What are ornaments in music?
Q: What are ornaments in music?
A: Ornaments in music are notes which are added to the main notes of a piece of music in order to make it more interesting.
Q: What types of ornaments exist?
A: There are several types of ornaments, including trills and slides.
Q: How did composers show what ornaments were needed?
A: The composer usually showed what ornaments were needed by little signs written above the notes. In some pieces, especially in slow movements, the composers often did not show the ornaments that were needed and expected performers to put them in themselves.
Q: How did ideas about how music should be performed change over time?
A: Ideas about how music should be performed kept changing from one country to another and from one century to another.
Q: What is a grace note?
A: A “grace note” is a note written in smaller print, to show that its note value (how long it lasts) does not count as part of the total time value of the measure.
Q: When was diferenzias used for guitar music? A: Diferenzias were used as early as the 16th century when the first books with guitar music were produced.
Q: Was ornamentation still used during Classical period compositions?
A: Ornaments were still written in music from the Classical period although they gradually became less common as composers started writing precisely all the notes that had to be played.
