Esperanza Spalding Samba em Preludio Flashcards
When and genre
1962, bossa nova
What does bossa nova mean?
.’New tend’
.Mix of samba and Jazz
Who was it written by?
Roberto Baden Powell de Aquino
What does Samba em Preludio mean?
Samba in the style of a prelude
What language are the lyrics?
Portuguese, the language of Brazil
Who wrote the lyrics?
Vinicius de Moraes
When did Esperanza Spalding release her version?
2008
What does Spalding do on this track?
Sing the vocal line and play the acoustic bass guitar
Describe the voice
Female voice with a low tessitura
Describe 3 features of the acoustic bass guitars playing
Broken chords
Scale patterns
Double stopping
State 3 ornaments in the acoustic bass guitars part
Mordents
Harmonics
Glissando
2 purposes of the acoustic guitar
.plays chords and melodic fragments between vocal phrases
.Has a virtuosic solo
What does D.S al Coda mean?
From the sign to the Coda
State the structure
Intro A A1 (Verse 1) B B1 (Verse 2) Guitar Solo Repeats Coda
What happens with both of the main melodies (A and B)
They are immediately repeated in a varied form (A1 and B1)
Describe the intro
Solo in free tempo for acoustic bass guitar
Improvisatory
Based on broken chords and scale-based figures
When does the acoustic bass guitar join in?
B B1 (Verse 2)
What is the acoustic guitar solo based on?
The chords of section B
Describe the repeat section
.Bass plays an augmented version of vocal melody A
.At same time the vocal line sings a simplified of vocal melody B
.Acoustic guitar is silent
Describe the coda section
Based on the melody of bars 50-53, sung twice more
Intro texture
Monophonic
Overall texture
Homophonic (melody and accompaniment)
Texture of repeats
Contrapuntal
Describe Tonality of the piece
B minor
No modulations
Many chromatic notes
What type of chords are used and why?
.Chords are complex because Bossa Nova is based on Jazz
.Simple triads are rare
Give examples of types of chords used
.7ths .9ths .11ths .13ths .Diminished 7ths .C and F (chromatic in the key of B minor)
What is usually used to end a Jazz performance
An extended chord
What is the final chord of this piece
Bm13 (actually Bm#13 because the 13th is G#)
Describe the vocal melody of A
.4 note rising figure
.Each phrase spans a 7th (apart from the first which spans a 6th)
.The first or second note of each phrase falls by step
How is a melancholy mood created with vocal melody A?
Falling sequence, low tessitura, and minor key
How does the melody in section A move mainly?
Leaps of a 3rd and a 7th
Describe the vocal melody of B
.Conjuct
.Repeats (but transposed)
.Descending sequence at one point
What is the word setting?
Syllabic
Describe the acoustic guitar solo
.Based on scale and chord patterns
.Shows range
.Shows versatility in upper register
.Use of fingered tremolo
Metre
simple quadruple time
The first 3 bars are rubato, what is rubato?
tiny fluctuations in tempo for expressive effect
What is the tempo marking at the start
‘Free tempo’
Why do the rhythms look so complex?
It was improvised and transcribe
What is there frequent use of in the rhythm?
Triplets and syncopation
What is cross-rhythm?
When two rhythmic patterns that conflict occur simultaneously
When does the dance section start?
Bar 19, direction ‘Bossa Nova (in tempo)’
Characteristics of bossa nova
Gently syncopated and dotted rhythms
