Bohemian Rhapsody - Queen Flashcards
What key is bohemian rhapsody in?
Bb major
Who was bohemian rhapsody written by?
Lead singer, Freddie Mercury
Which album is it from
Released as first single for them album “a night at the opera”
Was this single expensive?
One of the most expensive singles ever made
What is the structure?
Intro (a Capella)/ballad/guitar solo/operatic section/hard rock section/outro
What is the melody like in the intro?
A Capella in four part harmony
What happens at “look up to the sky”
Melody ascends, reflects the lyrics
What does the melody do at “easy come, easy go”?
Slides up and down chromatically
What is the melody like at the beginning of the ballad section?
Begins with descending melody “gun against his head” and “gone and thrown it all away” followed by an ascending melody “if I’m not back again this time tomorrow”
What is the guitar solo based on?
Based on ballad section, rising and falling chromatically
What is “let me go” sung on?
Descending dominant 7th before ascending on a dominant 7th for “no no no”
What key does the piece begin in?
Bb major
What is the bass line like in the ballad section and what does this create?
Bass line is chromatic crates modulation to Eb major
What does the guitar solo modulate to?
A major for the operatic section
What happens harmonically in operatic section?
Rapid series of harmonic changes
Is the piece diatonic?
No, here is a massive amount of chromaticism
How does Mercury play the piano?
With his iconic vamp style where the hands cross over
How do the vocals evolve in the ballad section?
Vocals evolve from softly sing harmony to impassioned solo
What does the drum beat do?
Features 1-1-2 rock rhythm as in “we will rock you”
What happens at “send shivers down my spine”
May imitates bell tree by playing the strings on the guitar on the “wrong” side of the bridge
What is at the end
Gong is at the end
How long did the piece take to record?
3 weeks
How many separate overdubs were there
180 separate overdubs, studios at the time only offered 24 track analogue tapes so it was necessary to “bounce” these down to successive sub-mixes
When are the overdubs particularly prominent?
In the intro and operatic sections
What kind of amplifier does John Deacon use?
An amplifier he designed himself, nicknamed the “deacy amp”
When was Bohemian Rhapsody released?
1975
What instruments are playing?
Vocals, guitar, bass, drums, piano, gong
