Berlioz Notes Answers

7/28/2019 Berlioz Notes Answers

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Berlioz Harold in Italy, 3rd

movement

Hector Berlioz (1803-1869)

Learnt guitar and flute from an early

age

Self-taught basic harmony andcomposition

Studied medicine for two years

Took classes Paris Conservatoire

Won the Prix de Rome on the fourthattempt

Spent 2 years travelling round Italy

Wrote a treatise on orchestration

The Hector Berlioz Website

http://www.hberlioz.com/Cartoons/cartoons3.htm

Genre

This is a programmatic piecemusic that is related to, or inspired by anextra musical source

This was inspired by Byrons poem Childe Harolds Pilgrimage. Commissioned by Paganini Elements of concerto and symphony
http://www.hberlioz.com/Cartoons/cartoons3.htmhttp://www.hberlioz.com/Cartoons/cartoons3.htmhttp://www.hberlioz.com/Cartoons/cartoons3.htm


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Instrumentation

Berlioz uses instruments in unusual combination to create certain effects and

recreate the Italian mountains that inspired this piece.

For example:

The drone in the viola imitates the sound ofbagpipes

The oboe and piccolo in octaves imitates pifferi

The rhythm in the piccolo and oboe is that of a saltarello

The pizzicato strings combined with the double stopping mimics a guitar

The Cor Anglais solo gives a melancholic pastoral sound

The Clarinet (another typically folk instrument) plays in the lowchalumeaux range

The Horns in 3rds and 6ths sound like a hunting call

Make sure that you have these things identified on your score and

that you can hear them clearly in the piece.


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movement

Structure

This piece is TERNARY form with a coda:

A

Bb.1-31

B

Bb.31-135

A

Bb.136-165

Coda

Bb.166-208

There is also the use of an Ide Fixe. This is a theme that is heard regularly

throughout the movement and indeed the entire piece. It is used in different

instruments and fragmented and transposed. It provides a link between the

movements and provides a unifying theme. This can be seen in the viola solo

Texture

Berlioz uses a range of textures, similar to the imaginative way in which he uses

the instruments to create effects. Find and label as many examples of the

following textures as you can:

TEXTURE BAR NUMBERS / INSTRUMENTS

Double Pedal (drone) Clarinet/2n

viola. Bb.1-31

Octave writing Upper strings. Bb.72-94

Countermelody Flute. Bb.167-175

Homophony (Melody dominated) Bb.32-41 (most of piece!)

Broken Chords Violas. Bb.32-48

Writing in 3rds

and 6ths

Horns. Bb.60-61

Monophony Solo viola. Bb.203-205

Divided Strings Violins. Bb.72-95

Contrapuntal texture Bb.67-95 (rare example!)

Imitation Bb.79-80


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movement

Tonality

In his use of tonality Berlioz again reflects the folk-like character of the piece.

The first section is clearly in the key ofC major throughout.

What harmonic device makes this clear? PedalThere is also some sense ofmodality.

What accidental lends implies this? B flat What mode does this suggest? Mixolydian

However, although the piece broadly remains in the tonic giving it a simple folk

like quality, there are many hints at other, sometimes very distant keys:

Bar Key What Cadence Precedes this?

b.40 (suggested) A minor Imperfect

b.47 C major Perfect

b.49 (suggested) F major None

b.50 A minor None

b.52 D minor Perfect

b.54 (suggested) G minor None

b.55 (suggested) A flat major None

b.562 (suggested) F sharp major None

b.59 C major Imperfect

b.63 (suggested) A minor None

Working in pairs, find what keys are arrived at, or suggested, at the

following bars.

NB: Look for accidentals and cadence points. Remember - there are

transposing instruments!


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movement

Bar Key What Cadence Precedes this?

b.67 C major Perfect

b.90 G major Perfect

b.99 D minor Imperfect

b.111 D minor Perfect

b.117 (suggested) G minor None

b.118(suggested) A flat major None

b.119 (suggested) F sharp major None

b.122 C major Imperfect

b.128 (suggested) A minor None

b.135 C major None

Harmony

Berlioz uses harmonic devices that would be found in any classical or baroque

piece he also uses techniques that mark him out as a clearly romantic and

pioneering composer.

Although largely diatonic there is a large degree ofchromaticism, extended

chords and unusual resolutions within the piece. There are however many

examples ofperfect cadences. Listen to the piece and see if you can spot them.

Neapolitan 6th

Bar 53: a chord built on the flattened supertonic in first

inversion. Usually precedes a perfect cadence, but not here!

Half-diminished chord Bar 44: D-F-Ab-C.

Secondary Dominant Bar 15: for example the dominant of F major while in C

major.

Three unusual chords


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Device Bar / Instrument

Pedal Bb.1-31. Bassoon

Perfect Cadence Bb.134-135

Chromatic auxiliary B.132. BassoonC#

Imperfect cadence Bb.58-59

4-3 Suspension Bb.39-40 (Cor Anglais)

Diminished 7th B.41, beat 1 (Strings)

Dominant 7th B.74, beat 2 (Harp)

Find examples of the following harmonic devices.

You should recognize these from earlier pieces and from your chorale

course!


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movement

Melody

The saltarello has a limited pitch range and uses mostly conjunctmotion. It comprises short repeated motifs in irregular phrases. These

are all elements of folk music. In addition there are also small examples of

inversion(bar 8 and 10, oboe) and sequence(bb.14-15, oboe).

The serenade theme begins with two 7-bar phrases. It is based onarpeggios and wide leaps. It becomes more chromatic later on.

This serenade theme bears many similarities in its construction to the idefixe in terms of intervallic movement.

In the coda the serenade theme becomes fragmented, and all three themes(saltarello, serenade and ide fixe) are combined.

Rhythm

The saltarello is characterized by dotted rhythms and an accented 2

nd

beat(This is an impersonation of folk music).

The serenade theme displays syncopation(b.37, Cor Anglias) and iambicrhythms(b.57, oboe) (both features of folk music), and there is

augmentation(bb.73-74, strings) of the ide fixe. Later on triplets and

continuous semiquavers are introduced.

In the Coda there is duple diminution (2 speeds of 6/8 metre occursimultaneously), and all three themes are combined.

IAMBIC RHYTHMa rhythmic pattern consisting of a short note

followed by a long note (also found in most Shakespeare, i.e. iambic

entameter!

Annotate these examples on your score. You should be able to see and

hear at least one example of each of these.

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Berlioz Notes Answers