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How can we play music in different ways?

A musician can play the same passage of music in lots of different ways. It could be played quiet or loud, fast or slow.

When we read music, words and symbols help us understand how to play it, by telling us the and .

Short extract of a music score with the tempo markings: andante - 90bpm at the top and the dynamics piano and crescendo highlighted.

Words and symbols can also tell us the and of the music we want to play.

Combining these is known as and can help musicians perform in a certain way that will make the listener feel different emotions.

A cartoon of Tchaikovsky and two girls. One girl is playing the saxophone and the other is playing a bass guitar.
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What is articulation?

Articulation is the way a note or group of notes should be played. Italian words are used to describe common articulation.

Staccato means 'detached' and is when a note or notes are played short and detached from one another. A dot above or below a note tells you to play it staccato.

Legato means 'tied together' and is when a note or notes are played smoothly with no gaps. A curved line above or below a group of notes tells you those notes should be played legato.

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What is phrasing?

A cartoon of a girl pointing.

In music, phrasing is the expressive way a musician plays a sequence of notes in a passage of music - a bit like how you tell a story.

When you speak, you might emphasise certain words or speed up and slow down slightly to make a story sound interesting.

Musical phrasing lets you do the same thing when you are singing or playing a .

A cartoon of a teenage boy in a wheelchair.

Parts of musical phrasing include:

  • deciding when to breathe
  • which notes or words to emphasise
  • how fast or slow you sing or play

Like with articulation, these things can help you share a certain feeling or mood when playing and performing music.

A cartoon of a teenage boy in a wheelchair.
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Watch: Phrasing

Watch this clip and listen to how the choir uses phrasing in the correct and incorrect places.

Can you hear how it affects the flow of the song?

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Activities

Quiz

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Bitesize Primary games. game

Play fun and educational primary games in science, maths, English, history, geography, art, computing and modern languages.

Bitesize Primary games
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More on Playing and Performing

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