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3.1.4 Melisma and Note Value
Annie and Frank:
Any note you can hold, I can hold longer I can hold any note longer than you. No you c - a - a - n - ‘t Yes I c - a - a - a - a - a - n. (No you c - a - a - a - a - a - a - a - a - n - ‘t Yes I c - a - a - a - a - a - a - a - a - a - n (etc.)
Usually, duration refers to note value, the length of time a single pitch sounds, as in a “short” note or a “long” note—the sound equivalent of visually-perceived length, as discussed above. But you can also perceive a unity of duration when you hear multiple pitches, as, for instance, when you hear a sung syllable that stays the same but varies in pitch:
“Oooo-oooo-oooo-oooo-oooo-ooooh, baybah”
where each group of “ooohs” represents a different pitch. The musical term for this is a melisma. You hear a lot of melismas (sometimes pluralized melismata) in highly expressive genres such as R & B, gospel, soul, and certain species of country music.