"Is there a point where music can no longer reinvent itself?"
This is a great question with a definite answer. One of the first things you learn in a music class is that because there are so many different combinations of possible rhythms, articulation, notes, timbres, meter, form, and tempo, that there is no limit to how much music can be created.
For rhythms there are your standard whole notes, half notes, quarter notes, eighth notes and sixteenth notes. Then it gets a bit more complicated with thirty second notes, dotted quarter, dotted half, dotted eighth, dotted sixteenth, triplets, duplets, quintuplets (say the word "un-i-ver-sit-y" or my favorite, "seg-a-gen-es-is" with equal space in between each syllable), and there are more. There is also the concept of poly-rhythms that I will not get into.
Articulation is a component that is extended from rhythm. Slurs connect notes, and the absence of a slur indicates to re-articulate each note. In addition, staccatos cut the note short and legatos give the note its full value making it sound longer, these can be added to any note.
There are 12 different notes across several octaves, if there was only one melodic line in any given piece of music, then yes there would be limited variety. Yet, there is the concept of harmony with the addition of counter melodies which defines the melodic structure of a piece and gives an infinite amount of possibilities. Music of our day is basically all I, V, IV (first note of the scale, fifth note, and fourth note) yet every song sounds different because of different lyrics, harmonies, and keys.
Timbre is the distinct sound each instrument makes, a trumpet sounds different than a piano. There are woodwinds, brass, percussion, and string.
Meter (how many beats and notes are in each measure) also extends the endless possibility in music. a Waltz is in 3/4 time, faster pieces are in 2/2 or cut time, and basically every thing else is in 4/4 or common time.
Form is how the music is structured. In contemporary popular music for our culture the form is: verse, bridge, chorus X 3. Of course there are variations of this. Other forms in classical eras include fugues, rondos (ex: ABA), sonata form, and so on. This component gives music its outline.
Tempo is how fast or slow a piece of music is. You would be surprised how different a song sounds just by speeding in up or slowing it down.
As you can see, with the variables of rhythm, articulation, notes, timbres, meter, form, and tempo the possibility of music created is endless. Just like there are a limited amount of words in a language, but an endless amount of stories to be told.
Question: How does the idea of a right or wrong answer in any scholastic subject change its properties?
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