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Music : Listening > Defying Gravity, Wicked (Stephen Schwartz) > Flashcards

Defying Gravity, Wicked (Stephen Schwartz) Flashcards

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1
Q

Key

A

Atonic (can’t tell key)

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2
Q

Melody

A

Uses leitmotifs
Unlimited theme - most important melody
First seven notes from ‘somewhere over the rainbow’

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3
Q

Intervals

A

Perfect fourths and perfect fifths - strong, assertive main melody

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4
Q

Structure

A

Extended:
Dialogue 1 - verse 1 - chorus - link - verse 2 - chorus - dialogue 2 - bridge 1 - chorus 3 - link 2m- revised intro - vamp - bridge 2 - chorus 4 - coda

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5
Q

Articulation

A

Full range - marcato stabbed chords (very accented) to legato (long)
Three one ostinato - staccato

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6
Q

Dynamics

A

Full range - fortissimo to pianissimo

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7
Q

Texture

A

Full range:
Starts homophonic with monophonic lines
Then MDH
The polyphonic for chorus

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8
Q

Colla voce

A

Voice sings freely and instruments follow

At beginning - metric ambiguity - switched between 3/2 and 2/2

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9
Q

Harmony/Tonality

A

Begins with alienated tonality - shifting harmonies
Major and minor harmonies used throughout
Augmented chords (raised fifths)
Half diminished chords (half flattened)
Bi tonal - two keys at the same time
Suspension - note stays same but chord moves

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10
Q

Time signature

A

2/2 then 4/4

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11
Q

Rhythm and metre

A

Syncopated melody - rubato

Alternates between slow chord accompaniments and driving quaver rhythms

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12
Q

Instrumentation

A

Classical orchestra + popular instruments (electric guitar, drums, synth sounds of keyboards, percussion)
Overdrive - electrically manipulate

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13
Q

Beginning

A 
Arguing:
call and response, 
chromatic harmony (semitone intervals), 
spoken notes, 
metric shifts, 
stab chords
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14
Q

Bar 58 ‘down’

A

Descending pitch

Word painting

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15
Q

Coda

A

Minor - B minor
Polytonal chords - more than 1 key
Whole tone scale - chords move by tone intervals

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16
Q

Is the melody conjunct?

A

The melody is mostly conjunct with a few disjunct leaps

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17
Q

Is the melody diatonic?

A

The melody is mostly diatonic except from the introduction.

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18
Q

Is the melody syncopated?

A

The melody is highly syncopated. Triplets and dotted rhythms are rather rare in the piece.

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19
Q

What is the tempo in bars 1-19?

A

Free tempo.

20
Q

What is the tempo in bars 20-48

A

Andante

21
Q

What is the tempo in bars 49-87

A

Allegro

22
Q

What is the tempo in bars 88-102?

A

Moderato

23
Q

What is the tempo in bars 103-110

A

Allegro

24
Q

What is the tempo in bars 111-128?

A

Andante

25
Q

What is the tempo in bars 129-161?

A

Allegro

26
Q

What is the tempo in bars 162-167?

A

Andante

26
Q

What is the tempo in bars 168-

A

Maestoso

27
Q

The key of the piece is…

A

… D major.

28
Q

What do you need to create a strong sense of key? (TAP)

A

Melodies that end on the tonic (T), accidentals making the key more ambiguous (A), perfect cadence (P).

29
Q

Why is the tonality ambiguous or unclear from bar 1? [AO4]

A

The use of accidentals. Parallel chromatic movement which isn’t in a set key. There are no more perfect cadences.

30
Q

What kind of cadence ends the verse? Why? What is the impact?

A

Imperfect cadence which makes it feel unfinished which builds up tension to the chorus.

31
Q

What kind of cadence ends the first chorus? Why? What is the impact?

A

Imperfect cadences because it ends on chord V to make it sound unfinished

32
Q

What is the surprise at the end of the second chorus? What is the impact? Why is the tonality ambiguous at this point? [AO4]

A

C9#11th makes it sound more magical because Elphaba is about to start flying on her broomstick which matches the dramatic action. Creates a tonality ambiguous. Lots of accidentals. No clear tonic. No perfect cadences.

33
Q

What is the surprise at the end of the final chorus (from bar 168?) What is the impact? Why does it suit the action? What happens on stage? Compare and contrast the lyrics between Elphaba and the chorus.

A

Interrupted cadence. The key changes to B minor and makes the sense of slightly weaker but it is still very strong. Foreshadowing for over the interval when the audience are thinking something unsettling is going to happen at the start of the next act.

34
Q

Name every instrument in the piece.

A

Flute
Oboe
bass clarinet
Bassoon
baritone saxophone
two horns
two trumpets
two trombones
Percussion
Harp
two violins
Viola
Cello
double bass
drum kit
two guitars
Three synthesizers

35
Q

What do the crossed note heads in bar 1 indicate?

A

Speech but starting the song

36
Q

Which voice type is the song written for?

A

High tessitura.

37
Q

Harmony.

A

Most chords are in simple root position.
There is some use of dissonance (eg bar 30 (“I don’t want it, no”).
At the end there is a pedal note (bar 168)

38
Q

Melody

A

Leaps often feature a rising perfect fifth (e.g. bar 34 “has changed”).
There are some exceptionally large leaps such as a compound perfect
fifth (13 whole notes!- e.g. bars 140 “told me lately everyone deserves..”).
These big leaps could be described as angular.
Often the melody is legato (“you can still be with the wizard”)
Bars 6 and 7 show an ascending sequence (“hurt your cause forever, I
hope you think you’re clever”)

39
Q

instruments/sonority

A

The brass plays homophonic chordal music, like a fanfare
The drum kit adds rhythmic momentum with a repeated hi hat in the first chorus.
There is a cymbal roll moving into the chorus which adds excitement.
The strings sometimes use tremolo to add tension (eg the start of verse 1)

40
Q

Background information

A

‘Defying Gravity’ is the finale song for the first act, when Elphaba discovers that the Wizard of Oz is not the heroic figure she had originally believed him to be. Realising this, Elphaba vows to do everything in her power to fight the Wizard and his sinister plans.
She sings of how she wants to live without limits, going against the rules that others have set for her.

41
Q

Texture

A

There is an ostinato accompaniment at bar 88. Sometimes the orchestra play homophonic chordal textures, like at bar 132. The intro has a sparse texture with chord stabs in the orchestra and some
monophonic bars
Elphaba and Glinda usually sing separately but sometimes sing together in unison (“there’s no fight we cannot win”) or in harmony (thirds) (“I hope you’re happy my friend”) The outro is polyphonic, with Elphaba, Glinda and the chorus all singing
different musical ideas at the same time.

42
Q

Rhythm, Metre and Tempo

A

The intro starts in 3/2 time, then changes to 2/2 . When verse 1
starts it then goes into 4/4 time. At bar 115 (“I hope you’re happy”) it goes back to 2/2 time.
There are several rallentandos or “ralls” (when the tempo slows down),
particularly at the end of sections. There is a rall at the end of the whole piece. Dotted rhythms are used throughout, like the word “gra-vi-ty” in
the chorus. There are also triplets. Rhythms in the vocal part are mostly crotchets and quavers, but there are some longer notes at the end of phrases. Rests break up phrases, and phrases often start with a rest

43
Q

Tonality

A

During the intro the piece modulates briefly to B major at bar 20, F major at bar 22, and finally gets to the tonic D major at the start of the
verse. The “unlimited” section is in G major, then it goes back to D major when it returns to the chorus. The following andante section (“well, are you coming?”) returns to
the chromatic melody of the intro. It returns to D major for the final verse (“so if you care to find me”). The final maestoso section is in B minor, before finishing on a D major
chord

44
Q

Composer of ‘Wicked’.

A

Stephen Schwartz

45
Q

What has just happened in ‘Wicked’ when Elphaba and Glinda start to sing?

A

The mighty Act I closer is Elphaba’s roar of defiance. She’s discovered that the Wizard is a liar and a fraud: he’s behind the suppression of animals, and he’s threatened by Elphaba’s actual magic power. Madame Morrible tells Oz that Elphaba is a “wicked witch”, but our girl has had enough of other people defining her – she’s taking a literal and figurative leap, using a levitation spell on her broomstick and flying away.

Music : Listening (8 decks)

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