2. • Explain in detail THREE ways that timbre and / or instrumentation
are important features of the work as a whole.
Each explanation might focus on: • a single instrument • a
combination of instruments • the alteration of an instrument’s sound
(eg by using a mute or effects pedal). Give specific musical evidence
from the score, such as bar numbers and musical quotations.
3. West Side Story – ‘Something’s Coming’
Composed by Leonard Bernstein
American 20th century Musical
• Timbre/Instrumentation is an important feature as it helped to create
and reinforce the characters, setting, action and emotion experienced
during the progression of the musical, either as outer/external
actions, or inner/subtle hints of emotions or shadowing what’s to
come.
4. Large Instrumentation
• There are 31 musicians required to play in the orchestra pit. Between them
5 reed players that are doubling multiple woodwind instruments (from
piccolo to bass saxophone), brass players switching between various mutes
(straight, plunger, even French horn mutes), strings, large variety of
percussions (from the Classical timpani and xylophone, rock drum kit, to
variety of Latin percussions such as timbales, piano and guitars.
• Bernstein himself was involved in the orchestration process, which was
unusual for a typical Broadway composer, indicating his involvement and
passion to make sure the right sound is projected.
• The large, comprehensive and complex instruments and players utilized is
to ensure the variety of music styles portrayed in the character and setting,
in the musical, is being sufficiently carried out in sound- from classical
through to the contemporary.
5. Soft Timbres that don’t overpower the voice
• In ‘Something’s Coming’, the song is a soliloquy of Tony, the male
lead, pondering on the thoughts of what’s to come at the upcoming
dance that he has been invited to.
• Because Tony is expressing his inner thoughts, the timbre is soft so
they don’t overpower the voice.
• The instrumentation used in the first section, clarinets, bass clarinet,
pizzicato strings and bass drum with brushes on sanre and high hat,
playing with soft dynamics, added muted trumpets later on
• The soft timbre had to be utilized due to the fact that there were no
radio mics in the 1950s for stage performers so the accompaniment
had to be soft in order for the vocalist to be heard over the music
6. Strings High Register, Pizzicato and Tremolo
• Strings have pizzicato (plucking strings) for the first 15 bars
• When the lyrics ‘whistling’, strings accompaniment have very high
pitched strings to ‘word paint’.
• When the lyrics ‘air is humming’, strings accompaniment have high
violins tremolo and sustained harmonics, again, to word paint.
• These examples reflect the importance of timbre/instrumentation in
the musical, for the accompaniment to reflect and to describe the
feeling that the character is experiencing, both anxious and excited at
the same time.
7. • Select (✔) TWO of the following elements of the work.
• Form / structure
• Melody
• Rhythm
• These elements will be used in features of the work, which might
include (for example): • inversion • introduction • melodic range •
motif(s) • phrases • repetition • syncopation. For each element: •
explain ONE way it is used as an important feature of the music •
give specific musical evidence from the score • evaluate the effect
of the use of the feature within the work as a whole.
8. Melody
In ‘Something’s Coming’, the melody is in D major, Tony, a tenor, sings in the
range of a 10th (E to G), and the melody is syllabic. Although the music is
diatonic, the all-important melodic tritone which infiltrate the musical as the
tragic undertone comes in.
For example, in bar 8-9, the tritone in the melody line D-G#, as well as being
played in the accompaniment as a harmonic tritone.
In bar 17 the melodic tritone presents itself with the lyrics ‘soon as it shows’.
The tritone is an important feature of the musical as it gives the underlying
tragic nature of the Romeo and Juliet love story, which the musical is based
on. The effect of the use of tritone within the work (even outside the song
itself) as a whole is to create the feeling of anxiety and discomfort, despite
the plot progression in the early stages of the happy and eager youth.
9. Rhythm
• The driving rhythms in ‘Something’s Coming’ created a sense of urgency
and excitement.
• The syncopated ‘push’ rhythms- accompaniment and riff ‘push’ on the
third beat of the bar, as well as in the vocal, Tony’s first note comes in with
a syncopated push on the 3rd beat
• There is further mix of straight rhythms (Something’s coming) and
syncopated rhythms (I don’t know what it is)
• The use of syncopated rhythms and the emphasis on the 3rd beat ives the
effect of uncertainty (as usual strong accents is on the first beat of the bar),
and the rhythm in both accompaniment and melodic material indicates
Tony’s emotional anxiety and excitement, with the tension subtly brewing
underneath in the use of cross rhythms that is continuous in the song.
10. Symphony No. 5 First Movement Op.67
Ludwig van Beethoven
Classical period symphony
• Identify THREE significant features used in the work that are typical
of the genre / style / period of the music you have studied.
• The features might include:
• • a performance practice (eg improvisation, inclusion of cadenzas)
• • an authentic method of transmission of the music (eg live
performance, audio recording)
• • a characteristic of the instruments used (eg acoustic, electric)
• • a rhythmic convention (eg swung or double-dotted quavers).
11. THREE significant features used in the work that are
typical of the genre / style / period of the music
you have studied.
• Classical period symphonic orchestration
• Classical period sonata form structure
• Period instruments- use of gut string (string instruments) which gives
a softer, mellow sound, timpani with stretched animal skin (much
harder to tune, and a softer rounder tone)
12. • Explain in detail how TWO of these features are used in the work.
• In your responses:
• • evaluate the importance of the feature in showing that the music is
a representative work of the genre / style / period
• • give specific musical evidence to support the points you make.
13. Classical period symphonic orchestration
• Beethoven uses the standard Classical period instrumentation for the first
movement, paired flutes, oboes, clarinets, bassoons, horns, trumpets,
timpani (in G-C) and strings.
• The first movement instrumentation is typical of the period/genre as
strings are still the dominant force, but with more woodwind and brass
used that in this movement, given its own moment in introducing new
themes, eg, French horn at start of 2nd subject at Exposition and bassoon at
Recapitulation
• ,
• and clarinet in the 2nd subject.
• The use of these orchestration elements allows much more character and
colour to the symphony, in line with the classical ideal of rhetoric,
elegance, simplicity and balance.
14. Classical period sonata form structure
• The first movement uses the standard sonata form, with a slight twist.
• We have the usual Exposition (with 1st subject, memorable pounding motif;
and 2nd subject, the lyrical extension), that is repeated at the end.
Development (which the motif, clearly heard, being developed using a
variety of compositional devices that layered itself into a climax, before a
calmer section with slower rhythmic pace, building back to the
Recapitulation, where the 1st and 2nd subject are heard in full, a small
curious addition of 2 bar oboe cadenza. The coda section is much longer,
including the unexpected introduction of a new theme, before the final
repeat of the motif, followed by the typical repetitive perfect cadence to
close the movement.
• The use of sonata form in first movement of a classical symphonic writing is
typical, as it reinforce the ‘Golden Ratio’ classical ideal. The thematic ideas
progressed in conjunction with the harmonic focus around the tonic, brings
a logical thought and development process to the compositional structure
that are idealized in the Classical period.
15. Compare and Contrast
• (a) Choose one of the works, and explain how its first performance
was affected by ONE of the following factors:
• historical / social / cultural events of the time
• resources available at the time (eg instruments).
16. • historical / social / cultural events of the time
• resources available at the time (eg instruments).
• West Side Story was premiered in Broadway in 1957 and made into an award winning film in 1961.
• It became one of the longest running Broadway shows. It won multiple awards.
• This musical was affected by a variety of contemporary social cultural factors, which was one of the many
reasons that made West Side Story so popular and longstanding.
• Bernstein had experience writing musicals before, but with West Side Story, it brings a personal touch that
emphasized the yearning for love and acceptance, for himself was a Jew and a homosexual, at the time
looked down upon.
• The 1950s was a time which jazz and rock music was very popular, and this was reflected in the score with
‘Dance at the Gym’, and the numbers that the Jet gang sang.
• Stephen Sondheim wrote the lyrics for the musical (librettist/lyricist/composer – Sweeny Todd)
• Based on the tragic love story of Shakespeare’s Romeo & Juliet
• The social and cultural evens of the time, with large Puerto Rican immigration that produced many racial
discrimination and conflicts, was written in as the two gangs of opposing race/culture.
• The themes (racism, immigration, love, tragedy, rivalry) are still as relevant today as they were when
Bernstein composed the musical.
• Revolutionary – not about happy, sweet things (like Rodgers & Hammerstein) – West Side Story is a story of
doomed love, extended dance scenes, underscoring, use of tritone.
17. • For the other work, explain how ONE of the following elements has
been used: • tonality • texture.
18. Tonality - Beethoven
• In Symphony No. 5, first movement, the tonality is related with the
thematic structure that exemplify the classical sonata form.
• The tonality of the first movement is in C minor.
• The Exposition, first subject is in C minor tonic, 2nd subject in Eb major
(relative major)
• The Development saw various key transitions.
• The Recapitulation saw the tonic C minor returns with the restatement of
the motif, and the 2nd subject in C major (tonic major)
• The Coda ending the piece in C minor
• The tonality in this movement reflects the schematic working of the main
ideas, as well as for the listeners to understand the significance of musical
events, in this case, the importance of the ‘fate knocking on the door’
motif presented throughout reinforced the engaging nature of the C minor
tonality within the piece.
19. • Identify ONE element, compositional device, or performance
technique that is used in BOTH works.
Choose a different element / device / technique from those you
discussed in previous questions.
Discuss ONE similarity OR difference in the way this element /device /
technique has been used in the works. Give specific evidence from
each work to support the points you make
20. TEXTURE
• Discuss ONE similarity OR difference in the way this element /device / technique
has been used in the works. Give specific evidence from each work to support the
points you make
Both Homophonic
WSS’s ‘Something’s Coming’- the texture was much thinner due to the soliloquy
nature of the character singing his inner thoughts reflecting the anxiety and
excitement of the upcoming events. Despite the 3 ideas being introduced and re-
worked throughout the piece, the combination of these ideas as well as the driving
nature of the accompaniment and push rhythm gave away any moment to be
decisive (in unison), and therefore, illustrated the character’s state at the time.
Beethoven’s 5th movement 1- the texture was much thicker due to the consistent
repetition of the motif. The movement can be described as consistent of build up
using the motif culminating with the unison statement of the motif, therefore,
much thicker texture were utilized to gives reinforcement of the main idea. Despite
the 2nd subject being much more lyrical compare to the first, the motif reappears
below in inverted format, looming the ‘fate’ across the major tonality moment to
keep the tension and angst going.
