Questions tagged [analysis]
For questions about studying the intricacies of a piece of music. Questions should also be tagged with a more specific form of analysis if applicable.
2
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1answer
46 views
How can this triad from the song “Believe” be analyzed?
I heard this song "Believe" recently, and the Eb major chord stood out to me. The song is in E major, so I'm wondering how that Eb triad can be looked at. Even if it was spelt as a D# major triad, it ...
1
vote
2answers
36 views
How can the intro to the song “If I Fell” be analyzed?
The introduction to this song by The Beatles starts off in the key of Eb minor. I'm trying to figure out how to analyze these chords.
The first chord would be i, the D major chord I'm unsure about, ...
0
votes
1answer
140 views
Why is the vi chord so popular? [closed]
In a major scale, I understand why the I IV V are the most popular chords mainly due to their diatonic functions and they also harmonize the entirety of the scale as they are the primary triads.
I ...
1
vote
1answer
36 views
Chord progression analysis in Blur's 'Sing' from the film Trainspotting [closed]
I like this progression by Blur that was in Trainspotting and I tried to figure out what the relationship between the chords are and what key they are in:
G-B-E-G
A-C#-F#
B-D-F#
I tried a reverse ...
0
votes
0answers
22 views
Analysis questions about a transcription I made (Jade's Desert - Mortal Kombat Trilogy OST)
I transcribed this song recently and I wanted some insight for analyzing it. It seems to me that it is a diminished riff, using some tritones and chromatic stuff and major seconds. However, beyond ...
1
vote
0answers
25 views
I could use some help analyzing a transcription I made of the disciples 2 menu theme
I've been transcribing some songs recently, however I feel that I am somewhat limited in actually approaching the analysis of the songs after I have transcribed them.
I have attached a photo of my ...
1
vote
1answer
48 views
How can one analyze this chord progression from “Vienna” by Billy Joel?
I'm wondering how to best go about analyzing this chord progression from the Billy Joel classic, "Vienna".
The song is in Bb-Major.
The first chord is an augmented I chord (I+), which seems strange. ...
2
votes
2answers
57 views
Analysis: How to determine what scale/mode a score uses
I'm learning music theory with the hopes of being able to analyze sheet music.
My question is -- What if the piece I am analyzing is in some other mode than major or minor? Or even stranger, like ...
5
votes
4answers
701 views
Can this note be analyzed as a non-chord tone?
I know that post-tonal and popular music can't always be analyzed through the same methods as the Common Practice Period, but I still like to see how people would try analyzing things.
This is a ...
3
votes
1answer
60 views
Questions on the harmonic analysis of Pixar's Up Main Theme
First time doing harmonic analysis.
This is the piece https://musescore.com/user/1596896/scores/715646
The key signature indicates F major, but I feel like the composer plays around with the ...
2
votes
2answers
61 views
What is the music theory behind the ending to this Chopin Etude?
Chopin Etude Op. 10 No. 3:
I'm wondering about how to best analyze the final 3 measures.
This piece simply ends on the I chord over the final 3 measures.
Would ...
7
votes
1answer
300 views
Roman Numeral Treatment of Suspensions
My question today stems from me having difficulty assigning a roman numeral to a chord which either has a suspension (please see below)
Or when there is melodic motion in the bass (please see below)
...
8
votes
2answers
751 views
Are there any thematic similarities between Shostakovichs' Symphony 5th and Beethovens' 7th symphony? [closed]
Taking a look at the opening bars of Shostakovichs' Symphony 5th and Beethovens' 7th symphony 4th movement (bar 136 onwards) see below they sound kind of similar.
Somebody suggested (Radio 3 I think)...
1
vote
1answer
44 views
Does Tchaikovsky's Sleeping Beauty modulate to the relative minor?
There's a part of Tchaikovsky's Sleeping Beauty that I like. And I was wondering if I'm right as far as the theory goes:
Measures 156-159 is in the relative key of G minor, and ends on this key.
...
1
vote
1answer
79 views
Composition of Cowell's “rhythmic key changes”
I'm currently reading Henry Cowell's New Musical Resources and
On page 98, Section 6,(TEMPO) in part 2 (RHYTHM),
is a paragraph of for instances. Directly, I'm grappling with the SECOND FOR INSTANCE ....
1
vote
3answers
121 views
How does 'If I were a rich man' work?
I was playing 'If I were a rich man'. I noticed how it makes use of alot of notes outside its scale even though it's in C major. and I was wondering what the term is for what is it doing. Is it ...
5
votes
1answer
36 views
Is melodic analysis a thing?
I know that harmonic analysis can be done like this:
i iv V i
Is there a similar standard for melodic analysis? Is melodic analysis a thing?
Thanks, Nathan.
1
vote
2answers
36 views
Analyzing Tchaikovsky's “ Morgengebet ” Pt 2
At the 4th measure from the picture, Starting of the [B] section, there is a question mark.
the notes are G, Eb, C, and F# .
What is this chord? It also appears in the 3rd measure of the [B] section....
2
votes
2answers
43 views
Analyzing Tschaikowsky's “Wintermorgen”
At the beginning of the first measure there is a chord with the notes of Eb, G, C#, and G.
What is this chord?
I suppose that the song is in B minor and I can't find any chords even in Modal ...
-2
votes
2answers
222 views
What type of cadence is this?
What type of cadence is this at the end of Dvorak's 9th symphony (Dvorak's 9th Symphony, 4th movement, Finale - Allegro con fuoco (Meaning: "Fast and Spirited"))? Is it an imperfect authentic cadence ...
3
votes
4answers
180 views
Looking for some advice for note taking to replace sheet music
I can always play from sheet music better than I play by memory for the most part.
I'm learning "kiss the rain" by yiruma which isn't hard at all - very simple but yet it is still pretty hard to ...
0
votes
3answers
175 views
Dvorak Plagiarized Beethoven?
I've just analyzed the beginning and the tempo of the scherzo of Dvorak's 9th symphony. When I did it, I've realized he had "copied" the scherzo of Beethoven's 9th! What is going on here?
0
votes
2answers
98 views
Am I right in that it is a diminished triad without the third?
So I have come across a difficulty in my harmonic analysis having to do with the tritone being by itself. Obviously, this gets across a dissonance that has to resolve but just from the tritone, it isn'...
2
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2answers
93 views
Mathematical methods for analysing melodic contour? [closed]
Are there any mathematical methods for identifying melodic shape, identifying motifs and general pattern recognition?
3
votes
1answer
128 views
Should sensible analysis show secondary functions fulfilling the supposed function?
This question started for me with an analysis using IV/IV.
It was analysis in Kostka/Payne for Mozart's K545, mv II, mm. 69-71...
G: I | IV6/IV V6/IV | IV
Instead of...
G: I |C: ...
1
vote
2answers
81 views
Using a constant tone to find the key center
I have a song that I'm trying to figure out the key center. I'll explain the process and you can tell me if I"m on the right track.
I start by analyzing the song using software that finds the chords. ...
1
vote
1answer
29 views
How do I tell which mode this extract uses?
In this exercise, the key signature has two flats but it's marked as C minor. There's a footnote that simply says 'modal key signature'. How do I work out which mode to use in my harmonisation?
0
votes
2answers
69 views
Does this chord function as a 13 chord?
In Debussy's La Fille aux Cheveux de Lin, there is this passage:
(Debussy: Préludes Livre I, No. 8, bar 24)
The piece is in Gb major.
This first chord is probably a I chord. But since it has that ...
9
votes
5answers
858 views
Incorrectly labeled chord. Is this a dominant seventh?
I am trying to analyse this but am confused by the chord marked Am7. Am7 shouldn't have a D in it and doesn't make much sense in the context. Could it possibly be a D7 with the G being a suspension of ...
6
votes
1answer
145 views
What is the rhythm of this Herbie Hancock song, and why is it so weird?
I've always listened to a lot of jazz and heard some weird rhythms, but only this year did my high school offer music theory - and right now, we're learning about rhythm. All we've done so far is ...
9
votes
2answers
1k views
Is there a term for when a lyric is sung and then an instrument (sound) is played to mimic the lyric?
Is there a term for when a phrase in a song, i.e., "shivers down my spine" as in Bohemian Rhapsody, after that phrase is sung, a tinkling or some kind of sound is made with an instrument, to mimic "...
0
votes
2answers
72 views
Interval analysis, augmented 5th or a 6th?
I am doing interval analysis as I am writing a countersubject(working on the harmony for it right now). But I have a bit of trouble here. I have 3 note choices for any given quarter note. The spot I ...
4
votes
1answer
172 views
Analysing “Dust to Dust”, John Kirkpatrick
I've been trying to analyse the song "Dust to Dust" by John Kirkpatrick to perhaps get some insight into how one writes in Locrian without sounding it sounding ugly. The only thing I've noticed is ...
5
votes
3answers
114 views
What's the correct analysis of this harmonic sequence at the end of the first movement of Dvorak's Fourth Symphony?
I've been puzzling over the best way to analyse the chords that occur at the end of the First Movement of Dvorak's Symphony No. 4 in D minor Op. 13. The passage is definitely part of a harmonic ...
3
votes
2answers
105 views
How could the medieval chants be classified before any notation was available?
We all have in mind the image of a medieval mode as a scale with a pattern of tones and semitones with a finalis, a specific range, etc.
However, it seems that medieval chants were classified ...
6
votes
2answers
245 views
Functional analysis of chorale 'Wie wunderbarlich ist doch diese Strafe' BWV 244/46
I did some analysis of the chorale 'Wie wunderbarlich ist doch diese Strafe' (from Matthew Passion BWV 244 no.46), see below. But how would I analyse the first chord in measure 2? Obviously, it's an E ...
3
votes
1answer
201 views
Analyzing Ryuichi Sakamoto “Merry Christmas, Mr. Laurence”
The original song is not in C Maj key
but the sheet I Have is in C Maj so let just see as the key is in C maj
(The [B] part starts 1:50)
How does the Gm (Vm) come ...
6
votes
1answer
413 views
Harmonic analysis of arpeggios in Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy
I've always liked the arpeggio section in dance of the sugar plum fairy, it sounds so sweet and mysterious. I was trying to figure out the idea behind them. Here's the section in Synthesia.
From ...
1
vote
1answer
801 views
Why is the final section of Liszt's La Campanella working so well?
The ending section of Liszt's La Campanella is the most beautiful I've heard so far.
I'm referring to the change in melody, from this point all the way to the end:
...
2
votes
1answer
297 views
Harmonic Analysis of Chopin's etude op.10 no 5
In the circled part, what is the harmony?
Is the E-flat a non-chord tone or is this just some weird chord? (I've only learnt basic harmony.)
1
vote
4answers
171 views
Why do we care about the interval between a pair of notes and not the product of a pair of notes?
As a computer scientist, I think of each element of musical analysis as a computation we have chosen to do on the music for some reason. I'm not saying I understand how humans decide what the meter ...
4
votes
2answers
267 views
How does one identify leitmotifs in Wagner's Ring cycle?
How does one go about identifying leitmotifs in Wagner's Ring cycle? My usual strategy is:
I just know a bunch of them from repeated listening.
I open one of the online repositories such as this one ...
15
votes
3answers
2k views
What makes a piece sound like Beethoven?
I can't seem to find non-harmonic analyses of Beethoven's sonatas. And I'm not a classical music analyzer. That makes it hard to write a sonata in the style of Beethoven when I don't know what ...
4
votes
1answer
70 views
Does the harmony change in this part?
In the circled part, does the harmony change to ii or is the D an échappé (escape note) to the dominant?
3
votes
1answer
804 views
What's the theory behind Chim Chim Cher-ee?
Chim Chim Cher-ee has a fantastic chord structure:
i, IIIaug, III, IV, iv, i, II7, V
Most of those transitions make sense to me. However, there are three transitions that I don't quite understand:
...
0
votes
2answers
665 views
What is the musical form of Saint-Saens Danse Macabre?
My first ("blind") guess was that it is in rondo form with two themes, but when I performed analysis, it somehow doesn't fit any form that I can think of.
This is what I figured out:
intro a b a' a ...
4
votes
1answer
87 views
Does Bill Conti's Thomas Crown Affair theme use a specific mode?
So I was watching The Thomas Crown Affair (1999) (The remake, not the original) and I was struck with the colors and general feel of the main theme, composed by Bill Conti. I immediately wanted to ...
3
votes
1answer
216 views
Roman Numeral Analysis of Tension-Heavy Jazz
So far, I have tried doing Roman numeral analysis mainly on Classical- and Romantic- era music. However, I just took a look at some Miles Davis, and didn't know what to do - there were so many chords ...
3
votes
1answer
169 views
What does R=2N mean?
I'm just wondering what the R=2N means. I guess it's something like "real bar = 2 notated bars," but does anyone know?
1
vote
2answers
143 views
What are these non-chord tones in the Jackson Five's “Want you Back”?
for example could u play a neighbour tone twice or got from a chord tone to an nct then to another nct. I was looking at jackson 5's want you back and this appeared to be the case
this is written in ...
