Something's Coming-Berstein (1957)

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Which musical is 'something's coming' from?
West side Story, a modern version of Romeo and Juliet in New york
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Which character sings the song, and what type of voice do they have?
Tony, High tenor
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What are the gangs in West side story called?
The Sharks and the Jets
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When was West Side story first performed?
1957 on Broadway
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What type of Orchestra is used?
A chamber orchestra, made up of woodwind, percussion, strings and Brass
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How many of each instrument are there?
5 woodwind players, 2 horns, 3 trumpets, 2 trombones, 7 violins, 4 cellos, and 2 double basses.
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What is used to play the drums?
Brushes
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What is word painting?
When the instruments use techniques to illustrate the words being sung, like the tremolo in the 'air is humming'
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What methods are used by the instruments to not over power the voice?
Quiet Dynamics, Soft timbres, mutes, pizzicato and a clear homophonic texture.
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Which devices are used in the strings?
Harmonics and tremolo.
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Which devices are used by the instruments?
The instruments often imitate each other, usually at different octaves.
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What key is the piece in?
D major but there are 2 contrasting sections in C Major (bars 32-72 and 106-127)
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What is the metre?
3/4 at the beginning (slower parts), the 2/4 first heard in bar 21 (faster, more exciting parts)
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What is the tempo?
176 bpm
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What is the structure?
Intro A B B A outro
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Describe the 1st theme ( of the 3 main themes)
A quiet, syncopated opening theme
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Describe the 2nd theme
A loud, strident theme in 2/4 starting in bar 21 (it may come cannonballing)
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Describe the 3rd theme
A lyrical, slow moving theme that starts at bar 73 (the air is humming)
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How are themes seperated?
Themes are repeated several times, but each repeat is varied. Metre or words change with each theme change
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What is the word setting of the melody?
Syllabic
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How long are the melodic phrases at the beginning ?
2 Bars
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Then how long are the melodic phrases?
8 bars ('around the corner')
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Which other genre is the harmony influenced by?
Jazz
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What is a Tritone (used in the melody)
An interval of 3 whole tones, e.g. C-F#.
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What scale is the melody based on?
Blues scale
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In which section is the song Chromatic?
Bars 77-81
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What are the dynamics of the piece?
Starts PP, goes to F 'it may come cannonballing', MF round the corner, ends PP
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What is the texture?
Mainly Homophonic
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What are the 3 main ideas in the accompaniment?
Repeated riff that opens the song. Short, syncopated chords (bars 21-36). A fast, um-cha accompaniment (first heard bar 32)
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Describe the Rhythm
Uses Syncopation, Cross-rythms, Accents, Ostinati, Off beat Bass line creates a 'Push' rhythm anticipating beat
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How is a feeling of excitement created (rhythms)
Changes of metre, use of Syncopation, fast tempo
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What type of chords are used?
Extended chords (added 7th/9th/11th) and Conventional chords with blues notes
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Which note does the piece end on?
An unresolved flattened 7th (C natural), it is unresolved like Tony's future
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Other cards in this set

Card 2

Front

Which character sings the song, and what type of voice do they have?

Back

Tony, High tenor

Card 3

Front

What are the gangs in West side story called?

Back

Preview of the front of card 3

Card 4

Front

When was West Side story first performed?

Back

Preview of the front of card 4

Card 5

Front

What type of Orchestra is used?

Back

Preview of the front of card 5
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