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Ein Feste Burg, Hello Josh - I have had a look at your Bach crib sheets.…
Ein Feste Burg
Movement one
Organisation of Melody
The main theme is based on Martin Luther's hymn tune and is closely related to the first phrase of the chorale from the eighth movement, sharing the same melodic shape with slight alterations. It begins with repeated tonic notes in D major, descends a fourth to the dominant, and then ascends back to the tonic.
The melody is predominantly conjunct, featuring small leaps, and is largely diatonic with instances of chromaticism. The SATB choir covers a wide range, and melodic lines are derived from the chorale melody, with modified versions used across all parts to accommodate polyphonic instrumental sections.
Instrumentation
The first movement is scored for SATB choir and tutti orchestra. The vocal lines are closely doubled by the orchestra
Texture
The texture is highly contrapuntal and written in a fugal style. At the start of the movement, there are fugal entries presented in a layered manner, building up from tenor, alto, soprano, and finally bass. It is fugal with the subject presented in the tenor part and again in the soprano part.
There is a countersubject, based on the second phrase of Luther’s hymn tune. The unembellished cantus firmus of the chorale melody is played in Canon between the oboes and the second continuo part. The movement is imitative and contrapuntal, displaying examples of fugal technique, canon, and stretto.
Harmony
The harmony is functional and based on related keys, with some controlled chromaticism. Chords are diatonic and functional. Perfect cadences are frequent and confirm the modulation to a new key. Suspensions occur, and there is an example of a 4–3 suspension in bar 16. Secondary and dominant sevenths occur frequently, and most chords are in root position or first inversion, although second inversions are used. There is a long tonic pedal note for 4 bars at the end of the first movement.
The movement starts in the tonic key of D major with a brief modulation to A major (dominant), returning to the tonic in bar 3. There is a short modulation to G major (subdominant) in bar 12, passing through A major and returning to the tonic in bar 16. The movement ends in D major.
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Structure
The movement starts and ends in D major but modulates several times. The theme cantus firmus/chorale melody is announced as each of the parts enter. The unornamented cantus firmus, used in canon between the oboes and violone and organo, guides the listener through the individual phrases of the chorale melody from movement 8.
The structure follows chorale phrases. Each phrase is treated initially by the chorale part and then stated by the instrumental parts, in canon. Repeats of the first two ideas are done with a different text. The subject is heard in the tonic, followed by the answer. Sequences follow in the soprano part. The nature and structure of this movement can be compared to fugal style.
Movement Two
Structure
The movement begins and concludes in D major, undergoing several modulations. It adheres to chorale phrases in its structure.
Following an introduction featuring a string ritornello, the bass commences an aria as the soprano presents an embellished version of each chorale melody phrase. The movement features a soprano singing an embellished version of the chorale tune, while the bass sings an ornate aria. The string ritornello material is restated at the end.
Organisation of Melody
The soprano melody features an embellished chorale melody as a cantus firmus, incorporating virtuosic and melismatic elements. The oboe often doubles the soprano line, ornamenting the chorale melody.
The bass line is highly scalic, characterized by melismatic, running semiquavers, making it significantly more ornate than the soprano melody, and sings an almost independent aria. The bass range covers almost two octaves (F♯ to E)
Instrumentation
The second movement is an aria, a duet for soprano and bass, accompanied by strings and solo oboe. The oboe essentially doubles the soprano line, which provides the chorale melody with additional ornamentation
Texture
The texture is contrapuntal, featuring two voice parts, soprano and bass, alongside instrumental accompaniment. The orchestral introduction and postlude have a melody-dominated homophony.
The soprano and bass parts create a highly contrapuntal texture, with the soprano singing a variation of the cantus firmus and the bass singing an ornate melody. The soprano and oboe often create a heterophonic texture.
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Harmony
The movement begins and ends in D major but includes several modulations. The harmony is functional, featuring movements to related keys, with some instances of controlled chromaticism.
The movement's tonal structure progresses through various keys: it starts in D major, modulates to A major, briefly passes through G major before returning to the tonic, and includes modulations to B minor and F# minor
Rythm
The metre is common time, also known as 4/4, which is simple quadruple time.
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Intricate decorative passagework includes demisemiquavers, dotted rhythms, and syncopations.
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The bass part has very complex lines, though the cantus firmus, as expected, has longer note values and a number of more ornate decorations to the line, making it stand out from other lines. The bass also has longer rests between phrases.
Movement Eight
Rhythm
The texture is homophonic, with quaver-speed passing notes.
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Typical of chorales, pauses are present at the end of each phrase where the cadence occurs, halting the tempo.
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The metre is common time, also known as 4/4 (simple quadruple).
Structure
Bars 1–4 consist of two 2-bar phrases repeated, with a brief modulation to A major at the end of the first phrase in bar 2 before returning to D major.
Bars 5–12 consist of five phrases. It starts in D major, modulating to A major in both bars 5 and 8. In bar 9, the music moves through G major to reach E minor in bar 10
Organisation of Melody
The melody in this movement most resembles Luther’s original hymn tune. The melody is conjunct and diatonic, typical of a hymn tune, with only occasional small leaps.
The SATB choir covers a reasonably narrow range: soprano: range of an octave (D to D); alto: range of a ninth (A to B); tenor: range of an eleventh (E to A); bass: range of a 2 octaves (D to D).
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Instrumentation
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The eighth movement is scored for four-part SATB choir with orchestral accompaniment, where the orchestra exactly doubles the vocal lines.
Texture
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The texture is homophonic, with quaver-speed passing notes.
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Harmony
The movement starts and ends in D major but modulates several times. The harmony is functional with movements to related keys.
There is a brief modulation to A major at the end of the first phrase in bar 2 before returning to the tonic key of D major. The music modulates to the dominant key, A major, in both bars 5 and 8, although after the perfect cadence it swiftly returns to the tonic. In bar 9, the music moves through G major in order to reach the relative minor key of E minor in bar 10
Hello Josh - I have had a look at your Bach crib sheets. They look great - the only amendment I would suggest making is in movement 1: the reason the tied notes are effective is because they help with the sense of flow. They contribute significantly to the complex, contrapuntal texture that results and this is because we lose a sense of there being a strong sense of four in a bar. Compare this with a march, for example, (or the tune we looked at today in class) where each beat of the bar can be really clearly heard and interpreted.