Skye Waulking Song – Capercaillie 2000

The Elements of Music

Melody Rhythm Texture Instruments Genre Harmony & Tonality Structure

MELODY RHYTHM INSTRUMENTS GENRE 12/8 (12 quavers in a bar, or 4 dotted Combination of popular Vocal melody: crotchets) Celtic Fusion – Scottish folk and pop music. Waulking song – work song. Waulking is the Pentatonic. Compound time is common to folk music. and folk instruments. Uses a low register of the voice. pounding of tweed cloth. Usually call and Lilting feel. Drum kit Mainly syllabic. response – helped the women work in time. Start of the song: hi-hat creates cross Alternates between Gaelic (call) Bass guitar Text is taken from a lament. and phrases that use vocables rhythms. Once the band enters it clearly Wurlitzer piano (response) emphasises the time signature. Synthesizer Vocables = nonsense syllables. Scotch Snap – short accented note before a

longer one. STRUCTURE Instrumentalists: Accordion Short motifs & Countermelodies Violin (fiddle) Intro: 8 bars. Verse 5 Verse 1 Verse 6 based on the vocal phrases. Uileann pipes Break Instrumental TEXTURE Bouzouki Instruments improvise around Verse 2 Verse 7 Layered texture: the melody in a folk style. Whistle Verse 3 Verse 8 Rhythmic pattern on drum kit. Bass line on Similar melody slightly Verse 4 Outro bass guitar. Chords on synthesizer and different ways = heterophonic. Sometimes weaving a complex, accordion. weaving counterpoint around the Main melody sung by voice. Countermelodies HARMONY AND TONALITY melody. played on other melody instruments) Built around 3 main chords: G, Em and C. Vocal part = sung using E minor Because the dominant chord is avoided, the music has a modal feel. pentatonic.