Transcript Something`s Coming`

Handel: ‘And the Glory of the Lord’
from Messiah (Baroque 1600-1750)
Instruments (timbre) /Ensemble
SATB choir accompanied by string
orchestra with basso continuo
Tempo & Rhythm
Time sig. 3/4. Allegro (fast). Almost
continuous crotchet movement keeps
the piece moving. The final bars use
sustained chords.
Background/General Information
The Messiah is an Oratorio – a work for vocal soloists, chorus and orchestra that uses
religious text from the Bible. It would have traditionally been performed at Easter,
but is now often performed at Christmas. Handel composed it in only three weeks in
1741 and it was first performed in Dublin. The whole work ‘Messiah’ is a huge work
in three sections that lasts nearly 3 hours. Within each section there are lots of
shorter pieces (movements) that include Arias & Recitatives (solo songs/ duets),
Choruses (with the choir) and some instrumental pieces. The piece we are studying
‘And the glory of the Lord’ is the first chorus in the whole work.
Structure: The piece is based on 3 lines of text that repeat and 4 melodic ideas:
Texture
Mixture of homophonic (parts moving together with similar rhythms) and
polyphonic (different rhythms in the vocal lines weaving in and out of each other).
The string parts support & accompany the vocal lines (often double the vocal lines).
Sometimes, two or more vocal parts sing in unison (exactly the same notes) or
together in harmony (same rhythm and words, different notes).
The continuo players (cello, double bass and organ) play throughout.
Structure continued:
Short instrumental introduction called a ‘ritornello’ (= ‘a little return’)
Introduces each idea simply, usually in one part, then weaves them into the rest of
the music as other parts join in, often imitating each other and overlapping.
The last four bars of the song are marked Adagio – they are much slower and there
is a plagal cadence (chords IV – I). The texture is also homorhythmic with all parts
playing/singing to help give a sense of finality.
Melody & Pitch
All the parts keep to a modest pitch range. Lots of Imitation in the vocal parts.
Most of the singing is syllabic (one note per syllable) but the word ‘revealed’ is
melismatic (when a syllable is sung over several notes).
Style - Baroque Features (general features)
• Ornamented melody
• Diatonic chords/harmony (all belong to the key)
• Prevalence of one mood or ‘affection’
• Terraced dynamics - contrasting volumes on two levels, loud and soft
• Basso continuo (literally continuous bass – play chordal support with the bass line usually played by the cello)
• Use of the Baroque orchestra – strings carry tune, a few woodwind, brass and timpani used.
Tonality and Harmony
Major keys to create a constant happy mood.
Mostly in A major. Modulates to E & B major
at certain points. Most cadences are perfect
but the final cadence is plagal.
Bernstein: “Something’s Coming’
from West Side Story (Musicals)
Context and Background
West Side Story was composed in 1957. The musical is based on
Shakespeare’s famous play Romeo and Juliet. Set in New York, it features two
rival teenage gangs, the Jets (American) and the Sharks (Puerto Rican). Tony,
the male lead character (Jet) falls in love with Maria (Sharks) and as in the
Shakespeare play, their love is doomed. The song ‘Something’s Coming’ is
Tony’s first solo, and establishes his optimistic character.
Tempo & Rhythm
The metre changes between 3/4 and 2/4.
These changes of metre, the fast tempo and the frequent syncopation help to maintain a feeling of excitement and anticipation.
The accompaniment is largely made up of an on-beat bass part with off beat chords. At the start of the piece, these two parts create cross-rhythms.
Structure & Melody
The melody is almost entirely syllabic.
It is based on the alternation of three main themes:
1. The quiet, syncopated opening theme.
2. The loud, strident theme in 2/4, first heard in bar 21.
3. The lyrical, slow moving theme, first heard at bar 73.
Theme 1:
These three ideas are alternated a number of times.
The repetitions are not exact. Bernstein varies the themes
by changing the words or metre.
Theme 2:
Texture
The texture of the song is Homophonic.
Theme 3:
There are three main ideas in the accompaniment:
 The repeated riff that opens the song
 The short, mainly syncopated chords heard in bars 21-26
 The fast, um-cha accompaniment first heard at bar 32 for the long note on ‘me’.
Instruments
‘Something’s Coming’ is a song for the solo tenor accompanied by a band made up of woodwind,
brass, percussion and strings.
• Requires players to ‘double up’ (play more than one instrument, e.g. clarinet in one song and
saxophone in the next, then switch again in other songs).
• 5 woodwind players, 2 horns, 3 trumpets, 2 trombones, 7 violins, 4 cellos, and 2 double basses.
Tonality and Harmony
‘Something’s Coming’ is in D Major. There are two
contrasting sections in C Major.
In D major – to reflect happy emotions, because at
this point Tony is looking forward to the future.
There is frequent use of the sharpened fourth and
flattened seventh in both keys.
Sharpened fourth creates the interval of a tri-tone
with the key note. The tenor’s last note is a flattened
seventh. This is unusual as the note is unresolved
and the music just fades out beneath it – creates a
feeling of incompletion and fits well with Tony’s
sense of expectation.
The harmony is tonal and jazz influenced, with
frequent 7th chords and other added note chords.
Instrumental Techniques
To make sure the band doesn’t overpower the solo singer,
the accompaniment uses:
 Quiet dynamics
 Soft timbres (muted trumpets and pizzicato strings)
 Homophonic Texture
The words ‘The air is humming’ are illustrated by the strings
using harmonics (very high notes) and tremolo (very quick notes)
Grace
- Jeff Buckley (Folk-rock)
Voice techniques
Falsetto – singing above normal top register
Vibrato
Scoops up to notes (also known as portamento)
Screaming at points
Structure
Typical verse chorus-structure, with a guitar solo towards end.
Intro is repeated after the choruses (link).
-
Style
Folk-rock feel. ‘Grace’ was Buckley’s
debut album released in 1994
Tempo & Rhythm
Steady 12/8 tempo
Unusual as most pop songs in 4/4
It feels faster though as the guitar plays
semiquaver runs at the beginning.
Melodic/Musical Devices
Four main riffs in the piece:
Made up of semiquavers – played by electric guitar in intro
In the verses electric guitar plays broken chords
Acoustic guitar plays rhythmic, percussive riff in verses and choruses.
In final section both guitars play a fourth riff.
Wide vocal range and falsetto used at points.
Verse 1:
the vocal line is almost all in stepwise movement and uses melisma (multiple notes to one syllable).
Intro - Verse 1 - Pre-chorus - Chorus Link - Verse 2 - Pre-chorus - Chorus Middle 8 (presents some contrasting material)
Link - Verse 3
Outro (Climax of the piece - it is based on repetitions of the
chord sequence F, E minor, E flat7 taken from the chorus).
Tonality and Harmony
Unusual chord progressions – harmony is non functional.
Looks tricky but actually very simple on the guitar.
Uses technique of moving the same chord shape up and down the fretboard, while keeping one or more strings open as a drone.
Guitar uses drop D tuning – the lower E string is tuned down to the note D to give a darker feel.
Most sections have a tonal centre of E but Buckley uses a wide variety of chords that do not belong to one particular key.
Instruments/Ensemble
Vocal
Electric guitar
Acoustic guitar
Bass guitar
Drum kit
Synthesizer
Dynamics
Quiet in intro
Volume increased by adding more
instruments (thickening texture)
Electronic effects
Delay – creates an echo effect (repeats the note)
EQ
Flanger – creates a swirly sound (added in the studio)
Distortion used on one guitar