Familia Valera Miranda Flashcards
where are the works from?
previous generations of the Valera Miranda family
where were they written?
Descarga sessions
improvised
what do the songs refer to?
incidents in the family history
(se quema) describe the plot
a plot of land caught fire and the wife wasn’t interested
(candela) describe the plot
a man falling deeply in love
what’s the african influence?
19th century slaves brought to Cuba by the Spanish
what’s cuban music a fusion of?
West African and European (spanish)
What are the African influences?
complex rhythms
call and response
What are the spanish influences?
tonality
melody and harmony
percussion mostly Cuban instruments e.g claves, bongos and congas
what was cuban music designed for?
dancing
rhythmic foundation provided by the claves
(se quema) how is the ‘son’ characteristic evident?
call and response
duple metre
2-3 son clave pattern
restriced harmonic vocabulary of tonic + dom.
instrumental passages break up strophic structure
(se quema) what are the performing forces?
solo male voive (pregon) male - voice chorus (coro) cuatro gutar pizz double bass maracas bongos claves
(se quema) what’s the texture?
mel-dom-hom
(se quema) where does rhythmic polyphony occur?
interaction between the cuatro, vocal parts and percussion
(se quema) what does the guitar provide?
chordal accompaniment
chords consisting of four and six notes
(se quema) what is the metre?
brisk duple time
(se quema) what is the prominent feature of the rhythm?
2-3 son clave rhythm in claves
(se quema) what notable rhythmic features are used?
constant quaver pulse in bongos
syncopation
vocal phrases begin on the second beat
every fourth bar marked by three-crotchet vocal rhythm
triplet crotchets in cuatro solo
cross-rhythmic effect by repeating three-quaver pattern
(se quema) what is the melody characterised by?
paired two-bar phrases
solo built from first six notes of Gm scale
(se quema) what are the two main vocal elements to the solo part?
lead vocals refrain
contrasting, more elaborate ‘narrative’ phrases
(se quema) what does the backing vocal always commence on?
mediant or supertonic
(se quema) what does the Cuatros opening material consist of?
balanced rising and falling phrases
(se quema) what does the cuatros extended solo feature?
additional chromatic notes
broken dominant 7th patterns
leaps of minor 9th
(se quema) what do the vocals consist of?
only tonic and dominant 7ths (Gm + D7)
(se quema) describe the tonality
Gm
(se quema) does it modulate?
no
(se quema) describe the structure
alteration of pregon and coro with extended cuatro solo
(se quema) what ostinato is used?
guajeo
(se quema) what are the two chords used?
Gm
D7
(se quema) what’s the coro?
chorus
male voices
(candela) what does Alla va Candela translate to?
there goes mr fire
(candela) what type of song is it?
Bolero-son
(candela) what’s the characteristics of the Bolero?
about love
quadruple time
lyrical melody
(candela) describe the sonority
solo male voice chorus male-voice chorus cuatro guitar pizz double bass maracas bongos claves
(candela) what’s the texture?
mel-dom-hom
(candela) what are the vocal parts confined to?
two-note octave interjections of ‘mama’
(candela) what’s the metre?
moderate quadruple time in Bolero then an acceleration into the ‘son’ section
(candela) what notable features are there in the rhythm?
flowing quavers in cuatro at opening syncopation vocal phrases begin with an anacrusis crotchet triplets in cuatro dotted rhythm in bass
(candela) what is the melody characterised by?
balanced phrasing
melodies more flexible than ‘se quema’
prominent falling 5th at the close of phrases
(candela) how is the vocal melody characterised?
vocal lines built entirely from notes of E major scale
solo vocalist covers a 12th (B-Fsharp)
(candela) what represents a beating heart?
rapidly repeating notes
(candela) describe the introduction
cuatro
broken chord
tonic triad
(candela) describe the cuatro solo
chromatic notes
chromatic scale
repetitions
ornamentation
(candela) what does the harmony draw on?
the tonic chord
(candela) what is the key?
E major
(candela) does it modulate?
no
(candela) what’s a striking feature of the structure?
avoidance of a repeat of the opening bolero material
(candela) what are the two chords mostly used?
E and B7
(candela) chords briefly appear?
F sharp 7
E7
A
(chumbumba) What’s the chord sequence?
Gm and D7
Koko-Yiri
starts monophonic with balanced phrasing heterophony and polyphony cross-rhythms,polyrhythms and syncopation modal with a pentatonic scale call and response and unison ostinato free time/unmetred learnt oraly
Gershwin Cuban overture and Copeland - Three Latin American sketches
pizz and arco strings classical orchestra rising figures accented notes quick rhythms dance style son clave rhythms clear sense of pulse repeated passed around orchestra dance style
Ladysmith Black Mambazo
call and response vibrato octaves simple melodies repetitive clapping contrapuntal melismatic almost spoken
Flamenco dancing
stamping to emphasise beat
claps
held movements
dancers double melody
Context
during the 19th c. African slaves were brought to cuba
cuban music = dancing and listening
song context
Familia Valera Miranda
early 20th c.
origins = descarga - improv sessions
incidents from families history
