Music is a Language - Repeating Phrases (Part 3)

Continuing the series on the linguistic qualities of music and how to maximise our musical potential by utilising the same techniques used to learn and improve language, Part 3 will cover the importance of repeating phrases. As mentioned in part 2, this will be presented in a format that covers "external" and "internal" ways to repeat phrases. In this case, the external way to repeat a phrase is repeating phrases from others, whereas internal repetition is repeating phrases of our own creation.

External repetition of phrases:

Part 2 explained how we learn language from infancy by listening to the people around us, and how infants begin to imitate the sounds they hear. The first words an infant learns to speak will be simple words that have the most repetition and meaning attached to them such as "mama" and "dada", two very simple noises that refer to the two most important things in the infant's life as they provide all that they can to keep the infant safe, healthy, and happy. It is from mama and dada that the infant will learn even more vocabulary, as the parents serve as a foundation in the baby's mind for all sorts of things to relate to and associate with. The baby knows that if something comes from mama and dada, it is more likely to be something safe and good, thus it is worth remembering and trying to ask for it later.

Following this natural method of learning, learning to imitate musical phrases should begin with simple phrases such as a single bar of melody or interval recognition. From these simple and catchy phrases, you will be building on a foundation from where many other musical phrases, concepts, and ideas will derive.

It is completely acceptable to make the wrong sound when repeating a phrase. An infant doesn't say "mama" on the first try, it takes many attempts as they acquaint themselves with their instrument (mouth). So don't feel ashamed as you make seemingly irrelevant noises while acquainting yourself with the instrument.

Even adults repeat phrases in conversation. We can repeat a phrase to pose it as a question, to change the context for a new meaning, to learn a new idiom, or to remember a new joke or quote. So even in musical maturity and fluency, it is still appropriate and useful to imitate phrases.

Imitating phrases doesn't have to only be by hearing. Copying from sheet music is another form of this. More on this in future articles.

Internal repetition of phrases:

This is how we can begin to develop our own unique musical vocabulary. The great thing about this is that unlike natural language, music doesn't carry any kind of objective meaning in its phrases - when I say "water" you know that water is the clear stuff that you drink to stay hydrated, but the meaning of a musical phrase is ambiguous and open to interpretation. This means you can make up your own words, and use them in any situation providing your made up phrases are contextually relevant to your intended audience.

The word "XyzGlynaficklky" is made up of letters but it isn't a valid word in English. In music, you can use the building blocks of music (notes, rhythms etc.) to invent your own personal and unique vocabulary. As your general vocabulary increases along with your understanding of rhythmic and harmonic context, you will naturally find places in which your invented phrases fit and give the listener something new and interesting to hear.

By repeating our own invented phrases, and actively and patiently listening to the sound as it is repeated, we gain plenty of insight into our own way of thinking. You can begin to understand how and why you think or sound a certain way as you play, improving your skills in technique and musical expression by refining your vocabulary.