S Y N C O P a T I

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

S Y N C O P a T I SYNCOPATION ENGLISH MUSIC 1530 - 1630 'gentle daintie sweet accentings1 and 'unreasonable odd Cratchets' David McGuinness Ph.D. University of Glasgow Faculty of Arts April 1994 © David McGuinness 1994 ProQuest Number: 11007892 All rights reserved INFORMATION TO ALL USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a com plete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. uest ProQuest 11007892 Published by ProQuest LLC(2018). Copyright of the Dissertation is held by the Author. All rights reserved. This work is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States C ode Microform Edition © ProQuest LLC. ProQuest LLC. 789 East Eisenhower Parkway P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106- 1346 10/ 0 1 0 C * p I GLASGOW UNIVERSITY LIBRARY ERRATA page/line 9/8 'prescriptive' for 'proscriptive' 29/29 'in mind' inserted after 'his own part' 38/17 'the first singing primer': Bathe's work was preceded by the short primers attached to some metrical psalters. 46/1 superfluous 'the' deleted 47/3,5 'he' inserted before 'had'; 'a' inserted before 'crotchet' 62/15-6 correction of number in translation of Calvisius 63/32-64/2 correction of sense of 'potestatis' and case of 'tactus' in translation of Calvisius 69/2 'signify' sp. 71/2 'hierarchy' sp. 71/41 'thesis' for 'arsis' as translation of 'depressio' 75/13ff. Calvisius' misprint noted: explanation of his alterations to original text clarified 77/18 superfluous 'themselves' deleted 80/15 'thesis' and 'arsis' reversed 81/11 'necessary' sp. 82/28 'others' for 'other' 85 'Compownd notes Sincopated': tail to final ligature 111/18 'hierarchy' sp. 119/31 'instrumentorum' for 'instrumentum' 122/24 'cogitanti' for 'cogitenti' 127/14 'microrhythms' for 'macrorhythms' 137/4-8 'Walther' ... 'syncopations' inserted 137/13 'ers' inserted after 'ernst' 147/18 'regardless' 244/3 'syncopations' for 'synopations' 338/8 'Beechey' for 'Beechley' 2 Abstract: This study is concerned with the concepts and uses of syncopation prevalent in England from the sixteenth century into the seventeenth. The treatment of syncopation in contemporary writings on music is discussed in depth through all the known English sources and a cross-section of Continental works. The purely theoretical definitions are joined by advice to composers, relating syncopation to dissonance treatment, and to performers, pointing out the need to persist against the movement of the tactus. English discant on a plainsong, however, has its own tradition of rhythmic vocabulary, based on repeated formulae of various lengths which are played against the tactus, and these remained a part of compositional training long after the practice itself had fallen from fashion. The remainder of the study develops an analytical technique for the repertory of the period with respect to syncopation, beginning with metrical psalm and hymn tunes from Coverdale through the 'Old Version' psalters of the 1550s and 60s, to the psalters of East and Alison. In this context, the rhythmic structure of the tunes of Tallis and Gibbons, misrepresented throughout the twentieth century, becomes clear. The analysis of consort songs, including Byrd's 1588 collection and the solo songs in Gibbons's 1612 set, yields a technique to help identify the instrumental interludes in some of Gibbons's songs. Also discussed are Morley's two-part canzonets (with a new edition of the instrumental fantasias), Tye's English anthems, and the Fantasies of Three Parts by Gibbons. 3 Contents 1. INTRODUCTION 1.1 Introduction 7 1.2 Secondary literature 12 2. CONTEMPORARY THEORY 2.1.1 Practice and Speculation 30 2.1.2 The sources 35 2.2 Theory and composition 56 2.3 Instructions for performers 81 2.4 Discant and composition 95 2.5 Charles Butler on barring 106 2.6 Summary 110 3. MUSIC AND WORDS 3.1 Rhythmic parallels in contemporary poetry 113 3.2 Text setting 3.2.1 Expression 118 3.2.2 Rhythm 124 3.2.3 The repertory in secondary literature 130 4. ANALYSIS 4.1 Metrical psalm and hymn tunes 135 4.1.1 Miles Coverdale's Goostly psalmes 135 4.1.2 The metrical psalter in English to 1564 149 4.1.3 The psalters of East 1592 and Alison 1599 166 4.1.4 The psalm and hymn tunes of Tallis and Gibbons 180 4.1.5 Summary 194 4 4.2 Consort songs 196 4.3 Thomas Morley's Canzonets to Two Voyces 230 4.4 Tye: 'Blessed are all they that fear the Lord' and 253 'Christ rising again from the dead' 4.5 Gibbons's Fantasies of Three Parts 267 5. CONCLUSION 289 Tables 292 Appendix 1: Nine instrumental fantasies from Thomas 315 Morley's Canzonets to Two Voyces 1595 Appendix 2: Extracts from printed editions 325 John Tomkins: '0 thrice blessed earthbed' 326 Christopher Tye: 'Blessed are all they that fear 328 the Lord' 'Christ rising again from the dead' 333 (first part) Bibliography 337 5 Tables 1. Errors in Goostly psalmes as given in Frost (1953) 292 2. Instances of syncopation in Goostly psalmes 293 3. Syncopations in the metrical psalter in English 294 to 1564 4. Psalm tunes containing non-triple syncopations 294 5. Psalm tunes containing syncopations at divisions 294 6. Psalm tunes containing extended triple figures 295 7. Psalm tunes employing continued syncopation 295 8. Psalm tunes involving other irregularities of metre 296 9. Syncopations in East's Whole Booke of Psalmes (1592) 297 10. Tunes in East 1592 without syncopation 297 11. Canticles in East's Whole Booke of Psalmes and 298 Alison's Psalmes of David in Meter 12. Tunes in East's psalter containing single syncopations 299 only at divisions or beginnings of lines 13. Tunes in East's psalter containing single syncopations 299 elsewhere 14. Tunes in East's psalter containing extended triple 300 patterns 15. Syncopations in Alison’s Psalmes of David in Meter 301 16. Tunes in Alison (1599) without syncopation 301 17. Tunes in Alison (1599) containing single syncopations 302 at divisions or beginnings of lines 18. Tunes in Alison (1599) containing single syncopations 302 elsewhere 19. Tunes in Alison (1599) containing extended triple 303 patterns 20. Tunes appearing in Alison alone 303 21. Tunes appearing in East and Alison set to different 303 texts 22. Syncopations in Tallis's psalm tunes 304 23. Syncopations in Gibbons's hymn tunes 304 24. Syncopations in MB22 consort songs 305 25. Dissonant and consonant syncopations in MB22 307 26. Syncopations in Byrd's Psalmes, Sonets and Songs 1588 307 27. Dissonant and consonant syncopations in PSS 1588 308 28. Syncopations in Gibbons's First Set of Madrigals 309 and Mottets (1612) 29. Overall frequency of syncopation in works discussed 309 30. Syncopation in Morley's Canzonets to Two Voyces 1595 310 31. Contents of Morley's Canzonets to Two Voyces 311 32. Continued syncopations in Morley's two-part canzonets 311 33. Syncopations in Morley's fantasies, 1595 311 34. Syncopation in Tye's English anthems 312 35. Syncopations in Gibbons's Fantasies of Three Parts 313 36. Frequency of syncopations in Gibbons's Fantasies of 314 Three Parts 6 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT I wish to express my particular thanks and gratitude to Dr Kenneth Elliott for his admirably detailed supervision and assistance in the final year of study. I am also indebted to Professor Philip Brett for his abundant advice and encouragement in the early stages, and to Dr Warwick Edwards, whose suggestions determined the overall shape of the thesis. Thanks are due for their correspondence, discussion, or practical help to Mr Oliver Neighbour, Professor Joseph Kerman and Dr John Purser, and to the staff of the following libraries: the Universities of Glasgow and Edinburgh; the British Library; the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama; Christ Church, Oxford; and the Scottish Music Information Centre. Finally, a heartfelt thank you to the many musicians who ensured that, while this study was in progress, I continued to 1joine practise with my speculation'. DEFINITIONS Bibliographical abbreviations used are listed in the bibliography under 'Printed Editions'. Where a name is given in a variety of spellings or forms in the literature (Coprario/Coperario, East/Est/Este etc.), the text uses the form given in Grove (1980), and bibliographical references use the form given in the cited work. Pitches given in italics are in Helmholtz notation: middle C = c'. Note-names in Roman type are not octave-specific. Original note-values and pitches are given, even when the cited edition uses a transposition or reduction of these. Polyphonic musical examples are generally given in Mensurstriche, in which accidentals are assumed to hold throughout the measure unless cancelled. Monodic examples are given unbarred or in modern barlines. 7 1. INTRODUCTION 1.1 Introduction The present study was initially prompted by a growing dissatisfaction on my part with many performances and recordings of Renaissance music, and of English choral music in particular: the further I explored the music, the greater was the gulf between the compositions and their translation into sound in the twentieth century. Increasingly, I found that works from this 'Golden age', which on paper were dazzling in the ingenuity of their construction, were often realised in sound as an ethereal kind of ambient mood music, or as a vehicle for the trademark sound of a particular choir or conductor, often very beautiful but just as often failing to hold the attention for any length of time or to reveal any of the intricacies of the composer's work. Would a composer of the stature of Byrd or Tallis have been content to spend much of his life hearing his work being presented in this way, as a harmonic wash sweetened by the reverberations of a Gothic building? Certainly, some aspects of composition were never intended to be evident in performance.
Recommended publications
  • Medicine Health
    Medicine Health RHODEI SLAND VOL. 85 NO. 1 JANUARY 2002 Cancer Update A CME Issue UNDER THE JOINT VOLUME 85, NO. 1 JANUARY, 2002 EDITORIAL SPONSORSHIP OF: Medicine Health Brown University School of Medicine Donald Marsh, MD, Dean of Medicine HODE SLAND & Biological Sciences R I Rhode Island Department of Health PUBLICATION OF THE RHODE ISLAND MEDICAL SOCIETY Patricia Nolan, MD, MPH, Director Rhode Island Quality Partners Edward Westrick, MD, PhD, Chief Medical Officer Rhode Island Chapter, American College of COMMENTARIES Physicians-American Society of Internal Medicine Fred J. Schiffman, MD, FACP, Governor 2 Demented Politicians Rhode Island Medical Society Joseph H. Friedman, MD Yul D. Ejnes, MD, President 3 Some Comments On a Possible Ancestor EDITORIAL STAFF Stanley M. Aronson, MD, MPH Joseph H. Friedman, MD Editor-in-Chief Joan M. Retsinas, PhD CONTRIBUTIONS Managing Editor CANCER UPDATE: A CME ISSUE Hugo Taussig, MD Guest Editor: Paul Calabresi, MD, MACP Betty E. Aronson, MD Book Review Editors 4 Cancer in the New Millennium Stanley M. Aronson, MD, MPH Paul Calabresi, MD, MACP Editor Emeritus 7 Update in Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer EDITORIAL BOARD Betty E. Aronson, MD Todd Moore, MD, and Neal Ready, MD, PhD Stanley M. Aronson, MD 10 Breast Cancer Update Edward M. Beiser, PhD, JD Mary Anne Fenton, MD Jay S. Buechner, PhD John J. Cronan, MD 14 Screening for Colorectal Cancer in Rhode Island James P. Crowley, MD Arvin S. Glicksman, MD John P. Fulton, PhD Peter A. Hollmann, MD 17 Childhood Cancer: Past Successes, Future Directions Anthony Mega, MD William S. Ferguson, MD, and Edwin N.
    [Show full text]
  • The Form of the Preludes to Bach's Unaccompanied Cello Suites
    University of Massachusetts Amherst ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst Masters Theses 1911 - February 2014 2011 The orF m of the Preludes to Bach's Unaccompanied Cello Suites Daniel E. Prindle University of Massachusetts Amherst Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.umass.edu/theses Part of the Composition Commons, Musicology Commons, Music Practice Commons, and the Music Theory Commons Prindle, Daniel E., "The orF m of the Preludes to Bach's Unaccompanied Cello Suites" (2011). Masters Theses 1911 - February 2014. 636. Retrieved from https://scholarworks.umass.edu/theses/636 This thesis is brought to you for free and open access by ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst. It has been accepted for inclusion in Masters Theses 1911 - February 2014 by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst. For more information, please contact [email protected]. THE FORM OF THE PRELUDES TO BACH’S UNACCOMPANIED CELLO SUITES A Thesis Presented by DANIEL E. PRINDLE Submitted to the Graduate School of the University of Massachusetts Amherst in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF MUSIC May 2011 Master of Music in Music Theory © Copyright by Daniel E. Prindle 2011 All Rights Reserved ii THE FORM OF THE PRELUDES TO BACH’S UNACCOMPANIED CELLO SUITES A Thesis Presented by DANIEL E. PRINDLE Approved as to style and content by: _____________________________________ Gary Karpinski, Chair _____________________________________ Miriam Whaples, Member _____________________________________ Brent Auerbach, Member ___________________________________ Jeffrey Cox, Department Head Department of Music and Dance iii DEDICATION To Michelle and Rhys. iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS First and foremost, I would like to acknowledge the generous sacrifice made by my family.
    [Show full text]
  • Simple Gifts
    Excerpts from . DEVELOPING MUSICIANSHIP THROUGH IMPROVISATION Simple Gifts Christopher D. Azzara Eastman School of Music of the University of Rochester Richard F. Grunow Eastman School of Music of the University of Rochester GIA Publications, Inc. Chicago Developing Musicianship through Improvisation Christopher D. Azzara Richard F. Grunow Layout and music engravings: Paul Burrucker Copy editor: Elizabeth Bentley Copyright © 2006 GIA Publications, Inc. 7404 S. Mason Ave., Chicago 60638 www.giamusic.com All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America 2 INTRODUCTION Do you know someone who can improvise? Chances are he or she knows a lot of tunes and learns new tunes with relative ease. It seems that improvisers can sing and/or play anything that comes to mind. Improvisers interact in the moment to create one-of-a-kind experiences. Many accomplished musicians do not think of themselves as improvisers, yet if they have something unique to say in their performance, they are improvisers. In that sense, we are all improvisers, and it is important to have opportunities throughout our lives to express ourselves creatively through improvisation. Improvisation in music is the spontaneous expression of meaningful musical ideas—it is analogous to conversation in language. As presented here, key elements of improvisation include personalization, spontaneity, anticipation, prediction, interaction, and being in the moment. Interestingly, we are born improvisers, as evidenced by our behavior in early childhood. This state of mind is clearly demonstrated in children’s play. When not encouraged to improvise as a part of our formal music education, the very thought of improvisation invokes fear. If we let go of that fear, we find that we are improvisers.
    [Show full text]
  • AP Music Theory Course Description Audio Files ”
    MusIc Theory Course Description e ffective Fall 2 0 1 2 AP Course Descriptions are updated regularly. Please visit AP Central® (apcentral.collegeboard.org) to determine whether a more recent Course Description PDF is available. The College Board The College Board is a mission-driven not-for-profit organization that connects students to college success and opportunity. Founded in 1900, the College Board was created to expand access to higher education. Today, the membership association is made up of more than 5,900 of the world’s leading educational institutions and is dedicated to promoting excellence and equity in education. Each year, the College Board helps more than seven million students prepare for a successful transition to college through programs and services in college readiness and college success — including the SAT® and the Advanced Placement Program®. The organization also serves the education community through research and advocacy on behalf of students, educators, and schools. For further information, visit www.collegeboard.org. AP Equity and Access Policy The College Board strongly encourages educators to make equitable access a guiding principle for their AP programs by giving all willing and academically prepared students the opportunity to participate in AP. We encourage the elimination of barriers that restrict access to AP for students from ethnic, racial, and socioeconomic groups that have been traditionally underserved. Schools should make every effort to ensure their AP classes reflect the diversity of their student population. The College Board also believes that all students should have access to academically challenging course work before they enroll in AP classes, which can prepare them for AP success.
    [Show full text]
  • CHORAL PROBLEMS in HANDEL's MESSIAH THESIS Presented to The
    *141 CHORAL PROBLEMS IN HANDEL'S MESSIAH THESIS Presented to the Graduate Council of the North Texas State University in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements For the Degree of MASTER OF MUSIC By John J. Williams, B. M. Ed. Denton, Texas May, 1968 PREFACE Music of the Baroque era can be best perceived through a detailed study of the elements with which it is constructed. Through the analysis of melodic characteristics, rhythmic characteristics, harmonic characteristics, textural charac- teristics, and formal characteristics, many choral problems related directly to performance practices in the Baroque era may be solved. It certainly cannot be denied that there is a wealth of information written about Handel's Messiah and that readers glancing at this subject might ask, "What is there new to say about Messiah?" or possibly, "I've conducted Messiah so many times that there is absolutely nothing I don't know about it." Familiarity with the work is not sufficient to produce a performance, for when it is executed in this fashion, it becomes merely a convention rather than a carefully pre- pared piece of music. Although the oratorio has retained its popularity for over a hundred years, it is rarely heard as Handel himself performed it. Several editions of the score exist, with changes made by the composer to suit individual soloists or performance conditions. iii The edition chosen for analysis in this study is the one which Handel directed at the Foundling Hospital in London on May 15, 1754. It is version number four of the vocal score published in 1959 by Novello and Company, Limited, London, as edited by Watkins Shaw, based on sets of parts belonging to the Thomas Coram Foundation (The Foundling Hospital).
    [Show full text]
  • Le Nozze Di Figaro' Author(S): John Platoff Source: Music & Letters, Vol
    Tonal Organization in 'Buffo' Finales and the Act II Finale of 'Le nozze di Figaro' Author(s): John Platoff Source: Music & Letters, Vol. 72, No. 3 (Aug., 1991), pp. 387-403 Published by: Oxford University Press Stable URL: https://www.jstor.org/stable/736215 Accessed: 26-02-2019 18:45 UTC JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact [email protected]. Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of the Terms & Conditions of Use, available at https://about.jstor.org/terms Oxford University Press is collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to Music & Letters This content downloaded from 132.174.255.206 on Tue, 26 Feb 2019 18:45:02 UTC All use subject to https://about.jstor.org/terms TONAL ORGANIZATION IN 'BUFFO' FINALES AND THE ACT II FINALE OF 'LE NOZZE DI FIGARO' BY JOHN PLATOFF THE TONAL PLAN of the finale to Act II of Mozart and Da Ponte's Le nozze di Fzgaro is an admirably clear structure, and one that has drawn nearly as much ap- proving comment from analysts as the opera itself has received from audiences.' The reasons for this favourable view of the finale's tonal scheme are not hard to find: its eight sections or movements move from the tonic of E flat to the dominant and then by a descending third to G, from which point the return to the tonic occurs through a regular series of falling fifths (see Table I).
    [Show full text]
  • When the Leading Tone Doesn't Lead: Musical Qualia in Context
    When the Leading Tone Doesn't Lead: Musical Qualia in Context Dissertation Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy in the Graduate School of The Ohio State University By Claire Arthur, B.Mus., M.A. Graduate Program in Music The Ohio State University 2016 Dissertation Committee: David Huron, Advisor David Clampitt Anna Gawboy c Copyright by Claire Arthur 2016 Abstract An empirical investigation is made of musical qualia in context. Specifically, scale-degree qualia are evaluated in relation to a local harmonic context, and rhythm qualia are evaluated in relation to a metrical context. After reviewing some of the philosophical background on qualia, and briefly reviewing some theories of musical qualia, three studies are presented. The first builds on Huron's (2006) theory of statistical or implicit learning and melodic probability as significant contributors to musical qualia. Prior statistical models of melodic expectation have focused on the distribution of pitches in melodies, or on their first-order likelihoods as predictors of melodic continuation. Since most Western music is non-monophonic, this first study investigates whether melodic probabilities are altered when the underlying harmonic accompaniment is taken into consideration. This project was carried out by building and analyzing a corpus of classical music containing harmonic analyses. Analysis of the data found that harmony was a significant predictor of scale-degree continuation. In addition, two experiments were carried out to test the perceptual effects of context on musical qualia. In the first experiment participants rated the perceived qualia of individual scale-degrees following various common four-chord progressions that each ended with a different harmony.
    [Show full text]
  • The Expressive Role of Rhythm and Meter in Schumannâ•Žs Late Lieder
    Gamut: Online Journal of the Music Theory Society of the Mid-Atlantic Volume 2 Issue 1 Article 9 July 2009 The Expressive Role of Rhythm and Meter in Schumann’s Late Lieder Harald Krebs University of Victoria, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://trace.tennessee.edu/gamut Part of the Music Commons Recommended Citation Krebs, Harald (2009) "The Expressive Role of Rhythm and Meter in Schumann’s Late Lieder," Gamut: Online Journal of the Music Theory Society of the Mid-Atlantic: Vol. 2 : Iss. 1 , Article 9. Available at: https://trace.tennessee.edu/gamut/vol2/iss1/9 This A Music-Theoretical Matrix: Essays in Honor of Allen Forte (Part I), edited by David Carson Berry is brought to you for free and open access by Volunteer, Open Access, Library Journals (VOL Journals), published in partnership with The University of Tennessee (UT) University Libraries. This article has been accepted for inclusion in Gamut: Online Journal of the Music Theory Society of the Mid-Atlantic by an authorized editor. For more information, please visit https://trace.tennessee.edu/gamut. THE EXPRESSIVE ROLE OF RHYTHM AND METER IN SCHUMANN’S LATE LIEDER HARALD KREBS t has long been recognized that Robert Schumann was, along with Beethoven and Brahms, I one of the great pioneers of rhythm and meter in the nineteenth century. From his writings, it is evident that he was interested in these aspects of music from a theoretical standpoint; his frequent comments on rhythm and meter, in his reviews of other composers’ works, show how attentive he was to these aspects.1 But his interest went beyond the theoretical: as his music makes clear, he regarded rhythm and meter as significant expressive elements.
    [Show full text]
  • The Use of the Polish Folk Music Elements and the Fantasy Elements in the Polish Fantasy on Original Themes In
    THE USE OF THE POLISH FOLK MUSIC ELEMENTS AND THE FANTASY ELEMENTS IN THE POLISH FANTASY ON ORIGINAL THEMES IN G-SHARP MINOR FOR PIANO AND ORCHESTRA OPUS 19 BY IGNACY JAN PADEREWSKI Yun Jung Choi, B.A., M.M. Dissertation Prepared for the Degree of DOCTOR OF MUSICAL ARTS UNIVERSITY OF NORTH TEXAS May 2007 APPROVED: Adam Wodnicki, Major Professor Jeffrey Snider, Minor Professor Joseph Banowetz, Committee Member Graham Phipps, Director of Graduate Studies in the College of Music James C. Scott, Dean of the College of Music Sandra L. Terrell, Dean of the Robert B. Toulouse School of Graduate Studies Choi, Yun Jung, The Use of the Polish Folk Music Elements and the Fantasy Elements in the Polish Fantasy on Original Themes in G-sharp Minor for Piano and Orchestra, Opus 19 by Ignacy Jan Paderewski. Doctor of Musical Arts (Performance), May 2007, 105 pp., 5 tables, 65 examples, references, 97 titles. The primary purpose of this study is to address performance issues in the Polish Fantasy, Op. 19, by examining characteristics of Polish folk dances and how they are incorporated in this unique work by Paderewski. The study includes a comprehensive history of the fantasy in order to understand how Paderewski used various codified generic aspects of the solo piano fantasy, as well as those of the one-movement concerto introduced by nineteenth-century composers such as Weber and Liszt. Given that the Polish Fantasy, Op. 19, as well as most of Paderewski’s compositions, have been performed more frequently in the last twenty years, an analysis of the combination of the three characteristic aspects of the Polish Fantasy, Op.19 - Polish folk music, the generic rhetoric of a fantasy and the one- movement concerto - would aid scholars and performers alike in better understanding the composition’s engagement with various traditions and how best to make decisions about those traditions when approaching the work in a concert setting.
    [Show full text]
  • Grade 8 Theory Requirements
    Grade 8 Theory Examination Length: 2 Hours Recommended Prerequisites Questions will be based on all material • Grade 5 Theory from the previous grades plus the • Grade 6 Theory following requirements. • Grade 7 Theory Grade 8 Theory is a co-requisite for: Keys B.C.M.A., Teacher Diploma • all major and minor keys L.B.C.M. Hon., Licentiate Honours Clefs • C clefs - alto and tenor Scales • to write and identify all major and minor (harmonic and melodic) and natural, chromatic scales, modes: Ionian, Dorian, Phrygian, Lydian, Mixolydian, Aeolian, Locrian • to identify: whole tone, pentatonic, blues and octatonic scales • beginning on any degree of the scale, using a key signature and/or accidentals Intervals • to write and identify all simple and compound intervals and their inversions to a 15th above or below a given note, in harmonic and melodic form • using a key signature and/or accidentals Chords and Harmony • to write and identify triads - major, minor, augmented and diminished in close and open position with their inversions • built on any degree of a major or minor (natural or harmonic) scale • using functional chord symbols and root quality chords symbols • dominant sevenths with their inversions in close or open position using functional chord symbols and root quality chords symbols in major keys • leading note diminished 7th chords with their inversions in close or open position using functional chord symbols and root quality chords symbols in minor keys • to identify cluster chords, polychords and quartal chords Transposition • up or down any interval within the octave, from a major key to a major key or from a minor key to a minor key • to concert pitch of a single line of music for orchestral instruments, in B flat (clarinet, trumpet) in F (French horn, English horn) • transcription of a melody to any other clef, at the same pitch.
    [Show full text]
  • Glossary of Musical Terms
    GLOSSARY OF MUSICAL TERMS A absolute music: instrumental music with no intended story (non-programmatic music) a cappella: choral music with no instrumental accompaniment accelerando: gradually speeding up the speed of the rhythmic beat accent: momentarily emphasizing a note with a dynamic attack accessible: music that is easy to listen to and understand adagio: a slow tempo alla breve / cut time: a meter with two half-note beats per measure. It’s often symbolized by the cut-time symbol allegro: a fast tempo; music should be played cheerfully / upbeat brisk alto: a low-ranged female voice; the second highest instrumental range alto instrument examples: alto flute, viola, French horn, natural horn, alto horn, alto saxophone, English horn andante: moderate tempo (a walking speed; "Andare" means to walk) aria: a beautiful manner of solo singing, accompanied by orchestra, with a steady metrical beat articulation marks: Normal: 100% Staccato: 50% > Accent: 75% ^ Marcato: 50% with more weight on the front - Tenuto: 100% art-music: a general term used to describe the "formal concert music" traditions of the West, as opposed to "popular" and "commercial music" styles art song: a musical setting of artistic poetry for solo voice accompanied by piano (or orchestra) atonal: music that is written and performed without regard to any specific key atonality: modern harmony that intentionally avoids a tonal center (has no apparent home key) augmentation: lengthening the rhythmic values of a fugal subject avant-garde: ("at the forefront") a French term that describes highly experimental modern musical styles B ballad: a work in dance form imitative of a folk song, with a narrative structure ballet: a programmatic theatrical work for dancers and orchestra bar: a common term for a musical measure barcarolle: a boating song, generally describing the songs sung by gondoliers in Venice.
    [Show full text]
  • A Study of Compositional Elements in Ciclo Brasileiro by Heitor Villa- Lobos
    A STUDY OF COMPOSITIONAL ELEMENTS IN CICLO BRASILEIRO BY HEITOR VILLA- LOBOS Maria Eduarda Lucena Vieira A Thesis Submitted to the Graduate College of Bowling Green State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF MUSIC August 2017 Committee: Gene Trantham, Advisor Yu-Lien The ii ABSTRACT Gene Trantham, Advisor Heitor Villa-Lobos, a well-known Brazilian composer, was born in the city of Rio de Janeiro, in 1887, the same place where he died, in 1959. He was influenced by many composers not only from Brazil, but also from around the world, such as Debussy, Igor Stravinsky and Darius Milhaud. Even though Villa-Lobos spent most of his life traveling to Europe and the United States, his works always had a Brazilian musical flavor. This thesis will focus on the Ciclo Brasileiro (Brazilian Cycle) written for piano in 1936. The premiere of this set was initially presented in 1938 as individual pieces including “Impressões Seresteiras” (The Impressions of a Serenade) and “Dança do Indio Branco” (Dance of the White Indian). The other pieces of the set, “Plantio do Caboclo” (The Peasant’s Sowing) and “Festa no Sertão” (The Fete in the Desert) were premiered in 1939. Both performances occurred in Rio de Janeiro. Also in 1936 he wrote two other pieces, “Bazzum”, for men’s voices and Modinhas e canções (Folk Songs and Songs), album 1. My thesis will explore Heitor Villa-Lobos’ Ciclo Brasileiro and hopefully will find direct or indirect elements of the Brazilian culture. In chapter 1, I will present an introduction including Villa-Lobos’ background about his life and music, and how classical and folk influences affected his compositional process in the Ciclo Brasileiro.
    [Show full text]