Podcast Analysis

The podcast opens to a group of women who appear to be a choir of sorts. They are dressed nicely as if in performance, not a practice session. One of the women is dressed differently with head-garb. The distinctly dressed woman on the left with the head-garb begins to sing a solo. The voice is loud. The voice is singing with a nonmetirical melody. It is very hard to understand what the voice is singing. Even with subtitles, I cannot make out any words. Maybe it is a different language. It is labeled Ganga Song from Bosnia on the screen subtext. This voice can be described as monophonic. The timbre of the voice is shaky or has vibrations. After the solo, the centered woman in the group begins what is subtitled: “Free rhythm, ‘dissonant’ harmony, solo vs. ensemble texture” (Lovallo, "Week One Assignment - Podcast”). From the readings in Ch. 1 of Worlds of Music 3rd Ed., I would describe it as polyphonic. There are two distinct melodies combined. The dominant voice of the centered woman of the choir group

Harmony is described as being more than one pitch, played together. Chords can be described as a harmony containing usually three or more notes/pitches together. Chords are considered quite “normal” for of Western culture of music that Americans are used to learning and hearing about. Texture is an organized melody and harmony relationship. Monophonic texture is one sound. It is described as a single melody with no accompaniment. Heterophonic texture can be described by the playing of the same song, but with slight variations or emphasis. Polyphonic is two melodies that are out of phase. An example is the cannon or round commonly demonstrated by the Western culture’s children’s song “Row, row, row, your boat” where several people sing but start the song at regular intervals. Homophonic texture is a melody supported by chords. An example could be a singer and backup musicians, and all are playing the same