Call and response (music)

Call: "Shave and a Haircut", Response: "Two bits". Play.

In music, call and response is a compositional technique, often a succession of two distinct phrases that works like a conversation in music. One musician offers a phrase, and a second player answers with a direct commentary or response. The phrases can be vocal, instrumental, or both.[1] Additionally, they can take form as commentary to a statement, an answer to a question or repetition of a phrase following or slightly overlapping the initial speaker(s).[2] It corresponds to the call and response pattern in human communication and is found as a basic element of musical form, such as the verse-chorus form, in many traditions.

  1. ^ "Call and Response - The Sound of Collaboration | Institute for the Study of Knowledge Management in Education". www.iskme.org. Archived from the original on Oct 31, 2023. Retrieved 2023-10-31.
  2. ^ "What is Call and Response in Music?". MasterClass. August 26, 2021.