Luka Sulic and Stjepan Hauser (collectively know as 2Cellos) are incredible performers to watch. Their energy when playing is second to none. I love their innovative style and their determination to pull inspiration from every genre of music. Their ability to feel the music is very apparent within their performances and technically they are amazingly accurate and talented cellists.
James Galway or 'The Man with the Golden Flute' is one of my favourite performers because of his attention to the portrayal of a piece of music and his incredible ability to use every small and intricate voice of the flute to create a beautiful sound. His confidence never falters which is a testament to his vast experience as a flautist. His accuracy and perfect pitch is especially noticeable in the more complicated sections of this movement of the Poulenc Sonata.
This guitar piece was written by Will, who I knew from secondary school and wrote this for his GCSE music composition. I have just always been amazed by it. The piece includes a mixture of different guitar techniques such as: strumming and hitting the fret board to create the fast melody that opens and closes the piece. As the opening melody is played Will plays bass notes to compliment it. The tempo is fast from the start and the dynamic level goes up and down in volume depending on the guitar technique (strumming is naturally louder than picking). In the following strumming section a sequence of chords are played with a descending bass line underneath it as Will moves his finger position down the fret board on the E string. This section is decorated with some fast guitar licks which gives the strumming section more musical colour.
The piece can be divided into definate sections. The fast opening melody played high on the fret board begins the piece, then there is a long and varying strumming section. This is followed by a different higher pitched strumming section played close to the bridge of the guitar which descends. The piece then goes back to the first strumming section welcomes a increase in tempo then pauses before the opening melody repeats to end. I think the first long strumming section is particularly interesting in terms of development because as this section moves the chords played are being developed and changed and new licks are being added. Will's main instrument is guitar, therefore the timbre choice is obvious. He is also influenced by many great guitarists such as Newton Faulkner (mentioned in a earlier post) and like them is interested in pushing the conventional ways in which a guitar can be played. As the piece was written for an exam setting it had to be impressive which explains the fast paced guitar licks. I have focused on the opening of this piece (up to 1:08) because it is the most famous and well known part of the Star Wars score, it is also the most dramatic and vibrant. The piece begins with the whole orchestra, the dynamics are loud, the notes are accented and the brass section can be heard most clearly with their dotted rhythms from the start. Then, the infamous trumpet melody begins as the strings and wind accompany. The string then play a contrasting section that is softer both in melody and in dynamics, triplets can be heard in this section as well as a crescendo that links this section back to the main melody which is played this time by the brass and the strings. The atmosphere, created by the loud accented dynamics and the punchy brass melody, is dramatic, which suits the context of the piece perfectly.
This beginning section, although short, has it's own ABA structure, it begins with the main melody, moves into the string section then goes back to the main melody. The piece was obviously written for the opening title sequence of all the Star Wars films. Star Wars is a epic, sci-fi action adventure that needs big adventurous music with plenty of character, this theme is absolutely perfect, which is why it has become one of the greatest and most memorable film themes of all time. |
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