"Breathing under water "

Harmony

Sonority

'Bridge' section modulates to be centred around A, with Lydian inflections (#4 = D#)

Almost all chords have added notes, e.g. 7ths, 9ths, suspensions, diminished notes

Tonal centre of Db major, though not totally defined key

Melody

combination of Indian classical and western pop/rock instrumentation

AO3: Sitar embellishments commonly used (trills)


AO4: In Northern India, the Hinduism religion uses music for worshipping hence the ornaments resemble the pristine church


WL: 'Burn' by Anoushka Shankar frequently uses acciaccaturas in the sitar melody

Strings, Sitar, wordless vocals, keyboards

Sitar plays solo line

solo line based on the vocal line of "sea dreamer"

Slash chords are common to create stepwise basslines

Melodic line decorated by ornaments (alankara)

Outro uses repeated plagal cadence with IVm - I

uses slides, grace notes, vibrato, mordents/ trills

AO3: Sitar and voice melodies mostly conjunct with anacrusis starts


AO4: Sitar and voice parts are largely improvised, this contrasts the futuristic percussive backdrop devised by Kale


WL: 'Sea Dreamer' by A.Shankar & K.Kale similarly uses stepwise melodies and anacrusis starts

Full tessitura used

Wordless vocals is used to link into the 2nd main solo section

harmonic filler in the 2nd section

Enharmonically shared with 'Burn' (C# tonal centre, minor inflections)

Shankar played Sitar so perhaps wanted to fully showcase her instrument, by using a range of techniques and highlighting the full range

Structure

Samples, programmed rhythmic sounds

Karsh Kale influence

Reverb

Verse 2

Refrain 2

Link

Verse 3

Middle 8

Refrain 3

Refrain 1

Coda

Verse 1

Rhythm

add colour and texture

Strings and keyboards provide pads

Fairly complex, chords borrowed from jazz.

creates eerie and atmospheric feel that fits with the abstract title

mimics the use of drones in indian music using western instrumentation

Bars 1-8

Bars 9-17

Bars 18-33

Bars 34-36

Bars 36-44

120bpm

Bars 45-53

texture and dynamics

Bars 53-61

fusion of Indian and western but also the classical and modern

Standard tempo of western popular music

Bars 61- 68

Bars 69-77

In 4/4 for most of the piece, except for one bar at bar 37 where it changes to 2/4.

No introduction

1-33 homorhythmic block chords

bars 34-38 polyphonic dialogue between vocals and sitar

Shortened version of vocal refrain

4/4 is the most common metre for western music.

"Breathing Under Water" is an extended introduction of the next track on the album "Sea Dreamer" featuring Sting. Therefore, it shares the same progression. Both tracks have an ambiguous sounding tonality.

Retains sitar material from original song but omits vocal section

bars 53-67 polyphony with the sitar line

However, there is use of syncopation and grace notes throughout, all in reference to the rhythm of Classical Indian music.

Although there is a sense of pulse in the accompaniment, there is use of anacrusis in the melodies of the sitar, and a 'sense' of free rhythm which makes the sitar melody feel very typically Indian.

blurs sense of time and tempo - mimics feeling when under water

Shankar grew up in London, California, Dehli

pianissimo female vox bar 35

fusion of influences

Second phrase varied

ar 38 piano chords

Melody now an octave lower in sitar

Melodic variations

Vocal decoration of final chord

pianissimo ending

Use of triplets.

links to western culture

Adds complexity to rhythm of the melody

wider listening

call and response is used in early western music however used with indian insruments

Ritardando at the end of the piece.

creates a more complex sound

WL: Jai ho also uses samples to create a modern fusion piece

WL: Ravi Shankar, finale of symphony also uses a sitar solo, but develops into an antiphony and then homorhythmic texture with orchestra, Anoushka influenced by her father

WL: Jai ho also uses synths

WL: Up - Karsh Kale uses a virtuosic Sitar line

WL: Up - Karsh Kale also uses wordless vocals