L4 - Chorus and Bridge

Lesson Objectives:

To understand what an interrupted cadence is.
To understand what metrical shifting, cross rhythms and push rhythm are
To understand what is meant by bitonal
To analyse the chorus and bridge

PREPARE FOR LEARNING TASK

Interrupted Cadence

The Story: The chorus ‘lifts off’ with Elphaba singing about ‘defying gravity’ insisting to Glinda that ‘you can’t pull me down’. Glinda has a short link asking Elphaba if she is having ‘delusions of grandeur?’ In the 2nd verse, Elphaba becomes very assertive about refusing to accept limits and do what she is told. She refuses to be afraid of losing the love of others. At the end of the chorus she asks Glinda to come with her and how together they could be ‘unlimited’ and ‘the greatest team there’s ever been’

We have looked at perfect cadences in ‘Star Wars’ and ‘Music for a While’

Cadences are the punctuation in music and the perfect cadence is the full stop and is by far the most frequently used. If you think of a phrase of music as being a musical sentence then it makes sense that most sentences will finishes with a full stop.

Sometimes a composer wants to end a phrase with more of a question mark or an exclamation mark.

The ‘exclamation mark’ cadence is called an interrupted cadence and is rarely used by composers

The beginning of the chorus begins with an interrupted cadence. After all, Elphaba is defying gravity!

A perfect cadence moves from the chord on the 5th degree of the scale (dominant) to the 1st degree of the scale (tonic).

For an interrupted cadence it moves again from the dominant chord but this time to the chord on the 6th degree. In D major this means moving from an A major chord to a B minor chord.

Metrical Shifting

As the chorus begins the music seems to be flying, hovering above the ground, free from downbeats (1^st beat of the bar)

This is achieved with an accompanying ostinato (repeated pattern) of 3 notes (C#DA) played on the synth.

In choosing a 3 note ostinato, Schwartz creates metrical shifting.

This means that the downbeat, or strong beat, is shifted to a different part of the bar. This alongside the bass moving just before the 1st beat creates a magical, flying feeling.

Push Rhythm

The vocal line also anticipates the strong down beat (1st beat) by coming in a quaver early

The note is tied meaning it is held over.

This is known as a push rhythm and is common in jazz and pop music

Cross Rhythm

There is a short 3 bar link (bars 60—62) when Glinda sings ‘can’t I make you understand’.

Here triplets are introduced which creates a cross rhythm against the quaver accompaniment that has been present throughout the chorus.

This rhythmic tension reflects Glinda’s inner turmoil and objections.

The triplets (groups of 3) against the quavers (groups of 4). Try in pairs clapping the different rhythms and you will feel this rhythmic tension!

Bitonal

The bridge section starts at bar 88. The key changes to G major. We can see this by looking at the key signature which has changed to just one sharp (#) However, the music is actually in two keys at the same time!

The left hand of the key board part is playing a C major chord (CEG) whilst the right hand is playing an ostinato in G major.

C major and G major, which are a 5th apart are playing at the same time. This is called bitonal. Though we can see this, the effect we hear still sounds like D major, though this, alongside the instrumental accompaniment, creates a magical quality.

Word Painting

Four bars before the chorus returns, the melody of each of the three phrases ‘stretches’ each time from D, as first Elphaba, then Glinda and then both together assert ‘there’s no fight we can not win’.

At this point the metre changes briefly to 3/4 (3 beats in a bar) which has the effect of extending the final bar to 5 beats. They believe they can do anything!

Review Questions:

1) Which two chords for an interrupted cadence and where do we hear one in Defying Gravity?

2) What rhythm features can he heard in the vocal line and accompaniment of the first chorus?

3) Describe the harmony accompanying the bridge section?

4) What rhythmic feature can be heard when Glinda sings 'can't I make you understand?'

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