean at Florida State University.

Juan Chattah is Assistant Professor of Music Theory and Composition at the University Of Miami Frost School of Music.

Table of Contents

, Preface. Pedagogical Approach, Curricular Planning, PracticalitiesThe Foundations of Aural SkillsIntroduction to the StudentMajor and Minor Scales and Simple IntervalsBasic Rhythmic PatternsConducting of Simple MetersNeighbor and Passing Tones in a Stepwise ContextKeyboard OrientationFirst Steps in ImprovisationTonic TriadPractice in Multiple ClefsSix-Step Method for DictationIntroduction to SmartmusicUnit 1. The Diatonic Scale Degrees1. Tonic Triad and Its MelodiesTonic Triad as Melodic BasisMajor and Minor Scales in ContextFirst Five Notes of the Scale2. The Submediant Scale Degree and the Major PentatonicSubmediant Scale DegreeThe I-V-I Harmonic ParadigmMajor Pentatonic ScaleIntroduction to Compound Meter3. Seventh Scale Degree and Minor PentatonicMinor Pentatonic ScaleCompound MeterLeading Tone and Subtonic Scale DegreeSubdominant Harmony4. Plagal Melodies IUpper and Lower Dominant Scale DegreesFirst Inversion TriadsExpanding the Melodic Range Beyond the Octave5. Plagal Melodies IISyncopationChanging MetersHarmonic Study of Tonic Prolongation6. The Octave and BeyondExcerpts that Span the Entire Octave and BeyondPeriodic Structures (Parallel Period)Inconclusive and Conclusive Cadences7. Complete Examples from the RepertoireReviewing Unit I through Complete WorksFocus on Rhythm in a Nonpitched WorkUnit II. Diatonic Contexts and Introduction to Chromatic Pitches8. Diatonic SequencesAscending and Descending Fifths SequenceDescending Thirds SequenceGround BassHarmonic Study of Tonic Prolongation. vii°6, Passing 6/4, and Inversions of V79. Diatonic Sequences IINew Rhythmic ConfigurationsAscending Seconds SequenceQuasi-Sequential ProgressionsFour-Part Schemata of Sequences10. Motivic Development and the SentenceSentence StructureExpansions and Extensions of SentencesHarmonic Study of Tonic Prolongation. Combination of Pre-dominants with Inversions of vii° and V711. Chromatic Neighbor TonesChromatic Neighbor Tones as Surface-level EmbellishmentsResolution of Chromatic-altered PitchesChromatic Solmization Syllables (Ascending. di, ri, fi, si, li; Descending. te, le, se, me)Cadential Progressions with vi and iiCadential 6/412. Chromatic Passing TonesChromatic Passing Tones as Surface-level EmbellishmentsHarmonic Study of Mediant and Subtonic Triads13. Beyond the Stepwise ContextDelayed Resolutions of Chromatic PitchesHarmonic Study of Tonicization via V7/V14. Complete Examples from the RepertoireReviewing Unit II through Complete WorksFocus on Rhythm in a Nonpitched WorkUnit III. Advanced Melodies, Modulation, and Introduction to Musical Form15. Melodic ChromaticismChromatic Melodies and Bass LinesSinging Complete Musical FormsExtended Melodic RangeLowered Supertonic Scale DegreeHarmonic Study of Tonicization via vii°7/V16. ModulationTonicization vsModulationModulation to the DominantHarmonic Study of Tonicization via V7/IV17. Simple Binary FormCategories and Classification of Binary Forms based on Harmonic DesignHarmonic Study of Tonicization via V7/ii18. Rounded and Balanced Binary FormCategories and Classification of Binary Forms based on Motivic DesignHarmonic Study of Tonicization via V7/iii and V7/vi19. Modal MixtureColoristic Use of Modal Mixture ChordsTendency of Tones in Modal Mixture ChordsTonicization of Modal Mixture ChordsModulation to Modally Mixed Tonal Areas20. Ternary FormCategories and Classification of Ternary FormsHarmonic Study of Chromatic Third Relations21. Neapolitan Triad and Common-tone Diminished SeventhNeapolitan as Pre-dominant HarmonyUses of Common-Tone Diminished SeventhFocus on Rhythm in a Nonpitched WorkUnit IV. Advanced Chromaticism and Larger Forms22. Introduction to Augmented-Sixth ChordsAugmented-Sixth Chords as Pre-Dominant HarmoniesThe Tritone Substitution in Jazz and Popular MusicHarmonic Study of the Common-tone Diminished Seventh23. Rondo FormFive-Part and Seven-Part RondosHarmonic Study of Augmented Sixth Chords24. Further Uses of Augmented-Sixth ChordsUse of Augmented-Sixth Chords in Larger FormsAdvanced Uses of Augmented-Sixth Chords25. Sonata FormBasic Harmonic and Motivic Traits of Sonata FormsIntroduction and Coda in Sonata FormsHarmonic Study of Complex Chromatic Progressions26. Advanced Melodic and Harmonic ChromaticismEqual Division of the OctaveComplex Melodic Chromaticism27. Later Tonal StylesPost-Romantic, Impressionist, and Contemporary Tonal Styles

Editorial Reviews

"I love Aural Skills in Context's concept of studying pieces in context and the focusing on, not just isolated melodies for singing, but on parts for all to sing together. This text has great examples and standards."—Robert Glarner, Radford University

"Providing harmonic context for all the music makes a lot of sense—and the Chorale Workshop exercises are great as are the Contextual assignments at the end of each chapter."—Cindy Moyer, Humboldt State University

"I am impressed with the 'Contextual Listening' assignments that are on the book's website that offer the ability to switch tempos and mix parts."—Louise A. Weiss, Greenville College

From the Publisher