Lesson 6 Beethoven Revisited

Beethoven Revisited In Beethoven Copy Cat you composed a piece using the rhythm and form (aa’ba’) of Beethoven. In this assignment, you will use Beethoven’s form but you will create your own rhythm. Begin by creating a four measure rhythmic phrase in 4/4 time for section a using some or all of the rhythmic figures that you now know. The rhythm below is an example of a four measure rhythmic phrase.

Now change section a slightly to make it become a’. Look at the two phrases below - Phrase a and Phrase a’. See how measure two has been changed to create Phrase a’ Phrase a Phrase a’ Create Phrase b focusing on using different rhythmic figures Phrase b

Rhythmic Part Of The Composition This is what the rhythmic composition using the form aa’ba’ could look like. Listen to the sound file.

Adding melody Now you are ready to add melody to the rhythmic phrases. Use any of the following eight notes beginning on middle “C”. End the phrase a’ on the note “C”. The is called the home tone. End the phrase a and phrase b on notes other that “C”. In choosing the notes for the melody, keep in mind the example provided by Beethoven. Beethoven used stepwise motion in some phrases and then to create contrast he used steps and skips.

New Composition

Adding timbre, dynamics and tempi changes to your composition Listen to the two versions of the aa’ba’ composition. How are they different? You will have noticed the second composition sounds smoother. There are also differences in loudness. If you listened very carefully, you will have heard the piece slow down in the last two measures. Changing the timbre (the instrument which is playing), articulation (detached or attached way in which notes are sounded), dynamics (loudness and softness) and tempo (speed of the piece) can create a more interesting composition. #1. #2.

Making changes to your composition Following the steps outlined in slides 1-6, create your new composition using aa’ba’ form. Tempo: to choose a tempo for your piece. The higher the number the faster the piece. Experiment until you find the tempo which suits your piece. Tempo variances: Breath mark: this tells you where a singer or instrumentalist should take a breath. Fermata: is a pause or hold in the music. Accelerando: gradually speed up Ritardando: gradually slow down

Dynamics: to change the loudness and softness of the melody in different phrases. Dynamic choices: Pianississimo (ppp)very very soft Pianissimo (pp)very soft Piano (p)soft Mezzo piano (mp)medium soft Mezzo forte (mf)medium loud Forte (f)loud Fortissimo (ff)very loud Fortississimo (fff)very very loud

Articulation refers to the manner in which a note may be played. If you wish notes to sound smooth and attached, you can use a slur. The slur will look like this: If you wish individual notes to be detached and short you may use make them staccato. The notes will look like this:

Further articulations: You may wish one note to sound louder than another. This articulation is called an accent. The notes will look like this: Changing instrumentation: Experiment until you find just the right “timbre” for you composition

Your composition Now you are ready to write your own compositon in aa’ba’ Write your own rhythm Use any of the notes in the C scale (CDEFGABC) Add timbre, dynamics, tempo, and articulation to your composition.

Upload the final composition to Blackboard using the appropriate assignment drop box - Composition Assignment 6. Include a three sentence description of what you were trying to communicate as a composer. What mood were you trying to create? What were some of the challenges that you faced as a composer? How did you solve these problems? Include any questions that you might have for the instructor with this assignment. Please note that this assignment will be graded.