Creating a Musical Piece
Named after 3.5 players of the modern Chelsea squad, the
‘Sambacudi-Gallasoterry-Lampardo’ was created after 5 weeks of
non-stop creation, imagination and notation. Our goal was to create a
new Dance which would be performed. The coursework was led buy
Southampton University’s world famous Michael Finnessy, who is what
you might call an expert on music.
Our piece had to be under three minutes, but time was not a major
priority. We were instructed to use four different instruments: the
piano, the clarinet, any type of saxophone and any sort of percussion.
The final piece of mine and all the other students taking this course
was played on the 22nd November at ‘St Michael’s And All the Angels’
Church, as part of a local music festival, open to everyone with a
ticket. The music was be played by ‘Tacet Ensemble’ who are
professional musicians. The composers met them halfway through October
when they took what we had done during that time and played it, and
then commented on what could be improved, scrapped, added, etc. My
piece didn’t get played because I hadn't placed a clarinet part into
it. At that stage, I was workin on Cubase and the notations printed
were very confused and unplayable.
On that day, I was however observing and listening to other composer’s
Sambas and Tangos and they all sounded like the beginning of
satisfying dances. I picked up a few ideas and tips from the
musicians, from other student’s music and of course Michael Finnessy;
explaining that telephone posts are not just ugly for the countryside,
they can symbolise stages in a tune, saying that one had to lead to
another, which leads to another, as a dance should.
On the 4th October I joined the group, a week after they knew what
this coursework was. With a puzzled and paniked expression on my face,
Mr. Kerney sat me down next to a piano and said, “G, F, C. See what
you can make out of that!” This is where I thought about other songs
The piano—originally known as the fortepiano or pianoforte—is one of the most globally recognized instruments in history. Its unique timbre distinguishes it from preceding keyboard instruments and even from modern keyboard instruments that attempt to imitate it. The pianoforte has made many changes and contributions to music, which can be seen through how it came to be, what composers first thought of the instrument, and how it affected orchestral music.
Music and songwriting date back centuries. Cultures, families, and religions have all used it as a way of expression and unity since the very beginning of time. Song writing in particular has become one of the most popular ways for society to express their thoughts and views of the caucus around us all. Music is a common language that we’ve all learned to speak and appreciate, and it is one way for us to stay connected as people.
When Bernstein was ten years old, his Aunt Clara was undergoing a divorce and “left an old upright piano in the Bernstein house.” The close presence of the piano motivated Bernstein to take
Throughout history music has had a profound effect on a person’s mind, body, and consciousness. A song or piece of music can trigger vivid memories, and induce emotions ranging from deep sorrow to unabashed joy. Music can drive listeners to patriotic fervor or religious frenzy, or it can soothe the savage beast we call human. There have been many advances in technology that have let us study how music affects the brain. Music causes all sorts of activity in the brain, especially during musical improvisation. Music can tremendously help people with certain mind damaging diseases, and in some cases it can have negative effects.
Composition music theory has a longing history of how it was brought up and the way it has evolved into new cultures. “Musical Composition, the act of conceiving a piece of music, the art of creating music, or the finished product. These meanings are interdependent and presume a tradition in which musical works exist as repeatable entities. In this sense, composition is necessarily distinct from improvisation.” (Crossley-Holland, Peter)
People relate to music. We sing it. We cry to it. We laugh to it. The reason: we can see ourselves in music. We can let go of our feelings and just relate to the words or the instruments. One way the songwriter connects the listener to the music is through plot: the problem or reaction to a problem a character/singer is expressing. Whether it is a fight with a lover, a fight with a friend, finding a lover/friend, or any other, the plot is helps the listener relate to the song.
With so many different cultures, races, religions, personalities, etc., it’s surprising how many fundamental things humans share. Music intertwines us all with its diversity and the effect it has on us. Whether you’re looking to rock out in a dance party, get a good workout in, sleep soundly, study hard, recover from a depressive state, or get the thrill of a super scary horror movie, music is there. Although listening to music is thought to be solely a source of entertainment, it can be used to improve almost all aspects of our everyday life.
Theatre has heavily evolved over the past 100 years, particularly Musical Theatre- a subgenre of theatre in which the storyline is conveyed relying on songs and lyrics rather than dialogue. From its origination in Athens, musical theatre has spread across the world and is a popular form of entertainment today. This essay will discuss the evolution and change of musical theatre from 1980-2016, primarily focusing on Broadway (New York) and the West End (London). It will consider in depth, the time periods of: The 1980s: “Brit Hits”- the influence of European mega musicals, the 1990s: “The downfall of musicals”- what failed and what redeemed, and the 2000s/2010s: “The Resurgence of musicals”- including the rise of pop and movie musicals. Concluding
To fully understand any musical style, one must be able to analyze the various elements of music as they exist in that particular style. In this first musical close-up, we shall briefly describe these elements of music. In subsequent musical close-ups, we shall examine one or another of these elements in greater detail as it pertains to a given style or topic.
Ever since I was a small child, I have loved music. The strong, steady beats, the
For thousands of years, music has been a part of people’s lives and has evolved through many different forms over time. Music is the art of arranging sounds in time so as to produce a continuous, unified, and evocative composition, as through melody, harmony, rhythm, and timbre (American Heritage). One important component of analyzing music is whether it has musical value. In other words, music does not have to be organized sound or produced by instruments. This is what composers and artists of experimental music discover. Experimental music is an art form, makes use of instruments or other items that can produce sound, and can alter or expand the basic foundations of music and musicality. These are the key elements that define experimental music.
This week’s assignment has been quite challenging while I attempted to get the “gist of it”. The first topic I shall report on is (Perception Key: “Swing Low Sweet Chariot, Chapter 9, pg 256).
appeal to a teenage to late 20’s audience mainly based in the C2, D, E
A man is in his car with a one and a half hour long commute and is browsing the radio for music to listen to and hears a song that sounds familiar. The tune gets stuck in his head and he can't get it out until he gets home from work and spends 15 minutes trying to find what the song was called. Some people adore Classical Music and some find it excruciating to listen to. Which ever side has more support the world will never know, but one thing society does know is that Classical Music has many elements.
Wagner believed in the unity of drama and music, that the two arts share a connected expression of a single dramatic idea. "10Poetry, scenic, design, staging, action, and music work together to form what he called a Gesamtkunstwerk (total or collective artwork)."