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No.3 Is My Team Ploughing? (Structure (Modified strophic with 3 pairs of…
No.3 Is My Team Ploughing?
Instrumentation
Dead man asks his questions in
pp
quasi-recitative while the living man replies are
f
.
Strings use mites to help create mysterious distant effect of the dead man's words. From 55, they are
ff
so the mutes are used for tone quality rather than dynamics.
Structure
Modified strophic
with 3 pairs of verses.
The conversation between the 2 men are contained in separate verses in Housman's poem. Here the odd numbered verses have the ghost's words, marked
misterio
and
pp
and to be sung from a distance (
lontano
). The living man's response is agitated with loud repeated triplet chords and a countermelody in the cello.
Intro and verses 1 & 3 are in
dorian
mode. Verses 2 & 4 are not modal.
Harmony
Dorian
harmony at the start for the ghost and more traditional chromatic harmony for the living man's response.
D minor and G major chords alternate giving a more mysterious quality.
Texture
Homorhythmic
at the start and then
melody dominated homophony
.
Block chords in the piano.
Melody
Opens with recitative style dorian melody but then becomes more chormatic.
Mainly conjunct at the start but more leaps later on.
Rhythm/metre/tempo
Rhythmic flexibility of dead man contrasts with regular metre of the words of the living man.
Long notes accompany free rhythm of voice at start.
Frequent time signature and tempo changes are made in response to the shape of the text.
A conversation between 2 men - a ghost and a friend who is still alive. At first, the dead man receives reassurance, but when he asks if his girlfriend is happy he is told she longer grieves and is now the sweetheart of the friend.