Edexcel A Level Music
Appraising Revision Guide
Set Works - Musical Elements - Wider Listening Links
, Contents
Vocal Music Fusions
3. Bach - Ein feste Burg - Movement 1: Chorus - Ein feste Burg ist unser 33. Debussy - Estampes - No. 1 - Pagodes
Gott 34. Debussy - Estampes - No. 2 - La soiree dans Grenade
4. Bach - Ein feste Burg - Movement 2: Aria and Duet - Alles, was von 35. Anoushka Shankar - Breathing Under Water - Burn
Gott geboren 36. Anoushka Shankar - Breathing Under Water - Breathing Under
5. Bach - Ein feste Burg - Movement 8: Chorale - Das Wort sie sollen Water
lassen stahn 37. Anoushka Shankar - Breathing Under Water - Easy
6. Vaughan Williams - On Wenlock Edge - No. 1 - On Wenlock Edge
7. Vaughan Williams - On Wenlock Edge - No. 3 - Is My Team Ploughing? New Directions
8. Vaughan Williams - On Wenlock Edge - No. 5 - Bredon Hill
38. Saariaho - Petals - Petals for Violoncello and Live Electronics
Instrumental Music 39. Stravinsky - The Rite of Spring - Introduction
40. Stravinsky - The Rite of Spring - The Augurs of Spring
9. Berlioz - Symphonie Fantastique - Movement I - Reveries - Passions 41. Stravinsky - The Rite of Spring - Ritual of Abduction
10. Clara Schumann - Piano Trio in G minor - Movement I - Allegro
moderato
Wider Listening
Music for Film 42. Wider Listening Appendix - Expanded menu
11. Herrmann - Psycho - Prelude
12. Herrmann - Psycho - The City
13. Herrmann - Psycho - Marion
14. Herrmann - Psycho - The Murder (Shower Scene)
15. Herrmann - Psycho - The Toys
16. Herrmann - Psycho - The Cellar
17. Herrmann - Psycho - Discovery
18. Herrmann - Psycho - Finale
19. Elfman - Batman Returns - Birth of a Penguin, Part I
20. Elfman - Batman Returns - Birth of a Penguin, Part II
21. Elfman - Batman Returns - Batman vs the Circus
22. Elfman - Batman Returns - The Rise and Fall from Grace
Popular Music and Jazz
23. The Beatles - Revolver - Eleanor Rigby
24. The Beatles - Revolver - Here, There and Everywhere
25. The Beatles - Revolver - I Want to Tell You
26. The Beatles - Revolver - Tomorrow Never Knows
27. Courtney Pine - Back in the Day - Lady Day and (John Coltrane)
28. Courtney Pine - Back in the Day - Inner State (of Mind)
29. Courtney Pine - Back in the Day - Love and Affection
30. Kate Bush - Hounds of Love - Cloudbusting
31. Kate Bush - Hounds of Love - And Dream of Sheep
32. Kate Bush - Hounds of Love - Under Ice
, Bach - Ein feste Burg: Movement 1: Chorus - Ein feste Burg ist unser Gott
3
Vocal Music | J. S. Bach | c.1723 or 1728-31; first performed 1727-31
CONTEXT PERFORMING FORCES MELODY TONALITY
• Lutheran chorale cantata for Reformation Day, based on • SATB choir with tutti orchestra; vocal lines closely doubled • Main theme based on Luther chorale tune; repeated tonic • Overall D major.
Martin Luther hymn "Ein feste Burg ist unser Gott". by instruments. notes, fall to dominant, rise back to tonic. • Modulates mainly to close keys: A major, G major, F# minor,
• Bach wrote it while Cantor of St Thomas Church, Leipzig; • Cantata forces include SATB soloists/choir, 3 oboes, violin • Chorale appears as cantus firmus and is worked B minor and E minor.
text/music use pre-existing chorale material as cantus firmus. 1/2 and split continuo: Violoncello e cembalo / Violone e contrapuntally. • Long tonic pedals confirm D major at key structural points.
• Opening chorus/chorale fantasia: establishes the hymn in a organo. • Mostly conjunct/diatonic with small fourth/fifth leaps;
grand contrapuntal style. • Sackbut strengthens lower line in recording; later trumpet chromatic intensification e.g. later movement climax.
• Useful exam angle: sacred Baroque counterpoint, fugal parts by W. F. Bach add grandeur. • Subject is transposed for tonal answer;
entries and chorale unity. soprano/alto/tenor/bass ranges are wide.
HARMONY TEXTURE STRUCTURE RHYTHM, TEMPO AND METRE
• Functional Baroque harmony with frequent perfect cadences. • Highly contrapuntal and fugal. • Large opening chorale fantasia. • 4/2 simple quadruple metre.
• Suspensions create expressive tension, including 4-3 • Layered entries build tenor -> alto -> soprano -> bass. • Material organised around chorale phrases; returns to D • Driving quaver movement and melismatic passages create
suspension. • Subject/countersubject interplay; cantus firmus in canon major at close. forward energy.
• Circle-of-fifths style movement and secondary/dominant between oboes and continuo. • Fugal entries, episodic development and chorale phrase • Tied notes in theme and occasional dotted rhythms add
sevenths are common. • Orchestral doubling adds weight without removing statements provide unity. momentum.
contrapuntal clarity.
WIDER LISTENING REFERENCES
• Handel - Messiah choruses: compare Baroque choral counterpoint and cadences.
• Mozart - The Magic Flute choruses: compare later Classical vocal-orchestral style.
• Schutz - sacred concertos: compare earlier Lutheran text setting.
Page 3 | Set-work revision page
, Bach - Ein feste Burg: Movement 2: Aria and Duet - Alles, was von Gott geboren
4
Vocal Music | J. S. Bach | c.1723 or 1728-31; first performed 1727-31
CONTEXT PERFORMING FORCES MELODY TONALITY
• Lutheran chorale cantata for Reformation Day, based on • Duet for soprano and bass with strings and solo oboe. • Soprano carries ornamented chorale/cantus firmus. • Begins and ends in D major.
Martin Luther hymn "Ein feste Burg ist unser Gott". • Oboe essentially doubles the soprano chorale line. • Bass line is highly scalic, melismatic and virtuosic. • Moves through closely related keys including A major, B
• Bach wrote it while Cantor of St Thomas Church, Leipzig; • Bass sings a more independent and ornate aria line. • Oboe and soprano use ornamentation, including trills. minor and F# minor.
text/music use pre-existing chorale material as cantus firmus. • Solo lines are mainly scalic, with some angular bass • Return to D major stabilises closing orchestral material.
• Aria/duet contrasts a recognisable ornamented chorale in moments.
the soprano with an independent virtuoso bass aria.
• Useful exam angle: chorale melody plus soloistic Baroque
writing.
HARMONY TEXTURE STRUCTURE RHYTHM, TEMPO AND METRE
• Diatonic functional harmony with frequent perfect cadences. • Opening/postlude are melody-dominated homophony. • Orchestral introduction, vocal sections based on chorale • 4/4 common time.
• Dominant/secondary sevenths colour the progressions. • When voices enter, texture becomes contrapuntal. phrases, orchestral close. • Moto perpetuo semiquavers create energy.
• Chromatic motion appears where vocal lines intensify. • Soprano/oboe create heterophonic effect because the oboe • Soprano presents chorale phrases while bass expands • Bass dominated by semiquaver melismas.
doubles and decorates the chorale. independently. • Dotted rhythms, syncopation and decoration add surface
• Continuous string semiquavers create busy accompaniment • Middle section develops later chorale phrases with faster detail.
layer. modulation.
WIDER LISTENING REFERENCES
• Handel arias: compare Baroque melisma and continuo-driven texture.
• Bach passions: compare chorale melody against independent solo writing.
• Vivaldi concerto movements: compare motor rhythm and sequence.
Page 4 | Set-work revision page
Appraising Revision Guide
Set Works - Musical Elements - Wider Listening Links
, Contents
Vocal Music Fusions
3. Bach - Ein feste Burg - Movement 1: Chorus - Ein feste Burg ist unser 33. Debussy - Estampes - No. 1 - Pagodes
Gott 34. Debussy - Estampes - No. 2 - La soiree dans Grenade
4. Bach - Ein feste Burg - Movement 2: Aria and Duet - Alles, was von 35. Anoushka Shankar - Breathing Under Water - Burn
Gott geboren 36. Anoushka Shankar - Breathing Under Water - Breathing Under
5. Bach - Ein feste Burg - Movement 8: Chorale - Das Wort sie sollen Water
lassen stahn 37. Anoushka Shankar - Breathing Under Water - Easy
6. Vaughan Williams - On Wenlock Edge - No. 1 - On Wenlock Edge
7. Vaughan Williams - On Wenlock Edge - No. 3 - Is My Team Ploughing? New Directions
8. Vaughan Williams - On Wenlock Edge - No. 5 - Bredon Hill
38. Saariaho - Petals - Petals for Violoncello and Live Electronics
Instrumental Music 39. Stravinsky - The Rite of Spring - Introduction
40. Stravinsky - The Rite of Spring - The Augurs of Spring
9. Berlioz - Symphonie Fantastique - Movement I - Reveries - Passions 41. Stravinsky - The Rite of Spring - Ritual of Abduction
10. Clara Schumann - Piano Trio in G minor - Movement I - Allegro
moderato
Wider Listening
Music for Film 42. Wider Listening Appendix - Expanded menu
11. Herrmann - Psycho - Prelude
12. Herrmann - Psycho - The City
13. Herrmann - Psycho - Marion
14. Herrmann - Psycho - The Murder (Shower Scene)
15. Herrmann - Psycho - The Toys
16. Herrmann - Psycho - The Cellar
17. Herrmann - Psycho - Discovery
18. Herrmann - Psycho - Finale
19. Elfman - Batman Returns - Birth of a Penguin, Part I
20. Elfman - Batman Returns - Birth of a Penguin, Part II
21. Elfman - Batman Returns - Batman vs the Circus
22. Elfman - Batman Returns - The Rise and Fall from Grace
Popular Music and Jazz
23. The Beatles - Revolver - Eleanor Rigby
24. The Beatles - Revolver - Here, There and Everywhere
25. The Beatles - Revolver - I Want to Tell You
26. The Beatles - Revolver - Tomorrow Never Knows
27. Courtney Pine - Back in the Day - Lady Day and (John Coltrane)
28. Courtney Pine - Back in the Day - Inner State (of Mind)
29. Courtney Pine - Back in the Day - Love and Affection
30. Kate Bush - Hounds of Love - Cloudbusting
31. Kate Bush - Hounds of Love - And Dream of Sheep
32. Kate Bush - Hounds of Love - Under Ice
, Bach - Ein feste Burg: Movement 1: Chorus - Ein feste Burg ist unser Gott
3
Vocal Music | J. S. Bach | c.1723 or 1728-31; first performed 1727-31
CONTEXT PERFORMING FORCES MELODY TONALITY
• Lutheran chorale cantata for Reformation Day, based on • SATB choir with tutti orchestra; vocal lines closely doubled • Main theme based on Luther chorale tune; repeated tonic • Overall D major.
Martin Luther hymn "Ein feste Burg ist unser Gott". by instruments. notes, fall to dominant, rise back to tonic. • Modulates mainly to close keys: A major, G major, F# minor,
• Bach wrote it while Cantor of St Thomas Church, Leipzig; • Cantata forces include SATB soloists/choir, 3 oboes, violin • Chorale appears as cantus firmus and is worked B minor and E minor.
text/music use pre-existing chorale material as cantus firmus. 1/2 and split continuo: Violoncello e cembalo / Violone e contrapuntally. • Long tonic pedals confirm D major at key structural points.
• Opening chorus/chorale fantasia: establishes the hymn in a organo. • Mostly conjunct/diatonic with small fourth/fifth leaps;
grand contrapuntal style. • Sackbut strengthens lower line in recording; later trumpet chromatic intensification e.g. later movement climax.
• Useful exam angle: sacred Baroque counterpoint, fugal parts by W. F. Bach add grandeur. • Subject is transposed for tonal answer;
entries and chorale unity. soprano/alto/tenor/bass ranges are wide.
HARMONY TEXTURE STRUCTURE RHYTHM, TEMPO AND METRE
• Functional Baroque harmony with frequent perfect cadences. • Highly contrapuntal and fugal. • Large opening chorale fantasia. • 4/2 simple quadruple metre.
• Suspensions create expressive tension, including 4-3 • Layered entries build tenor -> alto -> soprano -> bass. • Material organised around chorale phrases; returns to D • Driving quaver movement and melismatic passages create
suspension. • Subject/countersubject interplay; cantus firmus in canon major at close. forward energy.
• Circle-of-fifths style movement and secondary/dominant between oboes and continuo. • Fugal entries, episodic development and chorale phrase • Tied notes in theme and occasional dotted rhythms add
sevenths are common. • Orchestral doubling adds weight without removing statements provide unity. momentum.
contrapuntal clarity.
WIDER LISTENING REFERENCES
• Handel - Messiah choruses: compare Baroque choral counterpoint and cadences.
• Mozart - The Magic Flute choruses: compare later Classical vocal-orchestral style.
• Schutz - sacred concertos: compare earlier Lutheran text setting.
Page 3 | Set-work revision page
, Bach - Ein feste Burg: Movement 2: Aria and Duet - Alles, was von Gott geboren
4
Vocal Music | J. S. Bach | c.1723 or 1728-31; first performed 1727-31
CONTEXT PERFORMING FORCES MELODY TONALITY
• Lutheran chorale cantata for Reformation Day, based on • Duet for soprano and bass with strings and solo oboe. • Soprano carries ornamented chorale/cantus firmus. • Begins and ends in D major.
Martin Luther hymn "Ein feste Burg ist unser Gott". • Oboe essentially doubles the soprano chorale line. • Bass line is highly scalic, melismatic and virtuosic. • Moves through closely related keys including A major, B
• Bach wrote it while Cantor of St Thomas Church, Leipzig; • Bass sings a more independent and ornate aria line. • Oboe and soprano use ornamentation, including trills. minor and F# minor.
text/music use pre-existing chorale material as cantus firmus. • Solo lines are mainly scalic, with some angular bass • Return to D major stabilises closing orchestral material.
• Aria/duet contrasts a recognisable ornamented chorale in moments.
the soprano with an independent virtuoso bass aria.
• Useful exam angle: chorale melody plus soloistic Baroque
writing.
HARMONY TEXTURE STRUCTURE RHYTHM, TEMPO AND METRE
• Diatonic functional harmony with frequent perfect cadences. • Opening/postlude are melody-dominated homophony. • Orchestral introduction, vocal sections based on chorale • 4/4 common time.
• Dominant/secondary sevenths colour the progressions. • When voices enter, texture becomes contrapuntal. phrases, orchestral close. • Moto perpetuo semiquavers create energy.
• Chromatic motion appears where vocal lines intensify. • Soprano/oboe create heterophonic effect because the oboe • Soprano presents chorale phrases while bass expands • Bass dominated by semiquaver melismas.
doubles and decorates the chorale. independently. • Dotted rhythms, syncopation and decoration add surface
• Continuous string semiquavers create busy accompaniment • Middle section develops later chorale phrases with faster detail.
layer. modulation.
WIDER LISTENING REFERENCES
• Handel arias: compare Baroque melisma and continuo-driven texture.
• Bach passions: compare chorale melody against independent solo writing.
• Vivaldi concerto movements: compare motor rhythm and sequence.
Page 4 | Set-work revision page
