Music for a While by Henry Purcell
Introduction
A
B
A1
Key: A minor
Instrumentation: Soprano vocal, Harpsichord, Bass Viol
Baroque Technique: There are no dynamics or tempo in the piece because during the Baroque period, music's dynamics tempo were generally chosen by the performer and thus differed depending on the each performer.
Haprischord: Creates the effect of a two part texture with ground base. The right hand is decorated well because of the simple ground base
Bass Viol: Plays a 3 bar ground bass which is composed of all quavers (simple). It creates another/different timbre.
It is Melody Dominated Homophinc
The tempo is slow and in a minor key because the song is about summoning ghost.
The first word "Music" is the tonic
Bar 5: the second music is augmented (made longer)
The end of the phrase is in Bar 7 but the ground base/accompaniment ends in Bar 6
Bar 7 to Bar 8: "Shall all" is disjunct, meaning in big leaps
Bar 11 and 12: Wond'ring is a word painting (reflecting the lyrics), is a melodic minor (conjunct), and is also a melisma (and is more than 1 note per syllable). Wond'ring has also been sequenced by a minor 3rd
Bar 11: the right hand of the harpsichord imitates the voice's melody which is an example of polyphony.
Bar 12: Suspension (non-harmony note followed by a resolving note after) and dissonance in the word pain (word painting)
Bar 13: there is another dissonance and suspension in the first chord of Bar 13. The ornament present here in the harpsichord's right hand is an arpeggiated note. The bar ends with an anecrusis which is the fancy term for an upbeat
The ground base changes during "and" in bar 14. The key transposes from A minor to E minor in bar 15 on the word "pleas'd".
Bar 15: the word B is a chord V (B major) and straight after is a tonic chord (E minor) that shows the beginning of a new key.
Bar 16 to 17: There is a melisma in "Free the dead" and the D of "A-lec" is augmented. Something that changes is that the ground bass changes during Bar 17 back ot the same ground bass as the original ground bass' first bar before reverting back to the changed bass line after the key change.
Bar 19: The bass line of the ground bass revert back to it's original bass line. There is also a F# in the left hand of the harpsichord and the Bass Viol which creates dissonance and ambiguity. The melody also has a melisma in eternal that is a word painting of eternity.
Bar 20: Eternal is sequenced and is also a melisma. It is also the word painting of eternal to show the length.
Bar 21: The suspension chord at the end of this bar is a G major chord that is a 5th to the next chord, a C major chord. C major is also the relative major of A minor.
Bar 22: Key change to C major from A major (relative keys). The Bass Viol and left hand of the Harpsichord are sequenced to C major.
Bar 23: Key change back to A minor. This is also where the only example of a Tierce de Picardie appears. When the bassline changes again and the Harpsichord RH and melody both play a C#, the bassline has already returned to A minor, thus creating the Tierce de Picardie.
Bar 24: There is a false relation in the harpsichord's right-hand melody and the bass accompaniment and left hand of the harpsichord. While the harpsichord plays an E, the bass accompaniment plays an F#. Another false relation is followed at the end of the bar where the Harpsichord plays a C but the bass accompaniment plays a C#.
Bar 23's anacrusis + Bar 24 + Bar 25: Drop - Onomatopoeia and word painting. The melody is also syncopated.
Bar 26 - Bar 28: There is an elongated cadence (lengthened cadence) that follows the format V - I - IV - V. It begins with an E major chord and A minor chord in Bar 26 (the V and I) followed by a B major chord at the beginning of Bar 27, an E minor chord, A minor chord, then finally a B minor chord. In Bar 28, however, instead of going to e minor as audience expect, the piece goes to E major.
Bar 29: The da capo reprise of the section A
Bar 28: It ends with root position E major chords which set up the dominant for the reprise in the next bar.
Bar 30: there is a passing note which is ornamented by the performer throughout the piece.
Bar 35: Rather than continuing to repeat Section A, Purcell repeats the second line of the poem over another exact repeat of the ground bass to bring the song to a close.
The piece ends on a tonic chord (Am)
Terminology
False Relation: When a note in one part is chromatically altered in a different part very soon after. (eg. the C natural in the harpsichord RH is quickly followed by a C# in the bass.)
Turn: An ornament using the melodic pattern (eg. E, F, E, D, E)
Root position: When a chord has its name-note, or 'root' in the bass. (For example, if the bass plays G or B in an E minor chord, then the chord is inverted. But if the bass plays an E, it is in root position.)
Relative Keys: When two keys (one major and one minor) share the same number of sharps or flats. (In this piece, the A minor and C major change at Bar 22)
Tierce De Picardie: When the piece goes from the major to minor of the tonic key at the end of a phrase in a minor key. (eg. A Minor to A major
Suspension: When a note is held on in a chord to the next one and thus creating a dissonance. It is a non-harmony note. (example: Bar 12: Purcell sets the word 'pain' using word-painting, emphasising the word's meaning by using a dissonance in the coice: the E clashes with the D and then F in the bass.)
Melisma: When a word has more than one note per syllable.
Word Painting: When the music reflects the lyrics.
Disjunct: Melodic movement by leaps; the antonym of Conjunct.
Augmented: When a syllable of a words is sung with a longer duration
Transposing: To change the key of the piece
Sequence: To take the same notes and change the placement of it up or down.
Melody Dominated Homophony: A musical texture where a single melodic part is supported by an essentially chordal accompaniment
Meter: 4 4
Conjunct: Melodic movement by steps; the antonym of Disjunct.