Summary Edexcel Music GCSE grade 9 notes (Samba el preludio)

ESPERANZA SPALDING: SAMBA EL PRELUDIO
CONTEXT:

 Performed by Esperenza Spalding – vocalist and bassist
 Fusion – a mix of two or more style
 Originally written by Robert Baden Powell de Aquino (Brazilian
guitarist and composer) and Vinicus de Moraes (lyricist)
 Roberto was significant part in bossa nova ‘explosion’ in the
1960’s. His music mixed Brazialian rhytms and complex jazz
harmonies.
 Vinicus creates lyrics to bossa nova classics like the Girl from
Ipanema.
 Piece is written in 1962
 The Portuguese lyrics were added after had been composed.
 Samba: – popular during 20th century as national dance of Brazil.
-Loud drumming and distict rhythms form exciting part of
carnivals.
-‘Samba el Preludio’ means prelude in the form of a samba.
(A prelude being a short piece written in
the style of an improvisation)
-It is a Bossa nova (which means new trend) developed in
late 1950s as an alterntive to boisterous
carnival samba.
- Bossa nova is a fusion of Samba and Jazz
-Slower and tend to focus on rich and complex
harmonies.
 Originally intended as a love song as a duet
 Different to samba as not as loud and slow tempo

INTRODUCTION (b1-3):

 Free time
 Double stopping + pull offs + plucked
 Improvisatory feel
 Monophonic texture
 B minor (most Bossa Nova in minor key)
 Tonal harmonies influenced by jazz
 Acoustic bass solo
 Rubato
 Mordent, double stopping

VERSE 1 (A) (b4-19):

 Work setting is syllabic throughout
 Slow tempo

,  Mostly homophonic but sometimes bass in melodic enough to be
melody itself (counterpoint)
 Bass is active and virtuosic
 Rapid semi quaver passage
 Large interval leaps
 Low range for female
 Ends with chord V
 Melody repeated with different ending and developed rhythmically
 Rubato used throughout expressive
 Rising arpeggios shape occasionally 7th leaps
 Downwards sequence by semitone at start of each phrase
 Triplets

BREAK/ LINK (b19-22):

 Faster tempo (sounds like 2/2)
 Bass sets bossa nova groove 4 bars before guitar joins and uses
syncopation

VERSE 2 (B) (b23-54):

 16 bars long
 Mainly conjunct
 Note values doubled
 Acoustic guitar joins the accompaniment mix of plucked chords and
small melodic passages
 Syncopation
 Chromatic chord
 Sequence 4th higher
 Jazzy flattened 5th idea
 Diminished 7th and chromatic movement in bass
 Cross rhythms between voice and bass
 Guitar flourishes
 Values doubled
 Dissonance perfect cadence

INSTRUMENTAL (b55-87):

 Guitar solo over 2 sets of 16 bar chord sequence of verse 2
 Overdubbed however when live would do simpler solo
 Bass still plays accompaniment

VERSE 3 voice and bass duet (b88-104):

 Repeat of 3rd stanza 16 bars long
 Polyphonic texture ( more sparse) (A in bass B in voice)
 s with line = sengo repeat from this sign