Grieg Notturno

Question 1

Describe the title.

Answer 1

Derived from the word ‘nocturnal’ and is inspired by the evening mood after a busy day. They are often calm and tranquil.

Question 2

What genre is it?

Answer 2

It’s a character piece.

Question 3

How long is section A?

Answer 3

34 bars.

Question 4

What happens in the first 4 bars (introduction)?

Answer 4

Sets a peaceful tone in 9/8 with the pianist having to cross his hands in bar 1 to 3 (right over left) to reach the bass clef notes. Bars 2 and 4 start with an acciacatura or grace note and bar 4 is a variation of bar 2.
The left hand has 2 features- repeated and tied quavers on C and E and chromatically descending dotted crotchets.

Question 5

Describe the first melodic theme.

Answer 5

It starts on bar 5 with a rhythmic challenge of two against three. The melody rises by step to a strong dissonance on the first beat of bar 6 (c# is an accented passing note resolving to a D) with the right hand moving chromatically from an A to Ab.

Question 6

What happens in bars 7-8?

Answer 6

Exact repeat of bars 5-6 sequenced a tone lower.

Question 7

What happens in bar 9-14?

Answer 7

The phrase builds towards an Eb in bar 10 and towards an E natural in bar 12, increasing the intensity. Bars 13 and 14 ends the A section on an imperfect cadence with a suspension just before it.

Question 8

How long is section B?

Answer 8

12 bars.

Question 9

What happens in bars 15-17?

Answer 9

Bird-like trilling starts, sounding like a nightingale at a high registered pitch which slips from semiquavers to tuplets to trills followed by two bass notes.

Question 10

What happens in bars 18-20?

Answer 10

They are exactly the same as bars 12-17 just sequenced a minor 3rd higher.

Question 11

What happens in bar 21-33?

Answer 11

A specific rhythmic pattern is heard 10 times against a flowing arpeggio accompaniment, heard at ever increasing pitches, leading to the most intense part at bars 29-31.

Question 12

What further reinforces the programmatic writing of the piece?

Answer 12

Build up in tone, register, and ever-changing dynamics to show a sunset with slower notes in bars 31, 32 and a silence in bar 33 reinforcing descending darkness.

Question 13

What are the harmonies of bars 21-32?

Answer 13

Bars 21-22 = E7 add 9th
Bars 23-24 = E7 add 9th, 11th
Bars 25-26 = Ab7 add 9th 
Bars 27-28 = D7 add 9th
Bars 29-32 = Dm7 add 9th

Question 14

What happens at the end of section B (bars 31-33)?

Answer 14

It shows a release in tension with slower moving quavers, a diminuendo, and poco rit followed by a 3/8 bar of silence (bar 33).

Question 15

What happens at the start of the returning A section (bars34-42)?

Answer 15

They are the exact repeat of bars 1-9.

Question 16

What happens in bars 43-50?

Answer 16

The music continues in the same style as the opening A section but with new harmonies and stronger dynamic tension. He uses appoggiaturas (43, 45, 48, 50) and accented passing notes (47) and accented auxiliary notes (49) on the first beat of the bars.

Question 17

What happens in bars 51-54?

Answer 17

The triplet feel becomes sparser, fading into straight dotted crotchets. The harmonic rhythm changes from one chord per bar to three chords per bar by bar 54 and they are all chromatically descending dominant 7th, ending on the C7.

Question 18

What are the chords in bars 51-54?

Answer 18

Bar 51- Eb7 D7
Bar 52- Db7 C7
Bar 53- B7 Bb7 A7
Bar 54- Ab7 G7

Question 19

What happens at the start of the coda (bars 55-61)?

Answer 19

Bar 55- Music of bar 1 is heard up an octave with the first C omitted.
Bar 56-57 and 59-60- A trilling motif from bars 15-17.
Bars 58 and 61- A 3/8 bar of silence from bar 33.

Question 20

Give a description of the overall coda.

Answer 20

It starts with a tempo marking returning it to the original tempo followed by a morendo and the last 2 bars is marked adagio with the last chord held under a formatta.