What types of rhythms and elements does he also use?
Latin American Rhythms and jazz elements - such as blues notes andd syncopation
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Name some other west side songs?
Tonight, America, I feel pretty and somewhere
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its a solo for Tony, which is he imagining?
a better future for himself, he sings it before he meets maria, hes excited about the future
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time signature?
3/4
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but sometimes feels like 6/8 why?
the piano part (left hand) plays 3 crochets while the right hand plays quavers as if its in 6/8. The quavers have accents on the 1st and 4th quavers in a bar - it makes it feel like 2 dotted crochet beats in a bar
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The piece has lots of cross-rhythms. What are cross-rhythms?
2 or more rhythms that dont fir together are played at the same time
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"Could be" and "who knows" gives what type of feel to the music?
Anticipation which matches his mood
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Its a fast song, what is the tempo mark?
176
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What does the fast tempo reflect?
Tonys excitment
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At the start tony starts with what dynamics?
pianissimo (pp) in a half whispering style, it gives it a breathless, agitated feeling - he's impatient to leave the gang behind
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What key is something's coming in?
D major - refelcts his happiness and looking forward to the future
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where is ostinati used?
3 crochet beats in the bass parts and the accented quaver pattern in some other parts. Theres also imitation between instruments too,
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Tritones are used. What is a tritone?
A tritone is an interval of 2 notes that are 3 whole tones apart (like F to B)
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why are tritones used in West Side Story?
showing that underneath the love story something bad is happening
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Where is the first tritone?
In the first chord - the D and the G#
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They're often used as an appoggiature - thats how bernstein uses it. What is an appoggiatura?
Appoggiatura - an ornament that clashes with the accompanying chord then solves
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Other cards in this set
Card 2
Front
When was West Side Story written?
Back
1957
Card 3
Front
When and where is west side story set?
Back
Card 4
Front
Why was it quite different to musicals at that time?
Back
Card 5
Front
Name some of the instruments in the big West Side Orchestra?
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