compare the expressive use of harmony and tonality in at least two movements from symphonie...

7/26/2019 Compare the Expressive Use of Harmony and Tonality in at Least Two Movements From Symphonie Fantastique

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Compare the expressive use of harmony and tonality in at least two movements fromSymphonie Fantastique.

The composer’s aim in this piece is to develop, in musical terms, various episodes in the lifeof an artist. Symphonie Fantastique is a depiction this artist’s feelings towards a woman thathe is obsessing about. erlio! describes this as a "Fascination#. Throughout the piece,erlio! uses thematic transformation to develop underlying themes such as the $ies %rae,dance of the witches& Sabbath and the main motif' the %d(e fixe. There are extensive uses ofharmony and tonality to express these feelings and emotions. )e ta*es advantage ofunusual chords, chromaticism and harmonic contrast as well as conventional harmony tocreate a changing atmosphere all through the piece.

The first movement is a representation of the illness that an artist is suffering from, the &surge

of passions& and him seeing a woman +his beloved who encapsulates all the charms of the

ideal woman being dreamed of in his imagination. )e uses harmony and tonality to establish

the programme of desperation and longing for his beloved. The fifth movement, titled "$ream

of a Sabbath -ight#, demonstrates the same techniques used in the first movement but

achieving different effects for different outcomes, to represent the programme' the artist

dreaming of his own funeral which is attended by monsters and witches, and of course, his

beloved who is now moc*ing his death.

The %d(e Fixe is a theme which carries through the entirety of the symphony and embodies

the obsession that the artist had with his beloved. %n the first movement, the %d(e Fixe is

heard three times. The first time we hear the %d(e Fixe, in bar , it is in the *ey of C minor+rather than /b ma0or which is apparent later in the piece, played by the violins, with a

sparse accompaniment underneath the melody which sets the tone for loneliness and

desperation as he, the artist, longs for his beloved.

The %d(e Fixe returns at bar 12 in its original, however, it is now in C ma0or +tonic ma0or

and at a slightly faster tempo which represents the artist’s 0oy and delight, as well as having

a moving accompaniment underneath it which builds excitement. 3lthough the *ey suggests

0oy that the artist is happy, there are tritones heard in the bass which signify the underlying

emotional problems in the 4fascination4 that the artist has for his beloved. The final time the

%d(e Fixe is heard in the first movement, it reappears after the excitement in a pure formplayed by the violins bac* in C minor *ey between bars 567 to 587. erlio! uses imitation

around the orchestra to pass the theme around it which characterises that the 9fascination’

for his beloved goes through episodes of confusion and development but then following the

confusion, retreats to its simplistic roots when it is heard in its purest form in the 6st violin

part.

erlio! develops and transforms the %d(e Fixe further in the fifth and final movement,

4$ream of a :itches& Sabbath4. 3t bar 16, the theme is heard, played by the /b clarinet,

however, it is in a ;<= metre incorporating the use of acciaccaturas which ma*es the

theme mutated and distorted which represents that the artist sees his beloved in hell and

she is laughing at him, implying that she is happy to see him in the depths of hell. %n bars 55>



;5, we hear the %d(e Fixe again however, in /b ma0or +prepared by a b chord in bar 2

also represents the programme further because although he is in hell, the ma0or tonality is

further suggesting that his beloved is happy that he is there and moc*ing him.

3nother example of thematic transformation is present in the first movement, between bars

66 and 65. etween these bars, the main melodic theme is the same but harmonised

differently. ars 66>61 show harmonic movement of $ ma0or to /b ma0or whereas the next

two bars are harmonised with chords of F? minor@ to /b ma0or. This uncertainty of harmony

and use of repetition of the melodic material depicts the thought processes that the artist has

for his belovedA the melody is the same' therefore his beloved is still present, however his

reaction to her starts to change and develop.

3nother instance that erlio! ta*es advantage of thematic transformation is the 9$ies %rae’section of the fifth movement. The 9$ies %rae’ is seen first at bar 61@ of the fifth movementand again later in the movement at bar 5@. %t loo*s at first that it is 0ust being repeatedhowever, it is harmonised in a different way. This change in harmony could be a suggestionthat the piece is coming to a close and also could represent the fate of the artist is about tochange.

erlio! often uses the harmonic device of chromaticism in both movements to build tensionand excitement in the music. %n the first movement chromaticism is used in the passagebetween bars 62= and 11= in the strings. %t is utilised to build tension using sequences toexaggerate the build>up. This build of harmonic progression could be depicting that someone

+possibly the artist is being more aggravated, irritated and would up to the climax of thefortissimo chord of C? diminished in bar 11= followed by silence which could represent anger and discomfort. Bater in the first movement, chromatic movement in the chords is seenwithin bars 567 to 587. iolin 6 is very high in pitch and rises according to the chords whichmove chromatically. erlio! has written this chromaticism, again, to build tension and tosignify the extreme emotions that the artist is experiencing.

%n the 8th movement, erlio! has also used this harmonic device to, for most cases, to buildtension li*e we hear in the first movement. )owever, he also uses it to move away from atonality that he doesn’t want to hear anymore, for example' %n the 5 th bar, the violins have adescending chromatic scale, written to help bring the tonality down from the high pitchedwitches’ cac*les in the first bars of the movement which moves the music to a new tonality

and to a new section.%t is again heard in the strings when they are ascending chromatically between bars =8 and2, with the 9$ies %rae’ theme playing in the lower horns. Chromaticism is used here tocreate tension by forcing dissonance into the music, also representing the programme thathe is in hell.%n bars 1@2>1=, chromaticism is used but this time, for the purpose of a different effect. 3theme is passed around the orchestra creating antiphony and each bar, it riseschromatically. This creates a moc*ing tone which could be seen to represent the monstersand possibly his beloved laughing at his discomfort.

Through the use of imaginative chords, erlio! represents the programme in bothmovements. %n the first movement, between bars 57 and ;7, the music is moving towards

the *ey of $b ma0or using a dominant pedal which commences at bar 5@, which leads to achord sequence of $b D 3 D 3b D /@ D C?m D E?m. This is a dar* sounding passage at a



very soft dynamic which is 0uxtaposed with the lighter arpeggios played by the violins. Thiscontrast in pitch represents the emotion mix that the artist is experiencing D $epression tooy.%n the fifth movement, the 9$ies %rae’ is heard at bar 61@ in the *ey of C minor, however, allthrough the passage that it is heard, there are hints of /b ma0or +the relative ma0or, heard inthe upper strings and woodwind to suggest the idea of some people celebrating the death ofthe artist. erlio! uses pitch and harmony to create a contrast to represent different emotionsthat are appearing at the same time.

3s well as imaginative chords and abnormal harmony, erlio! writes lots of functionalharmony and chords to represent the programme. 3t the end of the fifth movement, there is extensive use of perfect cadences in C ma0or,using repetition of the C ma0or chord. These perfect cadences in a ma0or *ey create a happyending after the chaos that has been heard previously in the movement. erlio! has writtena happy ending to signify the happiness and elation that the artist is dead and going to hell.The 9Geligiosmente’ at bar 886 in the fifth movement is comprised of a wide>ranging use ofplagal cadences. These are a reference to erlio!’s upbringing and religious beliefs which

could be a suggestion of him relying on religion to help him cope though the pains ofconfusion and depression.$iminished @ths are also used to represent the programme. The 8th movement starts with highpitched violins which lead to a diminished @ th chord which causes an eerie atmosphere to themusic. The notes of the chord are layered up between the string parts which are playedmuted to add to the dar*er sound and unnerving mood of this section which represents thewitches and monsters seen in hell mentioned in the programme.

Through the techniques of thematic transformation, chromaticism and adding harmonythrough chords and chord sequences, erlio! is able to use harmony and tonality extremelyeffectively to represent the programme of Symphonie Fantastique. )e uses these devices tocreate tension, dissonance, excitement and discomfort to embody the different emotions felt

through the pieceA primarily to represent the artist’s 9fascination’ for his beloved.

compare the expressive use of harmony and tonality in at least two movements from symphonie...

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