Erster Aufzug- Wagner Opening (10 bars)

This piece comes from an opera by Wagner called Tristan and Isolde, from which we get the so-called 'Tristan' chord. In the opera there are a few leitmotifs that come throughout (in every piece), representing different forms of love and doubt. These motifs are only a few bars long each, however there are many occasions on which they are repeated a few times at once.
The piece is not in a specified key signature, because most of the parts have no key signature, however the clarinets in A, the bass clarinet in A, and the Cor Anglaise all have different ones (to begin with, and the parts' key signatures all change at different points throughout the piece). There are also many accidentals throughout the piece, further blurring the key signature. It was becoming popular in the Romantic period not to stick to one key. However the time signature is 6/8 throughout. There is a lot of use of ritardandos and then a tempo's, meaning that the piece is not at a strict tempo. This aspect is typical of the Romantic period, when strict tempo was becoming uncommon, to create arguably more emotional music (hence the period's name).
The piece opens with the cellos playing the "Grief" motif, followed a bar later with the oboes playing the second motif ("Desire"), consisting of many semitones against each other, which creates a strongly dissonant chord, causing instant tension in the piece. Perhaps this represents the real-life tension between feelings of desire and grief. The cellos then repeat the "Grief" motif after a bar, whilst the clarinets in A imitate the "Desire" motif half way through it, again causing tension. All this tension is further enhanced by the long periods of rests in this opening section. The parts where notes are being played here have relatively thick textures, with 4 or 5 instruments playing at once, creating a louder dynamic and thus even more drama. Of course there are also dynamics used here- diminuendos from the first note, meaning that the first note is almost accented, and in the cello part, the use of crescendos and then diminuendos builds, and then releases tension. In the third time that instruments play in the piece (bar 11), all the instruments have sforzandos, again creating tension. This however comes after the cellos have had a short melody- the "Grief" motif, which has been transposed up a third since the first time it played. The fact that there is this melody means that we are lulled into a false sense of security before the big, dissonant (and thus highly tense) chord.


I used this recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LRoOzJNr1sc

Improved Analysis of Prokofiev Symphony

 This movement of the symphony (a 4-movement work for full orchestra begun in the Classical period) by Prokofiev demonstrates many elements of the music at the time (the Romantic Period), for example it utilises a string-dominated orchestra. The piece is in Sonata form, a form typical to the Classical period. It also involves periodic (symmetrical) phrases, another feature typical of the time. The use of terraced dynamics, which, in the Romantic period, was known as ‘Sturm und Drang’ (storm and stress) We can tell that the piece was written in the early 20th century because it seems to be part of a precursor to Neoclassicism in its style, (as it was not yet the 20^th century when Neoclassicism had begun) with its balanced structure (ABA) and arguably emotional restraint.

The piece begins in D major, and as I mentioned, uses terraced dynamics throughout, with the dynamics ranging from pp to ff (e.g. bars 1 and 10). These dynamics are enhanced by the instrumentation- Prokofiev uses a thinner texture for quieter sections and a thicker texture for louder ones, for example in bar 1 when the dynamic is ff, every instrument is playing. In bar 10 however, only the violin I is really playing, because the dynamic is pp. This use of instrumentation means that the sections are naturally louder or softer, and more or less dramatic and intense. In general the piece is at quite a fast tempo, as it is marked Allegro (lively), which is enhanced by the 2/2 time signature, giving the piece a forward moving feel. Although this time signature does change in bars 27 and 61 to 2/4, it returns to 2/2 in the following bars. During the melodies, there is a lot of unison used, for example the melody in the beginning of the piece, between the flute, clarinet and all strings (except the bass).

The structure of the piece is of course that it uses a Sonata form, which means that it has an Exposition, followed by a Development for much of the piece, and finally has a Recapitulation. The piece begins in D major, up until bar 7, when it moves to the relative minor- B minor (there are A#’s in the clarinet part- VII for the key of Bm), then it moves to CM in bar 11, then goes to the relative minor of C in bar 16 (Am). In bar 18 it goes to AM, the dominant key of the original (DM). Along with the sudden change in the rhythms of the parts, I believe this dramatic key change signifies a new subject. This new subject consists of most of the the parts having a crotchet on the last beat of bar 18, which seems to be an anacrusis into the subject, at which point the viola takes the melody, consisting of quaver movement. The Violin I in the next bar imitates this short melody, and then in bar 23 the Violin II takes the melody, although it is now simply quavers moving in a step-wise motion only, in a small, pivotal contour.

A: 5

B: 4

C: 5

D: 5

Prokofiev Exam Conditions Analysis

This piece is typical of Prokofiev’s lively-yet-large style, which I have often heard in his bigger works. It uses a full orchestra in order to do this, utilizing instruments at every range to create a full feel for the piece. The piece is in 2/2, meaning that, combined with the lively tempo marking, it moves along quite fast. It is also in a major key (D), so is joyful as well.
The piece begins with all instruments sounding with the tonic chord (bar 1), thus giving a big opening, which gives the audience a sense of how the piece is going to be- a big work. This then continues into a melody that finishes on the tonic an octave above (bar 3), instantly creating a sense of growth and tension building. The timpani and brass here are used only on the two most important chords- the two tonics, thus making them even more important. This opening immediately leads into a flowing violin melody, accompanied only by Violin II and Viola playing repetitive ascending rhythms that build the tension (bars 3-6), until other instruments come in too (bar 7)

Marks:
Criterion A (Identification of elements) - 4
Criterion B (Structure in the music) - 3
Criterion C (Terminology) - 3
Criterion D (Context) - 2
Total: 12/20