The cards Question In music, what is a sequence? Tap to flip Answer A short melodic idea repeated in steps, either rising or falling. Question What is it called when a musical idea is reversed? Tap to flip Answer Retrograde. Question What is the inversion of a musical idea? Tap to flip Answer The idea flipped upside down: intervals that went up now go down, and vice versa. Question Give one compositional device that can transform a melodic idea. Tap to flip Answer E.g. sequence, retrograde or inversion. Question What balance helps make music interesting but memorable? Tap to flip Answer A balance of repetition and contrast. Question Are sequence, retrograde and inversion the only ways to develop a melodic idea? Tap to flip Answer No. Any subtle change can work, as long as the repeated idea keeps some similarity or recognisable quality. Question What is harmonic rhythm? Tap to flip Answer How often the chords change. Question What can changing the harmonic rhythm do to a piece? Tap to flip Answer Add interest, and dramatically alter its mood. Question What is a pedal note? Tap to flip Answer A bass note that stays the same while the chords change above it. Question What is a drone? Tap to flip Answer A long, sustained sound, often low pitched and made of two notes together: the tonic and dominant. Question What is an extended chord? Tap to flip Answer A chord that includes more than three different notes. Question Give one harmonic device useful for building harmonic tension and adding colour. Tap to flip Answer E.g. a pedal note or a drone. Question What can adding extensions to chords do for a chord sequence? Tap to flip Answer Enhance its expressive qualities. Question Is a pedal note just any long, low note? Tap to flip Answer No. It is a consistent pitch, usually in the bass, held while the chords change. Question What is augmentation? Tap to flip Answer Proportionally increasing the note lengths of a rhythm. Question What is diminution? Tap to flip Answer Proportionally decreasing the note lengths of a rhythm. Question What is a countermelody? Tap to flip Answer A secondary melody played at the same time as the main melody. Question Are augmentation and diminution the same as augmented and diminished? Tap to flip Answer No. Augmentation and diminution affect rhythm; augmented and diminished are types of chord, referring to harmony. Question What do rhythmic devices create for the listener? Tap to flip Answer Interest and variety. Question In music, what does the accompaniment do? Tap to flip Answer It provides the rhythmic and harmonic support for the melody. Question What is a broken chord? Tap to flip Answer A chord whose notes are not all played at the same time. Question What is an Alberti bass? Tap to flip Answer A typical broken chord accompaniment pattern of the Classical period. Question Which two elements is it important to vary to create contrast in a composition? Tap to flip Answer Texture and timbre. Question Give one way to vary texture and timbre in a composition. Tap to flip Answer E.g. changing which part plays the melody and which parts accompany. Question Must a broken chord be played with the root as the lowest note? Tap to flip Answer No. Like block chords, broken chords can be played in different inversions. Question What is ternary form? Tap to flip Answer A structure in three sections with the first section repeated at the end, also called ABA. Question What is melodic material? Tap to flip Answer Musical ideas that contribute to the melody, e.g. the melody itself, motifs, riffs or countermelodies. Question What is harmonic material? Tap to flip Answer Musical ideas that contribute to the harmony, e.g. the chords and chord sequence, the bass line, and devices such as pedals. Question When musical material returns, what do composers often do to it? Tap to flip Answer Make subtle changes to it. Question Where can the new melodic and harmonic ideas of a B section in ternary form come from? Tap to flip Answer They can be derived from earlier sections. Question Should a contrasting section be totally different from the other sections? Tap to flip Answer No. It can be derived from some of the same ideas, but should have its own recognisable melodic and harmonic ideas. Where this deck sits in the curriculum Curriculum National Curriculum for England Stage GCSE (Years 10–11) Course GCSE Music Unit Free Composition: Extending ideas Exam boards AQA, Edexcel, Eduqas, OCR England's National Curriculum sets what is taught; the units and their order are Oak National Academy's. Flash Feed is not affiliated with Oak or any exam board.
How this deck was checked On 2026-11-02, every card was compared with its source: the lessons of Oak National Academy, a public body funded by England's Department for Education that publishes lessons for the national curriculum. Because the cards come from those lessons, no second source was sought. The comparison was done automatically, not by a teacher, so a card can still be wrong. Flash Feed is not affiliated with any source named here.
Sources Total: 5 · primary: 5 · second publisher: 0
Show the other sources (3) Found a mistake? Write to support@flashfeed.app .
A Music lesson by Oak National Academy licensed under Open Government Licence (OGL)
Flash Feed