Download Brandenburg Concerto Powerpoint

NAM 1:
Brandenburg
Concerto No. 4
(Movement 1)
J. S. Bach
Context
•
Bach wrote six Brandenburg Concertos composed
between 1717 and 1721.
•
Concerto No.4 in G is an example of Concerto Grosso
•
Two main types of Baroque Concerto
–
Solo Concerto – one instrument with orchestra
–
Concerto Grosso (large concerto) – group of solo instruments (concertino)
with orchestra (ripieno)
•
Bach’s six Brandenburg Concertos feature a variety of
soloists: two horns, three oboes, bassoon and violin in no.
1 and high piccolo, trumpet, oboe, recorder and violin in
No. 2
•
Bach was employed by Prince Leopold of Anhalt-Cothen in
Germany and wrote music for the court orchestra (around
18 players), in which the prince also occasionally played
the violin
•
Bach redrafted the 4th concerto – became a harpsichord
concerto in F but this was lost and rediscovered in the 19th
century.
Performing Forces:
The Concerto
• Original score for:
Concertino
– Solo violin
– Two flauti d’echo (recorders)
Ripieno
–
–
–
–
–
First and second violins
Viola
Cello
Violone (6 string double bass viol)
Cembalo (harpsichord)
Performing Forces
•
Differences in sound from a
modern orchestral recording
and a recording using typical
‘period’ instruments – NAM
recording is modern.
•
In period recording there is
more of a chamber sound,
with relatively few players.
•
Recorders would be used in
place of flutes, violone in
place of double basses, and
the performance would be
directed from the harpsichord
rather
than
from
the
conductor
Performing Forces
Baroque
•
Shorter neck and
fingerboard
•
Smaller range up to
6th position
•
Strings made of cat
gut (less
bright/brilliant
sound)
Modern
•
Longer neck, finger
board, bigger pitch
range
•
Metal strings,
stronger tone
•
Longer, straight
bows, more robust
sound
•
Shorter, curved
bows with less
tension in hair
•
Vibrato, more
varied/colourful
timbre
•
Little vibrato, lighter
phrasing
•
Sustaining power
for longer notes
Performing Forces
Baroque
•
Wooden, limited
projection
Modern
•
Metal (nickel or
silver, stronger
sound)
Performing Forces
Baroque
•
•
•
6 stringed
member of viol
family
Less vibrant
sound
Larger range
(Bach requires
a low D)
Modern
•
•
•
4 strings
Fuller sound
Requires extension
for notes below E
Performing Forces
• Concerto, popular instrumental form of period
• Virtuosic opportunities in an ensemble
• No dynamic markings (apart from pp in 235 and 251)
• Contrast achieved through well thought-out parts for
various instruments
• Two flutes almost always pair together (apart from
interplay 257-263 and imitation 285-289). Placed at top
of texture, heard above violins. Range from F above
middle C to top G (two octaves above). First flute almost
always higher than second
Performing Forces
•
Solo violin has solo parts and also plays in trio with flutes
•
Virtuosic writing includes:
–
String crossing (83-124)
–
Continuous demi-semiquavers (187-208)
–
Double and triple stopping (215-228)
•
Ripieno players provide dynamic contrast, harmonic support and textural
contrast
•
Violoncello and double bass (sound octave lower than written) = bassline
•
Harpsichord fills in harmonies
•
No figured bass as it’s likely that Bach would have directed the performance
from the harpsichord
Texture
• Bottom 3 staves linked texturally (violoncello, double bass and
continuo) – this bassline underpins texture throughout
• Double bass sometimes plays in unison with cello (244-250) and
sometimes even octave above (243).
• Heterophony achieved at 364-366 where double bass plays a
simplified version of cello line and also at 304-309 where
harpsichord plays florid version of cello line.
• Occasionally, viola and continuo play bassline – lighter texture
• Most reduced texture at 83-124 (violin solo) – single line melody
suuported by infrequent bass notes (outlining harmony).
• Dense, 8 part counterpoint at 225-226
Texture
Homophony
Monophony
Texture
Contrapuntal
Antiphony
Rhythm
•
3/8 suggests three quavers in a bar; feels like one dotted crotchet
beat per bar - joyous buoyancy to the rhythmic flow.
•
As with many Baroque pieces, once the rhythmic patterns have been
established at the start, there are continuous semiquavers in the
melody parts almost throughout the movement, usually over a more
slowly moving bass in rhythmic counterpoint.
•
Semiquavers occur in all parts, e.g. bars 38 = rhythmic vitality
•
Ties across the bar line = syncopation (bars 43-46) - add energy and
direction to the melodic shapes.
•
Hemiola effect in the final bars of each ritornello section (e.g. bars 7980).
•
Subtle changes of stress in bars 162 and 164 where combination of
harmonic and textural change (and trills in the melody) throws the
accent on to the second beat of the bar.
Structure
• Ritornello form
• Bach integrates solo and tutti sections;
– important solo work in the tutti sections
– ripieno reiterates the main ‘motto’ idea in the solo episodes
(bar185)
• Ritornello form (literally ‘Little return’ form)
• Long opening section
• Solo episodes do not stay in one key
• They modulate from the key of the previous ritornello to the
key of the next
Structure
•
Bars 1-83
Opening ritornello G major (begins with I V I progression)
•
Bars 84-136
Episode 1
(violin solo)
•
Bars 137-157
Second ritornello
E minor
•
Bars 157-208
Episode 2
(flute duet followed by violin
bravura passage)
•
Bars 209-234
Third ritornello
C major
•
Bars 235-322
Episode 3
(3 part stretto imitation)
•
Bars 323-344
Fourth ritornello
B minor
•
Bars 345-427
Fifth ritornello
G major
Harmony
•
Functional
•
Frequent perfect cadences: opening ‘motto’ theme based on the perfect cadence structure of I
– V – I.
•
Harmonic sequences are used, e.g. bars 13-18
•
Circles of 5ths occur, e.g. bars 175-178
•
Dissonances include
–
–
•
7th chords (e.g. bar 35)
suspensions (e.g. 4-3 suspension at bars 69-70 and 7-6 suspension at bars 44-47
Harmony is diatonic, except for
–
–
Neapolitan chord - at bar 155 (beat 1) and 337 (beat 1)
Diminished 7th, e.g. bar 195
•
Harmonic rhythm often one chord per bar (e.g. at the opening) but speeds up towards
cadences at end of sections, e.g. bars 79-83, chord every quaver
•
Lengthy dominant pedal points, e.g. bars 211-222
•
Avoidance of cadence points to keep the music moving forward restlessly, e.g. bars 302-322
Melody
•
Mainly four motifs / groups of motifs, subjected to constant elaboration through
Fortspinnung: repetition, sequence and inversion:
•
Bars 1-6, with arpeggios (bars 1-2), and rising and falling 3 note scalic
figures (bars 4-6)
•
Semiquaver rising scalic figure followed by falling thirds (bars 13-14)
•
Conjunct figure (bars 35-36)
•
‘Closing figure’ with jagged rising fourths (bars 79-83).
•
These motifs are extended through:
– sequence (solo violin bars 13-18, based on a two-bar sequence, and bars 18-22, a onebar sequence)
– inversion (Recorder I, bar 21)
– repetition (bars 7-12 are a repetition of bars 1-6).
•
Violin solos based on arpeggios, scales, are diatonic throughout (use of the
melodic minor scale patterns in bars 188 and 193-194).
TABOO!
Baroque
Period
Classical
Renaissance
Concerto Grosso
Group
Ensemble
Concertino
Ripieno
Imitation
Copy
Overlap
Texture
Antiphony
Heterophonic
Homophonic
Monophonic
Polyphonic
Texture
Ritornello Form
Structure
Pattern
Organisation
Functional Harmony
I IV I
Perfect Cadences
Primary Chords
Arpeggio
Broken chord
Scale
Ascending/descending
Sequence
Melody
Repeated
Higher
Lower
Pitch
Syncopation
Off
On
Weak
Beat
Rhythm