Over the summer I was able to take some Afro-Cuban classes at Berklee College of Music, so that knowledge was certainly helpfu

Over the summer I was able to take some Afro-Cuban classes at Berklee College of Music, so that knowledge was certainly helpful in my analysis of this song. Mai Nopizo by Dumisani Maraire is aZimbabwean song built on what is known as theson clave. The clave used in this song is called the 3-2 son clave as the repeating pattern is two measures long with the first measure having threestrokesand the second measure having twostrokes. The song opens with the strings accenting on the clave and the drums simply keeping the steady, danceable pulse. Then when the strings drop out the drums take up the clave and add some ornamental variations. Then when the strings come in again the drums drop out and the clave is seemingly lost. It almost feels like European classical music. The strings play soft and sweetly and fade away. Then suddenly the strings and drums come back in with the 3-2 clave and at the 5:50 mark something very interesting and nontraditionalhappens with the drums on their own. It only lasts about eight seconds but it is enough for a traditionalist to shun the entire song all together. The claveswitchesfrom a 3-2 clave to a 2-3 clave. In traditional Afro-Cuban music the clave never changes and many think a change in clave ruins a song. This was actually a very bold move that Maraire took and it is worthy of great appreciation. The song finishes out with the same son clave ostinato with the strings and drums and ends full of energy and joy.

Take Five by Dave Brubeck is a song I first encountered at Cafe 939 in Boston. A few of us there decided to try playing around with this standard. It is a swing standard in 5/4 (3-2 feel) which is interesting and fun. In jazz, astandardis a melody that is well known among jazz musicians that anyone can pick up and play because everyone knows it. The recording given sounds like it was played in Eb minor. The drums first come in to set the pulse. The piano then comes in with harmonic and rhythmic support for the melody that soon comes in after. The saxophone states the melody once and then proceeds to improvise. Once the sax is done with their improv, the drummer proceeds to improv. The pulse isn't lost though because the piano holds on to that rhythmic integrity, acting as a percussion instrument. Once the drummer is done improvising, the saxophone restates the melody, otherwise known asrecapitulation.Most jazz standards follow this form of melody statement, solos, and then recap to end.Ive studied popular music through personal research and classes in school (American Pop Music History). But unfortunately these studies usually do not get very close to the twenty-first century. I hope that through this course I will be able to go more in depth with my analysis of a song like this one. All Star by Smash Mouth is a pop rock song with a hint of reggae feel. It is in common time (4/4) with a repeating chord progression throughout and sounds like it is in the key of F#/Gb major. It opens with a vocalist which is different than any of the other songs we have listened to this week. Supporting the vocalist as he sings the melody are an electric bass and an electric organ keyboard. The bass plays the root of each chord. The song features some electronic effects and vocal effects throughout. There is even some disc scratching, a technique popularized in the eighties. The chorus features a heavier grungier sound on the electric guitar with power chords. It seems to follow the standard pop music pattern consisting of an intro, verse, chorus, bridge, and recap of chorus. The Allegro from Mozarts Eine Kleine Nachtmusik is an extremely well known classical piece. It is written for violin, viola, cello and contrabass, an ensemble known as a string orchestra. It is written in common time in the key of G. It opens with a very majestic statement of the theme. Then the song goes into a very sweet, whimsical melody played by the first violins. The melody is supported by the polyphonic rhythmic and harmonic support from the rest of the ensemble. This first section is repeated twice. Then the theme is stated again this time in the key of D. A sort of bridging melody follows approaching another statement of the theme in the original key. The intensity of the piece increases throughout to the end as the counterpoint becomes more complex and there are increases in dynamic level.