Talk:Melody

Wiki Education Foundation-supported course assignment

This article was the subject of a Wiki Education Foundation-supported course assignment, between 18 March 2019 and 5 May 2019. Further details are available on the course page. Peer reviewers: Kjmms1.

Above undated message substituted from Template:Dashboard.wikiedu.org assignment by PrimeBOT (talk) 03:50, 17 January 2022 (UTC)

Article Review

After looking at this article in depth it seems as though a few things need to be updated. There is a lot of content with not nearly enough citations. Nearly none of the examples listed have any sort of reference, where do these examples come from and why are the claims about melody true? Many of the books listed under further reading would probably be beneficial in advancing this article. There is also a large quote right after the main summary that was quite distracting and probably can be removed. Also the audio file of "Pop Goes the Weasel" is seemingly unrelated and seems quite random. It should either be tied in to the article of taken down from it. The elements section seem quite heady and difficult to follow even for an experienced musician or musicologist. Lastly, I think there should be a section in regards to music that lacks melody, like soundscapes, club music, and other types. It seems as though some of the information is a little out of date and there probably are newer sources that would be beneficial to add to this article. Kjmms1 (talk) 17:35, 26 March 2019 (UTC)

"Voice"?

I was directed here from the disambiguation page on "voice." I believe "voice" is often used as a term similar in meaning (if not idential) to a melody. However, this needs to be clarified (I wanted to verify that myself, which is why I searched for "voice") if readers are to be directed to this article from a page on "voice" entries. The word "voice" doesn't even appear in the article.

OK actually I checked and the disambiguation page on "voice" actually does make it clear that "voice" can be a synonym for "melody" (my bad). I'll look for an appropriate spot to note this fact in the article. If there is a subtle distinction between a melody and a voice please explain so; I am unaware of one.

there isn't one actually 'melody' being a sweet music or a tune has to have a 'voice' right? is there anyone with me out there? —Preceding unsigned comment added by Melody hwema (talk • contribs) 08:43, 9 May 2010 (UTC)

Wikiquote

Actually, links to wikiquote are external links and "typically" are placed in that section (see Wikipedia:Sister projects), though I think in this case having them in the "Further reading" is better than alone in an "External link" section. Hyacinth 04:01, 2 Jan 2005 (UTC)

Anonymous contrib

Make the vocal melody catchy. Octave and a third, Do re mi fa so la ti do re me. Verse melody should be lower than the chorus melody. Don't repeat verse melody rhytms in chorus, don't repeat verse or chorus melody rhytms in bridge. End a line on the 4th or 7th note in the scale to create tension. Second verse or chorus can have a melodic surprise. Learn alot of old time vocal melodies on the piano, just playing one note at a time. "Cherry pink and apple blossom white" is a good one. Jingle Bells, Take me out to the ball game, Adams Family Theme.

I assume the above was removed from the article? Hyacinth 21:43, 12 August 2006 (UTC)

Melody (disambiguation)

I moved disambiguation information from the bottom of this article, to a new article. In the process, not everything was kept, and some stuff was added. I only mention uses which have articles currently. So, if something I removed is signficant, then feel free to add it. --Rob 09:53, 20 January 2006 (UTC)

Removed

• "Melodies take form through constant motion and movement."
• "Melodies form pictures, images and ideas in the minds of the listeners. Each composer uses many techniques in their melodies to draw pictures."

I removed both of the above because they were intended as clarifications or less technical explinations of the paragraphs they followed. However, the second one is a different point than that which preceeded it and is a complicated assertion that needs to be backed by citation, and the first is metaphorical and thus more confusing than clarifying. Hyacinth 21:50, 12 August 2006 (UTC)

No mention of angular melodies

I think it has enough usage in styles like jazz/experimental that it should be discussed on this page. 66.142.191.132 (talk) 02:23, 28 October 2008 (UTC)

I agree. I heard it mentioned in a jazz context, but apparently (via google) it's also used in basic music instruction. I'll have to leave it to the more musically educated; I think it'd be an important contribution. I'd like to learn more. --Junius49 (talk) 16:42, 29 January 2010 (UTC)

Dead link?

The following link seems to work just fine:"Meloidia", Henry George Liddell, Robert Scott, A Greek-English Lexicon (1889), at Perseus. Hyacinth (talk) 07:10, 18 October 2009 (UTC)

Too heady

Read the quote(s) in the last paragraph of this section. It is too abstract; the concept or idea that is trying to be presented needs to be made a more simple for the reader. Please edit. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 64.46.248.203 (talk) 01:33, 28 October 2009 (UTC)

Change pitch to interval in heading

In the heading, the article states "In its most literal sense, a melody is a combination of pitch and rhythm". I believe this ought to be changed to "combination of interval and rhythm" since the original implies that the melody would change if the phrase were taken up or down an octave or played in a different key. This would change the pitch, but maintain the interval. I believe we can all agree that if you play a song in a different key, the melody remains the same. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 99.127.199.32 (talk) 08:46, 14 April 2012‎

I don't think "pitch" implies "absolute pitch". Hyacinth (talk) 19:08, 14 April 2012 (UTC)

Regardless, interval is more correct and I think the article ought to be as correct as possible.

Pop Goes the Weasel sound file doesn't match the Music Notation in the image

Last two measures of the 'Pop Goes the Weasel.png' image are A D D E C, while the sound file (and the actual tune) are A D E D C. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 99.185.130.52 (talk) 04:52, 16 December 2013 (UTC)

The audio (and real tune) are actually A (rest) D F E C, to my ear. I'm going to raise this on the discussion page for the image. Quantum Burrito (talk) 22:35, 28 December 2022 (UTC)

a unit

"a linear succession of musical tones that the listener perceives as a single entity." I am a bit puzzled by the word "the" here. It seems to imply that every normal listener perceives a piece of music the same. There is a lot of classical and pop music in which I don't notice a succession (why "linear"? I can only hear succession of sounds linearly.) of notes forming any sort of unit. Also, what is the length of the unit of a melody? Can it be a whole song, is it a verse, or can it be two notes?2600:6C67:1C00:300:1CA3:4793:7208:9F4F (talk) 04:06, 22 March 2022 (UTC)

Remove "a single entity"

Referring to any linear succession of musical tones as a "single entity" should be changed or removed for the following reasons. A single entity of melodic notes does not accurately describe a melody, in fact it confuses the description. The Schirmer's 1995 edition of the Pocket Manual of Musical Terms describes melody as "The ordered and rational progression of single tones". Why over-complicate a simple definition by adding "a single entity". Instead a single entity sort of implies something akin to harmony, tones played simultaneously or as "a single entity". Any reason to keep "a single entity" as part of the definition? Are there any dictionary sources that similarly include "a single entity"? Happy to be convinced otherwise on this if we find some good sources. :) — Preceding unsigned comment added by Libroman2 (talk • contribs) 02:16, 27 November 2023 (UTC)