LIGETI Continuum – for harpsichord

This piece moves so fast that it almost appears to remain stagnant. The intervals in this develop gradually beneath an extremely busy superficial layer, which contributes to my previous statement. Overall, I found this piece grew tiresome because of the constant movement. There is no rhythm in this piece (which contributed to my feeling that this piece became tiresome) more rather, a pulsation caused from the even distribution of notes occurs.

One point of interest though was that the trichords used consisted of octaves, 5ths, 4ths, tritones and major seconds through this, Ligeti creates a sound that doesn’t sound triadic, through the elimination of 3rds. Thus he works within the tetrachord, minor third and minor second or that done backwards.

Another point of interest is that he plays with texture, creating muddy thickness with so much busyness that you cannot distinguish one sound from another, yet gradually, he makes the music sparser and sparser until you can only hear the main idea in perfect simplicity as a solo. The thickness is usually caused by micro polyphony in contrapuntal texture – and through this, we hear these motifs/intervals, first as hints within an aural stew, but through hacking through the texture and making it sparse, these motific hints become the dominating feature. This happens in the first section of the piece, where the cacophony of sounds mellows down to just the interval of a minor third, and is played in fast succession for quite sometime, and from this deconstruction, Ligetti constructs the next section of this piece on top of this…

Overall, a good work to study, but I just found that it constantly attacked me and offered no aural respite.

Alex

ANTON WEBERN – 5 Movements for String Quartet

I
In the first movement, the swelling arco contrabass melody from bar 7, teamed with the embellishing constant piano dynamic tremello quavers in the viole, provides an interesting textural effect, that highlights the dissonance of the melody nicely. It also sounds very much like both of these effects are happening within the one instrument, even though this would clearly be impossible.

This piece also features sporadic textural change – the interplay between arco, tremello and pizzicato playing is unpredictable, as with the exchange between dissonant sections and consonant sections. It is as I make this comment that I realize that within western musical convention, this statement is wrong. I’m not sure whether it is that so much atonalism and dissonance has been brought into music, that it makes it hard for me to determine exactly what is dissonant and what is not, or whether the fact that this movement explores so many variations of dissonance – within this piece we have a hierarchy of dissonance – ranging from “extremely dissonant and jarring”, to “more melodic and less dissonant than the rest” – all of this is technically dissonant, but the contrast in the “amounts” of dissonance leaves the slightly less dissonant sections to almost sound consonant in comparison. I suspect the answer is a combination of both, but at any rate, I found this piece very interesting to listen to, largely because of all these contrasts that have been made.

II
This movement explores more of the lyrical/melodic atonalism that I mentioned in my exploration of movement one. The dissonance that is created in this piece is strangely beautiful, rather than harsh to a listeners ears, and surprisingly, more predictable – it is certainly more singable, even despite the fact that Webern does not rely on the use of tonal centres to produce this expectation.
I think what also contributes to the smoother/lyrical finish of this piece, is that the parts are more spaced out. I think if you want to produce this effect when writing atonally, this is vital, as writing (particularly for string) within a close range highlights potential clashes between notes, whereas writing the parts across a span of 4 or more octaves eleviates the tension that is created when clashes occur. With the aural space between parts that Webern has created, the clashing is less noticeable, and the space also gives room for every individual part to “breathe” – that is, each instrument is able to explore its own melodic line, without the interruption of parts that are written close to it.
III
This movement is a extremely different to the previous two – it is driven by fast-paced quavers underneath a upper-melody that moves in minor second steps. Overall, this is not as dissonant as the previous two movements. It is more simplistic and predictable, as is very “pulse-driven”, and there is less of the previously mentioned “dissonance hierarchy” as well as not having as much as an interplay between textures. Having said this, I still thoroughly enjoyed this movement, and I think that for a lot of audiences, this would make a good interlude – it was an aural relief to hear something a little more predictable, when the majority of what has previously been heard has been less predictable, more dissonant and harder to place (not much pulse).

IV
This movement features a lot of extended technique, particularly the use of ponticello in the violin section as well as harmonics. The use of harmonics was interesting, as it was often used in conjunction with traditional arco playing – so essentially, an effect was produced whereby a strong melody was played arco in the lower strings, yet there was the added effect of having the airy quality of a held harmonic above this melody. The use of these extended techniques also highlighted the eerie dissonant quality of the music, contributing to what was already a murky texture (with the string parts being relatively close together) – the clash of textures (from bars 7-10 we see the simultaneous use of con sord, ponticello, pizzicato and arco playing) also highlights this mood.
V

The use of dissonance in this movement promotes a sense of sluggishness, as well as the slow tempo, which also promotes this feel. The lack of unity in the rhythmic material used, also promoted this uneasy feel – and it was hard to predict where this piece would go due to this lack of pulse. Once again, the constant changes in texture made this piece unpredictable, but unlike the other pieces, I found that being unable to predict where the piece would go an irritating quality, whereas in all the other movements, I found this to be a point of interest. Overall this, movement was too sporadic for my liking.

Alex

Danse Macabre by Saint-Saëns Camille

The piece is a tone-poem, that was eventually rewritten for orchestra, featuring a melody for the solo violin. This piece features my favourite interval (my head is doing a 360 turn right now): The tritone ☺. Interestingly enough, Saint-Saëns decided that this effect should be produced through scordatura, rather than just making the violinist play the piece as it was written, makes life easier for the violinist until he/she has to re-tune..
From this theme the piece creeps into a solo flute section that is staccato and very warm in sound. I particularly liked the way in which this melody was then transferred to the violin I section. The transfer into the violin section made the subsequent solo violin’s descending chromatic theme seem like a flawless and totally natural transition, as the use of the same instruments transferring into this solo, provided continuity. From here on in, the piece is an exchange of these two themes, and this is what I really love about this piece – the exchange and over-layering of these themes. I love the way these two motifs fight for dominance within this piece – they way they at times work together, yet at others, work very separately.
I also enjoyed the musical metaphor that was explored – with the inspiration of this piece being based on the French superstition that “Death” appears at midnight on Halloween with the power to call forth the dead from their graves to dance for him – and this was mirrored quite well I thought, with the entire orchestra constantly answering to the violin (the musical representation of the devil). This back and forth exchange and distortion of the three themes mentioned before, provided great interest in the piece for me, and I really enjoyed it.

Alex

TORU TAKEMITSU – “Rain Tree”

The first page (first 29bars) of this piece is a homage to simplicity. The eerie ringing of the lingering upper partials had an amazing effect of creating stillness. The lighting switching between the percussions players was effective in setting the mood for this I felt that it with the spotting on and off, that this was very reminiscent of light rain – it mimicked the persistent “spit-spotting” of morning rain), though I did find it oddly unsettling. The reason for this I still can’t gather. An example of this:

The piece mirrored the sporadic nature of rain – with the different frequency extremes being highly realistic to the natural sound extremes when rain hits different objects from different angles at different strengths etc. I also found the silence before the entrance of the Marimba to be highly effective – I think the way that Takemitsu uses silence verses busy/noise to be highly interesting and effective in this piece.
Back to my previous comment on how this piece is highly sporadic…. I believe this sporadic nature occurs, not only through the written pitch extremes and almost pulseless writing, but also through the use of undetermined improvised sections in this work. Strangely, the sporadic tendencies are highlighted, rather than diminished, when the A and B sections perform improvised sections against a consistent C section – which I found strange, because I would have thought that the consistency would provide a sense of placement, rather than to highlight this fact for me. I suspect that this is due to the combination of consistency and inconsistency – it is INCONSISTENT to have a CONSISTENT part in conjunction with two other INCONSISTENT parts (If that makes any sense what-so-ever).
The minimalism within this piece made the timbral combinations that were deployed stand out. The intertwining timbres of the vibraphone and the Glockenspiel were interesting for instance, and the space created within this piece made the features of these instruments, on an individual level, stand out. This minimalism also was effective in creating the disparity between thick and thin (as well as highlighting the aforementioned silent to loud sections) areas within the piece, as well as highlighting the differences in pitch ranges, which would range from a small (less than an octave) range, and then expand into wide, sometimes undetermined pitch ranges, featuring leaps.

Alex

PROKOFIEV – Piano Sonata no1 in F Minor

This first third of this piece works with a rigid rhythmic motif (dotted crochet, crochet, quaver, dotted crochet, crochet quaver etc) that is transformed through pitch. The interesting thing to note with this repetitive rhythmic idea is that, pitch-wise, it is hard to determine where the start of the phrase is and where the end is, as the motif spirals down and then up again continuously, often with no gap in between – it is continuously looped for the first section of this piece. When the rhythm does vary (for instance, in bar 23 we have duplets), the previous pitch ideas that the rhythmic theme has previously adopted are kept in tact, which provides a relief from this repetition, as well as interest for the listener. The pitch material is then broadened out, into a slower version, and is syncopated. This eventually draws to a halt, concluding this section with a plagal cadence in the relative major.

The second section reverts to the minor, and uses similar pitch material (except in minor) of the first section, as it spirals up and down in fast-paced quavers. This section modulates easily through many keys, at first going into D minor, E minor etc, but there are so many different mixture chords within every key, that there seemed to be almost no point in changing the key signature with that many written accidentals. This section also features the use of large, extravagant chords, spanning more than an octave in one hand, whilst there were often simultaneously octaves in the left hand. This section is also extremely busy (though having said this, the majority of this piece is extremely busy), great for a young virtuoso to display his obvious technical ability, but for an audience, at least from my perspective, there is no aural respite – it left me wanting a break from all the busyness. An interlude for sensitivity would have been nice in this section, and whilst an attempt at this was made at the meno mosso, I still felt that it was too busy – furthermore it only lasted a short period before Prokofiev returned to the constant and manic spiral of fast paced quavers.
Whilst I have criticised this piece rather heavily, I really did like the return to the original theme, I thought it lead there fantastically. I also really enjoyed the rituendo section, it really broadened out this motif. As well as this I also liked the dramatic chords in the last few bars that syncopated from the piano’s upper register to extreme lower register – the left and right extremes (it was kind of like an earlier idea of studio panning). Overall, I really liked this piece, though some clearer breaks in material would have been nice, instead of the constant showing-off that Prokofiev brings to the piece.

Alex

CLAUDE DEBUSSY– Footsteps in the Snow

This piece opens with the simplistic “footsteps” motif if D-E-E-F, and in and of itself, it has two delicate layers; that of the sustained D as a subtle undercurrent to set the mood, and that of the aforementioned “footsteps” motif. The piece revolves around this initial motif, with the theme reoccurring (without pitch or rhythmic alteration) for the majority of the piece – in fact, it is repeated forty-eight times throughout the piece. As one could imagine, this repetition could understandably become tiresome, and for me, it completely would have, had not Debussy decided to build upon this theme. In bar two, Debussy initiates a sparse melody that fits within the rhythmic spaces that the “footsteps” theme creates. By measure five, the piece transforms into a rich re-harmonisation of the “footsteps”, with “tight” (closely packed intervals) chords being placed in the bass, which creates thickness within the piece. Having just built this thickness and tension, Debussy destroys this development within the next two bars – at measure seven, he strips the melody down to just the right hand. I think that in doing this, Debussy has allowed himself more time to explore the material and redevelop this work – he goes through the same journey of texture build-up as he did previously, however, he does so in a different way than before, and through these alternations, Debussy is ensuring that the motif does not get old. Debussy does this through out the piece, as can be seen in bars fifteen and twenty-five. From the points of bar seven, fifteen and twenty-five, Debussy redevelops and adds to the melodies and motifs, and seemingly each time he does this, he becomes more dissonant and chromatic with each re-exploration.
A chilling stillness presides over this piece, with weightless chords that seem to float in the air, and blurred pedleling to promote this sonic illusion. The space that Debussy creates between right hand and left hand, highlights the melodic chromaticism that he expands into. One is able to appreciate the chromaticism that occurs within the melody, more so, because of the silence that separates these two sections.
I find this piece to be, not so much an exploration in motif transformation (as the main motif remains unchanged), but more of a lesson in the addative processes one can take to redevelop and recreate a stagnant motif.

Alex

PETER MAXWELL DAVIES-Eight Songs for a Mad King

Wicked beginning, the woodblock makes the entry sound like a cookoo clock and when the violin enters with light glissando, the impression is that there are birds conversing. The flute then enters with this theme, and the memory keeps flashing within my mind of the initial scene with Gepeto in Pinocchio…The timing then becomes very sporadic, or at least hard to predict, as triplets form a layer over the straight forward syncopation that has gone on previously, and the overall pace starts to stagger with the impediment of added note/rhythmic values.
The piece explores the extremes of vocal and instrumental range (the vocals span an extraordinary range of seven octaves), through the use of large and disjunctive intervals. Also, the relationship between singing and talking is explored through the employment of Sprechstimme for long periods of time, which is then often broken by either melodic (or at least in comparison) instrumental lines, or sweet, almost childlike melodies that are sung.
There also seems to be a certain plasticity in both metre/rhythm and tonality, which highlights the abstractism of this piece. It is certainly an artistic statement, and has a certain element of “Dada” about it – I find that this piece has a certain questioning quality about it – it seems to challenge listeners to rethink and redefine everything that they would or wouldn’t classify as music.

Alex

OLIVIER MESSIAEN – Vingt Regards sur L’Enfant Jesus

I – Regard du Pere
The rhythm phrases in the bass are progressively augmented whist the treble stave continues to explore the stagnant high-pitched demi-semi quaver motif in comparison to the changing bass. It is interesting to note that this is the only melodic device employed, within this piece, no individual line has a melody, yet the parts together form a melody. All in all, I did find that this piece dragged a little, as the only way that this piece was transformed was through timing, which in and of itself was interesting, but I would have liked to see some melodic development…though I do understand that this would have disguised Messiaen’s motives to explore rhythmic augmentation and would have made the piece less so about rhythm and more about pitch, which would have defeated his purpose. Having said this, the more and more dissonant he becomes, the more and more lyrical and expressive the piece becomes. So I completely contradict my previous statements that there is no melodic development….I guess I just can’t make up my mind.

IV
This piece features highly unstable rhythm with an additive metre making the overall rhythm hard to interpret, because he creates an expectation of how the piece will go. For example, in the first bar : 2 semi-quavers followed by 2 quavers. The second bar deviates away from an expected repetition of this rhythmic phrase that we have barely gotten used to : 2 quavers a semi-quaver and a quaver (the bars don’t even add up to a specific and consistent value). By playing with expectations and eliminating standard patterns, Messiaen thwarts standard metre and gives his audience nothing to hold onto within reference to rhythms. This however, would be hard for an audience to listen to, so Messiaen does give his audience one thing to cling to – he creates a sense of pulse by making a pseudo-beat- each melodic/rhythmic phrase represents the beginning of a bar (this is also the way in which Messiaen chose to score this piece), and this is how the listener is able to follow this piece in terms of time.

There is a certain plasticity to rhythm and metre within this set of works, in a lot of scenarios there is no pulse to the music, as one is used to, meaning that rhythms are often unstable. I really like this plasticity, as I sometimes feel that when a composer embarks upon a piece, and chooses the key and time signature that they will use, that often times, they are limiting themselves to write within the key in the most conventional of ways – for instance, if you write in Bb major and set up your key signature along with your clef etc, then most of the time you would finish on the tonic and highlight the fifth degree…etc, but, say if you were to write the same piece with the tonal centre of Bb, but instead you write the piece without the key signature and write in the accidentals, then I think that you are more likely to venture away from the limitations that are often associated with writing within a key. In doing this, the composition would achieve a certain ambiguity of tonal centre – a plasticity if you will, which is what I believe Messiaen does within these works with regards to time.
Alex

Aaron Copland (again) – Clarinet Concerto, 1st Movement

Here’s Emma analysing yet another Copland work, not a ballet this time though…

• ABA Form
• Opens softly in C major, introducing tenths

• An ostinato begins with just basses and harps, with other instruments then joining in
• This ostinato initially begins by moving between C and D chords, but eventually ventures out, incorporating other key areas, but stays generally within the same rhythmic and intervalic structures.
• The ostinato runs throughout,  providing a unifying device for the movement.

• For the Clarinet melody, Copland employs a familiar technique for its development, in which he uses a small motif and gradually adds elements to it.
• It starts with a two note cell of D and E, and Copland develops this by adding pitches and playing with register.
• The melody seems to revolve around the D most of the time, giving it a Dorian sound over the implied C major in the accompaniment. This gives the harmony a slightly unresolved feel, which creates tension and expectancy.
• This A section continues with long sustained notes, before the B section, which is made up of faster arpeggios and numerous accidentals.

There is plenty about this work that I like, especially the fact that it shows a wide range of the clarinet’s ability. This is also another great example of just how well Copland can develop something as small as a two note motif, and create an entire movement. Epic.

Emma

A. Berg – Lyric Suite 1st Movement

Right, let’s put dot-points to good use in this analysis….

• 12 tone! Yay! I didn’t even need to look at the score to immediately recognise that this piece is based on a tone row:

The tone row Berg used for the first movement of his Lyric Suite, plus its inversion, retrograde and retrograde inversion

• The form of the piece, according to Rene Leibowitz (1947), is Sonata form without a development, but I believe that as the piece is based upon a tone row, the whole movement can be considered a development.
• I also noticed a number of compositional techniques we’ve covered this semester within this work. Repetition is a big one. Berg uses repetition quite a bit, I suppose it is so the listener is able to grasp the concept of the 12 tone, and not be completely lost by it.
• Imitation is used as well, obviously, as the tone row is imitated throughout the instruments, in its various forms (e.g retrograde, inversion)

Perhaps what surprised me most about this work was how easy it is to listen to. Although, as I said above, I recognised that the work was based off of a tone row, I was struck by how easily the work flowed and sounded almost gentle. Berg manages to soften the usual harshness that is usually paired with 12 tone music.

Emma