Diamonds on the soles of her shoes

Introduction, DOTSOHS

sung by Ladysmith Black Mambazo and Paul Simon together.

Ladysmith begins by singing 'A-wa, a-wa' and some Zulu lines which translate as 'It's not usual, but in our days we see these things happen; they are women, they can take care of themselves'.

Paul Simon joins in, setting the scene for the story of the song, 'she's a rich girl... he's a poor boy', with seven repetitions of 'diamonds on the soles of her shoes'.

This whole section is unaccompanied and sung in the isicathamiya style.

Isicathamiya

South African a cappella vocal genre; largely identified with the iconic group Ladysmith Black Mambazo. Rich, unaccompanied harmonies

Band enters at

0:58

Structure

Verse chorus

Structure accurate (diamonds)

Intro

Instrumental lead to verse

Verse

Chorus

Instrumental break

Instrumental lead to verse

Verse

Chorus

Instrumental break

Outro

Hook

The memorable, 'catchy' part of the song, containing the title in Diamonds

Tonality

Diatonic.

Begins in E major

At 0:58 rises by one semitone to F major

Melody- Main characteristics

A range of less than an octave (a minor 7th, B-A)

Many repeated notes, especially E and G# A mixture of conjunct, disjunct and repetitive movement

Hook (in the intro) is sung how many times?

7

Chorus melody begins with

A very high 'oo' melisma, sung by Paul Simon in a falsetto voice.

Outro

Are many repetitions of 'ta-na-na-na-na', sometimes with Simon improvising above in his falsetto range.

Done in a sequence

Harmony

Repetitive use of primary chords (I, IV and V)

Harmony is typical of

American folk rock and African music.

Harmonic rhythm

Speeds up when E major modulates to F major

Sonority

Guitar

Bass

Drums

Other percussion

Trumpet

Tenor saxophone

Alto saxophone

Guitar and vocals

Ladysmith Black Mambazo

Sonority is typical of

Township jazz in South Africa.

Prominent drum

Djembe (an african drum)

Texture

Homophonic

Isicathamiya

A cappella

Close harmony

Call and response

Textures used

Homophonic

Intro texture

chordal

Tempo

Moderato at the beginning and 'slightly faster' at 0:58.

Time signature/meter

4/4 (one bar at 0:15 in 2/4 but returns immediately after)

Often uses

Swung Quavers

Does it include syncopation?

Yes

Dynamics

There is a gradual crescendo in this song.

The intro is sung mezzo piano, sounding almost as if heard from a distance.

There is a rise in the dynamic level (mezzo forte) from 0:58 at the change of key and tempo.

There is no change in dynamic level from the verse to the chorus.

There is another increase in dynamics from 2:18 for the instrumental break, to forte.

The pattern is repeated for the second verse and chorus.

The outro drops down to mezzo piano again.

There is a sudden drop in dynamics for the fade at the end.

Articulation

Legato throughout