The Music Evolves
Let's listen to the first four bars of the cellos:
With the exception of bar 3, notice how the cello
motif starts on a higher note with each new bar.
Meanwhile the violins
play a harmonized counter melody that also restates itself as it rises
bar by bar. Let's listen to the first four bars of the violins:
This slow rising progression of a sad melody and harmony
creates the impression that the sadness is evolving. This movement simulates
our obsessive thought process during this wistful emotion.
Adding Consistency
Because we have the five note motif and its accompanying
harmony constantly changing, we need to add some persistent elements to
the music since melancholy is an emotion that we tend to cling to. One
element we can keep constant is the orchestration, which we will discuss
later. Another equally important element is the musical key. In this example,
all the notes of our melody and harmony can be found just by using the
notes of the E natural minor scale:
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