4

Escala's Clubbed to Death seems to be a passacaglia. It has a repetitive line throughout, over which counterpoint is added. In fact, it sounds similar to Biber's Harmonia artificiosa-ariosa: Partita No. 5 in G Minor: V. Passacaglia.

Improve this question
3
  • Maybe you should reword as "is C2D best categorized as a passacaglia or some other form" to get more thoughtful responses. – Carl Witthoft Feb 2 '17 at 12:55
  • 1
    You might want to give Rob Dougan a bit of credit for C2D, though as others have mentioned he did have some help from Elgar. The "original" 1995 version is on youtube – Bob says reinstate Monica Feb 3 '17 at 1:16
  • @Bob Dougan's piece is very good. Re-use doesn't mean uncreative. Bach reused Vivaldi. – Geremia Feb 3 '17 at 1:55
3

Wow, nice find!

"Clubbed to Death" actually begins with the opening to Elgar's Enigma Variations, at which point Escala takes a part of that opening bassline and uses it to construct the form.

The definitions for "passacaglia" and "chaconne" are really a little bit vague, but there are some typical aspects of each. The passacaglia, for instance, is often in 3 (like the Biber example you showed).

But both the passacaglia and chaconne are examples of what we call a "ground bass," so I think it would be safer to just call it that.

Improve this answer
1
  • Yes, it begins with Elgar's Enigma Variations, but the "ground bass" line is very similar to Biber's passacaglia. – Geremia Feb 2 '17 at 20:32

Your Answer

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service, privacy policy and cookie policy

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.