Listening+Analysis+Hints

Below are a list of questions to help you with completing any listening analysis that you have to do. This is not a complete list but rather a starting point to help you. So lets start.....


 * What is the structure of the piece?
 * What are the instruments that are playing in the piece?
 * How would you describe the tempo of the piece?
 * Does the tempo change or is it the same throughout?
 * Describe the dynamics of the piece. Is it loud or soft? Is it always loud or soft or does it change? If it changes, does it change suddenly or gradually?
 * Do all the instruments play all the time? Are there some sections that have more or less instruments that others?
 * Do any of the instruments have any effects? Maybe the guitars?
 * Does the singer have a distinctive sound voice?
 * Are there back up vocals? Do they sing the whole way through or just in certain sections?
 * Is there an instrumental solo? What instrument plays the solo?
 * Can you identify how many beats per bar?
 * Would you say that the song is major (happy sounding) or minor (sad/angry sounding)...don't think about the lyrics, think about the music
 * Can you make a comment on the texture (texture is all about the layers of sound)...are there many layers or only a few? Is the texture constant throughout or does it change?
 * Are there any repeated patterns used in the piece? What instrument plays them?
 * If you were to look your song up on [|www.ultimate-guitar.com]and look at the chords, is there a different chord pattern between the verse and the chorus (and the bridge) or is it the same?
 * Think about where the piece reaches its high point? Which section is it? What happens to make you think that this is the high point of the song?