| There are 4 families of instrument: brass, percussion, woodwind and string |
Instruments |
| There is now a 5th family: electronic instruments |
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| Pianos are both a stringed and a percussion instrument |
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| Before valves were added to instruments, tubas were "serpents" |
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| Cellos were originally called bass violins |
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| Mozart used to jump on tables and pretend to be a cat! |
Composers |
| Haydn was expelled from school for cutting off a boy's pigtail |
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| Mendelssohn lost the only copy of a composition and had to rewrite it |
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| Beethoven lost his hearing but continued to compose music |
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| Tchaikovsky had a fear that his head would fall off if he did not hold it! |
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| "Pop" music is short for "popular music" |
Pop Music |
| Pop music began in the 1870s with the invention of the phonograph |
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| It wasn't until the 1950s that pop music took off with Rock 'n' Roll |
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| Successful pop songs have certain elements |
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| Today there are over 100 different types of pop music |
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| "Rap God" by Eminem has over 4 words in it per second! |
Records |
| Queen's "Greatest Hits" album has spent over 1,000 weeks in the Top 40 |
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| Paul McCartney performed the first live concert broadcast into space |
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| The Flaming Lips performed 8 shows in 8 cities in just 1 day |
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| After Michael Jackson's death he had 13 singles in the Top 40 |
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| The word "orchestra" comes from the Greek for "dancing place" |
Orchestras |
| The Royal Danish Orchestra is the oldest, founded in 1448 |
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| The word "karaoke" is Japanese for "empty orchestra" |
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| There is an orchestra whose instruments are made of vegetables |
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| A symphony orchestra is made up of a minimum of 90 musicians |
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| Western music notation was born during the Renaissance |
Notation |
| The Ancient Sumerians had a musical notation system |
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| The musical staff was invented by Guido d'Arezzo C. 1,000 CE |
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| There are many music notation systems used around the world |
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| There is even a musical notation system for blind people to use |
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| Notes indicate pitch and duration |
Reading Music |
| Notes are placed on a staff. Without this they would be meaningless |
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| Staffs require clefs. There are five of these |
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| If the range of music is too large for a staff ledger lines are needed |
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| Accidentals show musicians when a pitch has been raised or lowered |
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| The best selling musicians of all time are the Beatles |
Most Popular |
| The best selling album of all time is the Eagles Greatest Hits |
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| The best selling single of all time is Bing Crosby's White Christmas |
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| Elvis Presley is the best selling solo artist |
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| Madonna has sold more records than any other female |
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| According to Rolling Stone, Bob Dylan is the greatest song writer |
Writers |
| The richest songwriter of all time is Andrew Lloyd Webber |
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| Lennon and McCartney of Beatles fame are the most famous songwriters |
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| Ed Sheeran writes songs for himself and other artists |
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| Another song writing duo is Elton John and Bernie Taupin |
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| The Grammy Awards are the most prestigious music awards |
Awards |
| The British Record Industry Trust Awards are known as the BRITS |
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| The MOBO Awards honour music of black origin |
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| The Mercury Prize is given for the best album released in the UK |
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| The oldest European music award is the Dutch EMA |
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