Jeff Buckley - Grace Flashcards
what is the time signature?
12/8
what instruments play at the beginning?
two electric guitars - one distorted, one not.
what electronic effects are used?
EQ, delay, flanger, distortion, overdubbing
what instruments are used?
vocals electric guitar acoustic guitar bass strings synth drums
what vocal techniques does buckley use?
falsetto, vibrato, portamento/scoops
what is the main key of the piece?
E minor
are the chord progressions used usual or unusual?
unusual
describe the texture of the piece
begins with two guitars, thickens towards the end
give an example of words that are melismatic in the piece
love, fire
is the melody mainly syllabic or melismatic?
syllabic
in which year was Grace released?
1994
in which country was Grace recorded?
America
describe the structure of this piece
- verse chorus/song structure
- middle 8/bride
- intro
- intro used as a link
- link between end of chorus and start of next verse
- outro
- outro uses same chord sequence as chorus
- pre-chorus
- no pre-chorus after verse three
describe the melody of this piece
- wide range exploited
- starts in low register
- very high in places - goes up to top D
- combination of syllabic and melismatic phrases
- some portamento/glissando on away, afraid, die
- vocalise in bridge section on oh, eh
- vocal improvisation at the end is very high
- melody is diatonic with chromatic notes added
describe the harmony of this piece
- some complex/altered/extended chords
- main chord sequence is a power chord played in different ways
- minor/modal
- use of dissonance
- first half of verse uses E minor F E minor E flat progression
- chorus chord progression F, E minor, E flat7
describe the texture of this piece
- the main texture is homophonic (melody and accompaniment)
- textures are varied throughout
- guitars and drums feature virtually throughout
- string parts only used from time to time
- guitar ‘whisper effects’ are only used where they can be heard
how is the word ‘love’ set to music in this piece?
- melisma
- legato
- descending
- sustained
- ornamented and glissando
name three common guitar techniques heard in this song
- strumming
- finger picking
- hammer ons
- pull offs
- glissando
does the intro have a set key?
it is ambiguous but focuses on D chord
how is word painting used in this piece
‘slow’ verse three - long note
‘drown’ - coda -thick texture
what is the structure of this piece?
- intro
- verse 1
- chorus 1
- intro
- verse 2
- chorus 2
- bridge
- intro
- verse 3
- coda/outro
What instruments vary the texture?
Synths and strings
What instrument does the piece start with?
Two electric guitars
(one distorted, one not)
And synthesizer in background
What instrumentation is playing by the end?
The full band
What instrument comes in after a few bars?
Bass and drums
What does Buckley use when singing?
He’s uses falsetto, vibrato and scoops (portamento)
What chord is the intro in?
D chord
What are a lot of the chords?
Chromatic chords
Name three features of the melody?
- Syllabic
- Glissandos
- Falling phrases (reflecting mood)
- Improvised feel
- Wide range of vocals
- Vocalisation is wordless on bridge
- Some melismas on certain words, e.g fire
What is the tempo of the piece?
Steady 12/8
64 dotted crotchet bpm
How many dotted crotchet beats in a bar?
4
What kind of rhythms are involved in this piece?
cross rhythms
What is the style of this piece?
Folk- Rock
How many riffs are in this piece?
4
In the final section (link-v3-outro), what do both guitars play?
a fourth riff
what is the first riff made up of?
semiquavers
in the verses, what does the electric guitar play?
broken chords
In the verses and choruses, what does the acoustic guitar play?
rhythmic, percussive riff
Why does this piece feel faster than stead 12/8 tempo?
Because the guitar plays semiquaver runs at the beginning
what are the dynamics like at the beginning of this piece?
quiet
what happens when more instruments are brought in?
Dynamics increase
What id drop D tuning?
Where the lower E string is tuned down to the note D to give it a darker feel.
What is the harmony in this piece?
Harmony is non functional
