The AQA strands
- Music of Broadway from the 1950s to the 1990s (musicals).
- Rock music of the 1960s and 1970s.
- Film and computer gaming music from the 1990s to the present.
- Pop music from the 1990s to the present.
Features of popular music
- Structure: intro, verse, chorus, bridge (middle 8) and outro; hooks and riffs make songs memorable.
- Instruments: vocals, electric guitars, bass guitar, drum kit, keyboards and synthesisers; music technology such as sampling, looping, reverb and auto-tune.
- Rock: distorted guitars, power chords, guitar solos and a strong backbeat on beats 2 and 4.
- Musicals: songs move the story on; solos, duets and ensemble numbers; a pit orchestra accompanies.
Film and game music
- A leitmotif is a short musical idea linked to a character, place or idea.
- Music creates mood: low brass and ostinatos for danger, soaring strings for romance, and dissonance for tension.
- Diegetic music is heard by the characters (such as a band in a scene); non-diegetic music is only heard by the audience.
- Game music often loops and changes as the player moves or the action changes.
Key terms
- Hook
- A catchy musical idea that makes a song memorable.
- Riff
- A short, repeated pattern, often on guitar.
- Backbeat
- Accents on beats 2 and 4, typical of rock and pop.
- Leitmotif
- A musical idea linked to a character, place or idea.
- Diegetic music
- Music that the characters can hear.
- Non-diegetic music
- Music only the audience hears.
- Power chord
- A chord of a root and fifth, common in rock.