Henry Purcell

1. Henry Purcell 1659-1695

2. From Dido and Aeneas: Dido’s Lament 1689 – Purcell was 30, a court composer, and had been married for 9 years… M:\My Documents\Theory VII\Scores\Binary and Ternary Examples\Binary\Dido's Lament\YouTube - Dido's lament - Jessye Norman.flv

3. Outline for Analysis Purcell – Dido’s Lament Harmony • Basic Shape • Harmony Basic observations outlined (specific questions are required for Group A or B. These are all of the questions, both A & B). • 1. Description of pitch materials • 2. Relative degree of non-chord material • 3. Prevalent sonorities • 4. Change of the above • 5. Harmonic rhythm – changes • 6. Predominant chord relationships – V-I structural? • 7. Cadences of large sections Types Patterns • 8. Background harmonic patterns of large sections • 9. Tonality in large sections Traditional or not?

4. M:\My Documents\Theory VII\Scores\Binary and Ternary Examples\Binary\Dido's Lament\YouTube - Emma Kirkby - Purcell Dido's lament - York, 2007.flv Basic Shape Recitative and Aria – 64 measures long Recitative – 2 sentences set in 4 phrases: Thy hand, Belinda! darkness shades me, On thy bosom let me rest. More I would, but death invades me, Death is now a welcome guest. Aria – 2 sentences set in 10 vocal phrases over 11 repetitions of a ground pattern When I am laid in earth, May my wrongs create no trouble in thy breast. Remember me, but ah! forget my fate! RecitativeAria I Pa Pb Pa Pb Sa Sb Sc (a+b) Sa Sb Sc Coda || 1-3 3-5 5-7 7-9 || 9-14,14-17 17-22/24 24-27 27-32/33 33-37 37-40 40-44 44-47 47-50 50-54 54-64 c minor g minor V-i A binary form stretched over a ground pattern with Introduction and Coda Diagram of the basic shape:

5. Scan and make notes • Harmony Basic observations outlined – to be ‘fleshed out’ in the paper. • 1. Description of pitch materials • Tonal • Recit. moves from iv to V, Aria is in g minor throughout. • 2. Relative degree of non-chord material • Most non-chord material is in the vocal line • Accompanimental non-chord activity is primarily suspension activity • Some passing tones and anticipations appear in the vocal line • 3. Prevalent sonorities • Tertian chords and seventh chords predominate throughout • 4. Change of the above • There is no significant change in the use of the above materials during the work • 5. Harmonic rhythm – changes • The Recitative begins with one chord/measure and grows to two chords/measure • The Aria uses an anacrusis pattern of short-long until the cadence, where harmonic and • rhythmic syncopation emphasizes the cadence. • 6. Predominant chord relationships – V-I structural? • i – V and V – i frame the Aria ground. iv – V is emphasized in the Recitative, and iio or • iv always precede V. • V-i is structural at the beginning of the Aria, the beginning of P, and of S. It is not • structural as a tonal framework (i.e. the dominant key never appears…) • 7. Cadences of large sections • Types Recit. -- Phrygian cadence (iv6 – V) • P -- Half with PAC elided extension • S -- PAC • Patterns • Anticipations throughout the Aria, not in the Recitative • 8. Background harmonic patterns of large sections • Recitative: iv – V • Aria i-V-i • 9. Tonality in large sections • Traditional or not? Highly chromatic, heterophonic voice leading, no modulation.

6. M:\My Documents\Theory VII\Scores\Binary and Ternary Examples\Binary\Dido's Lament\YouTube - Janet Baker - Dido Aeneas - When I am laid in earth.flv

7. Write the paper Examples can be cut and pasted from copies of the score, or they can be ‘cut and pasted’ from a Finale file. Purcell manuscript of an anthem written for the cathedral choir of James II. Thank the good Lord for Finale…

8. Description of pitch materials The pitch materials in Purcell’s recitative and aria, Dido’s Lament, are tonal, exhibiting characteristics of late Baroque chromatic voice leading, particularly the descending chromatic ground supporting the Aria. The recitative begins in c minor, though the key signature is that of the following Aria, g minor. The first phrase shows a structural chromatic motion from i – V in c minor, establishing the key with the initial chord, the first cadential chord (iv in ms. 3) and the second cadential chord (V in ms. 5) Ex. 1

9. The remainder of the recitative moves to g minor, continuing the chromatic motion primarily through chord mutations, concluding on a Phrygian cadence. Ex. 2 The entire Recitative thus serves to establish the tonic of g minor through prolongation and a structural motion from iv (c minor) to V, preparing for the strong resolution to i in measure 9. Ex. 3

10. The Aria, firmly established in g minor, uses a chaconne’like ground throughout. It continues to employ the chromaticism of the Recitative, largely again through the mutation of chords, to prolong a structural progression of i –V– i. Ex. 4 mutation mutation This pattern is repeated eleven times, providing a firm g minor underpinning to the binary form of the Aria.

11. Relative degree of non-chord material The types of non-chord material used include foreground ‘surface’ non-chord tones in both the solo vocal line and in the harmonic unfolding supporting the vocal line, and structural embellishments of the basic line. First, an examination of the foreground material is in order. The Recitative introduces the following non-chord tones occurring mainly in the vocal line: 1. neighbor tone ms. 1 (b natural), 2 (a), 6 (e natural) 2. passing tone ms. 2 (ab) 3. suspension ms. 4 (ab and g), 6 (g, eb), 8 (eb, f#) The Aria continues use of the above in the vocal line to a lesser degree, but the instrumental ground emphasizes the use of suspensions to great effect. The suspension figure as used here is one of the most common Baroque affects, the ‘tear drop’ motive. It appears very consistently from one measure to the next except in cadence patterns. Purcell first uses it in the Aria in the vocal line (ms. 14-15), but does not use it again in the voice after the repetition of ms. 24-25. The instrumental accompaniment first introduces it in ms. 15-16 and continues its use at least once per measure thereafter. The Coda is a stretto repetition of the pattern over two repetitions of the ground for eight full measures, breaking off only for the final cadence.

12. Suspension in the Vocal Line Ex. 5 -- Coda

13. As noted, there are two instances where the pattern is repeated without suspensions being created. This Coda is a remarkable instance of ‘tone painting’ precisely because of the use of the suspensions, the ‘tear-drop’ affect. A new non-chord tone is introduced in the Aria, the anticipation. It is used almost as an ‘answer’ to the suspension, as the resolution of the anticipation is the often in the opposite direction as the that of the resolution of the suspension. It is also often in the same descending direction too, so it becomes nearly a ‘displaced’ tear-drop figure. It appears only in the ‘S’ of the Aria, in both ascending and descending form. The first appearance is in ms. 40, on the word ‘forget’. It reappears on the same word in ms. 43, now descending and followed immediately by a second anticipation on the word ‘my’, leading to the cadence. Of course that pattern is repeated in ms. 49 and 53. Notably, the Coda also ends with an anticipation figure in the top voice (see Ex. 5 above).

14. To summarize the use of non-chord material, Purcell is very economical in his use of that material, and the uses are there for good purpose. The suspension pattern is the most prevalent, and it is a part of the ‘tear-drop’ affect used to create the atmosphere of the Aria. As mentioned earlier, the anticipation, found only in the second part of the Aria, is a ‘mirror’ of the constantly present suspension figure. Most non-chord tones other than the suspension occur in the solo vocal line. Prevalent Sonorities The only sonorities used are major and minor triads, Mm7th chords, and o triads and o7ths. All chromatic chords are mutated versions of diatonic chords or secondary chords. This usage does not change during the course of the work. Harmonic Rhythm Harmonic rhythm in the work is different in the Recitative and the Aria. The Recitative acted harmonically as a predominant preparation for the Aria (see Ex. 3), and it also prepares for the Aria in its change of harmonic rhythm pattern. It begins with a pattern of one chord per measure, and then moves to two chords per measure (see Ex. 2). The h motion of the Recitative becomes the shorter duration of the basic pattern used in the Aria. h | w h | w h | w h | h w | w || (See Ex. 4) Both durational rhythm and harmonic rhythm are united in this pattern, and it serves as the underlying gesture of heaviness which contributes so much to the atmosphere of the work. A closer examination of the harmonic progression shows the anacrusis character of the pattern.

15. The descending chromatic line is set rhythmically to emphasize with agogic accents pitches of the descending G major scale, the tetrachord from tonic down to the dominant. The shorter durations, the ‘anacrusis’ chords, offer the descending tetrachord of the g natural minor scale from tonic down to the dominant. The dominant is prolonged for two measures through a change in the harmonic rhythm pattern, a syncopated change that further emphasizes the dominant prolongation.

16. Predominant chord relationships The preceding discussion of harmonic rhythm leads to a further observation of the structural pattern used by Purcell in the Aria. Ex. 6 The basic structural relationship of the ground pattern is a i-V-i prolongation (see the slurred pattern). The structural i-V-i is embellished by a neighboring pre-dominant, or subdominant, prolongation (bracketed pattern) which is de-emphasized by the change in harmonic rhythm. That change can now be understood as a re-emphasis of the structural V chord.

17. Cadences of large sections The cadence patterns within the large sections shape the work into its binary form and show the structural harmonic pattern of the entire work. Ex. 3 shows the predominant function of the Recitative, and Ex. 6 the foreground dominant prolongation of the ground pattern. On a middleground level, the first large section of the work is not closed, but emphasizes the dominant with its Half cadences. The resolution of the ground pattern to tonic after those cadences thus becomes an anacrusis figure leading to the beginning of the next phrase rather than a closure of the preceding phrase. Ex. 7 This cadence pattern occurs twice in the first section, at ms. 22-23 and again at the end of the section, ms. 32-33.

18. The second large section contains two structural authentic cadences, characterized by the descending anticipation figure in the vocal line, and using the syncopated resolution of the dominant harmonic prolongation to the tonic chord (ms.43-44 and 53-54). Each of these cadences is preceded by a phrase ending with a half cadence (ms. 39-40, 49-50), creating two phrase periods, another distinction in comparison with the first large section which had four phrases ending in Half cadences. Background harmonic patterns of large sections With the progressive nature of the first large section and the finality of the second, the overall harmonic structure is: I P S Coda iv –--------i V---------I ----------------- This background pattern exhibits the fear and anticipation of the Recitative (motion from iv to the Phrygian cadence on V) and the resoluteness of the opening of the Aria, the concern for others. The final thought of the Aria is the wish to be remembered kindly, a full closure to life.

19. Tonality in large sections The tonality of this work is very traditional for the high Baroque. The descending chromatic bass line of the Aria is a favorite pattern used by Baroque composers to express grief or sadness (e.g. the Crucifixus of Bach’s Mass). The harmonization of that pattern by Purcell in this work utilizes chord mutation (or borrowed chords) which offers more opportunity for descending chromatic motion. The harmonic prolongation is very basic. There are no modulations in the work, even though it might first appear that the Recitative begins in c minor and modulates to g minor. Seen in the light of background motion though, the Recitative is a harmonic ‘anacrusis’ to the Aria, moving from iv to V and finally to i. A final comment should be made about the voice leading in the work. It appears at first glance to use a basically homophonic texture, but upon careful examination this piano reduction is exactly that – a reduction of a polyphonic expression of the ground pattern. Voice leading is by step, weaving patterns of individual lines above the ground which frequently employ the suspension pattern or the anticipation pattern which are so characteristic of the sound of this work.