Audio-visual Arts

TOPIC

Weeks 10 & 11

AUDIO-VISUAL ARTS
• forms perceived by both ears (audio) and eyes (video);
• also called performing arts since the artists render a performance in front of an audience;

e.g. Music (vocal, instrumental, and mixed), dance (ethnological, social, theatrical), and drama
(tragedy, comedy, tragicomedy, farce, and melodrama, etc.)

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I. MUSIC

A. Definition

• the art of combining sounds of varying pitches to produce a coherent composition that is
melodious, harmonious, intelligible, and expressive of ideas and emotions;

B. Elements

• Pitch – the relative highness and lowness of tone

• Volume or intensity – the loudness or softness of a sound; ranges from very soft (pianissimo)
and soft (piano) to a very loud (fortissimo) and loud (forte); is louder when a singer belts out
compared to the volume when he/she simply whispers

• Tempo or rate - the speed of a composition or any of its sections; ballads have a slow tempo,
whereas dance songs have a fast rate.

Related terms: allegro (fast), vivace (lively), moderato (moderate speed), andante
(moderately slow), adagio (slower than andante), lento (slow), and largo (very slow)

• Timbre or tone color – the quality of sound that makes it distinct from other sounds; a listener
can distinguish the voices of Regine Velasquez, Jaya, Janno Gibbs, and Ogie Alcasid; he can
also recognize the sounds of a flute, a guitar, a drum, and a piano.

• Duration – the length of time during a sound is produced; some sounds are longer that the
others.

• Rhythm – the consistent pattern of succession of identical or similar sounds; – this is

 illustrated by a succession of similar sound in a song as follows: introduction, stanza one,
chorus, refrain, stanza two, chorus, refrain, coda, and conclusion

• Melody – the series of consecutive tones that vary in pitch and duration but form a line of
individual significance and expressive value; it is remembered by a listener or the one he
whistles or hums, especially so when he does not know the lyrics.

• Harmony – the simultaneous sounding or two or more tones; when three or more tones are
sounded simultaneously, there exists a chord.

• Texture – the number of tones expected to be apprehended simultaneously; it is neither

monophonic (sounding a single melodic line without accompaniment), polyphonic
(simultaneous sounding of two or more melodic lines of relatively equal interest), or
homophonic (sounding of one main melody supported by a subordinate as in the
performance of a folk singer with a guitar accompaniment)

• Form – the overall organization of the composition; it is associated with shape, structure, and
coherence; all the musical elements are put together to come up with a whole called “form”.

C. Kinds

• Musica Mundana – music created by the orderly relationships found among the planets and
the changing seasons of the world; music created by human beings, by the unity of the body
and soul;

• Musica instrumentalis – music created by musical instruments;

Other classifications: vocal music, instrumental music, and a combination of the two

• Vocal music – produced by the voices of the singers; rendered a capella or without the
accompaniment
• Instrumental music – produced by musical instruments; it is exemplified by an orchestra
performing without a soloist or a group of singers
• Mixed music or Mixed ensemble – a combination of vocal and instrumental music; mixed
ensemble usually performed in Mass, Requiem Mass, Opera, Oratorio, and Cantata
• Ensemble – a music rendered by a group of performers—singers and/or players of musical
instruments; classified into the following:

✓Orchestra – the most spectacular of the ensembles because of its large size; usually
performing under the direction of a conductor; the musicians playing several
instruments of the same kind are given a part; it is divided into four sections: the
string, the woodwind, the brass, and the percussion.
✓ Symphony Orchestra – is a large ensemble composed of 100 players; it includes all
the principal instrumental types divided into four sections, each of which falls
under each of the four basic ranges: soprano, alto, tenor, and bass.
 ✓ Concerto – a form of orchestra in which one solo instrument, for instance, a piano or
a violin, is given prominence.
✓ Band – an instrumental ensemble having the size of an orchestra but consisting
mainly or exclusively of wind and percussion instruments; usually performs in
concert halls and outdoor events such as parades, funerals, football games, and
the like; nowadays understood as a small group of performers, consisting of a
soloist, drummer, guitarist/s, and keyboardist, or a small group of singers.
✓ Rondalla – a band usually composed of stringed instruments (banduria, laud,
octavian, piccolo, guitarra, and bajo); it is the best-known instrumental group in
the Philippines today.
✓ Chamber orchestra – a small group of instrumental players; the number of musical
instruments ranges from one to nine; chamber music written for only one
instrument (violin, cello, flute, aboe, horn, etc.) is called solo sonata; for two,
duo; for three, trio; for four, quartet (for example, a piano quartet or a string
quartet); for five, quintet; for six, sextet, for seven, septet; for eight, octet, and
for nine, nonet.
✓ Special Ensemble – (e.g. Pangkat Kawayan or Bandang Kawayan, family ensembles)

D. Mediums

• Vocal Media – pertain to male and female voices

✓Male voices – have three registers: bass (lowest), baritone (middle), and tenor
(highest); the lowest of the male vocal registers is the basso profundo.
✓Female voices – have three registers: alto (lowest), mezzo soprano (middle), and
soprano (highest). The highest of the female vocal registers is the coloratura
soprano

• Instrumental Media – pertain to the different instruments played by the musicians; most of
these instruments form part of the orchestra; classified into string or stringed, wind,
percussion, and keyboard instruments

✓ String/Stringed Instruments – have strings which are plucked or bowed: plucked strings
are guitars, ukuleles, banjos, mandolins, harps, and erstwhile lyres; bowed strings
are: violins, violas, violincellos or cellos, and double basses or contrabasses

✓ Wind Instruments – require wind to produce the sound so they are blown; classified
into woodwind instruments and brass instruments; woodwind instruments are
piccolos, flutes, oboes, English horns, clarinets, bass clarinets, bassoons, and
contrabassoons; – the brass instruments consist of the saxophones, trumpets,
French horns, trombones, tubas, and cornets

✓ Percussion Instruments – are beaten or struck; they come in a variety of forms: the
drums (kettle drums, snare drums, side drums, etc.), glockenspiels, xylophones,
marimbas, gongs, cymbals, triangles, and chimes.
 ✓ Keyboard Instruments - have keys which are pressed to produce the desired sounds;
they include the piano, the organ, the celesta, the piano accordion, the harmonium

II. DANCE

A. Definition

• The form of arts using rhythmic bodily movements expressing ideas and emotions and
accompanied by music; may tell a story, set a mood, or express an emotion; a form of
exercise; a form of recreation; a form of socialization.

B. Elements

• Music – a very important element of dance

• Dancer – the most important element of dance; he/she is the performer, no dance without
him/her; he executes the steps, follows the instructions of the choreographer, wears the
costumes, and carries the props

• Choreographer – the dance director; he/she does the overall design of the dance, assigns the
steps to be executed by the dancer/s, selects the costumes and props that go with the
dance, and determines the set designed for the dance

• Design – the planned organization or pattern of movements in time and space; it involves the
movements and the positioning of the dancers, and the steps executed by them; an
outstanding dance performance is always dependent on the design of the dance

• Subject – the message of the dance; tells what the dance is about; e.g. the theme of the Ifugao
war dance is the rivalry between two tribes that leads to an armed conflict

• Movements – classified into steps, gestures, and facial expressions; steps are the dancers’
movements from one point on stage to another (include leaps, turns, rolls, and
somersaults); gestures are the movements of their heads, feet, and other body parts
(include swaying, head shaking, foot stomping, and clapping; facial expressions are the
movements of their facial parts (include raising of the eyebrows, pouting of lips, and
crumpling of forehead

• Technique – the style or way of executing the movements (e.g. the grind may be done singly
or doubly or the twist may be done quickly or slowly)

• Costumes – the things worn by the dancers during their performance; include the head gear
(hats, caps, fez, bonnets, helmets, crowns, turbans, hoods), the upper garments and the
lower garments (blouse, kimono, kimona, baro’t saya, malong, patadyong, trahe, gowns,
Maria Clara dresses, skirts, bloomers and the like for female dancers while shirts, camisa de
chino, barong Tagalog, shorts, long pants, trousers, g-strings, and the like for male dancers)
• Properties – commonly called props; carried by the dancers as they perform [glasses with
lighted candles (pandango sa ilaw), sombreros (pandango sa sambalilo), fans (fan dance),
umbrellas (umbrella dance), sticks (sakuting), pots (banga), spears and shields (singkil),
towels, torches, etc.
• Set Design - the setting or the background that indicates the place of action for the dancers;
vintas are placed as backdrop for singkil, a vitage Spanish-inspired house for jota, and nipa
huts for tinikling

• Other Theatrical Elements – lighting effects, sound effects, visual effects, and the like for
musical play or if it is a theatrical dance

C. Kinds

• Based on the number of performers:

✓ Solo
✓ Pair
✓ Group

• Based on the subject or content:

✓ War dance
✓ Courtship dance
✓ Harvest dance
✓ Ritual dance, etc.

• Based on the nature of the dance:

✓ Imitative (tinikling, itik-itik, and maglalatik)
✓ Interpretative
✓ Religious

• Based on the purpose:

✓ Folk or ethnic
✓ Social or ballroom
✓ Spectacular or theatrical