Exploring music in context 2024

Introduction
I chose to look at music for dramatic movement and entertainment (Area of Inquiry 3) as
I have great respect and love for the abilities of composers to elevate a film to another level
through the use of music. I chose The Ecstasy of Gold as it is my favorite film of all time and
more than my personal love for the work, the extreme global prestige and love of this piece has
pushed me to be extremely interested in seeing what makes it so good. I chose multiple works
from Dead Man to demonstrate what makes the musical experience of that film so amazing.
These films show the range of style and substance you can find in the western genre.
I chose sociocultural music to be my second area because I'm fascinated with how
different cultures express themselves through music. I chose Waltzing Matilda because as a
born and bred Australian who has been away for many years being able to study a piece of
home is extremely comforting. The second Piece I chose is El Paso, which interests me
because with family from that area of the states and a love of the western genre it is hard to not
enjoy this ballad of all that was romanticized from the era. Being able to unpack what makes
both the folk staples so fantastic will be an extremely interesting and fun experience.

Area of Inquiry 3 Music for Dramatic Impact Movement and Entertainment

The Ecstacy of Gold by Ennio Moricone serves as the musical climax of his score for
Sergio Leone's Il buono, il brutto, il cattivo (the Good the Bad and the Ugly) one of Leones most
famous works with an equally legendary soundtrack accompanying it releasing in 1966.
Moricone composed most of his piece by simply utilizing the script of the movie. With directors
filming their movies to the music of Moricone creating a visual that is not only entwined with the
score but one that is fundamentally based off of the music. Starting off with a piano playing 16th
notes in the A minor key. Creating a feeling of longing and loss in conjunction with the low base.
A chiming bell acts as a reminder of time so very finite. ThentheEnglish horn enters, creating a
feeling of cheerfulness with its implementation of a 5th interval from the low A to an E as Tuco
realizes that he is in fact at his destination. The low notes serve to keep the mood and the
energy low while the 5th interval serves to perk up hope in the listener. The English horn enters
on two half notes piercing and instantly catching the attention of the watchers. before breaking
8th and 16th notes further increasing excitement while still keeping a reserved feeling through
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the incorporation of slurring.

See upload 2 (0:00 to 0.12)

As hope starts to rise a rolling drum beat enters, invoking feelings of military drumming
and horses.The emotion swells as the singing enters, a strong soprano carrying the melody.
Increasing the operatic stylization of the film. All instruments are playing in their highest ranges
creating an immense, exhilarating mood. As the music starts to peak the piano and singing
taper off and the violins pick up with rapid 16th notes climbing up their staff

See upload 2 (0:13 to 0:19)

and the male choir interjects with “wah”, another note present throughout the whole film.
As the violins near the top of their range all instruments cut off leaving just the violins to finish
their climb. As they reach the top the soprano singer re-enters with a piercing note and
continues singing as the percussion comes crashing back in. Trombones enter replacing the
melody with strong tones.. As all the instruments crescendo into a fortissimo a loud train bell
enters and increases not only the volume but the frantic nature of the piece The song ends on
Exploring music in context 2024

fortissimo and the bells leaving the listener satisfied with a loud and triumphant ending.

See upload 2 (0:19 to 0:27)

Dead Man by Jim Jarmusch is an acid western. The story follows the journey of a man
through purgatory and his changing relationship with the white society he is originally from. With
the grungy feeling of the movie the music accompanies the setting, theme and feeling of the
movie. While Jarmusch was writing the movie he listened to Young's darker works and took
inspiration. For the movie Jarmusch was set on having Young compose and perform the music.
The music was created by Neil Young through a process of improvisation. As Young stood on a
stage surrounded by televisions playing early drafts of the movie. He would play what came to
mind when showed the visuals creating a sound that is simple and perfect for the visuals
accompanying it. Recreating old silent films where a solo performer or a small band would play
along live to the movie creating sound effects and music. The guitar solos reflect the journey of
Blake as he is cleansed of his sins and escapes hell and purgatory. Guitar solo, no. 2 is a loud
and heavily electronic song reflecting Blake’s role in the town of Machine. Heavy strumming
drowns out the melody of the song that will be revealed as Blake is freed. Cacophonous
strumming helps to recreate the bustle and noise of a town experiencing machinations for the
first time as many did out west. Guitar solo, no. 5 reflects the away from industrialization with the
sound of crashing waves gently playing in the background bringing a feeling of tranquility that
can only be found in nature. Out in nature it is easier to hear the melody carried by Young’s
guitar but the guitar still rings with electronic noise no longer distorted but still blaring and
harshly contrasting the waves. Reflecting Blake’s inability to let go of the machinal life behind
him. The last piece is the credit song for Dead Man. This song has an acoustic guitar carrying
the piece gently strumming and playing the beautiful melody that has been hinted at during the
film. As Blake is freed to a better place his gentle spirit that has made up for his sins is reflected
in the simplicity and beauty of the guitar. But interjections by the electric guitar serve to show
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that while Blake may be freed from hell/purgatory there is still much self reflection and growth to
be done before he can truly be free from his past.
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Area of inquiry 2 Music for Sociocultural and Political Expression.

See upload 2 (0:29 to 0:38)

The first song I will be looking at is Waltzing Matilda,
an extremely popular Australian folk song known by all Aussies The song is in the style of a
bush ballad, a style of Australian music and poetry that consists of simple rhyme schemes and
uniquely Australian slang.They spread messages of mateship, egalitarianism,
anti-authoritarianism and romanticized the battler, An Australian colloquialism for a working
class man fighting against the suppression of the upper classes. An example of the battler was
a bushman, an Australian term for a convict who escaped and lived a life as an outlaw. Waltzing
Matilda tells the story of a swagman slang for a moving worker who walked from place to place
with a swag meaning a roll of one's personal goods all wrapped around a sleeping mat and
carried on the back. This immediately places the hero of the story as a simple low income
worker who is simply trying to live his life. The main focus of the song and the namesake is
Waltzing Matilda which means a walk with one's swag. This translation shows that while the
song initially comes across as a request to dance it is shown that it is indeed a love song for the
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basic life of a laborer and not one about a woman. After the swagman kills and butchers a
jumbuck (sheep) he is confronted by a squatter, a word for one of the early settlers who came
down and claimed all the good land for themselves. This once again builds a general dislike for
the upper class who reap all benefits of the land and give none as the squatter seeks to punish
the swagman for taking a single sheep from his large stock to feed himself. The story and song
ends with the swagman committing suicide to avoid being arested by the police. The song
utilizes an extremely jolly and happy tune using a AABA pattern to tell a very dark and sad story.
It does this for the same reasons of the title being different than non Australians would first
assume and that's to show the suffering of the everyday man. Laborers do not have the luxury
of ballrooms and lullabies as they are haunted by crippling work and days of hunger.

The next song I will look at is El Paso by Marty Robbins, another classical folk song and
quintessential listening for any fan of American country music. The song tells the tale of a
cowboy who fell in love with a dancer at a saloon and when he found her talking with another
man he murdered the man in a duel. This story is one that is uniquely fitted to the wild west with
its saloon girls and gunslinging. The idea of face offs and showdowns is one that is not only
uniquely portrayed but one romanticized through the genre of western ballads and western
cinema.“Down went his hand for the gun that he wore my challenge was answered in less than
a heartbeat, the handsome young stranger lay dead on the floor” Through this area of the song
Marty builds his character as the hero, he is the one who “deserves” the love of Feleena and
when he challenges a man “stealing” what his “his” he is answered by violence and he beats his
opposition swiftly with extreme ability and skill. This is not Marty being sexist and pushing
violence but simply exploring major ideas of the period. At the heart the song is not only a ballad
for the love of a woman but a love for the memories and the visuals of the west. It is a grand
story about love, guns, horses and outlaws, all quintessential parts of the period. While other
areas of the country genre tackle the loneliness and low quality of life faced by cowpokes, El
Paso is a grand and beautiful homage to the era and the heroes of the time. The song utilizes D
A7 and G chords all classics of the genre to create an unmistakable country sound. Through
playing on a Spanish guitar Marty builds a Tex-Mex sound that not only further pushes the old
west imagery but creates a further enchanting nature to the “enchanting” Mexican Faleena.
Exploring music in context 2024

Section 2 - Statement on the creating exercise, utilizing the score embedded in the written text.
Exploring music in context 2024

Pictured Above Sheet music for the song I composed.

Exploring music in context 2024

For this project I chose to compose my best attempt at old Norse music. Like most
societies the Norse enjoyed music and used it for many facets of their life. For this project I
chose to focus on a ceremonial style. The Norse used music for the sake of ceremonial worship
for their gods. Often including masked singers, dancers and bands. I chose to write my music
around the idea of Ragnarök
or the prophesied death of the gods and the end of times. Through this exploration of old Norse
music I have enriched my understanding of how music started out and explored music for
sociocultural reasons. As I have researched the history and usage of music in ancient Nordic
countries and the role they have played in the cultures whether through ceremony, celebration
or war. Due to the very few surviving pieces of old Norse music I had to fill in the gap and try
and improvise using the minor pentatonic scale as it was used across most of the world
throughout history. Through these assumptions I built a song that is also heavily inspired by
soundtracks to Norse depictions. This not only helps me build a song more homogenous with
the universally accepted “viking sound” but it also helps me look into my first area of inquiry as I
used music for dramatic impact and movement as a basis for my song. I used the stråkharpa
otherwise known as the Tagelharpa, Talharpa or the bow lyre. This is one of the earliest
recorded instruments with direct ties to Norse countries with its first mention in the Norse poem
Völuspá and it can be seen in Trondheim Cathedral. Although all historic evidence of stråkharpa
has them being plucked as opposed to bowed, most modern soundtracks have a bowed
stråkharpa as the backing track. As I cannot accurately recreate a historic piece I chose to use a
bowed stråkharpa for my piece. I also used the jaw harp being utilized for a single note droning
support, a staple of old style Nordic music. The jaw harp has evidence going back to the year
1200 found in soil of a nine pit house from the Viking age. I use heavy timpani as a drumming
beat, another staple of old style Norse music. Although the timpani was not used by the Norse it
still creates the drumming sound of the era. I used humming sounds to create a feeling of
ceremonial singing with backing bass and baritone carrying the melody of the piece. The lyrics
tell the story of what happens to the humans of earth during Ragnarök. The title of my piece
translates to swords age, axe age and the lyrics talk about the violence and depravity that will
follow the doom of the gods. I used musescore 4 to write this music.

SECTION 3 – Statement on the performed adaptation with reference to the audio excerpt in
upload

I chose to play Waltzing Matilda for my adaptation as the song has very personal ties to
me. Growing up in Australia it was impossible to be around people outside and not have
someone singing or strumming Waltzing Matilda. The song connects me back to not only my
childhood but the simplest part of it, being out in nature with friends and companions. I moved
the lyrical sheet music to trumpet and played through the verse sample along with the chorus
twice to create the sensation of the fire dwindling down and everyone joining in for one last
rousing chorus. It was really fun interacting with this piece in such a new way and being able to
relive the simpler times of my life.
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Bibliography

“The Good, the Bad and the Opera.” The Guardian, Guardian News and Media, 27 Oct.
2005, www.theguardian.com/culture/culturevultureblog/2005/oct/27/thegoodtheba2.

“‘I’ve Always Said That My Best Dialogue and Screenwriter Is Ennio Morricone’ •
Cinephilia & Beyond.” Cinephilia & Beyond, 20 Feb. 2015,
cinephiliabeyond.org/happy-86th-birthday-ennio-morricone/.

“Viking-Age Instruments.” Danheim, danheimmusic.com/viking-age-instruments/.

Accessed 11 Mar. 2024.

Sæmundar Edda by Sophus Bugge – völuspá (iii. Hauksbók). (n.d.).

http://etext.old.no/Bugge/voluspa/voluspa3.html

“L’estasi Dell’oro (The Ecstasy of Gold) with Score - Ennio Morricone.” YouTube, 20 Aug.
2017, youtu.be/-54CFWFVMWI?si=y2Ep2--s6Ryt_BBJ.

Waltzing Matilda Sheet Music for Treble Clef Instrument,

www.8notes.com/scores/6801.asp. Accessed 12 Mar. 2024.

​“El Paso.” YouTube, YouTube, 11 Aug. 2015,

www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Q9bAWGEkcE.

“Dead Man (Music from and Inspired by the Motion Picture) by Neil Young on Apple
Music.” Apple Music - Web Player,
music.apple.com/us/album/dead-man-music-from-and-inspired-by-the-motion-picture/317
694130. Accessed 12 Mar. 2024.