Applied - Purcell Flashcards
0
Q
What features display sorrow and pain?
A
- Insistent minor key in A.
- Chromatic descent in ground bass
- Melodic descent in vocal line of R. darkens mood from previous chorus
- Short rests in R. separate a series of short phrases - sobbing
- Repetition of ground bass - gloomy insistency
- Harmony expresses grief and pain
- Syllabic word setting
- Slow harmonic rhythm
- Dissonance creates sense of pathos
1
Q
What are the features of the period?
A
- One voice with continuo accompaniment - Baroque recitatives
- Figured bass
- R. begins and ends in different keys
- R. in simple quadruple time
- Triple time common in Baroque era for ground basses (chaconnes and passacaglias)
- Uses hemiola to approach perf. cad.
- Word painting
- Dissonance
2
Q
What is the tonality of the aria?
A
G minor throughout with colour provided in the chromatic descent of the ground bass
3
Q
What is the tonality of the recitative?
A
- Key is G minor but opens in Cm, implied by B natural in bar 1.
- A natural in bar 3 implies F major but is quickly contrasted with Ab again
- Finishes in G minor (phrygian cadence from bar 8.3)
4
Q
What are features of harmony in the recitative?
A
- Phyrigian cadence (4.3-5.2, 8.3)
- Suspensions (4, 8)
- Dissonant minor 9ths
- Slow harmonic rhythm
- Upward resolving appoggiatura at bar 7.3 to Eb - dark after E natural ar 7.1
5
Q
What are features of harmony in the aria?
A
- Ground bass begins with chromatic descent
- First plain triad in bar 6
- Secondary dominant (Gm chord with F in bass, V7d of IV) (7.3)
- Prepared dissonance in 11.3, forming part of a dim 7 triad
- At final cadence, each violin part has a G anticipation, (from contrary motion)
- Final chord is a bare 5th, abrupt
6
Q
What are features of structure in the recitative?
A
- Short so no proper form but clearly divides in two
- Melody of second could be regarded as a much varied repeat of first as both execute a chromatic descent of a 4th
- Bass of second part has same as first but transposed 4th/5th lower
- Purpose is to link preceding chorus to the Aria, darkening mood
7
Q
What are features of structure in the aria?
A
- Built on 11 statement of ground bass
- Ground bass is which is 5 bars long instead of conventional 4 bars
- Similar to binary form plus intro and postlude yet no (typical) modulation
• solo bass AABB ritornelle
8
Q
What are features of texture in the recitative?
A
- Two part on paper but…
- When played an archlute player would provide improvised harmonic infilling therefore MDH would acknowledge the ornate vocal melody and slow moving harmonic accompaniment
9
Q
What are features of texture in the aria?
A
- Monophonic first statement
- Voice with full strings in homophony - MDH mostly
- Homophonic+rhythmic strings (6-7)
- Parallel 3rds & 6ths between violins and ground bass at (26.3-29.2)
- Strings imitation in closing ritornelle
10
Q
What are features of melody in the recitative?
A
- Vocal gradually decreases from C to middle C
- Up to ‘death is now’, vocal melody falls a minor 7th
- Up to bar 8, almost every melodic interval is a tone or semitone
- Vocal line not straight, meanders back on itself
- Every pitch between C and D sounded except F#
- Closing notes slightly higher with prominent F sharp - matches grimly positive words ‘a welcome guest’
12
Q
What are melodic features of the aria?
A
- Bass part:
- is 11 statements, same pitch
- Begins with descent from G-D with every tone used
- Vocal part:
- Avoids chromaticism except Bb and B natural close
- Stepwise mostly but with small leaps
- Range of diminished 7th in A section (F#-Eb)
- Melodically static at start of B section (V pedal)
- REpeated D’s (25) ‘lift’ melody to higher tessitura
- Melodic climax with top Gs (43) at third and final remember before melody descends by step (F-G)
- Upper strings parts have little melodic character until ritornelle where violisn I and II descend chromatically
