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Jennifer Wilson

Ferrin

Music 1010-0044

15 May 2023

Musical Analysis PaperDanny Elfman, Composer and Musician

Biography:

Danny Elfman is one of the most sought after composers in Hollywood, whose work includes composing music for films from 1985’s Pee Wee’s Big Adventure to more recent works, such as this years, Epic. Prior to his work on these and other films and television shows, though, Elfman started out writing for, and performing in, a musical theater troupe known as The Mystic Knights of the Oingo Boingo in the 1970’s and beginning in the early 1980’s he would also become known as a member of a separate band, Oingo Boingo. In this paper, we’ll discuss where this talented, self-taught composer came from and what makes him and his work so fascinating today.

Danny, as we know him today, was born Daniel Robert Elfman on May 29th 1953 and grew up in Los Angeles, California with his parents, Milton and Blossom Elfman, as well as an older brother, Richard. Milton and Blossom were both school teachers, with Blossom also being a children’s book author (who wrote under the name Claire Elfman). Growing up, Danny describes himself as “the little weird-looking albino kid” (D. Elfman, Danny Elfman), who left high-school early (though he did still earn his diploma) to go live in Paris with his brother, Richard. Unlike many composers and musical artists, Danny never received any formal musical training. Instead, he claims that he “had a good ear” that allowed him to hear the music of others and then mimic what he heard.

It was while living in Paris with his brother that Danny taught himself to play his first instrument, the violin. Later, he began performing alongside him in the theatrical musical troupe that Richard belonged to, known as The Grand Magic Circus during a summer tour. It was during the tour that he wrote his first compositions, and after his brother left to return to Los Angeles, Danny stayed with the troupe to tour Africa for a year (R. Elfman, Oingo Boingo: The Complete History).

While Danny was touring with the troupe, Richard returned to Los Angeles and formed another musical troupe, The Mystic Knights of the Oingo Boingo, known for its theatrical performances inspired by Richard’s years performing in Europe. After Danny returned home sick with hepatitis, Richard recruited him to work as the group’s musical director, which allowed him to, not only to learn and teach himself to perform on multiple instruments, but to also to write many of the songs. For the eight years that The Mystic

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Knights (as referred to by Danny) were performing, Danny drew on jazz music from artists such as Duke Ellington, Cab Calloway and Django Reinhardt. He credits Duke Ellington for the first transcriptions he created by listening to Ellington’s difficult arrangements and harmonies.

In 1980, Forbidden Zone, a film which was produced and directed by Richard was released, with Danny acting in the role of the devil and having written his first score for the project (R. Elfman, The Man Behind "Forbidden Zone"). The Forbidden Zone score was created as a result of Danny looking to the music of artists like Nino Rota and Erik Satie for inspiration (Silber).

Around the same time, Danny formed another band in place of The Mystic Knights with the shortened title of Oingo Boingo. Danny was the lead vocalist and played guitar for the group with other members changing over time. Oingo Boingo performed together until 1995 and released such hits as “Weird Science” and “Dead Man’s Party”. The music they played has been described as rock, but most commonly it is thought of as “New Wave” music. Danny did write many of the bands songs, but states he did not actually compose for 5 years following the end of The Mystic Knights.

In 1985, Danny was approached by Tim Burton and Paul Reubens to compose his first score for a major studio, Pee Wee’s Big Adventure. At the time, Danny’s only experience with film scores had been in his brother’s film. He had never worked as an orchestral composer and had no training. However, Tim and Paul were looking for someone who would be “non-traditional” and found that quality within Danny Elfman. With the help of Steve Bartek, Oingo Boingo’s guitarist, who worked as his arranger, and inspiration from Nino Rota again, as well as Bernard Herrmann, Danny was able to compose the score to Pee Wee, which was an entirely different type of music than he was used to composing.

Although, he did not see himself becoming a full-time film composer after Pee Wee, the demand for his talent on film increased with each score that he composed. He has continued to work with Tim Burton on most of his films, as well as Sam Ramie and other directors, with his work also including television show theme songs. His work within the entertainment industry has earned him numerous accolades including; a Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Composition for the theme to Batman with 10 other Grammy nominations since then, an Emmy for the theme to Desperate Housewives, and 33 BMI Film Music Awards, including one for Outstanding Career Achievement (BMI). He has also been nominated for several other awards including an Academy Award for the films Milk, Big Fish, Good Will Hunting, and Men in Black, Golden Globe nominations for Alice in Wonderland, Big Fish, and The Nightmare Before Christmas (IMDB).

Unfortunately, the fact that Danny is completely self-taught with virtually no training (aside from childhood piano lessons, which didn’t work out well according to him) has also been controversial at times. His composition for Batman was especially vulnerable to criticism and there were numerous accusations that it was not him who composed the music, but his orchestrator, Steve Bartek and conductor, Shirley Walker.

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Bartek, who has been Danny’s orchestrator on many of his films, has always been quick to defend Elfman when responding to these accusations.

In his personal life, Danny also found success. He married Bridget Fonda in 2003, and has three children (two from a previous relationship). Politically, Danny claims he is a moderate. However, in the 2008 presidential election, Danny became an emphatic supporter of Barack Obama citing his fear of Sarah Palin and the direction of the Republican Party as his primary motivator (D. Elfman, Battling Our Greatest Fear).

These days, Danny’s numerous film and television compositions have been heard, and can be recognized, by many of us. Beginning with one of his favorite films, Edward Scissorhands to the zany Simpson’s theme song, Danny, it seems, can compose it all. The days of Oingo Boingo and New Wave hits such as, “We Close Our Eyes” are long gone and have given way to the rich and energetic orchestral composition that he is now known for.

In interviews, Danny has explained that his process of composing these renowned film scores starts out very methodical and organized and leads to “organized chaos” (D. Elfman, Danny Elfman). His creative process begins with speaking with the director and watching the film itself, both of which help him get an idea for the emotion he needs to create with the score. After which, he has anywhere from a few weeks to almost three months to write and compose the music. During this time, he has claimed that he lets the music carry itself, which lends to a chaotic process where he works non-stop until it’s finished. When it comes to the orchestral components of the music, Danny relies on his orchestrator and conductor to interpret his ideas to a live orchestra and is quick to credit others for their work on his projects. He also readily admits that he still looks to a repertoire of his greatest inspirations Max Steiner, Franz Waxman, Erich Korngold and the previously mentioned Nino Rota and Bernard Hermann.

The final result of the score though, should be credited to Elfman, whose music is easily recognizable for its qualities that can range from dark and foreboding to quirky and fast paced. His undeniable talent has allowed for many of us to enjoy and feel the raw emotion of a scene the way a director has intended. It is when we feel our own reaction to one of those scenes, whether it’s, our heart racing, or a lump rising in our throat, that we have Danny Elfman to thank.

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Works Cited

BMI. Top Film, TV, Cable Composers honored at BMI's Annual Film/TV Awards. 14 May 2002.

8 September 2013 <http://www.bmi.com/news/entry/233117>.

Elfman, Danny. Battling Our Greatest Fear. 30 October 2008. 6 September 2013

<http://www.huffingtonpost.com/danny-elfman/battling-our-greatest-

fea_b_139246.html>.

Elfman, Danny. Danny Elfman Rick Clark. 1 May 2001.

Elfman, Danny. Interview: Danny Elfman John Braheny. Los Angeles Showcase Musepaper,

1990.

Elfman, Richard. Oingo Boingo: The Complete History. 11 November 2011. 7 September 2013

<http://www.buzzinemusic.com/article/music-oingo-boingo-05072009>.

Elfman, Richard. The Man Behind "Forbidden Zone" Rip Rense. Herald Examiner, 18 August

1982.

IMDB. Awards for Danny Elfman. n.d. 7 September 2013

<http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000384/awards>.

Silber, Frederick. "Danny Elfman: Wunderkind of Filmmusic." Fanfare 1989.

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Examples and Composition History of the Music of Danny Elfman

I chose four pieces of music, all from film, in order to provide an example of the different textures, themes, and forms that Danny Elfman is capable of composing. Three of the pieces of music are used as the main title themes for their respective films. The fourth piece, “Fireside Dance” was composed as an underscore for Oz: The Great and Powerful, but was integrated into various parts of the film. I chose it for its simplicity in comparison to the main title themes, which are much more complicated and “chaotic”.

“The Batman Theme”Batman

In 1989, the movie Batman with Michael Keaton was released. Danny wrote the score for the film, which was also directed by Tim Burton. Batman was, in his own words, the most difficult movie that he has scored (McIntyre). Elfman had only done comedy themed work up until Batman, which made Warner Bros. want to bring in a more seasoned composer than Elfman. Producer, Jon Peters also had an original idea which didn’t include Elfman and had Michael Jackson, George Michael, and Prince scoring the movie, instead. However, that idea never reached fruition and Danny Elfman became the composer, relying on Steve Bartek again for the orchestration, and Shirley Walker as his conductor. Prince was the only artist of the original group that Jon Peters had in mind that ended up on the soundtrack.

“The Batman Theme” written by Danny for the movie is now synonymous with Batman, the character as his leitmotif. The now famous theme’s beginning notes, which included major and minor notes, were thought of by Elfman while on a flight from London to the United States, where he “embarrassingly went to the toilet several times so he could hum various portions of the tune into a tape recorder in private” (Filmtracks.com). Some of the inspiration for the theme was derived from one of his own favorite composers, Bernard Herrmann. Elfman also became inspired by walking around the Gotham set at night, which he said, gave him a lot of his ideas (Elfman, The Music of Batman - Danny Elfman (Interview)) He wanted the music to be mysterious, dark and fun, all at the same time.

The composition for Batman took approximately six weeks of working 12-14 hour days and consisted of over 70 minutes of music (Elfman, An Open Letter from Danny Elfman). It also became the subject of controversy after Danny was accused of not composing the majority of the score and that most of the credit belonged to Shirley Walker and Steve Bartek. In an open letter to one of his critics, Danny defended his composition and himself, while still giving credit for the help that Bartek and Walker gave him.

The Batman theme went on to win a Grammy award for Best Instrumental Composition, while the full score ended up winning a BMI Film Music Award, as well as a Grammy nomination for Best Album or Original Instrumental Background Score.

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“Main Title”Sleepy Hollow

Ten years after Batman, in 1999, Sleepy Hollow was released by Paramount, also directed by Tim Burton. Elfman had been criticized for abandoning his fantasy-like style in other projects and addressed that with Sleepy Hollow, while adding a horror-like score on top of it, which he had not done up until that point. One again, Steve Bartek assisted Danny by doing the orchestration for the film.

There are two major contrasting character themes that make up nearly all of the elements in the title theme. These are actually the only character themes that exist in the film, unlike most of his others where Elfman usually composes multiple character themes. The first theme takes up most of the title and is used throughout the movie as the theme for The Horseman. The other, is one that plays in the film when Ichabod is flashing back to his childhood and his mother and was named, “Young Ichabod”. It’s a contrast which Elfman hadn’t planned for, but embraced (Elfman, Danny Elfman). Elfman also used a chorus as part of both melodies, as he does often. Soprano voices dominate the “Young Ichabod” theme and deep, bass voices dominate the Horseman theme.

Elfman’s score for Sleepy Hollow ended up winning a Best Score Satellite Award, a Saturn Award for Best Music, and was nominated for a Sierra Award for Best Score, as well.

“Alice’s Theme”Tim Burton’s “Alice in Wonderland”

“Alice’s Theme” is part of the film score that Elfman wrote for another Tim Burton film produced by Walt Disney Pictures, an unconventional remake of the film Alice in Wonderland which was released in 2010. It is the only song in the score that includes lyrics.

In composing for Alice, Danny admitted that he was working right up until the deadline (Boucher). His challenge with the film was that, unlike other projects, he was unable to see the film prior to starting his composition, which he claims is behind much of his creativity when composing. “Alice’s Theme” was the character’s “Hero Theme” and dominated over the other themes that Elfman had composed for the film. Originally, it was not intended to have vocals but while stuck in an airport during a storm, Danny came up with some lyrics. He ended up using a boy’s and women’s choir from London to sing the lyrics (Filmtracks.com).

The theme was ultimately chosen by Burton to play during the end credits and was the composition in the film that Danny was most “obsessed” with. Portions of the song also play as part of the underscore, as well as in some of the other songs (Danny actually composed five different version of “Alice’s Theme” for the movie). The lyrics Danny wrote do not contain a chorus and there are only two lines that repeat, besides the words, “Alice” chanted at the end of verses. They are “No time for tears today”, which repeats itself once between two of the verses. The other “How will you find your way?” are said after the third verse and again after the 5th verse.

The soundtrack for Alice in Wonderland , was nominated by the British Academy Film Awards for Best Film Music as well as nominated for another Grammy award for Best Score or Soundtrack Album for Motion Picture, Television, or Other Visual Media.

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“Fireside Dance”Oz the Great and Powerful

After composing for over 80 films, Danny was recruited by Sam Raimi to compose the score for Oz: the Great and Powerful, which was released in 2013. The two hadn’t worked together since Spiderman 2 when they had supposedly had a falling out, but when Sam called and asked Danny to compose a “music box” theme, Danny was happy to take the opportunity.

After the music box theme was composed for the film, Raimi came back to Danny and asked him to compose a waltz to accompany it, eventually those two pieces evolved into a fully orchestrated version of that song. He then composed the theme for the witch and Oz, followed by the entire score.

“Fireside Dance”, is frequently used in pieces throughout the film in various forms, as part of the underscore. It contains the narrative sounds of the music box that Danny had originally composed, as well as pieces from the waltz, which was the second piece he composed for the film.

While the score for Oz was not as popular as the other scores that Elfman has composed which include the very successful “Alice in Wonderland” score, Elfman has stated that this project was one where the music “flowed out” just right without force or too much stress and that it was one of his favorite films to compose for.

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Works Cited

Boucher, Geoff. Danny Elfman Searches for the Sound of "Wonderland". 4 February 2010. 8

September 2013 <http://herocomplex.latimes.com/uncategorized/danny-elfman-

searches-for-the-sound-of-wonderland/>.

Elfman, Danny. Danny Elfman Rick Clark. 1 May 2001.

—. Danny Elfman - Composer Oz the Great and Powerful. n.d. 8 September 2013

<http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A-D6c2wZqSA>.

Faraci, Devin. Elfman Vs. Raimi: Round II. 13 October 2005. 8 September 2013

<http://www.chud.com/4718/elfman-vs-raimi-round-ii/>.

Filmtracks.com. Alice in Wonderland. 10 June 2011. 7 September 2013

<http://www.filmtracks.com/titles/alice_wonderland.html>.

—. Batman. 2 June 2011. 8 september 2013 <http://www.filmtracks.com/titles/batman.html>.

fMcIntyre, Gina. "The Hero Complex Interview: Danny Elfman." The New York Times 19

November 2010.

Silber, Frederic. "Danny Elfman: Wunderkind of Music." Fanfare 1989.

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Danny Elfman: Music Listening Guide

Batman: The Batman Theme0:00 - The first few notes of the theme play in both major and minor in a deep and ominous bass tone with a very slow, grave tempo in a pianissimo dynamic, which will become known as the leitmotif for Batman. The last note hangs as the first note begins to repeat the same notes again, this time at a higher octave and mezzo piano dynamic in a crescendo. 0:13 – The introduction blends into the phase A. A bassoon joins in the middle of the third note on the second repeat and begins playing the same melody, A countersubject, a chime, begins playing a different descending 4 note melody to accompany both of the other instruments in counterpoint, adding an element of enchantment and harmony along with polyphonic texture that is introduced. The tempo increases to andante building in dissonance. The melody continues to be conjunct. The instruments continue playing in meno mosso. 0:20 -The first few notes repeat again, building in intensity and getting louder with dissonance. The notes are also held longer with the accompaniment of the chimes, the harp and strings are introduced building in intensity and adding more texture. The strings and brass repeat the notes together, increasing the intensity and then play off of each other with an extended note dedicated to the strings, then to the brass accompaniment. The chimes become more intense and counter the stronger instruments. The tempo continues to pick up and so does the pitch and volume. However, the original melody remains conjunct although the chimes and harp continue to play another countermelody. The music also begins to play in an ascending contour.0:40 – The brass hold the final note at a fortississimo level of volume, while the cymbals crash for five to six beats. A soprano chorus accompanies the crash, becoming the subject and leads us into phase B, holding the last note. This also leads us to a false resolution.0:45 – The music moves into phase B as announced with trumpets, percussion, strings, and other brass instruments, immediately after the last note in phase A ends in a fortississimo dynamic. A more intense melody calls for the strings and we hear the percussion join increasing in tempo and volume and developing in the form of allegro alla marcia, A violin is heard over the other instruments for a couple of beats, but the section is dominated by brass with trumpets playing countermelody to the new melody. We hear cymbals and flutes play in quick bursts in variations of the melody. Trumpets play a descending contour of another variation of the melody. Sections of the orchestra take turns with the newer melody variation. A more defined rhythm is established with the percussion joining in. All of the instruments playing create polyphony in the music. The tempo remains at allegro to vivace and the dynamic lowers to forte from the fortississimo heard at the beginning of the phase.1:03 – The brass play a quick descending melody along with the strings, the strings and brass playing off of each other in counterpoint, along with the flutes and a cymbal crashing to punctuate the melody. The flutes are quickly introduced playing a few quick notes as the music ascends and then introduces an arch into the contour, before ascending again. There is still quite a bit of polyphony as the entire orchestra joins in,

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playing different pieces of the melody. The tempo remains near what it was in phase B. The texture is very layered with all of the instruments playing and sounds more disjunct. The allegro alla Marcia continues.1:20 – The music slows tempo to adagio after the cymbal crash into a modified phase A melody, with an arch contour and dynamics ranging from mezzo piano to fortissimo. We can hear a clarinet playing the melody, followed by brass and strings each taking turns in the foreground. The strings begin to dominate, a violin comes to the foreground, a trumpet takes over the melody as it begins ascending and then the strings come back into the foreground although the brass joins in the last few notes. The flutes also play in a descending contour with the strings. The melody is more conjunct than it was just a few moments ago and is being played in meno messo. The Brass adds cadence to the string instruments. The music is very dynamic between the low pitches of the brass and percussion and much higher pitches of the strings and flutes, also giving it quite a bit of range. The strings take us into the next phase, ascending in contour. There is mostly dissonance, but a few very small beats in between the longer phrases where we feel some consonance.1:50 – The brass becomes the subject and strings, countersubject as they begin to ascend together in the original melody. Percussion accompanies both of the sections. Cymbals begin crashing and adding cadence as the music ascends again. A harp joins in, while the range widens even more. The melody returns to being more conjunct, but the feeling of dissonance is still thick. The instruments are played in meno messo.2:00 – A New phase is introduced with strings ascending and percussion accompanying. The harp becomes more prominent with the strings while the percussion is in the background as they ascension becomes higher and higher adding more layer and texture. The brass becomes countersubject to the strings and then takes charge of the foreground, with percussion also increasing and allowing for more dissonance to build. Tempo also increases as the dissonance becomes greater and the pitch increases. The dynamics increase again to fortissimo2:23 – End: The coda concludes the song with a fortississimo dynamic, and quick short bursts of strings and brass in homophony, indicating a quick “battle like” phase with a lot of marcitissimo being played, bringing the dissonance to its height and then repeating the cymbal crash to bring the music to a sudden resolution at 2:33.

Sleepy Hollow: Main Theme0:00 – The music begins with violins playing with trill at tempo (possibly vivace) filled with urgency and distress for just about 4 beats. The dynamics seem to be at pianissimo.0:05 – A sudden loud and unexpected drum beat is heard announcing the introduction of the song, which is also the leitmotif for The Headless Horseman in the film, adding more dissonance and changing the timbre. The music is primarily in the minor mode and immediately begins to descend. The lower pitched (bass) string instruments join in adding counterpoint and introducing the extremely thick polyphonic texture that will exist throughout the music. Some of violins play the melody in the same trill that the music began with, while other violins play a different melody, although remaining as fast, or even possibly speeding up to a presto tempo, while the lower string instruments play an

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ominous tempo at more of a moderato speed and in more meno mosso. The bass voices of the chorus begin in sync with the melody of the lower pitched string instruments. Another part of the chorus also joins in adding even more eeriness and dissonance while the music begins to ascend. Although melody played by the strings seems disjunct, the melody of the main subjects remains conjunct. There is so much counterpoint between the multiple groups of instruments it becomes chaotic.The dynamics slowly increase from mezzo-piano to fortissimo.0:18 – Some of the strings are heard playing in a crescendo shortly before the organ joins in bringing the music to a fortississimo dynamic, as well as very strong cadence, drowning out the other subjects as it imitates the rhythm played by the deeper string instruments. Brass accompanies the organ, adding even more strength to the melody. The music descends in a very strong and pronounced rhythm. The tempo remains moderato. The dissonance continues to build, even though it is already very thick in the music. Adding contrast and a different rhythmic feeling, is the faint chime which is somehow heard above the fortississimo sound of the organ and brass during the brief beat between phrases. 0:26 – A cymbal crashes and there is another loud drum beat announcing the 2nd phase, which is a variation of a leitmotif in the film for Ichabod Crane as a child. The eerie voices of the choir become audible once more as the only subject for a brief moment as they ascend and fade, introducing the instruments in the phase. One of the main melodies we heard in the earlier phase is now played by woodwinds while a chime adds cadence while imitating some of the melody played by the woodwinds in meno mosso. This adds an element of whimsy while decreasing the dynamic, which contrasts the deep and fortississimo sounds of the brass and organ, heard just a moment ago. The strings we heard in the beginning of the music reappear, creating even more of a polyphonic texture and are still being played in a vivace tempo. The percussion is heard in the background adding additional cadence. We can hear two distinct sounds of the brass and more percussion breaking in for a beat in order to keep the dissonance in the music as the tempo has slowed down to a more andante level. The music descends again. The dynamic hits a low of mezzo forte and then increases back into a fortissimo dynamic with much lower pitches from the brass, organ, and string instruments. There are both conjunct and disjunct melodies heard, but the main subjects remain rather conjunct in their melody. 0:49 – The brass breaks in again along with the organ, although they join, playing in the same melody already being played by the other subjects. The music continues in the predominant descending contour and minor mode heard throughout most of the piece. The dynamics increase to fortissimo, just a bit quieter than the dynamic that the organ played earlier. The strings become more audible as the next phase approaches with more brass appearing as well. 1:05 - A clang of a bell is heard and higher pitched strings join in automatically descending into a different melody, playing off of the lower pitched strings as subjects and countersubjects. More brass joins in playing a different melody than the strings and other brass already playing, continuing the polyphonic texture of the music. The percussion plays throughout. The contour remains descending. The clang of the bell is heard again. As the end of the phase nears, the brass plays the last few notes at fortissimo volume.

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1:22 – The 3rd phase begins with the violins taking over as subject with the percussion and horns accompanying. The cellos are heard playing off of the notes of the violins, adding cadence and a slight melody of their own. The pitch has become much higher adding more contrast to the deep and heavy feeling of the brass playing in other phases of the music. The melody becomes very conjunct with the strings playing as subject. The music continues with descending contour. 1:38 – The bass voices return as the leitmotif for The Headless Horseman reappears, along with the other soprano and alto sections of the choir singing different melodies in more polyphony and counterpoint. The dissonance and dynamics build, creating suspense and the chorus soon begins accompanying the instruments, creating a slight homophonic texture. The tempo also increases as the brass becomes more pronounced, but remains near moderato speed. The brass increases to a fortissimo level in a descending contour of its own. 1:59 – A cymbal crashes as the brass takes completely over the music as the subject, adding extreme dissonance, returning to a fortississimo dynamic again. It begins performing a melody in which there are only two pieces, but both are drawn out in extreme meno mosso. There is added cadence at the end of each extended note by the percussion and the phrases are very conjunct. The bass voices can be heard in the background along with more cymbal crashes and there is a faint pizzicato and trill heard from the string instruments. 2:15 – The dynamic of the music lowers quite a bit to a mezzo piano level as the brass falls into the back ground and the strings take over, which is announced by another cymbal crash, but in a lower dynamic than previously. The tempo begins to slow to adante, and eventually into adagio, then lento. The melody remains conjunct and the dissonance lightens just a bit. The woodwinds and strings play in counterpoint and imitation. Another group of strings adds imitation, along with a separate melody, which is filled with more tension and dissonance than the other melody that is being played. 2:33 – The coda begins with a drumbeat in the same pattern that has occurred with all of the other phases. There is a small moment of silence before a chorus of soprano voices is heard, becoming the focal point. This melody is the final repeat and third variation of the “Young Ichabod” music that has been heard earlier in the song in two different variations. The alto, tenor, and bass parts of the chorus also enter and provide contrast to the soprano voices in cadence and counterpoint, as well as adding even more of an eerie feeling as a harp is faintly heard in the background. While the soprano voices sing in an ascending contour, the other voices of the chorus sing in a descending contour. The soprano voices are heard in more of a mezzo piano to piano dynamic, while the deeper voices of the chorus are in a forte dynamic. We begin to hear the higher pitches of the chimes (or celeste) and strings that we heard earlier in the music. The tempo stays at lento speed and the dissonance begins to fade as the music nears its resolution. The soprano voices become the only subject and melody, as the other instruments stop playing momentarily, but are joined by the lower pitched voices of the chorus. The high pitched strings heard earlier in the music become prominent just before the music fades out. The polyphonic texture remains. 2:58 – End: The music begins to fade, and we hear a long bowing of a violin, just before a faint sound of a bagpipe is heard, completing the coda at 3:07. There is some sort of a feeling of resolution as these last few seconds occur.

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Alice in Wonderland: “Alice’s Theme”0:00 – The song begins with the bowing of a solo violin with a quick, allegro style tempo indicating urgency, as well as setting the tone for dissonance, which will play throughout the song adding to the tension. A cello enters as countersubject at 8 counts adding contrast as it is played in a pizzicato, instead of bowing and very slightly ascends just a couple of bars, A third wood-wind like instrument joins the two as the second counter subject at 16 counts. The three different melodies by the different instruments create a polyphonic texture. 0:12 – The chorus begins accompanying the melody in a homorrhythmic texture and an ascending contour adding even more polyphony to the already established melodies and rhythms, while additionally adding an “ethereal” feeling of timbre, then repeats the same phrase for 16 counts twice more (the first repeat is just short of the 16th beat). The voices of the chorus ascend in pitch and dynamics. The strings continue to play in the background in the same melody, and for the last 4 counts of the phrase, the chorus begins a crescendo and raises the pitch and dynamic again to their highest point. The strings play in marcattissimo.0:36 – Verse 1 begins with a cymbal crash on the last note of the chorus’s voices. The strings lower in pitch, percussion also joins in creating a more distinct rhythm. In between each phrase of the verse, a flute joins in for approximately 4 beats, repeating the same notes twice, adding a descending contour. The brass and percussion add countersubject and cadence by playing off of the flute. A cello is heard slowing into a more conjunct and deeper melody in the background. After the second line in the verse, a deep brass instrument adds even more cadence as it appears and disappears quickly. There is also emphasis and cadence on the last line, which exclaims “Alice, Alice, Please, Alice!” each “Alice”, is emphasized by a strong drum beat and sharp bow of the strings. The tempo continues in allegro.1:04 – The strings take over again in the same melody, their pitch lower than in the beginning of the music with a cello becoming subject. The brass instruments begin ascending in a bass tone as they announce the second verse. The strings are also heard quickly increasing in pitch and dynamic to announce the 2nd verse. 1:12 – Verse 2 begins with an increased texture. The Chorus sings the same melody, but with more fortissimo as the percussion and brass become much more pronounced in this verse. The chorus melody descends as the last line of the verse is chanted. The same last line is repeated from verse 1, only this time “Oh, Alice!” replaces “Please, Alice!” with the dynamics increasing to fortissimo on the word “Alice”.1:37 – The strings still dominate giving us a beat or two of rest. Then the drums begin taking up more of a presence, aided by the brass, beginning in an ascending contour during a short instrumental interlude which still includes the same melody that was established at the beginning of the song. The instrument hit a quick cadence, repeating the same short statement that the word, “Alice!” makes at the end of the previous verse.1:43 – Verse 3 breaks in and adds even more texture. The chorus begins singing a different melody than the prior two verses, picking up tempo quite a bit and changing form. The celeste/chimes become the subject with the strings and percussion as countersubject, creating much contrast. The last word in the phrase, “Alice!” is heard as

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the percussion adds a quick beat of cadence to emphasize its presence in a fortissimo dynamic again. 1:57 – The strings become subject for a brief moment, but the brass quickly takes over as subject in an arch contour, before the chorus begins singing again. 2:04 – The chorus breaks in again with almost fortissimo dynamic and builds in dissonance and pitch as it accompanies the melody. The strings take over again as subject, playing the same melody as the beginning of the music, but still in a lower pitch with the cello being the primary instrument heard. Even more dissonance builds as the instruments ascend and the chorus exclaims, “Alice!” sharply as cadence to the dissonance building in the instruments. 2:16 – A chime sound contrasts with the percussion section which becomes subject with the next few drum rolls with the strings playing as countersubject.2:24 – The clarinet takes over as subject and brass as countersubject in a counterpoint melody in a reverse arch contour. An organ also makes a short three-beat statement along with the clarinet in a quick display of monophony at a fortissimo dynamic, as the rhythm and melody mirror the rhythm and melody already established in previous verses, especially the beat that marks where the chorus normally exclaims, “Alice!” which is also punctuated by a flute. 2:40 – A galloping rhythm is established with the percussion and cello dominating the background. The chorus begins singing again, but this time in polyphony, with one part singing a new phrase, repeating it again, and the other part of the chorus adding to the background melody in an ascending contour and higher pitch, then the part singing the melody, although the pitch of the voices singing the verse also ascends, changing the form once again. The dynamic increases from piano, to mezzo forte.3:00 - The drums cause another change in texture and form, by becoming very pronounced and accompany the brass and woodwinds, while the chorus chants another line in a faster tempo, accompanied by chimes or a celeste in an equally fast tempo descending, then repeats it quickly again. 3:16 – The music begins to “gallop again”, like it did at approximately 2:40. The drums remain the subject, with the flutes and strings playing off of them in contrast. The strings are still heard accompanying the other subjects in the original melody. The chorus begins ascending again in pitch and dynamics along with the strings in a much slower tempo and melody. The two separate melodies, along with the chorus create another polyphonic sound. We hear one solo violin bow as the chorus wanes and the dynamics lower.3:36 –The chorus quiets for about 8 counts, before beginning to sing the 4th verse and we can hear the original string melody. The 4th verse is much faster, at a vivace tempo and higher in pitch than the previous verses, (similar to the chanted lines just a few moments earlier.) The chimes accompany the instruments and voices throughout this phrase in a descending contour. The drums lower in dynamic, but maintain their rhythm. A deep bass is heard descending in the background with one long note at 3:46, the chorus repeats “Alice!” one more time, before the next phase.3:53 – The clarinet begins as subject as soon as the word “Alice” is chanted with the flutes and strings entering as countersubject. The string instruments also become countersubject. The woodwinds continue to dominate as subject, while the chimes join in. The cello plays into the next verse in an arch contour. The voices of the chorus

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appear quickly in an ascending contour and strong dynamics before the next verse begins.4:00 – The melody of the first verse is repeated, but with much more pronounced percussion and brass at close to a fortississimo dynamic between the lines of the verse, as well as a more powerful drum beat while the chorus is singing in an ascending contour, getting louder in dynamics and higher in pitch. There are also arch contours playing in this section of music. The 5th verse begins to descend as the chorus repeats, “Alice, Alice, Oh Alice!” with the sharp drum beat to add cadence to each “Alice”. In the last two beats, a flute descends with two quick notes along with the chimes. The tempo plays in moderato.4:29 – The strings and drums begin the same original rhythm, with the drums providing cadence to the strings again in a more complicated drum beat. They both begin ascending with the flutes joining as countersubject again, the dynamic continues getting louder and the pitch continues to get higher as they ascend with dissonance coming to another peak. The chimes also make another appearance accompanying with the flutes. Loud drum beats are heard as cadence right before the music slows.4:36 – End: The dynamics of the instruments decreases, along with a slower tempo than any previous verses. The chorus sings the first of the last final two lines as the coda begins with the violin slowing down even more. The chimes are still present, although slower in tempo and in single beats. A soloist sings the last of the lyrics, repeating the last line as the rest of the chorus remains in the background slowly descending pitch and dynamic, in polyphony. The music fades out, with a couple more chimes accompanying the last of the strings as they extend the last note until the fade is complete.

Oz: The Great and Powerful“Fireside Dance”

0:00 – The music begins with the “music box” playing in a triple-meter, which is the narrative music of Oz. The dynamic begins in piano, at an andante or moderato tempo, and in a monophonic texture, but at: 04, another melody, is introduced adding polyphony. The second melody that is introduced is at a slightly different tempo and an increased pitch. Both melodies are conjunct and are joined by other instruments making up the sound of the music box. A harp joins in with the music box melodies adding harmony. The music plays in a repetitive form with a series of arch contours, descending just before the next phase begins. It also has a fairly narrow range and is fairly consonant. 0:28 – The timbre changes as the music box theme continues. The violins also begin to play, beginning in meno mosso and an ascending contour while the elements making up the music box descend in a minor mode twice. This increases the dynamic to mezzo forte as the music plays in a crescendo. The harp increases in presence at 0:34 playing a descending contour in a glissando. The other string instruments join in shortly after. The range widens a bit, but still remains fairly narrow. The 2nd music melody and the strings join in harmony and homophonic texture, while the initial music box melody remains in the background. The faint sounds of the chorus begin to appear, as well as a

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few of the brass and woodwind instruments, which add to the homophony between the strings and music box.0:48 – The timbre changes again as another instrument joins in and contrasts with the harp, strings, and music box, all of which remain meno mosso. The chorus increases its presence and adds just a little bit of dissonance, but remains in the background. The dynamics increase to mezzo forte. The melody remains conjunct. The new instrument adds cadence and becomes subject.1:00 – End: The timbre changes one last time. The strings continue in meno mosso and are subject as the coda begins with the music eventually descending and slowing in tempo to adagio as it fades with the voices of the chorus. The woodwinds are also heard towards the end of the music. The dynamics decrease just a bit, to mezzo piano before the music ends.