PART 7 - Music Ornaments

PART 7 - Music Ornaments

What are Music Ornaments?

Also known as embellishments or flourishes, ornaments are usually added to music to decorate or ornament melodic lines. Most ornaments are performed as “fast notes” around a central note. The amount of ornamentation in a piece of music can vary from quite extensive (such as in Baroque music) to relatively little or even none.

In the Baroque period, ornaments were improvised most of the time, but J.S. Bach and other well- known Baroque composers began writing ornaments on the sheet music.

Here is a list of the most common ornaments:

Trill:

The trill (also known as the shake) is a rapid alternation between an indicated note and the one above it. Here is an example of a trill and its effect:

A zigzag line written on the right of the trill can define its precise duration on the same note or on adjacent notes:

Mordent:

The mordent is similar to a trill but it consists of a single or a few alternations between an indicated note and the note above it (called the upper mordent) or below it (called the lower mordent). The mordent is usually depicted by a short zigzag line, which tells you the length of the mordent and the number of alternations involved. If there is a vertical line in the middle of the mordent symbol, it is a lower mordent; if there is no vertical line through the mordent symbol, it is an upper mordent. Here are a few examples of mordents and their effects:

Appoggiatura:

The appoggiatura, from the Italian verb “appoggiare,” which means “to lean upon,” is a single, small note placed before a regular note. The value of the appoggiatura is taken away from the regular note it is attached to. In triple time, the appoggiatura can take up to two thirds of the time; in other words, when the length of the appoggiatura is a third of the length of the regular note, the appoggiatura can take two thirds of the length of the regular note. This can often be found in Mozart’s repertoire. Here are a few examples of appoggiaturas:

Acciaccatura:

The acciaccatura, from the Italian verb “acciaccare,” which means “to crush,” can be considered similar to the appoggiatura but much shorter. Usually, an acciaccatura is performed without taking away some of the time of the note it is attached to. This means that it is played as an “upbeat” to the note. Acciaccaturas are usually played as short as possible, without a defined duration; this is why they are usually written as a quaver (eighth note). It is written like an appoggiatura with an oblique stroke through the stem. Here is an example of acciaccatura:

Turn (gruppetto):

A regular turn (or gruppetto in Italian) is a group of notes denoted by an S-shape lying on its side. When the symbol is between two notes, the turn consists of the first note indicated, the second note indicated, the first note again, the note below the first note, and the first note again, and the second note again. If the symbol is above a single note, the turn consists of the note above the one indicated, the note indicated, the note below the one indicated, and the note indicated again. Here are a few examples of regular turns:

An inverted turn is usually indicated by putting a short vertical line through the regular turn sign or by turning the sign itself upside down. An inverted turn is similar to a regular turn, but its note sequence is in the opposite order. Here are some examples of inverted turns:

The interpretation of the turns may vary according to their context, the music style, and the personal taste of the performer; that’s what makes music the first of the interpretative arts!

Glissando:

From Italian, the glissando is a slide from one note to another, signified by a wavy line (mostly used in piano repertoire) or a straight line (mostly used for strings) connecting the two notes. It may also be marked as glissando or abbreviated gliss.

Rests are often omitted between the two notes involving the glissando:

Again, the interpretation of the glissando may vary depending on its context, the music style, and the personal taste of the performer, from a fast, short, or light glissando to a slow, long, or more prominent glissando.

Question 1: What are music ornaments?

-- Select Your Answer -- Articulations added to notes A change in rhythm Decorations added to a melody to enhance its expressiveness

Question 2: What ornament is this?

-- Select Your Answer -- A trill A dynamic symbol A turn

Question 3: What kind of mordent is this?

-- Select Your Answer -- Upper mordent Lower mordent

Question 4: What kind of note is the small one?

-- Select Your Answer -- Appoggiatura Acciaccatura Cue note

Question 5: What kind of turn is this?

-- Select Your Answer -- Regular turn Inverted turn

Question 6: What ornament is this?

-- Select Your Answer -- A connecting line A glissando A fingering line