Here’s the second response to the ‘Babe’ question, together with my feedback, as posted on the VCE Music Support Facebook page 2016
How is tension created in this piece?
Analyse up until “Get yourself a dog, Hoggett”
Tension is created through the manipulation of the expressive elements by the players.
The opening features the airy, aspirate flutes in their middle register, playing a descending motif in an adagio tempo. This is supported by an underlying brass, with the dark, mellow tone colour, playing a sustained note- giving the excerpt a brooding feeling, as if something mysterious is bubbling beneath the surface.
Jenn Gillan: Great. Tone colour plus reason for the tone colour is good. Words like ‘relentless’ when applied to repetitive motifs can help link these to character a little clearer. Just maybe leave out the ‘as if’ section.
The texture begins to thicken, and with it, the tension also gradually begins to build. The upper string section enters at the foreground, along with the upper woodwind, playing a similar eerie descending melody. This character is achieved by the violin playing an atonal melody, often using chromaticised notes which creates a feeling of uncertainty and tension.
Jenn Gillan:If you’re talking about foreground, maybe give reason for why it’s foreground. Descending doesn’t = eerie on its own so maybe give a bit more detail over why this makes it eerie. I don’t know if I’d call the violin melody atonal – this is a little extreme. Maybe say use of chromaticism rather than ‘chromaticised’. Some good links from elements of music to character here.
The homophonic texture is blended due to the warm tone colour of the strings with the full, lower brass section, to create a homogenous blend, where all play in a piano dynamic with a sostenuto articulation, which creates a murky essence, thus further establishing the tension.
Jenn Gillan:I’m not convinced that you’ve made a link from soft and legato to tension. Again, you need to bring in other elements of music to make it a little more convincing. For example, harmony maybe.
The section reaches its climax as the whole orchestra builds to a crescendo, and the metallic-sounding, ringing cymbal signifies the next section, which has a much more urgent feel, with the tense feeling still maintained. This time, the upper strings play an arpeggiated ostinato while the brass section play a harmonic role, changing notes every second beat. The piercing syncopated entries of the violins juxtapose the straight rhythms of the lower brass, and it is this point of difference which contributes the intensity of the work.
Jenn Gillan:Good rhythmic link to character. When talking of dynamics it is worth mentioning why dynamic change occurs. Does pitch change? Rhythm? Articulation? Instrumentation?
The reverberating chime signals the beginning of a new section, where the strings are now at the mid-ground and the woodwinds now have the melody. The dynamics here are noticeably louder, yet there is a subito piano, followed by a gradual crescendo, where the upper strings ascend chromatically with the chimes entering every second beat, the penetrating, shrill flute uses a flutter-tonguing technique at the climax, which creates a scream-like effect.
Jenn Gillan:Again, when it comes to where instruments are placed, or dynamic change, give some reason why. This is more convincing. Some good use of language here. Overall – try to combine elements in an open ended question to give depth to your response. Stay clear of factors that are not musical and make sure your musical links to character are clear and obvious. (Common time = tranquil is not enough!)
Here’s the first response to the ‘Babe’ question as posted on the VCE Music Support Facebook page 2016
How is tension created in this piece?
Analyse up until “Get yourself a dog, Hoggett”
Response gratefully received from Steven Alesi
A tense and uneasy character is created in this work through a plethora of rhythmic, melodic and harmonic techniques that create a foreboding mood.
Jenn Gillan: I love the word plethora too!! But make sure with an opening statement like this you back it up with a plethora of examples 😉
A heavy use of suspension occurs throughout this piece between the mellow rich timbre of the woodwinds and brass that play an accompanying role and the cold shrill strings that feature in a melodic role. The use of dissonance and suspension between these instrumental parts create tension through harmonic conflict, supplementary to this the use of a minor tonality intensifies the brooding mood that permeates throughout this work.
Jenn Gillan:You change quickly from talking about suspensions to talking about tone colour. Maybe being a little more specific about the suspensions – rhythmic values, instruments that play them, whether they’re accented or not, intervals used might clarify this and give you more detail. Or are you saying that there are suspensions between these melodic lines? You need to make this a little clearer.
The excerpt features a moving pedal point throughout the work. This creates tension as it harmonically signifies the presence of something in the distance. As harmonies shift around the pedal point it offers dissonance adding to the tension. Supplementary to this the long note lengths in the pedal point contrast to that of the melody, further creating tension through rhythmic contrast.
Jenn Gillan:“Signifies the presence…” Does it? Watch suggesting what something signifies outside creating character. Hmmm… Does the use of a long note in a pedal and shorter notes in the melody = tension? I’m not sure. This is the same technique you’d use to create something quite tranquil. In which case, you may need more elements of music to make this argument stronger.
A contrast in articulation in the final phrases of the work between woodwinds playing legato sustained notes and strings playing tremolo in their upper register. This also occurs in the opening phrases of the work with brass and woodwind playing long sustained notes and strings playing ascending and descending glissandi. This creates tension through conflicts in articulation between instrumental parts.
Jenn Gillan:Overall some good points. Make sure each point is detailed by bringing in other elements of music if you can in such an open ended question. Little was made of dynamics, which might be worth some discussion, and how dynamics are caused. The use of sequential development/repeated motifs, thickening of texture. A good first attempt!
The third response to an analysis question set for the VCE Music Support Facebook page. Thank you for your responses!
The Lumineers – Ho Hey
Question: Describe how only two of the following expressive devices contribute to character in this work:
Tone Colour
Blend and Balance
Articulation
Dynamics
Rhythm
Character: carefree, folksy, and spirited
Jenn Gillan:Watch ‘folksy’ as a term here. It’s a little colloquial.
Expressive devices chosen: tone colour and rhythm
Jenn Gillan: Good to have these listed up front. You might want to split them in two so that you can see you’ve written a fairly equal amount on both.
The rhythmic riff played by the acoustic guitar, that’s slightly syncopated, adds to the folksy character
Jenn Gillan:Again, watch folksy.
The lead male voice has a husky tone colour, which is accentuated by his use of melismas. He also enters phrases on the off-beat of bars (in the verses); both these things add to the carefree nature of the piece
Jenn Gillan: When mentioning tone colour, it might be worth mentioning how a particular tone colour is created or influences on this tone colour.
The “ho” and “hey” shouts come on the first beat of the bar, highlighting their forceful nature. This, supported by the full tone colour, creates a spirited character.
Jenn Gillan:Is ‘full’ enough of a tone colour word to describe this? Are you talking about the tone colour of the voice here or of the supporting accompaniment? If of the accompaniment, link to instruments.
The lead male voice’s tone colour becomes warmer and sounds fuller as he sings a higher tessitura after the first verse, adding to the spirited character.
Jenn Gillan:Better here. You’ve mentioned the tone colour and stated why it is the way it is.
The singers in the background, supporting the lead vocalist, have a mellow tone colour, adding to the carefree mood.
Jenn Gillan:Does mellow on its own = carefree? This would be stronger if linked to another tone colour example or something rhythmic given that these are the two elements you’ve chosen.
The banjo has a dry and tinkly tone colour. It takes over the guitar’s rhythmic riff in the second half of the piece. The sound of the banjo highlights the folksy character.
Jenn Gillan:Already mentioned folksy.
The constant tambourine rhythm, as supported by its warm tone colour, gives ‘washes’ of sound, and adds to the folksy character.
Jenn Gillan:‘Constant tambourine rhythm’ needs more of a description here. What are its rhythmic characteristics?
The bass drum plays on the beat to keep a constant rhythm and drive the piece, so it doesn’t become overtly laid-back. The drum, as well as the perhaps foot stamping, has a full tone colour, even though they are in the background of the piece. This adds to the spirited character.
The banjoist becomes harsher in strumming chords in the last chorus of the piece. This gives an almost abrasive tone colour, which accentuates the folksy and spirited nature of the piece.
Jenn Gillan: Overall some good points. Needs to be more specific in your rhythmic description. My mnemonic for rhythm includes describing the beat, pulse, rhythmic values, time signature, tempo, structure, all rhythmic parts and silence. I think you need a bit more vocabulary for describing some of the rhythmic elements you’ve mentioned so you can get some more detail into your analysis. In terms of tone colour, I recommend having more than one tone colour word, mentioning influences on tone colour and discussing combinations of tone colour – both overall tone colour and combinations of colours which blend or contrast.
Question: Describe how only two of the following expressive devices contribute to character in this work:
Tone Colour
Blend and Balance
Articulation
Dynamics
Rhythm
The overall character is laid back and joyous.
Jenn Gillan: In a case such as this, where only two elements are required according to the question, it’s wise to state which elements you’re dealing with first. Either through headings or in your opening statement “…through tone colour and rhythm.”
This is achieved firstly achieve by the full, echoing strums of the acoustic guitar in its low to mid register, with an active rhythm. This is juxtaposed by the “ho” and “hey” of the penetrating male voice with short decay. The shout-like way in which hey and ho are approached create an easy and relaxed feeling. And the simple rhythms, with each shout emphasising the first beat of each simple time bar adds an element of predictability.
Jenn Gillan: The term ‘active rhythm’ needs further expanding. You haven’t linked these elements clearly to the initial character. Your final words in this paragraph say ‘element of predictability’ but don’t reference the character words you have chosen. Make sure you link back always for two reasons. 1. So the examiner can see you’ve made the link and are therefore clearly answering the question and 2. So that YOU know you’re answering the question! If you make a link and it’s not strong you’ll hopefully discover it at the point you decide to write “creating a joyous character”
The male voice enters at the foreground, singing the verse with a clear, sonorous timbre in his mid-upper chest voice register. The voice enters in a syncopated fashion at the beginning of each phrase, which furthers the relaxed mood. Here the character still remains somewhat subdued.
Jenn Gillan: Character a little confused if you go by what you said initially. Does syncopation on its own = relaxed? Clear links needed. You’ve also lost your way a little when it comes to the elements you have chosen. You stated Rhythm and tone colour. Here you’ve talked about blend and balance, which is fine but needs to be clearly stated so the examiner doesn’t feel you’ve wondered off topic.
In the next section, the singer ascends to an upper octave. The tone colour is now more resonant and penetrating, and is now coupled with the short ringing sounds of the tambourine. Yet the voice still forms a homogenous blend with the ostinati of the shouts and acoustic guitar. The work now has an air of confidence and has somewhat opened up.
Jenn Gillan: Short is not a tone colour word. If using this in terms of rhythm, needs more expanding. You state that a blend is created but don’t list tone colours or reasons why there is a unified blend. In terms of “an air of confidence” How does this link to your character? Is this the best way to express this?
The chorus features diminution in rhythmic values, now sung with shorter note lengths, which creates greater activity and excitement. The high-pitched banjo like instrument and tambourine now stress every second beat of the bar producing a feeling of forward motion. The chorus also features an underlying rumbling adding to the depth and thus creating a more uplifting character. Although there are now many layers, the work is still unified.
Jenn Gillan:“diminution in rhythmic values” – which instruments? All? ‘Underlying rumbling’ created by the ___ . You might want to state why the layers are unified.
Overall some great points and good use of language. I would clarify the character. If it changes in the piece state this at the start and then provide supporting examples as to why. In terms of the elements chosen, these were sometimes hard to follow. Using headings for the elements could make this clearer as well as stating that the character changes. Make sure you have clear links from musical reason, eg “use of semiquaver runs” and character = energetic. You can have a musical reason that doesn’t work. For example Common time = energetic. Common time on its own is not convincing enough, it needs to be enhanced by other musical elements or more detail to make it a convincing connection.
The first response to the Facebook page analysis question. Thank you, Eliza O’Connor again for your work.
The Lumineers – Ho Hey
Question: Describe how only two of the following expressive devices contribute to character in this work:
Tone Colour
Blend and Balance
Articulation
Dynamics
Rhythm
The character of this piece is reflective, joyful and peaceful.
The Blend and Balance of the work is evenly balanced and sustained throughout the entirety of the piece.
In the beginning, the simple ho, hey, interjections occur and present in the foreground of the piece – they set a lively, joyful character of the piece.
Jenn Gillan:Here you’re stating what the blend and balance is without giving a reason why. Best reasons for something coming forward in the mix are elements like tone colour, pitch, dynamics. If you just state what the balance is without qualifying why, this is not analysis. It’s just listing what is there without analysis.
The other effect of beginning the piece with few instruments is a calm, empty atmosphere, which creates a consequent calm and reflective character.
Jenn Gillan:Better phrase for ‘empty atmosphere’?
As the piece progresses, within the full blend of all instrumental lines, Hey and Ho sit in the middle ground and are produced with speech like quality. They are interjectory techniques that increase the joyfulness in the work by having interrupting, strong attack and almost instantaneous decay.
Jenn Gillan:This is stronger, though you talk about Hey and Ho as if they’re little people 😉 Again, reason why they are in the middle ground would strengthen this further. You’ve stated their qualities but not why they’re middle ground rather than fore or background at this point. What is happening in other parts to make this so?
Further fromto? this, the simple acoustic guitar accompaniment sits in the background of the piece. It is moderately amplified through the use of microphone – playing strummed chords with fingers, these chords are melodically stable with comfortable dissonance – this further extends the reflective, peaceful expressiveness of the work.
Jenn Gillan:Reasons why again? Dynamics? Tone colour? Other parts?
The male vocal line is in the foreground in the instrumental blend of the piece. His voice has a dry, aspirate and raw tone colour, creating an organic quality as well as adding fragility to his sound. This creates a reflective, slightly vulnerable character
Jenn Gillan:Good. You’ve mentioned qualities of the voice but might need to make the connection to balance a little more clear. For example “In relation to accompanying parts which have a more mellow tone colour, the harshness of his tone colour brings this voice to the foreground as well as ____ rhythm ___ articulation”
Female voice is incredibly subtle in the dynamic mix of this piece. It is created with incredibly airy onset and requires not much support for the singer to attack the note. Singing at a pp dynamic, does too bring the voice away from the male leads of the piece leaving it closer to the background of the melody and blend.
Jenn Gillan:This is more like it! Great. You’ve stated the positioning and given clear reasons why.
Cowbell is another percussive addition to this work and sits in the background of the blend. It is created through single strikes with a hard, wooden mallet and creates an unexpected interruption – emphasized also by its distorted, ringing tone colour.
Jenn Gillan:And you were going so well! Link to reasons missing here too.
Articulation
Yelling in vocal line is speech like and is created through a tightening of the vocal chords – this creates quite strained sound, however emphasizes the reflective, calm mood. That the lead singer is almost shouting works to further emphasize the lyrics and add a joyful, driving character to the chorus.
Jenn Gillan:Watch ‘speech-like’ as a word unless you describe more of what makes it speech-like. The way you describe the voice does not link well with reflective, calm mood. Yelling = calm? You need to explain more how these two things can combine when they’re so opposed.
Tambourine smacks are abrupt, just as the ‘ho, hey’ chanting is. They compliment each other by occurring at the same time – the jingles that accompany the tambourine are slightly prolonged and create a less subtle decay of the note, which emphasizes a joyful, playful character.
Jenn Gillan:A better word for ‘smacks’?
‘Hey Ho’s’ are attacked strongly as appear as if written with a Sforzando marking – the notes begin loud and fade instantly.
Jenn Gillan:Articulation a little light on. Remember to compare articulation in parts and look for trends/patterns. Overall some great use of musical language. More depth needed in articulation and clearer links between character and elements.
The second sample response gratefully received. Please keep ’em coming and thank you for taking the risk. It’s a brave thing to do!
Listen to the first 1 min 35 seconds.
Question: How is character expressed in this work?
An overall energetic character is expressed in this work:
Jenn Gillan:Good choice of character word. Is the character the same throughout?
-The constant pulse creates a sense of suspense and excitement
Jenn Gillan:Is there something worth mentioning about tempo too? Both the speed and consistency of it?
-the ringing, bright tone colour of the xylophone adds to the energetic character
-the allegro tempo and the extensive use of various intervals add to this character
Jenn Gillan:Is ‘various intervals’ specific enough? What are you saying here? You need to expand.
-the limited use of range, evident at the beginning is often contrasted with moments of extensive use of range through various scalic runs, adding vibrancy and energy
Jenn Gillan:“Limited use of range” better phrased “narrow range” then “Wide range” rather than ‘use of’. In terms of scalic runs, it might be worth saying there are ascending runs which help increase or intensify the energetic character.
Overall, some good points and your use of point form is very clear. However, you need to go much further into the elements of music to have a thorough analysis of this work. Things worth mentioning more – articulation, dynamics, the use of accents, changes in tone colour, syncopation.
Question: How is character expressed in this work?
Thank you to Eliza O’Connor for this response.
Character = lively, energetic, frantic, chaotic, urgent
Jenn Gillan: A lot of character words. Maybe one or two fewer?
Cluster like chords happen frantically lending the piece to feel urgent
Jenn Gillan: Needs a little more information. Do you mean they happen in quick succession? That they’re overlapping? That they’re in different instruments and syncopated? Needs more detail.
Fast, driving tempo is strong and keeps the piece alive and energetic
Short detached articulation is strong and energetic
Jenn Gillan:A further comment on how/why notes are detached? What about decay? Are they all the same?
Repetition throughout has the effect also
Jenn Gillan: Repetition of what?
Dense fluffy mallets emphasize airy tone colour of marimba – airy tone colour creates flighty movement = frantic
Jenn Gillan:‘soft-headed mallets’ better terminology? ‘creates’ better word than emphasize? In terms of ‘flightly movement’, is this more to do with rhythm than tone colour?
Sf effects created by opening repetition creates a driving tempo and a growing sense of urgency
Repetition throughout has the effect also
Jenn Gillan: Does sf create or enhance or…? Repetition of what?
Dissonant clusters and clashing seconds are unpleasant and make the piece prove the need for a resolution – hence growing the urgency
Jenn Gillan:‘unpleasant’ – watch value judgments.
Interjectory chords are unexpected and flighty creating a frantic character
Jenn Gillan:‘Flighty’ best word? What are you trying to say here? Syncopated? Accented?
Rolling mallets are persistent and create urgency
Jagged contour is unpredictable, chaotic and urgent in its delivery
Jenn Gillan:What happens rhythmically here?
Growing and often changing dynamics are intriguing for the listener as they are unpredictable – this creates a energetically frantic character
Jenn Gillan: PLEASE don’t mention the listener!! The listener is dead and/or doesn’t exist!! (all at the same time) Intrigue isn’t involved in the question either. Overall some good points but you need to give more specifics about what is happening rhythmically in particular. Some things that would help – mentioning accents, syncopation, repeated semiquavers, how rhythmic and melodic lines are created on the same instrument.
Work: ‘The Brumbies from ‘The Man From Snowy River’
Artist/Composer: Bruce Rowland
2 minutes 8 seconds
How do performers manipulate expressive elements to communicate tension within this work? In your response refer to at least two of the following:
Articulation
Dynamic Range
Tempo Choice
Tone Colour
Tone colour:
The introductory low, rumbling, reverberant drone immediately creates a tense character through extremely low pitch and sparse texture. This is interrupted by a bright, sharp trumpet call and nasal, harsh tone of the strings at higher pitch. Tension through tone colour is conveyed through interrupting one tone colour with extreme contrast from another instrument as in these cases.
The relentless biting, raw tone colour of repeated beats played martelé by the upper strings at fairly low register increase tension and thicken the texture.
Tone colours are often at the harsh end of the spectrum. The descending cello melody has a biting, nasal colour through the use of tight vibrato and firm bow pressure creating a loud dynamic. This is doubled at the octave with the bass to give it a fuller, rounder overall tone colour. Due to the harshness of the upper line, this tone colour still creates tension.
The upper strings playing accents at high register also have a harsh, biting tone and use fairly tight vibrato to enhance this.
In comparison, the cutting snare near the end is quite mellow due to soft dynamic level. This creates tension through a sense of restraint.
Articulation:
Use of accented tremolo strings conveys tension, particularly as these notes are dissonant in harmony. Repeated crotchets in the strings are detached yet accented increasing the tension. This motif is repeated numerous times throughout the work using different instrumentation but always with the same relentless separate, accented articulation.
Slight glissando up the 8ve for trumpet ‘call’ emphasises each note and brings the line forward increasing tension through contrast with other parts (particularly the legato relentless drone). This is repeated later with the glissando more marked, increasing tension further still.
Accented, sharp attack from timpani with booming, ringing decay increases tension as does the legato but accented syncopated descending cello line.
Dynamics:
The initial soft dynamics of the low drone feels tense already due to its extreme register. The interjections from strings and trumpet are much louder by comparison and increase tension as a result.
Accented notes are often made louder through thick texture harmonised using dissonance.
The overall approach to dynamics is tense due to an unstable overall approach. Moments of silence are interrupted by timpani accents in the opening passage. Equally, diminuendo towards the end of cello phrases, which seem to decrease tension are contrasted with loud, dissonant string crotchets.
Syncopated accents are made louder through rhythmic unison with strings, brass and cymbal clashes. Intense, short dynamic swells increase tension through their brevity.
Tempo choice:
Tempo choice conveys tension through lack of stability. While there are sections where the tempo is quite stable, this is maintained through the relentless, tense, repeated crotchet motif. The tempo itself being quite fast with an emphasis on each beat increases the tension. At other times the tempo is hard to define. The opening drone has no clear beat. When the fast tempo is established it is made tense through comparison and sudden change. Periods of silence blur the sense of the beat increasing tension.
While some sections seem to slow down towards the end the new section is usually at a faster tempo. Particularly when this happens to be the crotchet motif, this increases tension.
Towards the climactic point, the tempo actually slows down slightly and the crotchet motif is lower to mark the change and more brooding intensity of this section. As with other sections, the beat is clear until the crotchet motif drops out. When this happens, the tempo is less predictable and therefore more tense.
a) Describe how the performers create character in the vocal parts of this work.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-RxaRKEaLzc
An energetic yet relaxed character is created through varying vocal techniques which create a wide variety of tone colours. Sudden changes in approach to rhythm and tone colour also increase the energy of the work.
Relaxed – through the use of mellow, warm colours in the main male vocal line at a comfortable mid to high register. Also through the use of effortless falsetto in unison with backing singers. In the falsetto section note values are longer and articulation more legato enhancing the relaxed nature of the piece. The tone colour of this section is clear and bright. When the falsetto line is harmonised the tone colour palate extends to include more mellow, rich colours due to the use of lower pitch. This increases the energy of the section while the mellow tone colours enable the relaxed character to remain.
The vocalists tone colours blend well, being of a similar type and quality = relaxed. Even when bright and clear there is a unifying warmth overall.
The ends of vocal phrases are often let go and not accentuated. There is ‘lazy’ or relaxed articulation as the ends of some words or phrases sound swallowed or use techniques like downward bends, for example after the words “hold me” = relaxed character.
Energetic character – Created through the layering of vocal tone colours from bright – at higher pitch, to warm – lower pitch. While the overall vocal colours are usually warm, there is a nasal overtone or edge to the sound. The rhythms of the vocal line are quite short and syncopated. The rhythm used changes quite unexpectedly from short, syllabic phrases to longer held notes in the falsetto section.
The rhythms of the vocal line are quite syncopated and change quite unexpectedly from short, syllabic phrases to longer held notes in the falsetto section. This sudden unexpected change also increases the energy of the work.
“Down by the river” – energetic through use of rhythmic unison short note values, use of syncopation, doubling the melody at the 8ve. The lower octave is at a more uncomfortable lower register = energy. Again, the layering of parts increases the energetic character through thickening texture and resulting richer, close harmonies.
Abrupt end to the piece – the sound is cut off prematurely which adds to the energy, especially given this note implies a certain energy through being on the off beat.
b) Describe how the performers create character in the accompaniment of this work.
Two characters are created in this piece – energetic and relaxed/laid back.
An energetic character is created through the shaker playing semiquavers as an underlying layer of sound. Strong accents on the bongos use syncopated semiquavers, anticipating the second and fourth beats of the bar. This accent is more prominent through being in unison with the guitar. The guitar notes are cut off abruptly while playing this rhythmic ostianto = energy.
The guitar, aside from playing off-beat accents, fills in chords with quietly intense syncopated notes playing both a bass and harmonic role, thickening the texture and increasing the energy.
Before the chorus returns the bongos have a syncopated, accented solo which increases the energy and enables a smooth transition to familiar musical material. This section begins with a much louder syncopated guitar accent.
Relaxed – Through ringing guitar chords, and the accompaniment dropping out use of silence for “Down by the river” section. When the guitar enters on its own it uses strummed, ringing chords which contrast with the previous abrupt decay during the verse and are more relaxed through comparison and articulation.
The shimmering bright tone colour of the piano using legato articulation at high pitch and soft dynamic = relaxed character.
The synthesiser similarly uses legato articulation and has mellow tone colours = relaxed character, with nasal, hasher overtones = energetic. The synthesiser is almost a bridging instrument between the two characters.
Thanks all those who attended the VCE Aural and Analysis skills day yesterday. We had such a responsive group, it was a real pleasure to work with you all. Nothing warms an educator’s heart quite like a room full of students asking lots of questions!
During my session, I recommended the use of flash cards for memorising vocabulary and I’ve done some research and found this free flash card creator!
Here are the online versions I created for my class at the Victorian College of the Arts Secondary School for Melody and Rhythm vocabulary.
If you create a set and wish to share them please email me and let me know. Who knows, if we work together, this year could be the strongest analysing group VCAA has ever seen!
I’m excited to be working with some ex students and current colleagues preparing new chapters for my analysis book, Listening Beyond Hearing.
New chapters which will (hopefully!) be ready for next year’s change to the VCE Syllabus:
Harmony
Articulation
Form
Comparison of works
More analysis questions
I am currently in the process of collating and editing sample harmonic analysis from my past Victorian College of the Arts Secondary School VCE students; Andre Sasalu, Jessie Eastwood, Miles Johnston and Jem Sherwill. In addition, I have new compositions that demonstrate different types of harmony and different styles. These range from atonal harmony and chromaticism to drone, alberti bass and arpeggiation.
The challenge I set for Tim Mallis and Mateusz Gwizdalla, my talented composers, was to write a single melody and accompany it using many different approaches to harmony. They’ve come up with some great examples that show how harmony can affect character.
As always, I’m blessed to be working with some very talented people. It’s an exciting process.
New Video
IN ADDITION to this work, I’m compiling a video for use with the current Texture chapter of “Listening Beyond Hearing”. The musical examples that demonstrate each texture were composed for me by Mateusz Gwizdalla but until now were just visual examples. I am in the process of editing these and making them available for demonstration in a classroom setting. Having used them with my year twelve students I can attest to how powerful teaching in this way is. Hearing the examples and seeing how different one melody can sound using different textures really enhanced their understanding of the subject.
When I first came to this land, I was not a wealthy man,
So I got myself a cow, I did what I could
And I called my cow, “No milk now”
And I called my shack, “Break my back”
And the land was sweet and good and I did what I could
Verse 3:
When I first …,
So I got myself a duck, I did what I could
And I called my duck, “Out of luck”
And I Called my cow, “no milk now”
And I Called my shack, “Break my back”
And the land was sweet and good and I did what I could
Verse 4:
When I first …,
So I got myself a wife, I did what I could
And I called my wife, “Run for your life”
And I Called his duck, “Out of luck”
And I Called his cow, “No milk now”
And I Called his shack, “Break my back”
And the land was sweet and good and I did what I could
Verse 5:
When I first …
So I got myself a son, I did what I could
And I called his son, “My work’s done”
And the land was sweet and good and I did what I could
Teaching Purpose: tim-ka fa and ti Major scale – fa and ti always approached step-wise
These games are designed to be part of a five minute segment in a music classroom setting. Each time the song is experienced, another more complex element is added. These videos demonstrate an experience of the songs after many different five minute segments.
The songs use rhythmic or melodic elements which students then use in their musical dictations, improvisation and reading. Games enable students to experience these elements in context as well as develop coordination and provide enjoyable singing experiences.
Suggested timeline for playing this game
First Five Minute Segment: Learn song. Focus on “I did what I could” phrase. For some reason, students always get this one very wrong.
Second Experience: Review song, Sing while sitting in a circle. Pass objects to each other around the circle. This can be tricky enough to get right with some groups.
Third Experience: Review song and first action. Focus on “I did what I could, and I called my” – on the word ‘called’ put right hand down on the ground
‘my’ – lift up the object. Teach in small steps. I often do this just with hands, without objects.
‘shack’ – place object over the top of right hand onto the floor, repeat for “break my back”
Attempt the game through from the start
Forth Experience: Review song and previously learnt actions. If this is all confident, add in next verse.
I have the pleasure of working with the talented Musicianship students at the Victorian College of the Arts Secondary School. Our most recent project has been recording videos to release to teachers to support the Secondary Classroom Music Program.
My deepest gratitude to James Lauritz whose patience and skill with a camera has brought to life a project that has been a dream of mine for years.
Teaching Purpose: Make conscious ti-tam ‘si’ canon
These games are designed to be part of a five minute segment in a music classroom setting. Each time the song is experienced, another more complex element is added. These videos demonstrate an experience of the songs after many different five minute segments.
The songs use rhythmic or melodic elements which students then use in their musical dictations, improvisation and reading. Games enable students to experience these elements in context as well as develop coordination and provide enjoyable singing experiences.
Suggested timeline for playing this game
First Five Minute Segment: Learn song. I teach this song by having the words “Bed, Field, Basics, Square One, Back, Beyond, Start” written in a list on the board. Once students are confident, I erase one word each repetition until the song is memorised.
Second Experience: Review song, Sing with first action.
Third Experience: Review song and first action. Learn second action. Perform song changing from one to the other half way through.
Forth Experience: Review song and known actions, add third action.
Fifth Experience: Continue adding one new element each time
Sixth Experience/Extension: Form two circles and perform the song in a canon, with or without actions
There has been some question as to whether vibrato is considered part of articulation. I have had many discussions with many colleagues about this and some feel it is and some feel it isn’t!! If this teaches me anything it’s that there can be many approaches to a question and that the music and academic world can have divided opinions!
I can’t imagine dealing with vibrato wouldn’t be accepted as a response to this question but, given the controversy, I provide this alternate answer. I am not ‘the expert’. I have taught this subject for a long time but I continue to learn. I enjoy and appreciate the feedback I get from the VCE and Music community. My students are my teachers as well as my colleagues. Thanks for your input, all, and for challenging me to strive to learn more and hone what is my passion.
Thanks particularly to Matt Pankhurst from Bendigo whose advice and ability to discuss these matters I value a great deal.
Question 17a
Work: ‘Sharpen the Battle Claws’
Artist: David Hirschfelder
Track from the album: Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga’ Hoole (Water Tower Music, 2010)
a. Describe two ways in which performers use articulation to create character in this excerpt.
(I’m only discussing one more way here as others have been dealt with in my previous answer!)
Character is created through the use of long legato lines.
The work opens with a serene character. The use of long legato lines in the vocal part is accentuated by the use of a slow tempo and slow rhythmic movement. The use of legato in the vocal parts reflects the opening string legato lines and enhances the reflective, serene character. Given that legato lines have been used exclusively until the dulcimer enters, this highlights its contrasting short, sharp articulation. Given the soft dynamic of the dulcimer, this contrast in articulation does not alter the character a great deal. The use of a drone in the harmonic fundamentals and strings also complements the vocal legato lines.
When layered by different instrumental parts – brass, strings, choir, and using more nasal tone colours, particularly in the strings which use dissonant harmony, legato lines help increase the tension and create a more menacing character. Tension increases when these lines are overlaid with short, sharp accents and staccato articulation particularly from the percussion section.
An energetic but less threatening character is created later in the excerpt through the build up of legato lines in the strings and the choir. The rise in pitch and use of more consonant harmony helps support this character as does the unification of articulation . This more positive character is also supported by largely homophonic texture. The staccato accents have been removed (indeed, the percussion section is silent!) and unity and harmony help reinforce a more hopeful character.
Track from the album: Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga’ Hoole (Water Tower Music, 2010)
a. Describe two ways in which performers use articulation to create character in this excerpt.
Performer use vibrato to create character. Sometimes the vibrato is used sparingly. In the introduction there is limited vibrato in the strings. This helps create a serene character. As the character becomes more menacing vibrato is used on long held notes in the string section. The vibrato increases in speed and intensity changing to an insistent trill further increasing the menacing character.
During the unison vocal and string section vibrato is used to warm the sound and give it more depth. Both string and voice use a fairly wide, relaxed vibrato. In a large ensemble this effect is amplified. The warm, relaxed, wide vibrato removes the menacing quality to the sound. It gives the tone colour a more reverberant quality and helps create the a more peaceful, less threatening mood.
Ringing decay – used in the dulcimer-like instrument. Helps create a wash of sound. When this wash of sound is more overpowering – when it is used by the gong, cymbals and bass drum – these thicken the texture. The ringing decays overlap each other creating a confusion of sound which enhances the menacing character of the second section.
Ringing decay is also used as a transitional device. It helps blend sections together. The use of a gong and cymbal just before a section changes creates a bridging sound. While other melodic and rhythmic material changes on another level, the ringing decay smooths the progression from one section to another. This also carries over the menacing character for a short time to a the more peaceful section.
Question 17b
b. Describe how the performers create balance between the musical parts/lines in this excerpt.
Performers create balance through the use of similar tone colours:
The string section uses warm, resonant tone colours near the end of the excerpt. This is achieved by using a similar range and register, using instruments of the same family and similar use of vibrato = balance between all parts.
Contrasting Tone Colours:
The use of spiccato, off the string playing of the dulcimer-like instrument with harsh, scratchy tone colours comes to the front of the mix through contrast with warm mellow vocal tone colours.
In the ‘cluster chord’ section the mellow, reverberant string tone colours blend well and are thus balanced. Once percussion – cymbals with brushes with a bright, ringing tone colour and gong – throbbing, pulsating, are added, the balance is more biased towards the brighter more clear tone colours which bring these to the foreground.
Dynamic Influence:
Harmonic overtones are clearly discernible near the start of the piece as they are significantly higher than the accompanying instruments. However, these are back in the balance as the dynamics of these are significantly quieter to the vocal lines.
During this initial vocal section all dynamics are of a similar level, mp. The use of a louder dynamic through the use of trills, more nasal, harsh tone colour and higher pitch brings the violins forward in the mix.
Instrumentation
The voice are initially forward in the mix as there are few instruments playing. Once they play with other instruments they are less prominent due to thicker texture. The become on equal par to the string section and are used like a string instrument. They only use an ‘ah’ sound rather than lyrics and play in rhythmic, if not always melodic, unison with the strings.
Track from the album: Shadows & Fog (Newmarket Music, 2012)
Explain the performers’ use of instrumental timbre and the blend of instrumental lines to create a sense of character in this performance.
Initial Character – reflective with restless undertones.
A reflective character is created through use of stable approach to timbre (tone colour). The woodblock and the acoustic guitar use limited melodic material which has a small range and allows the tone colour to remain the same throughout. The warm, reverberant tone of the acoustic guitar contrasts with the sharp, echoing timbre of the wood blocks. The guitar has a slight bite to the edge of its tone colour achieved through using finger picking and accented vibrato towards the end of longer notes. The relentless nature of the unchanging tone colour in the woodblock belies a sinister underlying character. The warmer tone colours of the guitar blend well with the mellow, reverberating double bass through similar colours and dynamics. This reverberating tone colour is slightly dull due to a lack of any echo. The sound is quickly cut off after each motif, adding to the sinister undercurrent.
The sparkling, resonant, slightly nasal tone of the synthesiser gives a wash of sound and blends with the warm qualities of the guitar and the sharper colours of the wood block. This instrument provides a bridging blend of colours in a spectrum from warm undertones to nasal overtones in the upper notes that unifies the blend of warm (guitar) to sharp (blocks) mix of instruments. The overall blend is fairly unified.
The sinister quality to the sound is enhanced once tight vibrato is used in the synthesiser. This makes the tone colour more biting, as does the use of dissonance in the harmony, and makes it blend less than before.
When the metallophone enters playing unison with the guitar the tone mellows further as this instrument brings out the warmer aspects to the sound. This softens the character a little to appear less sinister.
Character second section – Threatening, aggressive.
The creation of a more relaxed character is appropriate as it makes the sudden change in timbres more obvious through comparison. The distorted, harsh electric guitar had no equal in timbre in the opening section and combined with the booming, ringing toms played at a loud dynamic dominates the metallophone’s constant, relentless theme all but drowning it out. The metallophone’s metallic, clear tone colour continues unwavering but the addition of harsher tone colours that dominate the blend and contrast greatly changes the character to more threatening and aggressive. To create greater contrast to the blend, ringing, clear bells are added to the mix. The synthesiser loses its nasal quality and has a much more mellow, reverberant sound.
A return to the initial theme and combination of instruments is as sudden as the previous change. The tone colours are unchanged, though having been interrupted by such a contrasting section both in timbre and character, the sinister undertones are intensified.
Question: How are musical elements used to develop character in this work?
Chord progressions from the acoustic guitar introduces a blissful character during the intro.
Jenn Gillan:This would be more powerful if you mentioned the sorts of harmonies used. Chord progressions are used everywhere and they don’t necessarily = bliss. A little more needed here.
The vocalist uses decrescendos by gently hushing towards the end of phrases (especially in the first verse) to create a dreamy, sultry character. The vocalist occasionally ends phrases, particularly in the second verse, with a rasped, croaked tone to enhance the sultry character of the work.
Jenn Gillan:I’d try to avoid the word ‘dreamy’. It’s one of those words that have too many meanings to be useful. Other examples ok.
Synthetic instruments have an airy, thin tone colour, which contributes to the dreamlike character of the work. A quick percussion-synthetic, played for four bars (with music splitting the repeated phrase) then later repeated during the outro, helps to develop the enchanting character, as well as a mystical, intriguing character.
Jenn Gillan:You might need a little more than just ‘synthetic’ to describe the instruments. I don’t know which line you’re talking about. Whether it’s a keyboard like sound, a guitar like sound or a voice like sound. Again, dreamlike not a good idea. The word synthesised might be better than synthetic? Does repetition = enchanting? Is this enough on its own to support the character? Are mystical, intriguing, enchanting the strongest character words? They can mean lots of different things too. For example, something can be intriguing because it’s threatening or because it’s playful. Mystical seems a little vague to me.
Percussion is added to the work in the second verse to develop a desperate character in the work.
Jenn Gillan:Desperate may be stretching the point a little here. How is the percussion added? What sort of percussion? A little more unpacking of this point would help enhance your response.
An electric, harmonica-like instrument during the bridge introduces tension by sliding up to detached notes in mf. A synthetic, flute-like instrument’s melodic line is added during the third verse; it uses legato and a p dynamic, contributing to the dreamy, enchanting character of the work.
Jenn Gillan:See previous point about choice of character words. Maybe use words like pensive, reflective instead for the opening character?
The harmonic line in the voice creates a dreamy, wishful, sultry, pleading character.
Jenn Gillan:Pleading is better. 🙂 Does harmony = pleading? Again, you need stronger musical examples to support this.
The electric guitar solo and outro uses a Wah-pedal, or similar effect, to further develop the sultry, pleading character of the work.
Jenn Gillan:Is this enough on its own? If I told you I used the wah-pedal would you immediately tell me “Oh, that’s created a pleading character!” If not, you need more.
There is a trend of blissful, sultry, dreamy, wishful character traits in the work created by generally soft dynamics (p-mf). As the work progresses, pleading, desperate character traits are developed through stronger dynamics (mf) which are achieved by adding instruments leading up to the tutti during the final chorus and outro (while the vocalist is still singing).
Jenn Gillan:Overall, choosing some different character words might be worth exploring as well as maybe combining some of the expressive devices to enhance your answer. Fully explaining your points will help do the same.
Question:Explain how dynamics and blend and balance of instrumental voices are used to contribute to expressiveness in the following work: Cat Empire, Wine Song
* Please only analyse the first two minutes
Sample Response II
By Hayley Witmore
Lyrical and Passionate, Reflective, Somber character:
Jenn Gillan:Lyrical is not really a character word. Reflective and passionate contrasting words? Is passionate a character or an intensification of a character? You can be passionately joyous our passionately melancholy? I’m not sure about that one. If you’re saying the character changes you need to state this in the introduction otherwise it’s a little confusing.
Use of repeated figure in the piano creates predictability
Descending contour in the left hand of the piano contributes to sombre and reflective mood
Moderate dynamics in piano help to establish the somber character
Decrease in dynamic gradually as the pitch becomes lower at the end of phrases helps to express the reflective character and the somber mood.
Jenn Gillan:Good examples. You can also link dynamics with blend/balance.
Change to passionate, energetic character:
Jenn Gillan:This introduction and acknowledging a change is good. Maybe talk about the transition from one character to another and how that’s achieved? Also whether this occurs gradually or suddenly.
Increase in dynamics as the vocal melody becomes higher in pitch increases the passionate expression/ character.
As more instruments are added the dynamic increases.
Vocal melody is prominent – due to use of higher registers and amount of instrumentation beneath – this contributes to the strained TC because it has to be above the general balance.
Gradual increase in dynamics from soft to loud from the beginning with addition of instrument after another creates a gradual increase within tension towards a climax – helps to intensify the passionate character.
Jenn Gillan:Good mentioning the transition here.
Entry of tambourine and muted snare drum with off beat rhythmic accompaniment signifies the start of the adaptation to the energetic and playful character.
Jenn Gillan:Great.
Vocals maintain a similar dynamic throughout but with the increase in dynamics of the general blend underneath a build in tension and energy is created.
Jenn Gillan:Is it worth mentioning that the close placement of the microphone enables the voice to remain in the foreground despite the fact that many instruments are accompanying it. Also that these are back in the mix due to mixing techniques and resulting more muted tone colours, especially in the piano.
Slightly raspy,course TC at the end of phrases within the vocals due to mid- high register as well as lots of air through the end of phrases and on consonants at the start of words ‘dark,days,die’ helps to express the passionate character.
Vocals and piano remain in the foreground while the bass,brass and percussion instruments all bleed into the middle ground and background.
Jenn Gillan:Why? Remember to mention reasons why the balance is the way it is.
P.S Just wondering what would you talk about when it asks about dynamics and blend and balance of instrumental voices, what would you consider discussing? How do I link what I have said back to expressiveness?
This is a huge question!! I think I go through it in my book. In short, it’s worth looking at the overall approach to these elements, not just what they are. For example, a playful character may have constant changes to blend with parts changing prominence (playfully!) and dynamics changing suddenly or unexpectedly. A tranquil character will have a more stable approach to these elements with more predictable, gentle changes.
How is character created in the vocal part of this work?
The vocalist uses a warm, slightly breathy TC to create an atmosphere of longing, adding to the wistful character
The vocalist’s melody has a flowing contour that mostly ascends over a wide range and then descends again at the end of the phrase, creating a sense of familiarity through the predictable contour and adding to the wistful character
Jenn Gillan:Consider rephrasing? ‘an ascending contour is balanced by slight descent at the end of the phrase. Balance/predictability = wistful… ” And then I type = wistful and wonder whether predictability = wistful? Is there something else you could add so that the equation is more equal? How another element is used in conjunction with what you’ve mentioned?
The simplicity of the vocalist’s long, sustained notes further contributes to the wistful character
Jenn Gillan:I’m wondering given the angle you’ve taken whether it might be worth looking at how musical space is created – through use of air, through use of long notes/pauses, slow tempo, through high straining register etc. and whether this might be an area you could explore for creating wistfulness/reflective character. So an opening sentence could be something like “A reflective/wistful character is created through the use of musical space within many expressive elements.”
The vocalist sings almost at the top of her range in the middle of the excerpt, adding a slightly strained quality to the aspirate timbre, and further contributing to the wistful character Jenn Gillan:Does the character intensify or change here? Remember, you’re not stuck with the one character if it does change. Admitting to change enables you to talk about so much more.
The vocalist sings solo in a monophonic texture, creating a feeling of loneliness and adding to the wistful character
Jenn Gillan:See? musical space 🙂
The vocalist crescendos and decrescendos through the phrases, corresponding with the contour of the melody, creating dynamic swells and adding to the wistful nature of the piece
Jenn Gillan:This is called dynamic swells. Great you noticed dynamics and contour linking.
The vocalist crescendos into the climax by increasing the intensity of her vibrato as the melody ascends, creating a sense of hope and adding to the wistful mood.
Jenn Gillan:Good acknowledging the change in mood. Remember to describe vibrato more fully. It’s good you said it changed but is it wide, narrow, broad, thin, speeding up/slowing down?
The balanced phrases are separated by natural silences. This sense of emptiness further enhances the wistfulness of the excerpt
Jenn Gillan:Overall some solid examples from a fairly wide range of expressive elements. Acknowledging a change of mood more solidly would help enhance your response.
How is character created in the vocal part of this work?
The vocalist uses a warm, slightly breathy TC to create an atmosphere of longing, adding to the wistful character
The vocalist’s melody has a flowing contour that mostly ascends over a wide range and then descends again at the end of the phrase, creating a sense of familiarity through the predictable contour and adding to the wistful character
Jenn Gillan:Consider rephrasing? ‘an ascending contour is balanced by slight descent at the end of the phrase. Balance/predictability = wistful… ” And then I type = wistful and wonder whether predictability = wistful? Is there something else you could add so that the equation is more equal? How another element is used in conjunction with what you’ve mentioned?
The simplicity of the vocalist’s long, sustained notes further contributes to the wistful character
Jenn Gillan:I’m wondering given the angle you’ve taken whether it might be worth looking at how musical space is created – through use of air, through use of long notes/pauses, slow tempo, through high straining register etc. and whether this might be an area you could explore for creating wistfulness/reflective character. So an opening sentence could be something like “A reflective/wistful character is created through the use of musical space within many expressive elements.”
The vocalist sings almost at the top of her range in the middle of the excerpt, adding a slightly strained quality to the aspirate timbre, and further contributing to the wistful character
Jenn Gillan:Does the character intensify or change here? Remember, you’re not stuck with the one character if it does change. Admitting to change enables you to talk about so much more.
The vocalist sings solo in a monophonic texture, creating a feeling of loneliness and adding to the wistful character
Jenn Gillan:See? musical space 🙂
The vocalist crescendos and decrescendos through the phrases, corresponding with the contour of the melody, creating dynamic swells and adding to the wistful nature of the piece
Jenn Gillan:This is called dynamic swells. Great you noticed dynamics and contour linking.
The vocalist crescendos into the climax by increasing the intensity of her vibrato as the melody ascends, creating a sense of hope and adding to the wistful mood.
Jenn Gillan:Good acknowledging the change in mood. Remember to describe vibrato more fully. It’s good you said it changed but is it wide, narrow, broad, thin, speeding up/slowing down?
The balanced phrases are separated by natural silences. This sense of emptiness further enhances the wistfulness of the excerpt
Jenn Gillan:Overall some solid examples from a fairly wide range of expressive elements. Acknowledging a change of mood more solidly would help enhance your response.
How is character created in the vocal part of this work?
the vocal part, which delivers the main melodic line establishes a relaxed yet longing character through the medium-high register, which sounds to be comfortable and thus relaxed in the lower range, however is more forced as the pitch increases, underlining the sense of longing
Jenn Gillan:It might be worth acknowledging a change in character from __ to __ which is created by this change in register and tone colour from ___ to ___
the slight use of vibrato at the beginning of the piece, which is then used more frequently as the piece progresses, assists in creating a sense of wistfulness
Jenn Gillan:Expand on vibrato. Yes it exists but describe it. Is it broad, wide, tight, narrow, changing – getting faster or slower, does it stay the same? Where is it used in the phrase? At the end/beginning/middle? Well done for acknowledging some trends (more frequent use as the piece progresses)
the thin and airy tone colour of the vocalist in what sounds to be a new section of the piece where she sings at a piano dynamic underscores further the wistful character
Jenn Gillan:Good locating your example. Clear link to character though mentioning the piano – does this enhance this? The question is about the voice. Talking about interaction with the piano might be worthwhile but you would need to expand on your answer more.
the sudden attack of notes at the beginning of phrases emphasises a feeling of desperation and longing within the piece, whilst the gradual decay of notes through drawn-out decrescendos at the end of phrases assists in providing a sense of calm
Jenn Gillan:Any influences or techniques used worth mentioning?
(a contour diagram was drawn)
the repetitive rising and falling melodic contour contributes to the yearning character of the piece
Jenn Gillan:Nice to use diagams. Does rising and falling equal yearning? I’m not 100% convinced. Maybe combine this example with something else to strengthen it.
The even and regular phrasing of the vocal melody assists in underpinning the sense of calm within the except
The contrast between the more nasal tone colour of the vocalist at the beginning of the excerpt, established through the mezzo-forte – forte dynamic, and the airy tone colour created by the piano dynamic highlights the longing yet calm character
Jenn Gillan:Again, maybe saying that the character changes or intensifies might enhance your response? Overall some solid examples. Some of your links were a little tenuous but others were much clearer. Try to cover all expressive devices when discussing an open question such as this.
Brenton Broadstock Symphony No. 2 Stars in a Dark Night
Sample Response III
Discuss how tension is created in the work. In your answer, refer to only 2 musical elements from the following list:
Tone colour
Blend of instrumental voices
Dynamics
Articulation
ARTICULATION/DYNAMICS
Jenn Gillan:Firstly I would make sure I used headings to point out really obviously what you were talking about. Not just up the top of your response.
A bassoon (or other woodwind instrument) is being played at a low register using legato at allegretto (tempo approx. crotchet=120) and generally ranging between p-mp.
Jenn Gillan:Maybe a little too specific here. I don’t think metronome markings are required. If this takes you too long to work out it’s time that could be better spent. Especially given it doesn’t really relate to the two elements you’re discussing.
A clarinet is added, also using legato but at mp-mf to take over the melody. The fast speed in legato, combined with adding instruments, forms an irksome, obnoxious, perversive, eerie, dangerous feeling, which creates tension.
Jenn Gillan:In questions like these, the character is given (tension) you don’t need to add to many other words to prove it, just proof of what is stated.
Midway through this section, when the clarinet has the melody, the clarinet uses staccato and marcato on a single note up the octave to suddenly end a phrase. This stressed, jerk-like sound adds a sense of fright, which contributes to creating tension in the excerpt.
Jenn Gillan:Just watch ‘jerk-like’ terminology. Is there a more sophisticated way of expressing this?
Just after intro: The cello plays detached notes very fast, gradually crescendoing throughout, which creates a mysterious feeling, anxiety and tension. Second cellos play detached triplets, the first beats being well marked, against the first cellos; this contributes to the tension by adding an irksome feeling. Jenn Gillan:Again extra character words not needed. Some comment about any changing tone colour that corresponds with the crescendo may strengthen this point.
Church bells are sudden, using a tenuto and sfz accent proceeding with a short ringing on a single, tonic note. This creates a deathly, dramatic character, which adds to the tension. The timpani’s single beats use similar articulations and dynamics to that of the church bells to create a heart-beat, dangerous, dramatic feeling, increasing the tension of the music.
Jenn Gillan:‘a heart-beat, dangerous, dramatic feeling’ could be omitted. Well done on locating examples.
Intro: Playing many orchestral instruments (brass, xylophone, flute, etc) at the same time, slight crescendos to ff, marcato, straight after the single beats of the timpani, creates a sudden, fearsome feeling to introduce tension. The tension is added to when the dynamics quickly reduce to p with the cello, creating a mysterious feeling.
Jenn Gillan:Stressing the contrast from ff to silence could strengthen this.
A horn/brass instrument plays a long, crescendo until ff then decrescendo on a single note to create an irksome, eerie, horrible feeling, adding to the tension.
Echoing and phrasing, caused by a range of dynamics (decrescendos, p, etc) of the strings and especially the clarinet, creates anxiety and a menacing feeling to contribute to the tension.
Jenn Gillan:Overall, your response is good. It lacks a little clarity. It may be helpful to state some trends that create tension. For example, sudden, unexpected changes from one extreme to another. Remember to mention how dynamic change is caused (by changing tone colour, by going up the 8ve, by adding/removing instruments). You’ve done some of this but more might enhance your response. Articulation is a little light on. Mentioning attack and decay and comparing articulation in one instrument or between instruments might enhance this.
How is character created in the vocal part of this work?
The vocalist creates a serene, relaxed character through:
1. the use of held phrase ending which end in a vibrato fade, meaning that there are no harsh endings
2. the vocalist also uses a soft dynamic towards the beginning and a very soft at the end with a louder but not loud dynamic in the middle as the climax if serenity.
3. the use of an aspirate and simultaneous onset adds the serene character as there are no harsh stoppages in the voice except for those that naturally happen due to her accent.
Jenn Gillan:Some good points here. I agree with them all. You’re just a little light on in analysis here. More points needed. I’d also suggest that there is a change in character or at least an intensifying of the character that needs to be acknowledged. Try to use all expressive devices in a question like this. Rhythm, toe colour etc. will add to your responses.
How is character created in the vocal part of this work?
Strenuous,genuine,vulnerable character created through:
Use of lots of air across the vocal chords in the high head voice at a soft dynamic creates a vulnerable character and establishes the accepting and reflecting atmosphere that has been created.
Jenn Gillan:Great example here and reasons why a particular effect is caused. Resulting tone colour would have strengthened this. ‘Accepting’ as a mood not really needed. Maybe reflective rather than reflecting but that’s being very picky!
Use of vibrato and sounds of strain (air rushing past the vocal chords audibly) in the higher voice with the lyrics ‘He went away from me’ contribute to the longing and reflective but heart-rendering/mournful mood.
Jenn Gillan:Again, strong response linked to technique. Good locating the example using lyrics. When using vibrato as an example either draw a picture that shows what it does or use descriptive words – tight, wide, loose, narrow, changing – speeding or slowing, and where – towards the end of a note/beginning of a note, throughout etc.
Lack of embellishment and natural fast vibrato that isn’t forced contributes to natural and genuine character.
Jenn Gillan:Good, you went into some detail about the vibrato here. Just be careful that every example you give doesn’t change character as this gives your response a disjointed feel. Maybe stick to a few characters and even provide an opening sentence that says the main character/s are ___ and ___. I like putting = tense or = vulnerable after my sentences to make sure I know I’ve stuck to the script and I can compare both sides of the equation. For example, if I say nasal harsh tone colour = relaxed…. I need to either change or expand on my example or change my mood word!
Use of loud dynamics within the break of the voice adds a grit to the sound and helps to further emphasise the strenuous and passionate character.
Use of softer dynamics towards the end signify a change in character from a forceful and passionate character to one of vulnerability and longing.
Jenn Gillan:Great acknowledging a change in character here.
Use of manipulation of the shape of the mouth in words such as ‘mother’ ‘father’ and ‘your’ manipulates the sound giving it a course, rustic and western sound which creates more of a colloquial and natural character.
Jenn Gillan:I don’t know about the whole ‘rustic, western’ sound idea. I think this might be going too far. Try to stick to the elements and character I’d say. I love how this opens in terms of manipulating the shape of the mouth but you don’t say how really here or what actually happens to the words you highlighted.
‘ When’ lyrics use mainly breath over vocal folds (creates a ‘shhh’ sound) while pitch becomes sharp (distorted) creates a breathless and briefly exhausted character as a result of the passion and strenuous nature of the previous phrases.
Jenn Gillan:Again, watch flow with changing character words or try to make this clearer in the format some how.
Rough,course sound at the end of the phrases = Strenuous character
Jenn Gillan:Do you mean tone colour? If so how is this created? If you’ve already answered this you’re repeating yourself.
At the end of phrases the note often wavers in pitch as the vocalist does not have enough air to be able to control the pitch. Indicates that the lyrics that are being sung are using a lot of air – due to vocalists passionate and heart wrenching character.
Jenn Gillan:A solid response. A little repetitive at times but you there’s a pleasing connection with reasons for particular things occurring and its effect. Filling out some other elements of music – melody, articulation, rhythm in particular – may have given you more to write about.
Brenton Broadstock Symphony No. 2 Stars in a Dark Night
Sample Response II
By Linda Burchett
Discuss how tension is created in the work. In your answer, refer to only 2 musical elements from the following list:
Tone colour
Blend of instrumental voices
Dynamics
Articulation
Tone Colour
The sharp, biting TC of the trumpets with straight mutes in the opening of the excerpt creates an uncomfortable atmosphere, contributing to the tense character
Jenn Gillan:I like that you’ve not only used a few tone colour words but you’ve also given reason for that tone colour. I also like that you’ve used headings to make it clear what you’re discussing! Well done.
The dark, rumbling timpani clashes greatly with the shrill, piercing upper woodwinds. This contrast in tone colours creates an overall conflicting TC, generating tension
The ringing timbre of the vibraphone adds another layer of colour to the excerpt, creating complexity and adding to the tension
The harsh TC of the brass at the beginning of the excerpt contrasts with the dark, mellow TC of the cello’s semiquaver runs, adding to the conflict in the excerpt and further contributing to the tense character
Jenn Gillan:All well chosen examples. You compare Tone colours, give an idea of how they’re created. The only thing I’d say is missing is how tone colour changes within particular instruments and perhaps how the overall approach to tone colour helps create character. For example, tension is created through increasing tone colour from warmer to harsher sounds. Also through sudden, unexpected changes of tone colour which happen frequently. If you think of a tranquil character this approach is usually the opposite: stable, predictable, when changes are made they are slow and gentle which aids this character.
Articulation
The trumpets use a strong attack and quick decay at the beginning of the excerpt, and these sudden interjections into the piece creates tension
Jenn Gillan: Great. Do you mean the use of accents here?
The strings play the constant quavers with a short, detached articulation, adding to the frenetic nature of the piece = tension
Jenn Gillan:Yes. Just like Tone colour, here you can talk about reasons why this articulation is created. Are they playing off the string? What is the bow speed/pressure of the bow like?
The string sections strongly accent beats 1 and 3 of the constant semiquaver rhythm, creating a sense of approaching danger and adding to the tension of the excerpt
Jenn Gillan: This is just a personal thing, but is the “sense of approaching danger” comment needed? Does it add to the question? It’s not on the extreme side of reading meaning in but all the question is asking about is tension so not needed?
The development from the beginning unified staccato articulation of the orchestra to the legato semiquavers in the middle of the excerpt creates contrast and conflict = tension
Jenn Gillan:Great responses. You only chose two elements (congratulations on reading the question!) and your responses looked at both what you heard and reasons for this. Tone colour was stronger than articulation I felt. Maybe this needs a little more thought. Other things you can do: compare how articulation is used within an instrument’s line or between instruments. Look at the overall approach to articulation as I suggested with Tone colour. If articulation is constantly changing unexpectedly, what does that do to character?
Brenton Broadstock Symphony No. 2 Stars in a Dark Night
Sample Response I
By Hayley Witmore
Discuss how tension is created in this work.
*only analyse the first two minutes of the work.
In your answer refer to only two musical elements from the following list
Tone colour
Blend of instrumental voices
Dynamics
Articulation
Unsettled, frantic and worry some character
Use of slowly growing dynamics within the introduction creates tension as it indicates that something is coming.
Jenn Gillan:This would be better if you gave some reasons for the dynamic increase. Also, saying ‘indicates something is coming’ is less helpful than saying ‘growing dynamics gradually increases tension’. That’s enough I think.
Changes between instruments with different TC create interjections that increase tension even when the texture is thin. This occurs towards the middle of the excerpt where the course and heavy TC of a cello is cut of by the timpani with a muted,dull and resonant TC as each change occurs it becomes more and more unpredictable and the texture slowly thickens. This creates a chaotic and frantic/energetic character which slowly builds tension.
Jenn Gillan:Great. I like 1. that you located clearly what section you were talking about. 2. Comparing tone colours. 3. Noting trends (becomes more unpredictable as something happens. Impressive. Only thing I’d add is influences on TC. Why is the TC of a cello course and heavy?
Raspy, Buzzing and guttural sound created within the low brass due to use of low register and the over blowing of notes contributes to the turbulent and menacing character that is being created. This creates a sense of chaos and further establishes the tension present.
Jenn Gillan:Well you fixed it here! You gave a reason why the TC was what it was.
TC is piercing, nasal and shrill at the beginning of the work. This is due to the use of high registers and loud dynamic creating the effect of an angered, explosive and unpredictable character which in turn creates tension.
Jenn Gillan:I’d only add the tone colour of what instrument is nasal and shrill.
Explosive dynamics within large instrumental groups create unexpected interjections like an argument. They are unpredictable and constantly growing. This creates tension.
Jenn Gillan:‘Like an argument’ not required. interjections/interrupting these sorts of words are enough.
Dynamics constantly grow, terraced dynamics are used to create this increase within dynamics however instruments are removed particularly within the middle of the excerpt to ensure that the build is gradual enough to create tension and to insinuate that there is something to expect towards the end.
Jenn Gillan:Again, the ‘something to expect towards the end’ not needed.
Use of harsh TC sparingly creates suspense as each attack cannot be predicted.
Jenn Gillan:I would add ‘and contrasts greatly with the other TCs present, adding to unpredictability.
The course but mellow TC of the cello and bassoon as well as a rich TC of the clarinet is maintained so contrast is created when the sharp and piercing jabs from the shrill and piercing TC of high brass stand out and create suspense as they are infrequent.
Jenn Gillan:A really solid response. Aside from my other suggestions, I would say Tone colour is more solid than dynamics. Linking TC to dynamics more would enhance your response. Also, congratulations on only dealing with two elements. The question doesn’t say two or more and this sort of question has confounded other VCE cohorts in previous years. See the Chief Examiner’s report from last year:
“…There was concern that many students did not read the question correctly. The question asked students to refer to two of the given expressive elements of music in their responses. However, many students wrote on all four elements…”
Question: How are musical elements used to develop character in this work?
Easy going and relaxed character established at the beginning by:
Moderate tempo – not rushed but give a drive with emphasis on beats 1, 3 and 4 in Common time is predictable and not rushed which develops the character as calm, and serene.
Jenn Gillan:I’m a little confused about your beats. 2 and 4 are typical of rock genres. Maybe some more information about what/how these beats are shown as more significant?
Use of repeated harmonic progression in the guitar chords establishes sense of familiarity and helps to strengthen the comfortable and calm character established.
Jenn Gillan:Maybe mention something about the kind of progression. Is it ‘tonal’? There’s also use of a pedal note and dissonance against it here. Does this reinforce your character?
A wispy and airy TC in the male vocals through use of low to mid register with lost of air and emphasis on S sounds and Qs for example in the ‘it’s something quite peculiar” lyrics (generally at the end of phrases) The effect is establishing a laid back character that imitates the sound of sighs, and or long breaths being released which further emphasises the peaceful atmosphere.
Jenn Gillan:Good location of examples through using lyrics. Clearly phrased. Does the emphasis on clear articulation of these words support your character though? Are they the best examples?
Use of moderate dynamics in the vocals also give the sense that the lyrics are not being pushed and are being spoken to a melody rather than forcefully sung this also helps to establish the relaxed nature of the character.
Balance between the instruments and vocals are always tailored towards the vocals so that even when more instruments are added and the dynamic levels become louder, the voice can still be heard without needing to forcefully sing the melody above this material.
Jenn Gillan:Good.
Rough and textured TC that is produced from the guitar at the beginning of the song due to the steel strings being strummed helps to develop a folk like character, by insinuating the environment where the vocalist and guitar are singing to others in a relaxed manner.
Jenn Gillan:‘Textured’ possibly not the best word to describe Tone Colour. If you’re talking about multilayered tone colours that have contrasting sounds, this is a great point. Maybe use words like ‘undertones of ___ TC’ or ‘overtones’. ‘Folk-like’ is not a character. It’s also possibly a bit of a generalisation. Which folk? Whose folk? Best stay away from this expression. Your supporting example for this is not particularly strong either.
Gradual thickening of the texture allows the folk character to be developed throughout,without sudden changes which would disrupt the relaxed character and sense of familiarity established.
Jenn Gillan: You can use this example to talk about an intensifying of the character and development of this character into something more energetic or more sinister or more… Using ‘folk’ doesn’t make the point strong enough I feel.
Light vibrato at the end of long notes develops the calm, character as being laid back and smooth, rather than creating an intense and passionate character as a result of rich and heavy vibrato.
Use of harmonica with percussive inflections on the sound further establishes the folk like character that is established by the guitar at the start. Solo gives sense of improvised nature and environment that has a relaxed character in order for communication to occur between accompanists and the improvised soloist
Jenn Gillan:Is there something in the emotion/mood character you can point to that would be stronger here?
Harmonic progression is descending and rarely goes upwards. This develops a sense of reflection and and a calming character rather than one that is increasing in tension.
Jenn Gillan:Is it worth saying that it does return to a higher pitch at the start of a progression? Does this change when the character changes?
Use of repetition in the start with the same melodic material and accompaniment material repeated establishes foundations and sense of familiarity.
Jenn Gillan:And helps contribute to the relaxed character?
The use of synth like string instruments with hairpins underneath the melody and more complex melodic and rhythmic parts creates fluctuations like sighs and breaths underneath the melody, which insinuates a breathing pattern, which due to its slow and smooth rhythm further solidifies the easygoing and relaxed character while the other parts are becoming much more complex.
Jenn Gillan: OK. Overall some good examples but have you answered the question? It talks about how character develops. Character does change here. Feel free to argue with me if you wish, I’m always up for it! This question calls for you to name the character, how it changes and what happens in the music to make it so. Watch your references to ‘folk’ music. If you must talk about music being an expression of a particular style you need to go much deeper than you have. It’s ‘safer’ I feel to stick to the elements of music and character.
Question: How are musical elements used to develop character in this work?
Character: mysterious, brooding
The male vocalist’s warm, resonant TC and the reverberation effect used create a sense of space, adding to the mysterious character
At the beginning of the excerpt, the sparse homophonic texture of the acoustic guitarist and the accompanying vocalist adds to the sense of space and the mysterious character
Jenn Gillan:Watch the ‘sense of space’ concept. Sticking to musical example = character is a little more straightforward.
The guitarist uses an even, repetitive rhythm, accenting beats 2 and 4, which, when combined with the andante tempo, creates a brooding atmosphere
The descending arpeggio on the lyrics “I think about”, combined with the overall simple melodic contour, add to the brooding nature of the excerpt
Jenn Gillan:Maybe the fact that these phrases are shorter/ interrupted and use silence helps create this?
The vocalist does not use vibrato and uses a slow decay on each note, which leaves the note hanging and adds to the mysterious character
Jenn Gillan:Good.
The initial dynamic is mezzo piano, created by the mellow, resonant TC of the synthesised voices and the low register of the vocal melody, adding to the brooding character
The dynamics build slightly as the texture becomes more complex, with the addition of the bass, drums and synthesiser, intensifying the mysterious character
The vocalist ornaments the melody with scoops, which when combined with the minor harmonies of the synthesised voices, creates a mysterious atmosphere
Jenn Gillan:Is this the strongest example? Does scoops + minor naturally = mystery?
The languid descending bass line, along with the repeated 2 bar phrases, contributes to the brooding character
Jenn Gillan:What makes a bass line ‘languid’?
Overall:Some impressive links from musical elements to the creation of character. Be careful with a question like this that implies change of character (How are musical elements used to develop character) that you address how a character changes. You almost did this, talking about how the character intensifies, but the changes need to be delved into more in order to answer the question properly. A great attempt.
Music is everywhere—it is all pervasive. Never before has so much music been so accessible. Yet how well do we listen to music? How often do we take the time to really hear it from the inside out?
This book will help you develop an understanding of the building blocks of music—why music sounds the way it does. You will also extend your vocabulary to articulate what you hear. This book will help you develop your listening skills and appreciate music even more.
Topics include:
Sections on Melody, Rhythm, Tone Colour, Texture, Blend & Balance of Instrumental Voices and Dynamics
Diverse musical examples, including Australian works
Sample analyses
Practice examination questions
Glossary of terminology and definitions
Activities to develop listening skills
Mnemonic aids for remembering musical elements
Links to appropriate recordings
This resource was written by Jenny Gillan and published by Deborah Smith Music.
There are 3 versions of the book to be used together:
The Teacher eBook Edition – the workbook with active links, bookmarks, answers & suggestions for use by the teacher
The Teacher Print Edition – (available soon) a physically printed and bound version for reference by the teacher, to be used in conjunction with the eBook edition
The results of the AMuse 2015 VCE Music Conference.
Brain storming how musical elements could create an Ominous Character. This Mind Map was made using the ‘Mindnode’ app which is available for Apple Mac computers. There are other mind mapping applications/programs that can be found easily doing a simple google search.
Thank you to all who came to my lecture at the AMuse conference this weekend. Here is the guided listening sheet we completed, Magpie by English Singer/Songwriter Beth Orton. I shall put up the one we started to write together when I’ve tweaked it a little.
Work:Maninyas violin Concerto, movement 3 (excerpt)
Composer: Ross Edwards
Track from the album: Ross Edwards Orchestral Works (ABC Classics)
Discuss ways in which expressive elements of music are interpreted to achieve expressive outcomes in the performance of this excerpt.
In your answer, refer to two of the following expressive elements of music:
Tone colour
Blend of instrumental voices
Dynamic range and shape
Tempo
* * Please note, the question asks for two, I’ve covered all four for those who did different elements * * *
Character expressed – energetic, excited, joyous.
Tone Colour and Blend of instrumental voices:
Bright, echoing, slightly nasal TC from solo violin. Echoing violins have similar brightness but do not have its piercing intensity. Reinforces main violin line. Bright, clarity of TC = joyous/excited. Instruments blend well because of their clarity but contrast at the outer edges of their tone colour through harsher elements in first violin.
Solo violin TC made more intense/cutting through use of fast vibrato especially at ends of phrases or in longer notes.
Overall TC of string opening section is unified, clearly blending well, but covers a fairly wide spectrum from warm, mellow lower strings to brilliance of upper strings. Helps add to energetic character. Solo violin emerges from this overall blend without clashing colours through use of dynamics, higher register and sharper tone colour that cuts through the overall wash of complimentary bright, warm colours.
Constant change in tone colour also increases energy. Here the blend has more complexity. While still unified through tone colour elements there is much more contrast. Very high sections in first violin – sharp, nasal TC then contrast immediately with lower repeated semiquavers that are darker, heavier in tone colour. Biting, dull TC of pizzicato also unexpected and changes dramatically the tone colour quickly. Enhances energetic character. Creates more complexity to the blend.
Other instruments exchange or echo melodic fragments – upper and lower brass. Upper brass with more clarity, cutting tone colour while at mid range when echoed, more warm and resonant. Voices blend but move in and out of the foreground almost competing from prominence. Usually due to increase in dynamics, move to upper register, brighter tone colours. After these fragments are stated, they disappear as quickly as they emerged by changing tone colour to more warm, reverberating, softer dynamics and moving to a lower register. The frequency of the change and the polyphonic, overlapping texture help enhance the joyous energy of the piece.
Dynamic range and shape:
Energetic character created through both having a fairly loud overall dynamic and constant changes from soft to loud both gradually and suddenly, or unexpectedly. Opening dynamics mf for solo violin. While there are more instruments in the orchestra they still seem to be echoing the solo violin as they have a softer dynamic through warmer, resonant tone colours and a lower register. The dynamics build through greater textural complexity. It’s quite homophonic initially but as counter melodies emerge the dynamic naturally becomes louder. The competing from prominence creates natural dynamic swells which mirror the melodic contour, becoming louder as the melody rises and naturally falling as it falls.
The accompanying strings stay fairly stagnant in their moderately loud dynamic. This is largely due to the same short melodic phrases, or fragments of these phrases being repeated over and over. It falls largely to individual melodic lines to increase or decrease the dynamics. Having said this, as the accompanying line continues the players naturally increase their dynamic and accent the final note of this phrase at the height of the crescendo in each of these units. This also increases intensity.
Tempo:
The tempo remains constant. It is a fairly fast tempo, but what makes it seem faster is the use of short rhythmic values – repeated semiquavers, dotted notes and rhythmic values over this steady tempo. The tempo also creates the illusion of change through the use of changing accents both in the solo violin line and in the accompanying strings. There is also jolting change in time signature from compound to simple at times – especially when the brass enter the first time – but also seemingly adding in an extra beat at the end of the bar. This creates a jolting, unsettling effect but the constant rhythmic drive adds to the energy of the work.
Done in a timed setting after the exam before my son wakes up! I hope this helps. It is not a definitive response, just an example of what it is possible to write.
Question 16
Work: One Hundred Thousand (excerpt)
Artist: Art of Sleeping
Track from the album: Like a Thief
Explain how the vocal and instrumental lines create mood and character in this excerpt.
Character – brooding, intense, haunting, reflective, melancholic.
Achieved through vocals – solo voice thin, rounded tone colour with tight, slightly forced vibrato at the end of introductory phrases. Shows strain and sense of melancholy. Reflective character through echoing decay caused by artificial echo and repeating/echoing final notes gradually disappearing. This also creates a natural, echoing diminuendo at the ends of phrases. Short, repeated, descending, guitar figure with fairly small range compliments the false echo of the vocals. Enhances to reflective character.
Opening synthesizer accompanies solo voice. Reflective through sparse texture – synthesizer has accompanying chords with slow harmonic rhythm, slight, unforced vibrato and warm, ringing tone colour. Space between phrases, echoing decay fades to reflective silence to reinforce the mood.
More intensity created after introduction on as more instruments added/layered especially percussive elements with more cutting, sharp (snare) and booming, reverberating (bass drum), sandy, shimmering (cymbal/brushes) tone colours. Overall more complexity = increased intensity. Also matched by increased dynamic level due to harsher tone colours and a wider TC spectrum and thicker texture.
Vocalists initially thicken the texture by use of parallel harmony then this is intensified through doubled 8ves. Tone colour is initially quite echoing and warm in parallel harmony. Becomes more raw and harsh when change to 8ves to match the increasing intensity of the mood.
Rhythm creates sense of confusion and intensity. Contrasting rhythmic figure – “nobody wants to be left behind”. Until this point the drum kit has highlighted clearly the beat and pulse with some unobtrusive variation. This section has syncopated, almost triplet feel unlike any other rhythmic pattern used. Brings attention to this phrase. Helps create brooding character.
Vocal articulation – flip onset, changing from chest to head voice quickly gives a sense of reflective vulnerability – sometimes momentary early on with lyric ‘floor’ sometimes a more solid change – eg. From words ‘were you’, which remains in light, fragile sounding head voice/falsetto. Helps create vulnerable character.
“You can be my broke down Valentine” – the helplessness of this character reinforced by thinning out texture suddenly, doubling at the 8ve the vocal parts, no harmony, percussion drops out. Highlighting through simplicity rather than complexity. Thinning of texture/brooding character also highlighted/enhanced by accented, rhythmic unison drum beat on first beat of the bar just before this happens – louder dynamic brings softer dynamic/sparser texture into sharper focus.
Question:Explain how dynamics and blend and balance of instrumental voices are used to contribute to expressiveness in the following work: Cat Empire, Wine Song
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hgkHd6eBfoE
* Please only analyse the first two minutes
Having both the piano and the male vocal in the foreground of the texture creates a sombre character. This is because both instruments have a high tessitura. This results in bright tone colours and an equally loud dynamic in both instruments.
Jenn Gillan:A little more connection between your example and your character is needed here. If you had said there was a joyous or energetic character I would have believed you because you mentioned the high tessitura, loud dynamic and bright tone colours; all things associated with joyous or energetic characters. However, these are not immediately associated with a sombre character. The examples need to be obvious in how they link to character.
An inconsistent dynamic is created by the continuous changes in instrumentation throughout the piece. The full drum kit and percussion in particular when they come create a surge in the overall dynamic. This is due to all the different tone colours that come from each of the instruments different pieces, from the dark, booming tone colour of the kick drum, to the hollowness of the bongo’s. When these all come together it creates a character of excitement. The sombre character of the quieter sections juxtaposes this.
Jenn Gillan:I like that you have not only mentioned the dynamic but how it is caused – through changing instrumentation and tone colour. You have also acknowledged that there is a change in character, which many of my students tend to ignore initially. A little more detail on how they ‘come together’ would strengthen this. This could be done quickly through a quick sketch of layers or lines showing increase of dynamics etc.
Artificial instruments such as the high-pitched instrument playing descending glissando’s makes for a very rich, busy texture when jammed in with the rest of the instrumentation. This in effect creates a busy foreground resulting in the character of excitement.
Jenn Gillan:‘jammed in’ could be expressed with a little more sophistication. Maybe overlays or similar word? “Busy texture” the same. The word busy is not usually associated with texture. Is it polyphonic maybe? A glissando may make the texture appear thicker but are there extra layers of melodies or is this part of the main melody? It’s a little unclear here.
Use of rhythmic unison between much of the instrumentation in the section with the polka like rhythm and accelerando creates staccato jolts in the dynamic. This results in a feeling of tension.
Jenn Gillan:Does accelerando create staccato jolts? Or is the character created by this rhythm enhanced by the articulation and change in tempo? Again, a little more expanding here needed.
Use of Dixieland style growling trumpet playing a counter melody in the forefront of the texture creates a feeling of excitement due to the busy texture that it creates.
Overall:Some good linking of examples to character, though some were more successful than others. In terms of blend and balance, those in the foreground were well described but other layers were left out. Watch your description of texture. I was pleased to see your mention not only of dynamics but how dynamic change is achieved.
The clashing notes and use of chromaticism in the high string part results in harmonic dissonance, which creates tension throughout the work.
Jenn Gillan:You don’t need to include ‘creates tension throughout the work, just = tension is enough and takes fewer words.
The combination of this harmonic dissonance with textural sparsity at the start create a mysterious, brooding character.
Jenn Gillan:The question has given you the aspect it wishes to describe, ie tension, so you don’t need to change words ‘mysterious, brooding’ etc. Stick with tension.
The tone colour of the high strings is sharp and grating, which creates tension and adds to the mysterious character of the excerpt.
Jenn Gillan:Again, reference to mysterious not needed.
The long, rubato rhythm of the double bass pedal-point creates the sense of a lack of movement which creates anticipation and mystery.
Jenn Gillan:Maybe saying ‘draws out dissonance or prolongs dissonance resulting in increased tension’ may have addressed the question better.
The rhythmic subdivisions of the upper string part increases throughout the excerpt, increasing the sense of tension and anticipation when juxtaposed against the mostly static double bass.
Jenn Gillan:Great. You’ve compared what’s happening in different parts effectively.
The legato articulation of the strings, which intrinsically creates a sense of calm, has the opposite effect when combined with the tension created by the other elements, heightening the sense of mystery and anticipation throughout the excerpt.
Jenn Gillan:Again, a great comment. This shows that you understand what is expected in music and how these expectations are met or not met. These are insightful comments.
Overall:Some great insight and comparison at a high level. Make sure you address the question, not add character when it is not required. Articulation and tone colour could have been addressed in a little more depth but overall a great response. Well done.
Analysis Question two with sample response II: Brett Dean, Between the Spaces in the Sky
Question: Discuss how expressive devices create tension in the following work.
* Please only analyse the first two minutes
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LEJPJKe9oeM
Part A: Tension is created in the piece by very slow cresendos, that are accompanied with long, consistent bowing from the strings.
Jenn Gillan:A good point but slow crescendo and long consistent bowing doesn’t immediately call out ‘tension’. You need to enhance this sentence to make sure the proof matches the character.
The legato notes contribute to the overall expression of the piece due to the violins playing at a much higher pitch than the cellos and double bass’.
Jenn Gillan:Great point. This may have been enhanced even more by mentioning the effect this distance between registers has on tone colour and the contrasting colours created.
The large pitch gap and dissonant intervals between the strings creates a very harsh and uncomfortable atmosphere.
Jenn Gillan:The question is about how tension is created so using the word tension helps to reinforce this. You’ve said harsh and uncomfortable which is close but make sure you relate back to the question.
Fairly consistent phrase lengths played by the strings, accompanied with slow crescendos create a sense of foreboding and development in the music.
Jenn Gillan:Maybe saying that these phrases are long, drawn out, extended may be a better point here to link to tension.
Part B: The very slow crescendo in the piece adds greatly to the foreboding character.
Jenn Gillan:How? Maybe say ‘because as a result the dissonance is drawn out and uncomfortable’ or words to that effect.
The conductors choice of a very slow tempo in the piece increases a sense of development in conjunction with the dynamics.
Jenn Gillan:Not exactly sure what you mean by ‘a sense of development’. Maybe expand on this more.
Overall:Some good points relating to length of notes. Your strongest point was the contrast in registers. When discussing general questions maybe have in mind the expressive elements of music (dynamics, tone colour, articulation, rhythm etc.) and make sure you discuss something from each or talk about how one enhances the other.
Analysis Question Two with sample response I: Between the Spaces in the Sky, Brett Dean
Question: Discuss how expressive devices create tension in the following work.
* Please only analyse the first two minutes
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LEJPJKe9oeM
A tense and eerie sensation is expressed in Brett Dean’s ‘Between the spaces of the sky’ through the manipulation of timbre, melody, dynamics and instrumentation.
Jenn Gillan:There is no need to restate the question. Just state the character.
The piece begins with the deep and haunting tones of the cello and double bass playing at pianissimo with a bow to create a sustained phrase, creating an unsettling atmosphere to the piece and acts as a drone.
Jenn Gillan:Be careful you don’t mix up character and tone colour words. Haunting is not a tone colour word. Maybe ‘deep and resonant’ instead? In this question the character (or creation of tension) is provided for you. Try to stick to that word so it shows you’re answering the question.
The piercing and high-pitched sustained shrills of the violins playing with the bow are also introduced in the foreground of this piece, establishing a melodic discordant through the distinctive extreme range expressed from the lower ranged instruments (cello, double bass) and the violins. This creates amplifies the tension and uncomfortable setting to the piece.
Jenn Gillan:‘Shrills?’ Do you mean shrill tone colour? ‘Melodic discordant’ maybe ‘dissonant harmony’ instead? You’re right about the extreme range overall but what is the range of the upper strings versus the lower strings? I think their range is fairly small but they’re just separated in pitch.
While the piece gradually becomes louder therefore emphasising the tense and eerie motion of this piece, the violins move in a descending melodic movement through minor intervals and in response the cellos and double bass move in a similar fashion. This creates further discordance in-between the ranges of the string orchestra and adds to the existing tension to this piece.
Jenn Gillan:‘discordance’? Maybe discord or dissonance.
The strings at both ranges play step-like melodic phrasing, moving through augmented and minor intervals to create an unfamiliar tonality, while the bassline (cellos and double bass) gradually increase in volume to become more prominent in the piece. This further accentuates the tonal dissonance between the violins and bass-line and continues to extrapolate the eerie and tense atmosphere in the piece.
Jenn Gillan: ‘step-like’ try stepwise. ‘unfamiliar tonality’ maybe change to ambiguous tonality. I like your point about changing roles. You’ve described this well. Maybe stating ‘augmented and minor’ intervals is a little too specific. Maybe say dissonant intervals instead.
Overall:Strong descriptions. Some tweaking of language needed here and there but good examples that link well to the creation of tension. Well done.
Analysis Question with sample response IV: Jinja Safari Hiccups
Sample response to question posed on the VCE Music Student Support Facebook page.
Question: How does tone colour and articulation contribute to creating the character of this work?
* Please only analyse the first 1 minute exactly.
A euphoric and playful character is expressed in Jinja Safari’s ‘Hiccups’ which incorporates the manipulation of articulation and tone colour as central musical elements:
Jenn Gillan:Great! But be careful you’re not just rewriting the question. You don’t get points for restating the question and it can take a lot of time to write this out. Maybe just do dot points – out of all these words the only ‘point worthy’ ones are naming the character. Writing “character: euphoric & playful through:” is enough and leaves you more time to actually answer the question.
The piece is introduced with the crisp attack and decay of a barking dog and staccato percussive sounds that resembles the sound of typing on a keyboard, which complement each other as unique and organic tone qualities, and initiates a playful expression.
Jenn Gillan:Great description of articulation. Tone colour needs a little work. If you’d just put two tone colour words after each of these instruments you would have covered more fully both elements.
The clean attack of the detached hollow electronic keyboard is introduced within the existing layers of staccato sounds, which further compliments the energetic progression of the piece and adds the established playfulness expression.
Jenn Gillan:You have some articulation words muddled with tone colour words in a way that makes this a little unclear. Maybe ‘The clean, detached attack of the hollow ____ (another TC) electronic keyboard’ would be clearer. How does clean attack equal playful? It’s not a very clear link between the two.
The sudden entry of the bright baritone male vocals singing in the upper mixed voice register establishes the verse of this piece, and it creates an immediate contrast with the sustained, warm, deep and resonant synths that is also enters with the voice. This adds to the unique mixture of tone qualities from the existing layers of sound and complimenting the playful character expressed from it.
Jenn Gillan:Great mention of contrast here. Whether this links successfully to playful or not I’m not sure. You need a few more tone colour words to fully describe voice and maybe mention some of the changes in the tone colour at different section.
Furthermore, the legato and sustained phrasing of the vocals and synths creates a further contrast with the staccato and energetic percussion and electronic keyboard, creating a euphoric and joyful expression with the piece.
Jenn Gillan:Connections clearer here.
Short accented percussive notes are introduced into the layer of sounds and the singular male voice transitions with an extra layer of warm backing vocals that sing sustained and legato phrasing in the chorus. This sustained melody contrasts with the accented, staccato and fast-paced instrumentation from the percussion, which further amplifies the euphoric and energetic movement of the piece and emphasises the playful and care-free nature of this piece.
Jenn Gillan:Great.
Overall:Some strong responses and great use of vocabulary. Watch you don’t waste time restating the question, work on some more tone colour words and try to strengthen your links between character and proof. An activity I have done to strengthen this (a common issue) is create a mind map for different characters. Have the word ‘tension’ in the middle then brain storm by yourself or in a group how this can be created through melody, harmony, tone colour etc etc. Activities like this help you look for the right more ‘obvious’ things to create character so you’re not in danger of tenuous connections. Well done.
Sample response to question posed on the VCE Music Student Support Facebook page.
Question: How does tone colour and articulation contribute to creating the character of this work?
* Please only analyse the first 1 minute exactly.
The mainly major tonality of the vocals creates a warm, so tone colour therefore creating a joyous character
Jenn Gillan:Major doesn’t usually = a tone colour (TC) it can add to an effect though. Watch linking tone colour to character. Joyous is usually immediately associated with clear, bright, ringing colours. Warm, mellow tone colours is usually associated with more relaxed laid back characters. It’s not that it’s not possible to create a different character with different TCs, you just have to work harder with other elements.
The synth like instrument’s notes are sharp and quick in articulation and attack, adding to the joyous bouncy feel of the piece.
Jenn Gillan:Great – I’d find a better word than ‘bouncy’ though. Quick attack is also associated easily with ‘energetic’ as a character.
The fast pace of the percussion, wood blocks, in the intro create a bouncy feel and this sets the character for the rest of piece.
Jenn Gillan: ‘Fast pace’ is to do with tempo. Try not to mix up the elements. If you’d said “the riging, sharp TC of the wood block and ___ ___ TC of other percussion (be specific) creates an energetic character, and sets this up…etc” this would have been a stronger point.
The harmonies in the vocals adds to their warm tone and enhances the joyous, free character that they create
Jenn Gillan: How does warm = joyous? It can, but you need to go into more detail. Also try using two tone colour words, I believe it makes for stronger, more convincing responses.
The middle 8 synth solo has a jumpy character, created through the accents on the start of every note but allowing the end of the notes to run into the next note. This jumpy feel adds to the overall joyous character of the piece.
Jenn Gillan: Great! Just try to use a more sophisticated word than ‘jumpy’. This is a great way to describe articulation. Well done.
The vocal line being in the middle ground of the piece, allows the expression of the other instruments to come through while still maintaining a joyous, free character.
Jenn Gillan: What is the expression of other instruments? This point missing some detail to make it complete.
The long held ‘oo’ in the vocal line during the verses has a light and free tone colour creating a sense of freedom and joy.
Jenn Gillan:‘light’ is a tone colour word. ‘Free’ is more a character word. Be careful not to mix character with tone colour. A better word?
The syncopation has a bright tone and therefore creates joy in the piece
Jenn Gillan: Tone colour is associated with particular instrument, not rhythm. You need to state the instrument then the tone colour.
The drums steady, heavy beat in contrast with the light feel of the vocals creates strength in the joyous character through the drums intense heavy tone and the vocals bright free tone.
Jenn Gillan:Again, watch ‘free’ as it’s not really a tone colour. ‘Steady and heavy’ – do you mean articulation or tone colour or rhythm? A little unclear.
The drum kit being in the foreground for most of the piece, gives the piece a sense of moving forward.
Jenn Gillan:Ok, but what’s the tone colour and articulation?
Overall: Some great responses and, in particular, a shining example of how to describe articulation. Watch mixing up tone colour and character words and make sure you’re specific about elements. Some good links to character. Watch going off topic and generalisations without examples to back them up.
Sample response to question posed on the VCE Music Student Support Facebook page.
Question: How does tone colour and articulation contribute to creating the character of this work?
* Please only analyse the first 1 minute exactly.
Syncopation in the chorus adds to the playful character of the piece.
Jenn Gillan:Syncopation is part of rhythm. A good point but it doesn’t answer the question.
The articulation in the drums contrasts the long legato notes in the vocals adding to the playful character.
Jenn Gillan:Great that you talked about contrast but you didn’t say what the articulation of the drums was. Try to use the words ‘attack’ and ‘decay’ to describe how the notes begin and end.
While the drum beat is very steady and holds the tempo, the vocals use ties and syncopation to add to the playful character expressed throughout the piece. The contrast in pulse adds to the creativity of the character.
Jenn Gillan:Again, this is a rhythmic point that is a great point but not related to the question.
The choice of various instrumentation shows the creativity of the piece while staying playful due to be articulated very lightly
Jenn Gillan:“articulated very lightly” is probably a bit over generalised. What does this mean for attack and decay? It will mean something different for different instruments depending on other factors such as technique. Also “choice of various instrumentation” is again too general. What is the instrumentation? What are the tone colours created by this instrumentation? Answering those questions will address the exam question.
Bass lines in the background create depth the piece, but when in conjunction with the fast runs in the middle 8 an obvious playful character is expressed.
Jenn Gillan: This is a great point and describes contrast well… but you don’t mention any tone colour words to describe the bass, say what instrument plays the fast runs or how it contrasts. If through rhythmic this is not a point that’s addressed by the question. If tone colour you need to state the instrument and tone colour.
Synthesiser during the middle 8, playful character to the piece which expresses creativity by their fast runs and joyous tonality.
Jenn Gillan:Again, make sure you’re mentioning the tone colour or articulation of this to answer the question. Good locating your example though. Also ‘joyous tonality’ maybe a little simplistic. What makes a tonality joyous? In VCE it has to be more sophisticated than just being in a major key.
The very spacious beginning to the piece with synth creates a playful character.
Jenn Gillan:…through ____ ____ tone colour and ___ ___ articulation.
Instrumentation in the piece is in the foreground while the vocals are in the middle ground of the piece, being a focus point but not the main focus, which creates creativity adding to the expressive character.
Jenn Gillan:What instrumentation is in the foreground? Be specific. Make sure you mention tone colour and articulation. Without this, you haven’t answered the quesiton.
The bright tone colour of the piece adds to the playful character with light and fast articulations in the higher pitched instruments.
Jenn Gillan:Yay! Tone colour word!! I would recommend using two tone colour words then stating the instrument to have a more complete answer: “The bright, ringing tone colour of the synthesiser while playing with legato lines yet with some separation between each note helps create a playful character” is more comprehensive.
In this piece the lower to the? tonality of the instrument, the slower each beat is. For example the lighter percussion at the beginning is very light and fast but as the piece moves the heavy bass beat is slower and only plays quavers at the most.
Jenn Gillan:Articulation? Tone colour?
Heavy articulation in the bass drum in contrast to the light high-hat creates a playful character
Jenn Gillan: It’s a little unclear here as to whether you’re discussing tone colour or articulation. Use ‘attack’ and ‘decay’ to be more specific with articulation descriptions.
The harmonies in the vocals are very bright, and having the harmony above and not below the melody adds to the light and playful character.
Jenn Gillan:‘bright’ – do you mean tone colour?
Ending the piece with a fade out rather than block chords like found in most modern day music keeps the playful character alive even though the song has finished.
Overall:Great links to character all the way through and some wonderful references to things you heard that were contrasting. Just some vocabulary work needed on tone colour and articulation – use the words attack and decay more and use two words to describe tone colour to round out your answer. Be careful that you don’t go off topic. I have asked one of my students who is prone to doing this to write the key elements of the question (in this case character, tone colour and articulation) on a piece of paper and have it in big in front of him when he writes his responses so he doesn’t go off topic. Maybe try something like that? Thank you for your response.
Sample response to question posed on the VCE Music Student Support Facebook page.
Question: How does tone colour and articulation contribute to creating the character of this work?
* Please only analyse the first 1 minute exactly.
Sample response 1 form ‘Liam’
The smooth and flowing legato articulation of the vocalist creates a jolly character.
Jenn Gillan:Is there a better word than ‘jolly’? Can you identify any techniques the vocalist uses or can you describe his attack and decay? This would strengthen this point a great deal. You could also describe the tone colour and how these elements interact.
The tone colour of the electronic keyboard is very bright and clean, therefore creating an uplifting character.
Jenn Gillan:You can compare this to the other instruments to strengthen this point.
The stereo mixing of the percussion emphasises the strong beat, which creates tension adding to the excited character of the piece.
Jen Gillan:Does emphasising the strong beat crete tension? Do you need to explain this further to get a better point?
The barking dog is an organic sound that contrasts to the electronic keyboards. The blend of these two tone colours conveys an intrepid character.
Jenn Gillan:You talk about a blending of two tone colours but don’t say what those tone colours are.
The contrast in articulation between the short percussive notes that have short decay time with the long held notes of the backing singers creates a soaring character.
Jenn Gillan:Glad you mentioned decay. You could compare the attack and decay here. Also compare tone colours. Do the tone colours create a similar effect to the articulation?
An adventurous character is created by the juxtaposing articulation made by the singer in the verse and the chorus. In the verse his accents are clearly articulated, where as he wafts thought the chorus and consequently the melodic phrases are drawn out.
Jenn Gillan:Watch your use of ‘juxtaposing’ here. It’s not really grammatically correct. “created by the juxtaposition of ___ articulation with ____ articulation” would work better. Again, a better description of what happens in terms of attack and decay would help strengthen your answer.
All of the polyphonic lines have their own individual articulation which conveys a vibrant character.
Jenn Gillan:Which polyphonic lines? What is their articulation? You need to describe what the articulation is in order to state how it create character.
The artificial delay and reverb on the vocals adds to the adventurous nature of the piece
Jenn Gillan:How? Some of your claims aren’t immediately obvious.
Overall:Some great responses. Good mention of some different types of articulation and tone colour. Work on your tone colour words (I encourage my students to use two tone colour words whenever they mention an instrument in a tone colour response) and learn some more vocabulary that will describe articulation in more detail.
GREAT links to character, though some were a little tenuous. You don’t have to have a new character for every point. This makes it a little unclear. Also work on identifying where things happen so it doesn’t sound like you’re saying everything happens at once. Things like “before the ___ solo” or in the chorus etc. will help and you have done some of this.
An interesting conversation yesterday with Trevor Jones bought back to me issues which have become common trends in my observances of my students.
“I’ve been noticing more and more that our students don’t know how to fail! We don’t teach them how to fail.”
How true this is. I’m not a psychologist but I see over and over again the paralysing effects of this fear of failure. Especially when it comes to music dictation. My students are often high achievers and there is a lot of competition in class but I will set up a lesson as follows:
I will prepare for melodic dictation by doing clever echo in solfa. This means I will sing a melody to ‘loo’, students will sing it back to me and track the contour of the melody in the air with their finger. Then they will sing this in solfa.
Once I have done this as a class, I will give each student a turn. I will sing a phrase, the whole class will echo it, one student will give the solfa solution and the whole class will echo this showing hand signs before moving on.
The melodic dictation will influence the kinds of patterns I choose for clever echo. The sounds are fresh in students’ heads and I ask them to sing me ‘do’ and ‘so’ and to keep those sounds in their heads as anchor points.
Here’s where the rails come off. As soon as I give a dictation it’s as if the previous 10 minutes never happened. Students will write on the staff and some will get three notes in three hearings when they were getting whole phrases right in the clever echo section of the lesson using the same melodic patterns. This is incredibly frustrating!
So yesterday I told them they were not allowed to use the staff. They had to just do solfa and stick notation and the results were much better. One student in particular got the whole melody in two hearings where they were unsuccessful at getting two bars in five hearings the previous week! This was then transferred onto the staff. There were still a few students paralysed by fear though. When I walked past they were writing the dictation on the staff without success. They wouldn’t try this way at all because they were scared they’d be no good at it or get a worse result.
I stopped the class and asked students if they were being assessed on this? No. Would it effect their mark? No. What was the harm in trying something new to see if it worked? What was the worst that could happen?
If you’re going to break through a door, charge into it with confidence! If you loose your nerve the door won’t open. Even if students did try a new way they may be so scared that their fear causes them to fail anyway.
It’s a constant issue. I haven’t worked out a solution and any solution needs to be individually tailored because each internal experience is different. In the meantime I will try to encourage my students to loudly and confidently make mistakes and not feel like it makes them less worthy or talented. We all must try things many times before we get them right so we may as well run full steam ahead into our failures, without fear.
Parts One and Two (Melody and Rhythm) of my new eBook: Music Analysis: Listening Beyond Hearing has just been released. Published by Deborah Smith www.dsmusic.com.au
The ebook includes practice questions, appropriate vocabulary, activities for teaching and learning these skills and samples of music analysis relating to Melody and Rhythm.
I am currently working on the third part to this eBook, which relates to the analysis of Texture and Blend and Balance of Instrumental Voices.
This is a rhythmic focussed guided listening worksheet. Peter Allan is an Australian composer/performer so the song fits in with the post 1910 guidelines.
In my session at the AMuse VCE Conference this past weekend I presented a workshop on Listening analysis for previously unheard works. In discussion we came up with some questions that we help focus students’ listening. As promised, I have completed a Guided Listening analysis sheet for the song “The 5 Thing” by Australian Group My Friend the Chocolate Cake (MFTCC). This piece is available from the iTunes store and the other usual places though I haven’t found a YouTube link to it at all.
If there are any suggestions or corrections please feel free to contact me. I hope this proves useful with your classes.
Track from the album: Toward the Shining Light: orchestral works by Conyngham, Broadstock and Banks (ABC Classics)
Analyse ways in which expressive elements of music are used in this excerpt. In your answer you must refer to at least TWO of the following:
tone colour
blend of instruments
articulation
dynamics
Expressive elements create a character
Tone colour:
Extremes of tone colour used – nasal piercing TC of muted trumpet, woody, hollow TC of marimba, breathy airy trill of the flute, mellow, dark TC of lower brass and strings. Pizzicato dull thudding TC creates an unsettling effect by having random notes played in this manner which creates a sea of sound over which more nasal twangy muted trumpet interjects and the smooth clarity of woodwind elongated chords hangs. Great contrast.
Juxtaposed to create an unsettling, threatening character. Overlapping and interrupting each other, mainly used for short periods of time.
Blend of Instruments:
Most instruments do not blend, which aids in the threatening character. Nothing is trusted. The unifying force in blend is the drone. There is usually a drone of some kind, whether the drone is forward in the mix through a more strident tone colour and higher pitch or low in the mix through lower sonority and more mellow blended tone colours… this is aided too by DYNAMICS. Dynamic swells makes this drone come forward in the mix at times so it asserts prime prominence.
Dynamics:
Use of silence which interrupts the cacophony of instrumental voices, all competing for prominence and overlapping in the blend. Dynamics change suddenly – from forte to silence at the end of high phrases and utilise a change in texture – from highly polyphonic complimented by a loud dynamic to biphonic with a softer dynamic and at times homophonic, mf dynamic, complimenting the ‘fanfare like’ trumpet call. Rhythmic unison in this section.
Dynamics change vastly to be more predictable and less shocking in the excited energetic section of the excerpt. As soon as the beat is established the dynamics drop to soft. Use of instrumentation (percussive instruments providing dance like rhythms) and what has come before, gives the suspicion this will build up over time.
Dynamics are rarely unified in the whole ensemble. Dynamic swells occur at different times reflecting the chaotic character of the work. Crescendos are emphasised through the use of forte accented note immediately after.
Articulation:
In keeping with the shocking, dramatic character, articulation compliments with short, sharp attack and unexpected/interrupted decay. Pizzicato articulation used in strings contrasts greatly with arco sections. Drone that overlaps uses similar articulation in different instruments – sf accent at the start then immediately soft before building up again. This effect repeated adds to the drama of the piece. Decay is sometimes naturally fading when it is not abruptly cut off. Contrasting articulation of smooth, legato drone notes with staccato, detached articulation of overlapping parts helps create the sense of insecurity. The fact the pizzicato notes begin with fast rhythms and slow down changes the feel of this section even though the articulation stays the same. Pizzicato is accented at times. The use of trills and flutter tonguing creates a similar buzzing effect through different techniques in articulation. The piece highlights extremes – legato sustained notes with short sharp articulation attack and decay.
The final percussive section uses sudden attack but the echo elongates the decay longer than is natural. Brass contrast in articulation through the use of legato drone figure and staccato accents overlaid.
Done in a timed setting after the exam before my boys wake up! I hope this helps. It is not a definitive response, just an example of what it is possible to write.
Question 16
Work: ‘Big Trapeze’ (excerpt)
Artist: The Tiger and Me
Track from the album: From a Liar to a Thief (ABC Music)
Describe interpretive decisions the two vocalists have made to achieve an expressive outcome in the performance of this excerpt.
to anticipate of the beat complimenting but not exactly the same as previously played in accompaniment. Some rhythm uses rubato which conflicts with the rhythm of the accompaniment which has a very clear beat.
Decision to use dynamics in an an unexpected way. Sudden piano in the middle of phrase to mirror words “motionless and unaware” complimented by going down in register.
Repetition of words sung differently – eg. using an aspirate, breathy tone colour on “suffer”
“self indulgent wonderment” – interpreted in many different ways at each repetition – strident forceful tone colour, breathy, aspirate tone colour, use of vibrato and without vibrato. By one singer and by both singers. Melody with little gliss/slides while staying close to the note – last ‘meant’ slides up and down a minor 2nd.
Singer 2 solo entry: Plays around with rhythm of melody more than the first singer. An extension of some of the syncopation used before. Much more rubato, some word painting here too.
Decision to use vibrato in a very controlled way – usually at the ends of words where it is compressed and changes the vowel. eg. end of “Delight”
Playing around with tone colour – bright clear, penetrating at the start but more airy at points later on.
Articulation – flip from chest to head voice sound on ‘falling’.
Female singer – Diminuendo and short improvisation melisma at the end of the phrase and on word ‘please’ in soto voice, with more breathy tone colour. Other singer enters and overlaps this deciding to compliment this tone colour (also breathy) but with a louder dynamic and obvious change in role to dominate the female singer at the end of her phrase.
Final ‘ah’ again repeated with different interpretive decisions made – syncopated and in rhythmic unison, the male singer doing small melodic embellishments which creates a heterophonic texture between the voices.
My new eBook: Music Analysis: Listening Beyond Hearing has just been released in Victoria. Published by Deborah Smith www.dsmusic.com.au it has already received a very warm welcome.
The ebook includes practice questions, appropriate vocabulary, activities for teaching and learning these skills and samples of music analysis.
I am currently working on the second part to this eBook, which relates to the analysis of Rhythmic skills.
Venue: South Yarra Baptist Church Hall, 12 Surrey Rd, South Yarra.
April Term One Holidays 2013
Covering Listening analysis and aural skills required on the Victorian Certificate of Education Music Performance Exam.
A lovely group of students who have been receptive but also daunted by the scope of what is required in the final exam. Kodaly says a good music education needs to begin “Nine months before the birth of the mother“, so for some they’re a fair way behind, but we do our best to catch up! These are skills for life, not just for the end of Secondary School.
I had a student who is at University studying Jazz and I first met him when he was a 16 year old doing these intensive courses when they were at Melba Conservatorium. He knew something was missing in his education and got back in touch with me years later. Music Performance as a subject hints at the essential skills required to be musically literate but this is only a starting point.
“The characteristics of a good musician can be summarized as follows:
A well-trained ear,
A well-trained intelligence,
A well-trained heart,
A well-trained hand.
All four must develop together, in constant equilibrium. As soon as one lags behind or rushes ahead, there is something wrong […] Sol-fa and the science of form and harmony together teach the first two points. To complete this teaching, a musical experience as varied as possible is indispensable; without playing chamber music and singing in choirs, nobody can become a good musician.”
In Australia most musicians have very well trained hands, but the well trained ear? This is lagging behind in many students. While those I talk about this acknowledge the importance of aural skills, and all seem to feel that it is a skill they need to improve and will make them better musicians, most wouldn’t know where to start to improve their skills. VCE can be a start, but it in itself is not enough.
I hope the students this week go away wanting to learn more and believing this has importance in their musical lives that goes beyond doing well or passing an exam at the end of a year.
April 2013 Intensive Four Day Course – Listening analysis and Aural Skills
The Horror of Melodic Dictation
I was quizzed on a Facebook comment I made by a professional musician friend about the way many teachers ‘do melodic dictation’ at school.
My comment was along the lines of “If we taught calculus in the way many teach melodic dictation, very few people would ever grasp these skills!” When Maths, English or other subjects impart knowledge they TEACH the skills first before assessing students’ knowledge. Melodic dictation is a form of assessment. It is an activity designed to ascertain whether students can write down what they hear. In calculus, the equivalent is a test that assesses knowledge that has been taught over a period of time. I have lost count of the number of students I meet at the VCE, and other levels, who have never been taught the skills involved before they are tested through melodic dictation.
The general picture of the situation relayed to me, which rings true of my own experience at high school, is something like this:
Teacher: “Oh, there’s an aural section in your exam in a few weeks. We should probably do something on that!”
Teacher presents class with a melody for students to dictate. Upon completion…
Teacher: “How did you go? Not good? OK, let’s do another one.”
The problem with this approach is the student who doesn’t ‘get it’ is taught, unintentionally, that there are haves and have-nots in music; there are those who are blessed with the ability to comprehend and transcribe what they write and those who aren’t and never will be. One of my students told me that before she was taught how to do dictations at university level, she used to draw fish on her exam paper. She got less stressed this way and the same mark she would have gotten had she attempted a question which she did not comprehend. I see countless VCE students approach the VCE melodic dictation the following way:
First hearing: listen to the first interval, try and hold it in your head while the rest of the melody is playing. Try and count it out and transcribe this.
Second hearing: Listen to the second interval, hold it in your head, count it out and transcribe that one.
Third hearing: You get the gist!
The result? After five hearings, they have five notes, but guess what? They’re all wrong because the first interval was incorrect and the other intervals were worked out relating to this point of reference. This approach reveals a lack of concept of tonal center, what is expected above or below certain notes, expected patterns, or any idea of the harmonic context. It breaks my heart to see this over and over again.
So what do we do? How do we teach these skills rather than just test them and hope that, through repetition, students will miraculously “get it” one day? – this was the question posed to me by a professional musician, who had obviously not been taught the ‘how’ either.
The Kodály approach sees dictation as a practice of skills learned. They can be thought of in terms of the lesson ‘Focus’ format, which consists of Review, Point and Reinforce.
Review
Prepare your students for a dictation. Get them to sight read some music or sing a known song that uses the same tone set as the dictation, do some echo singing of phrases, sing from a tone ladder focusing on any intervals that may be more difficult.
Echo singing can be particularly helpful.
Sing or play a short phrase for each student to ‘clever echo’
Students sing back to ‘loo’ showing the contour by pointing in the air
An individual sings the phrase in solfa with handsigns
The whole class echos with handsigns.
Repeat with a different student. Or, if this is too much too soon, try with the whole class or a group giving the answer.
It is not ‘cheating’ to practice a tone set or intervals before a dictation. In order to aurally comprehend a melody and pick out patterns these skills need to be practiced before they are tested just as in any other subject. Aural skills that are improved in other activities – games, sight reading, agility exercises etc. are also building up these skills in recognition and helping build a bank of melodic patterns that will be recognised more easily over time.
Point
Once students are prepared, give the dictation. Let students listen once without writing and ask questions: What note did we start on/finish on? What were the highest/lowest notes? Is there any repetition? Where?
Give sign posts along the way: Ask the class to sing the final interval in solfa. Ask students to show the handsigns for a repeated phrase or of the highest/lowest notes when they occur. Encourage students to use handsigns to check their answers. Once students get used to this, it is amazing how many mistakes they will discover by showing the handsigns and inner hearing the melody. I allow my students to use handsigns in their exams. They make no noise and can be done without other students seeing, depending on the exam set up.
Scaffold your dictation to include extension. Ask any students who have finished to notate it from stick notation and solfa onto the stave, or transpose it, memorise it, be prepared to play it on the piano from memory, in the original or in a different key, sing and handsign, sing to letter names either in the original key or transposed. These activities (in the original key) have the added benefit of giving more hearings for those in the class who are weaker and need more.
Be active during the dictation. Walk around the class and council students who need help. This will also give you an indication of how well your students are doing and whether their technique of attempting the dictation is flawed more than seeing their final answers will. I often have one or two students up at the board doing dictation while the rest of the class attempt it on paper. This can be nerve wracking for students initially but those I have done this with have stated how useful a process is as you can see and direct their technique to a greater extent and the class benefit from the feedback.
Reinforce
Once the dictation has been heard a number of times, and the answer derived, get the class to sing the melody in solfa with handsigns, to letter names using the finger staff, inner hear particular notes, listen to students who have done extension work while the rest of the class handsign their task, and get the whole class to sing the melody from memory.Scaffolding and increasing difficulty can also occur in the melodic dictation itself.
Whole melodies need not be dictated. Start off with a missing bar or bars, give certain notes, even prepare the dictation for weaker students by giving them particular intervals or bars to help keep them on the right track.
Melodic dictation is an intricate skill to learn. Often it is not given enough time in the classroom and students are often not taught the process of getting a dictation right in a way that lets them believe it is a skill they CAN grasp with work. Working with University students or music teachers can quickly show the negative effect on their confidence of years of not being taught this skill in a detailed, sequential and meaningful way. Using the Review, Point, and Reinforce steps can give students the success they long for and prepare them for a musically literate life up to VCE and beyond.
“…Ms Gillan’s teaching style is highly theatrical and animated, qualities that are highly conducive to class engagement. What I particularly like about her teaching is that she incites passion regarding the content that is being studied, almost to the point where one forgets that the end goal is to produce good scores and results. This is particularly
important for me as I felt like year 12 undermined the value and enjoyment of knowledge due to the fixation on achieving good scores. Ms Gillan’s teaching counteracted this however, as in her classes I gained active interest in the repertoire, especially in the compositional structure of Carl Vine’s percussion symphony.
Additionally, I particularly liked her instruction regarding the composition tasks, which was very much tailored to each student; with me her approach to teaching composition was subtle – giving advice mostly on how polish compositions to make them more coherent, and on how to tailor the composition to the examiners’ requirements – and otherwise letting my creative drives run free, which I absolutely loved. Ms Gillan was highly
dedicated to her students, providing comprehensive online resources and practice tasks that were very useful, however I didn’t feel too much pressure to complete all of them – especially in busy parts of the year – which was brilliant as on many occasions I only had time available to complete the SACs and she was very considerate of this. Ms Gillan’s
approach was also highly personal as she was always happy to speak with students individually, as well as having a great sense of humour – not being afraid to make lame music teacher jokes – which promoted a generally jovial atmosphere, making classes enjoyable and preventing us from all going insane from the pressure of year 12 styles!…”
VCE Music Student
“Up until the end of term 3, I had no chance of passing the written Music Solo Performance VCE exam. I had not learnt any more than 10% of the content, and only half of that was from what I had learnt in music class, so we decided to get a tutor in an attempt to get a decent study score. My first lesson with Jen was so encouraging because she acknowledged the things that I already knew and helped me to stay positive. Jen is also patient, and genuinely cares about her students. Throughout our lessons, she would help with whatever I chose to do, and more; she introduced me to a new concept called ‘Solfa’ which helps learn not only the modes required, but the chords, melodic transcription and some interval work. I ended up getting an A+ on the written; a far cry from the fail I was headed for before Jen and got an overall score of 40. I learnt more in my 6 weeks with Jen than I had learnt in my school music classes, and I would recommend her to any student who is studying music.”
VCE Music Student
Dear Jenny,
Hey there! Do you remember me from music intensive earlier this year?
I would just like to thank you so much for what you have done to help me in those 4 days. You were actually the biggest help I had during the entire year and I would absolutely NOT have done so well without attending your intensive course. You have helped me so much especially with improving my music analysis! I can’t thank you enough!!!!
Thank you again!!!!
VCE Music Student
Ms. Jenny Gillan is one of the most dedicated, passionate and knowledgeable teachers I have ever had.
To give you some background on myself, I came to vcass in year 11 with almost no prior knowledge of Music theory or Music analysis. Music Performance (VCE) was my 3/4 subject and anyone who is familiar with this subject can appreciate that my limited knowledge was a crucial component to passing the unit.
Ms. Gillan was not my teacher for this subject, however, without her I can say with confidence that without all her help, I would not have passed the end of year exam.
Ms. Gillan’s approach to teaching is practical, methodical and motivating – she provided me with resources I wasn’t otherwise familiar with, these included: The Deb Smith Facebook Page, Jenny Gillan’s Guide to Music Analysis, Practice Exam Textbooks, Online programs, the list goes on. Providing me with these materials was only the beginning of my learning with Ms. Gillan. She acknowledged that my rhythmic dictation was a weakness and she allowed me to record ‘Clever Echoes’ and Practice Dictations on my phone so that I could practice outside of school. Whether it was walking around on yard duty to practice rhythms, coming in before school, before 7am to practice chord progressions, or staying after school to refine melodic dictations – Ms. Gillan was there and willing.
In addition to all of this theory work, Ms. Gillan gave me the knowledge I needed to achieve more than 20% on the analytical component of the exam. She gave me a few short ideas to keep in mind while analysing a piece of music and as well as this, I was encouraged to scan through practice analyses to her and late on a study night I would within the hour, have a return email with thorough feedback. I can acknowledge also, that while I was better prepared for the exam – I have consequently developed such a wealth of knowledge and appreciation for music and how it is composed. Just a few months ago I went to see a Musical, and being a singer myself my primary focus were of course the performers. But surprising to me, something I noticed and enjoyed was the recurring motif in the bassoon – fancy that. Before Ms. Gillan’s help I would never have known that a bassoon could even do that, let alone to listen for it!
As I have made clear, Ms. Gillan is incredibly generous with both her time and knowledge – admirably, this is not limited to her students. Every year through vcass Ms. Gillan runs ‘A Guide to Music Analysis’ course for any school that wishes to attend. Giving staff and students around Victoria the opportunity to hear from another teacher with such a wealth of knowledge, how to best approach Music Analysis. In addition to these workshops, Ms. Gillan also makes videos of her students performing theory games, rounds and canons. Once these videos have been edited, they are made public on Vimeo for the use of other music teachers internationally. While these games can be described, it is much easier to understand after seeing them in person.
As with anything, Ms. Gillan puts the time aside to provide everyone she can with an extra push of knowledge.
I would personally like to thank you, Ms. Gillan for all of your knowledge, support and kindness, as I said earlier, I am adamant I would not have passed my 3/4 subject without all of the knowledge and help you gave me.
Welcome to Jenny Gillan’s Music Education Resources.
I am a music teacher at the Victorian College of the Arts Secondary School in Melbourne, Australia and at St Michael’s Grammar School who is passionate about music literacy and music education.
The Hungarian composer and pedagogue Kodály stated that in order to develop as a complete musician a well trained ear, heart, hand and intellect were essential. In Australian music education there tends to be little focus on a well trained ear, in particular these aspects of music literacy –reading, writing and thinking music.
I strive to teach my students to hear music in their heads as they would if they were silently reading a book and to enable them to be able to write down and comprehend the function of the music they hear. I also believe in the importance of musical analysis skills; being able to put into words why the music heard creates a particular effect or uses particular techniques and elements of music. A student with great aural skills will find this easy to do as they are putting words to what they can already hear and understand. If a student can’t hear whether a melody goes up or down, for example, how will they be able to describe its contour?
I believe the heart of music education is a well trained teacher. I believe it is the duty of teachers to continually improve and strive for excellence both in their own musicianship and in pedagogy so that they may be able to teach their students to their highest potential.
I hope these resources enable students and teachers to learn and teach this powerful subject with as many ideas as possible to open the door to knowledge.
