star wars-final march

Name the percussions instrument that announces the start of the march section.

Tam Tam (a type of gong)

What harmonic device is used throughout the final march section?

A tonic pedal - now on C.

Describe the use of harmony in the final march section.

Against the C pedal, Williams uses chords that are purposefully 'out of key', chromatic chords that will cause dissonance (clashing sounds). These are Neapolitan chords (a chord built on the flattened 2nd note of the key) and other chromatic chords such as the huge dissonant chord built on 4ths (C-F and Db-G).

What happens to the metre of the final march section?

It starts in 4/4 for two bars then switches to 3/4.

Describe the texture of the first 7 bars of the 3/4 section.

A dissonant chord, built on 4ths (C-F and Db-G) is built gradually, adding more notes as the ritenuto is added. This section is homorhythmic as all the orchestra play the same rhythm at the same time.

The final codera section that follows uses what melodic device in the bass line?

Ostinato = crotchet, crotchet, triplet quavers.

Describe the harmony used in the final codera section.

There is a pedal note on C (ostinato) with chromatic chords such as a Neapolitan chord added to create dissonance.

What instrument ends the piece?

A cello playing a long held C.