3. Music for a while by Purcell

incidental music for which play?

Oedipus

Date

1692

composer

Henry Purcell (1659-95)

2 basso continuo instruments

1. Harpsichord

2. Bass viol

length of ground bass (at start)

3 bars

form (structure)

fusion of ternary and ground bass forms (ABA1)

vocal soloist

soprano on score but originally for countertenor (male soprano)

bass viol

similar to modern cello, but with frets, more strings & tuned in 4ths (not 5ths).

ground bass form features

- minor key

- straightforward rhythm (e.g. all quavers)

- slow, stately tempo

- ends perfect cadence

- solemn mood

- some chromatic notes

features of ground bass in "'Music for a While'"

- rising melodic shape (suggests King Laius rising from the dead)

- first 4 notes form a motif, with an arch shape (rises & falls)

- motif repeats to create ascending sequence

- 3 bar length is very unusual

lament

sad, sorrowful song

typical features of a lament

- falling phrases

- (starts and ends in) minor key

- slow tempo

ornaments

notes that decorate a melody

basso continuo

Bass line in Baroque music, commonly played by low string instruments and a chord-playing instrument (harpsichord, organ or lute) to complete the harmony by realising the figured bass.

stile italiano

Purcell was influenced by the Italian style

mordent

ornament with a main note, the note above or below and the main note again (played as fast as possible)

appoggiatura

ornament using a leaning note (takes half the value of the note or 2/3 if dotted).

syllabic

one note per syllable

word-painting

depicting a word in music to imitate its meaning

dissonant intervals

clashing intervals (maj/min 2nds, maj/min 7ths + tritones)

suspension

prolonging a note to create a dissonance (clash) with the next chord (often used on chord V at the cadence, notice V4-V3)

tierce de Picardie

sharpened 3rd in the tonic chord in a minor key (normally the last chord is major)

onomatopoeic

music setting uses words that mimic sound of the objects/actions they describe ("drop")

da capo aria

ABA or ternary form, with repeat decorated by the singer (Da Capo = 'head' or beginning)

arpeggiated

chord is spread (normally bottom to top)

historical period

restoration (of the monarchy)

lyricist

Dryden

vocal range

9th

how Purcell avoids repetition becoming boring

- changes the length of the ground bass

- changes the key (modulates)

wider listening from Handel's Oratorio "Messiah"

1. Aria "Every Valley" for tenor

2. Aria "Rejoice" for soprano

3. Aria "The Trumpet Shall Sound" for bass

similarity: all 3 are have vivid word painting

difference: all are in major keys

tempo

slow

metre

Simple quadruple (4/4)

tonic key

A minor (no key signature, G# accidentals)

dotted rhythms

Influence of Italian style (stile Italiano) in vocal melody (e.g. bar 19) and harpsichord accompaniment (e.g. bar 24).

melodic shape (harpsichord)

descending scalic passages

melodic features (voice)

- starts on tonic & leaps to dominant

- sometimes melismatic (e.g. "wond'ring")

- repetition (e.g. "all" adds emphasis)

- (ascending) sequences e.g. (e.g. "wond'ring")

dissonances

Frequently in the melody to add anguish

Keys & modulations

Section A keys:

Bar 1 = A minor (tonic)

Bar 2 = D minor (subdominant, briefly)

Bar 3 = A minor (tonic)

Bar 14 = E minor (dominant)

Bar 16 = G (relative major of dominant)

Section B Keys:

Bar 22 = C (relative major of tonic)

Bar 28 = E minor (E major chord due to "tierece de picardie")

Section A1 keys:

Bar 29 = A minor (tonic)

perfect cadences

V-I at the end of every ground bass phrase

Ic V I

Perfect cadences approached by Ic (second inversion of tonic)