Friday, January 23, 2015

Musical Eras Blog Post

Piece #1: "Love Dream" by Franz Liszt


Period: Romantic Era

Musical Elements
Key: A-flat Major
Meter: 6/4
Tonality: Major and Minor
Rhythm: Syncopation
Timbre: Chordophone (Piano)
Tempo: Poco allegro, con affetto
Texture: Monophonic

Structure 
The piece starts off slow and gentle in the beginning. It seems as though the piece is telling a story of a wonderful dream full of happiness (in this part of the piece the tonality is almost entirely major. After this phase, there is a pause that starts off like the beginning of the first part, gentle and light, but then the speed of the piece picks up, and the tonality of the piece start to contrast (the main part is major, with an underlying minor part) and as this phase of the piece continues, element syncopation is used. The piece continues to go down hill, still major, but more minor than before. I would say that this is the resolution of the piece, and the dream is taking a darker tone, there is quite a buildup of tension at this point. There is another pause, and the next phase that is introduced is what I would call "The Awakening". It sounds like the piece is "waking up" it is more gentle and soft, like before, but the minor used in this part gives the piece an essence of sadness.



Piece #2: "Ponolaise" by Frédéric Chopin
Period: Romantic Era
Musical Elements
Key: B-flat Major
Meter: 3/4
Tonality: Major 
Rhythm: Hemiola, Syncopation 
Timbre: Chordophone (Piano)
Tempo: Allegro
Texture: Monophonic


Structure 
This piece has a bright, uppity tone to it, due to Chopin's use of Hemiolas. The first phase starts out seeming like it will be a dark piece, but then it transitions. When listening to this piece it sounds like there are two melodies to the piece, but really it is just the melody and harmony complementing each other. Towards the middle of the piece, there are more pauses and the tempo slows down. At the end, the piece almost mimics the begging, with the same transition from dark to light.


Compare:
Chopin and Liszt are composers from the Romantic Era. In the pieces I have selected, both composers have composed songs that are bright, and draw emotion to the listener. Both pieces are monophonic, have a major key, and use the piano only to deliver their piece.

Contrast:
These pieces vary in meter (Bach's 3/4, Liszt's 6/8). I think there is a correlation between the composer's choice of meter and the uniqueness of the piece. Liszt's piece is more complex than Bach's which gives it this unique sound that immediately catches your attention, and it draws emotion from the listener.

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