Bernard Herrmann Flashcards
(26 cards)
1
Q
Name 4 Cues in Psycho
A
“Prelude”
“The city”
“The Murder”
“The Cellar”
2
Q
Describe the Performing forces in “Prelude”
A
- String orchestra: writing for 5-part string textures.
- Instruments to play con sordino for all the cues except the murder scene.
- Variations of pizzicato and Arco.
- Quaver ostinato figures.
3
Q
Describe the Performing forces in “The city”
A
- Eight part bowed string writing, octave doubling. High writing in all instruments.
4
Q
Describe the Performing forces in “The Murder”
A
- Ultra high notes at the top of the range.
- String orchestra with harsh timbre.
- Played sffz and senza sordini.
- Chord Clusters
5
Q
Describe the Performing forces in “the Cellar”
A
- Full string orchestra with tremolando passages moving in quaver trills.
- Sul ponticello and arco.
- Musical phrases shared by 10 divisi parts
6
Q
Describe the Structure of the “Prelude”
A
- Used in six different cues
- Built off 4 musical idea.
- b1-4: Syncopated Hitchcock chords.
- b3 - 20: Busy obsessive ideas made up of short ostinato.
- b21 - 24: repeated dotted rhythms block chords with off-beat low bass pizzicato.
- b37 - 48 more conventional melody line.
- Ideas played in different orders throughout the cue.
7
Q
Describe the Structure in “The City”
A
- Varied repetitions of the open 3 bars.
- Bars 4 and 5 reverse the music of bars 1 and 2 in retrograde.
8
Q
Describe the Structure in “The Murder”
A
- Chords built up over 8 bars.
- Repeated with glissandi up to each note.
- Rest of the cue is 2 bar phrases before sporadic final 5 bars.
9
Q
Describe the Structure in “The Cellar”
A
- Fugal structure is built up from 8 bar units.
- Multiple entries of the subject.
10
Q
What are the textures of each cues?
A
- Prelude is mainly homophonic and homorhythmic.
- Murder includes gradual layering of chords: homophonic.
- The cellar is polyphonic with multiple entries.
11
Q
What is the general tonality?
A
- Lack of tonal centres and keys.
- Atonal cues in “Murder”.
12
Q
Describe the Harmony in “the Prelude”
A
- Dissonant stab chords (Hitchcock chord) Bbminmaj7.
- Use of Extended chords b21 is a C#7 chord with minor 9th.
- Juxtaposition of chords a semitone apart/ semitone quaver movement
- Non-functional.
13
Q
Describe the Harmony in “The City”
A
- Diminished 7th chords and half diminished crotchet chords.
14
Q
Describe the Harmony in “The Murder”
A
- Dissonant cluster chords (Eb - E - F - F#) are created using layering of minim notes.
- The intervals are then inverted to create major 7th.
- Augmented 4ths (D/G#) (G/C#)
15
Q
Describe the Harmony in “The Cellar”
A
- Extremely chromatic with multiple descending scales that intertwine/overlap.
- Held sustained chord at the end of the cue.
16
Q
Describe the Melody in “Prelude”
A
- 2/4 bar motifs e.g. major thirds (E/G#, F/A)
- Semitone motif, doubled in thirds and simultaneously inverted.
- Repeated dotted block chords as the 3rd motif.
- Stepwise crotchet melody line that indicates Eb minor (natural) that then modulates to E minor.
17
Q
Describe the Melody in “The City”
A
- No clear melody as there is sustained chordal movement.
18
Q
Describe the Melody in “The Murder”
A
- Repetitive two bar phrases using the semitone motif with multiple glissandi ascending to the notes.
- Augmented note values and 4ths.
19
Q
Describe the Melody in “The Cellar”
A
- Fugal entries with subjects and countersubjects.
- Chromatic scale patterns descending.
- 8 bar subject which rises sequentially.
- Countersubject 1 - chromatic scale patterns with descending sequences.
- Countersubject 2 - Crotchet rests separating the notes of the idea, maintains excitement of quaver movement.
20
Q
Describe the Tempo, metre and Rhythm in the “Prelude”
A
- 2/4
- Strong rhythmic drive fuelled by incessant quaver movement.
- Sycopated rhythm of the Hitchcock chord.
- Bartok-lik triplet semiquaver figure.
- Contrasting dotted quaver/semiquaver figure concluded by syncopated pizzicato accent in the bass.
- Moment of relaxation in the bass (b37-38)
- Overlapping ostinato establishes paranoia.
- Allegro tempo
21
Q
Describe the Tempo, metre and Rhythm in “The City”
A
- 4/4, slow tempo.
- Equal note values throughout (crotchet) so creates a feeling of a pulse rather than a rhythm.
22
Q
Describe the Tempo, metre and Rhythm in “The Murder”
A
- 3/2 fast tempo.
- Downbow accents create a vicious pulse.
- Regular upper string chords in counterpoint with the syncopated cello and bass notes.
23
Q
Describe the Tempo, metre and Rhythm in “The Cellar”
A
- 2/4, fast tempo (Allegro Molto).
- The contrapuntal ideas here maintain a moto perpetual stream of continuous quavers in order to build up the tension.
- Use of tremolandi.
- Rests used to vary the rhythms.
- The longer note values dissipate some of the tension at the end of the cue.
24
Q
Give any other features
A
- Polarising dynamics.
- In “The Murder” there is an accumulation of sfzandos.
- “Prelude” starts fortissimo with sudden change to piano with no decrescendo.
- Crescendo through Prelude melody.
- Legato - city cue.
25
What happens in each cue in Psycho?
- Prelude - Opening (Nothing on screen at the time), foreshadowing.
- City - Peaceful city is shown
- Murder - Shower scene when Marion is stabbed in the shower by Bates.
- Cellar - Bates is in a fight and is overpowered.
26
Describe the the "Prelude" in Vertigo Part 1
- Constant contrary motion quavers on violin and flute. (Augmented triad with Ebminmaj7)
- Violin tremolo and the brass enters which creates suspense.
- Bitonalityand semitone movement emphasis tension.
- Harp takes over descending augmented triads with triangle in the background.
- Violin Eb min broken chord pizzicato played by viola and clarinet.
- Woodwind join on Ebminmaj7 (Hitchcock chord.
