Loud and Soft — Dynamics

"O sing unto the LORD a new song: sing unto the LORD, all the earth." — Psalm 96:1

Music Can Be Loud or Soft

We have learned that music has a steady beat and that it can be fast or slow (tempo). Today we are going to learn about another important part of music: how loud or soft it is!

Think about the different sounds you hear every day:

• A thunderstorm is very LOUD — BOOM! CRACK! RUMBLE!
• A butterfly's wings are very soft — so quiet you cannot hear them at all
• A bird singing is somewhere in between — not too loud, not too soft

In music, we call the loudness or softness of sound dynamics. Dynamics is how much energy we put into our sound.

Special Music Words

Musicians have special words for loud and soft. These words come from the Italian language:

• Forte (say it like "FOR-tay") means LOUD
• Piano (say it like "pee-AH-no") means SOFT

Wait — piano? Like the big instrument with black and white keys? Yes! The piano got its name because it was one of the first instruments that could play both soft (piano) and loud (forte). Its full name is actually "pianoforte" — which means "soft-loud"!

Why Do We Need Dynamics?

Imagine if someone talked in the EXACT SAME VOLUME all the time, without ever getting louder or softer. It would be very boring! Our voices naturally get louder when we are excited and softer when we are being gentle.

Music is the same way. Dynamics help music express feelings:

• Loud (forte) music can feel joyful, powerful, exciting, or victorious
• Soft (piano) music can feel peaceful, gentle, mysterious, or tender

The Bible tells us about both loud and soft praise:

• Loud praise: "Make a joyful noise unto the LORD, all the earth" (Psalm 100:1). A joyful noise is loud and happy!
• Soft praise: "The LORD is in his holy temple: let all the earth keep silence before him" (Habakkuk 2:20). Sometimes we praise God in quiet awe.

Both loud and soft music are beautiful ways to worship God!

Practice Dynamics

Let us practice singing at different volumes. We will use the words "God is good":

1. Forte (loud): Sing "GOD IS GOOD!" in a big, strong voice. Fill the room with your sound!
2. Piano (soft): Sing "God is good" in a gentle, quiet voice. Like a whisper-song.
3. Medium: Sing "God is good" at a normal, comfortable volume. Not too loud, not too soft.

Now let us try getting louder and softer:

1. Getting louder (crescendo): Start soft and get louder: "God is good... GOD IS GOOD... GOD IS GOOD!"
2. Getting softer (decrescendo): Start loud and get softer: "GOD IS GOOD! God is good... God is good..."

Did you hear how the music changes when you change the dynamics? That is what makes music interesting and beautiful!

Dynamics in Nature

God filled His creation with different dynamics:

• Loud: Thunder, crashing ocean waves, a lion's roar, a waterfall
• Soft: A gentle breeze, a cat purring, snowflakes falling, a whisper
• Medium: Birds singing, a flowing stream, children laughing

God uses dynamics in nature to create beauty and variety. We can use dynamics in our music to do the same thing!

The Dynamics Game

Let us play a game. Your teacher will hold up a hand signal:

• Hand up high = sing LOUD (forte)
• Hand down low = sing soft (piano)
• Hand in the middle = sing medium

We will sing a simple song, and you will change your volume based on the hand signal. Watch carefully and listen to how the music changes!

A Thought to Carry

God made a world full of loud sounds and soft sounds. In music, we call the loudness and softness dynamics. Loud is called forte, and soft is called piano. When we use dynamics in our singing, we make beautiful music that praises God in different ways!