Music Dance and Drama

Objectives
By the end of this unit, I will be able to:
⦿ Explain the meaning and importance of intervals in music.
⦿ Identify how to differentiate intervals.
⦿ Listen attentively to note pitches.
⦿ Sol-fa music notes respecting their intervals.
⦿ Develop a spirit of patience, endurances, and orderliness.
⦿ Describe how music intervals can be used creatively in music.

Lesson 1: Simple music intervals
Introduction
An interval is a period of time between two events or activities. For
example in a soccer match the period between the first half and second
half is an interval. Even at your school ,the bell rings at different
intervals in order to change lessons. Similarly in music an interval
is the distance in pitch/sound from one note to another. Intervals are
described with numbers such as 2nd, 3rd e.t.c. They are referred to by
letter names that is A, B, C, D, E, F and G.

Activity 1
1. What is an interval?
2. Think of any other activities or events that have intervals and
explain why you qualify them to be intervals.

Look at this picture illustration of a key board and observe how the
music intervals are arranged.

Intervals for our study are 1st or unison, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, sixth,
seventh and octave study them as shown below:

Activity 2
Observe these intervals
1. From note C to D there are only two letter names included. This
is therefore an interval of a 2nd.

2. From note C to E includes three letter names C D E .
This is therefore an intervals of a 3rd.

            Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star

Activity 3
1. Sing the song Twinkle Twinkle little star.
2. Sing it by it’s solfas.
3. Identify the different intervals in the song.
4. Write them down in your books.

Intervals are used creatively to make music such as the one the children
in the picture above are singing. Before you compose your own music,
you need to know how intervals are arranged.

Intervals can be arranged from the smallest to the biggest.

Activity 4a
Re-arrange intervals from the smallest to the biggest.

Activity 4b
Re-arrange intervals from the smallest to the biggest.

Activity 5
Have a look at the first example and add a second note to numbers
2 to 5 to make them intervals.

Lesson 2: Types of intervals
There are five types of simple intervals. These are major intervals,
minor intervals, perfect intervals, diminished and augmented intervals.
Intervals help us to compose songs and sing them with correct pitches.
Here are some types of music intervals.

Major intervals
The major intervals are major seconds, thirds, sixths and sevenths
major seconds, major thirds, major sixths and major sevens.
In order to understand the other simple music intervals, you first need
to know what a tone and a semitone means.

Tones and semitones
Most music is composed using a particular pattern of notes called scale.
There are many different scales, each with its own special pattern. Two
very popular ones are the Major and Minor scale. Each scale has its
own pattern made up of tones and semitones.

A semitone is the name given to the distance between two next-door
notes on a piano or keyboard. Next-door notes can be black or white.
A semitone measures the difference in pitch between these notes.

A tone equals two next-door semitones. It measures the difference in
pitch between two notes on a piano or keyboard which have only one
note in between them.

Major scale
This is the scale that has five full tones and two semitones between E
and F and also between B and C. The characteristic of a major scale
is an Interval between the first and third consisting two full tones.
This interval is called a ‘major third’ from which we take the name the
major c scale.

Minor scale
A minor scale is one that has its tonic note on a ‘La’. Its characteristic
is the interval between the first and third degrees of the scale which is
a full tone and a semitone. This is called a minor third from which we
take the name minor scale.

Major second
This is an interval that has two semitones on the piano. For example
from C to D.

second

T = tone
ST = semitone

Activity 6
1. Draw the treble staff and indicate the major second interval.
2. Listen to the melody that the teacher is going to play and write
it down in your music books.
3. Identify the intervals in the melody you have written.
4. Many songs are composed to be sung during Christmas festivity.
Write your own melody of eight bars with some intervals of the
major second.
5. Give your friends to sing it and discuss whether your use of the
interval produces an interesting melody.

Lesson 3: Minor second
This is an interval which has one semitone. For example from C to Db
or from C to C#.

minor second

minor second

Activity 7
Draw a staff show the major second and minor second on it.

Lesson 4: Major third
A major third is a simple music interval which is created by having a
note and two tones next to it following each other successively.

C-D =1 tone
D-E = 1 tone
D-E = 2 tones

Therefore, D-E is a major third

Activity 8
1. Look at the music staff above, draw it in your music book.
2. Sing the song Oh when the saints go matching.

You will realise that in that song. Oh When the Saint go Matching, the
first two words oh when form a major third.

Oh when the saints go marching in

Activity 9
1. Learn the song above and sing it.
2. Draw the treble staff and on it place a major third and any other
intervals in it.

Lesson 5: Minor third
A minor third is a simple music interval which is created by one and
a half tones.

C-D =1 tone
D-E^b = ½ tone
D-E^b = 1 and ½ tones

Therefore, D-E^b is a minor third
Look at the piano below to identify the minor third.

So Long Farewell
                                                                                                                    Richard Rodgers

Activity 10
1. Sing the song So Long Farewell again.
2. Draw treble staff and on it place the minor third interval.
3. Draw another treble staff and place on it a major third interval
and any other intervals that you are able to identify.

Lesson 6: Major sixth
This is a music interval that has 4 tones and ½ tones.

Activity 11
1. Draw the treble staff and on it mark the major sixth interval.

Lesson 7: Minor sixth
This is a music interval that has 3 tones and 2 halftones.

C- A^b = 3 tones and two ½ tones             Therefore, C -A^b is a minor sixth

Look at the illustration on the Piano.

Activity 12
1. Draw the treble staff and put on it notes to show major sixth
minor sixth interval

Lesson 8: Major seventh
This is a music interval that has 5 tones and ½ tone.

C- B = 5 tones and ½ tone                         Therefore, C -B is a major seventh

Activity 13
1. Draw a treble staff and on it mark the interval of a major
seventh

Lesson 9: Minor seventh
This is a music interval that has 5 tones and two ½ tones.

C- B = 5 and two ½ tones                     Therefore, C –B^b is a minor seventh

Activity 14
1. Draw a treble staff and on it mark the interval of a minor
seventh.
A summary of major intervals shown on staff.

Minor intervals
All the major intervals can form minor intervals and minor interval can
form major intervals. A minor interval is formed by lowering the upper
note of a major interval by a semitone and a major interval is formed
by raising the upper note of a major interval by semitone.
For example

When you lower the upper note of the example above then it will
become a minor interval.

Similary when a Major 3rd is lowered it will become a minor 3rd.

Major 3rd

Lesson 10: Perfect intervals
In the perfect intervals we have perfect unison, perfect fourth, perfect
fifth, perfect eight or commonly known as perfect octave.

Perfect unison
This is a simple music interval which is formed when you play a note
twice. For example on the piano from c-c is a perfect unison.

Perfect unison

Another example that can help us understand the perfect unison
interval is the song Twinkle twinkle little star. The first two notes of
that song form a perfect unison interval.

Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star

Activity 15
1. Draw the example of a perfect unison interval in your music
book.

Perfect fourth
This interval has 2 tones and ½ tone. For example from C-F is a
perfect forth as shown on the staff below .

C- F = 3 tones and ½ tones       Therefore, C – F is a Perfect Fourth

Here comes the bride

Activity 16
1. Sing the first two phrase of the song Here comes the bride

You will realise that the first two words of that song form what is called
a perfect fourth interval

Activity 17
1. Draw the treble staff and on it put the interval of a perfect
fourth and perfect unison.

Lesson 11: Perfect Fifth and Octave
This interval has 3 tones and ½ tone. For example from C-G as shown
on the staff below.

C- G = 3 tones and ½ tones        Therefore, C – G is a Perfect fifth

Activity 18
1. Draw the treble staff and indicate the perfect fifth interval.
Perfect octave
This is a musical interval that has 5 tones and two ½ tones. For
example from C-CI as shown on the staff below

C- C¹ = 5 tones and two ½ tones           Therefore, C – C¹ is a Perfect Octave

Activity 19
1. Write a perfect octave interval on a treble staff.

Activity 20
1. Individually draw the above staff showing the perfect intervals
in your exercise book.

Lesson 12: Diminished, augmented intervals
These are intervals that are formed when the upper note of a minor
interval is lowered.

Diminished intervals

For example when the above Minor 3rd is lowered it will become a
diminished 3rd.

Activity 21
Study the treble staff above and draw the diminished intervals in
your music books.

Augmented intervals
These are intervals that are formed when the upper note of a Major or
perfect interval is raised.

For example when a Major 2nd is raised it will became an augmented
2nd.
Major 2nd

Major second will become.
Augmented 2nd

Activity 22
1. Draw the above staff showing the Augmented 2nd in your
exercise book.

Perfect 4th

Perfect 4th will become.
Augmented 4th

Activity 23
1. Individually draw the above staff showing the Augmented 4th
in your exercise book.

Perfect 5th will become.

Augmented 5th

Activity 24
1. Individually draw the above staff showing the Augmented 5th
in your exercise book.

Activity 25
1. Give the number of each of these intervals (2nd, 3rd, 4th etc. The
first answer is given as an example.

2. Write the note to match the degree that is written below the
staff. The first note is the keynote of the scale.

End unit assessment
1. What is a music interval?
2. Explain the difference between a major scale from a minor scale.
3. List the types of intervals that you studied in this unit.
4. Write each type of interval on a music staff.
5. How different is a semi tone from a tone?
6. Compose four melodies with the types of intervals you have been
learning in this unit.
7. Write the note to match the degree that is written below the staff.

9. Write down the following intervals on a staff.

Glossary
Augment: this is to raise the upper notes of a major or
perfect interval. For example when you have fifth
note of a major interval raised by a semitone,
then the interval is augmented.

Degree: this is the name of a particular note of a scale to
specify its position relative to the tonic.

Diminish: this is to lower the upper note of a minor interval.
For example, when a triad that has two minor
thirds is above the root, a minor third with a
lowered fifth is a diminished interval.

Interval: the relative difference in pitch between any two
tones.

Music staff or stave: a set of five horizontal parallel lines
and their four spaces on which music notes are
written. These notes are written on the lines with
the line running through the centre of the note, in
the spaces. Above or below the staff there can
be short extra lines known as ledger lines; being
supplied as needed if the notes go beyond or
below the main five lines and the four spaces.

Tonic: the first note in any harmonic scale.

Triad: a chord or group of three notes consisting of a
root, a third and a fifth.