Excerpt+5

Question: Discuss how instrumentation and tone colour are exploited in this piece. media type="file" key="05 Track 05 2.m4a" align="center" width="300" height="50"

﻿ ﻿Mati: Melodic instruments are the horn section - alto and tenor saxes, trumpet and flute. The baritone sax acts as part of the rhythm section along with the drums, double bass, piano and vibraphone (although the vibraphone is also of melodic interest). The baritone sax and double bass are combined to provide a rich and percussive bass. The ensemble sound is fleshed out with teh upper saxophones, creating a strong and clear wall of sound. This is supported by the drums which give a clear rhythmic stability due to unpitched sound. The piano also supports this sound but in a more subtle and background way as in most large rhythm sections. The left hand often plays with the bass line. On top of this quite warm tone colour are added three distinct sounds: - The vibraphone adds timbral interest by adding a colder tone colour on top of the warm base the other instruments provide. Its sound is ringing and partially sustaned, being most similar to the piano's but still quite distinct. - The trumpet which often cuts through the with a more nasal and abrasive timbre. It is mostly by itself in its lines and sticks out of the soundscape morese than it sits on it. //Excellent // - Finally the flute with even more timbral interest. It is a light and airy colour that sits on tope the ensemble sound but without particularily blending with any other colour, although it does play along with the saxophone lines. Overall a very full and warm timbre is crated, with other sound sources providing additional variety to the tone colour. ﻿Post note: Now after listening to it again I am unsure whether the vibraphone is in fact a xylophone or another mallet instrument - there are runs/slides in the later half of the excerpt which don't sound like a vibraphone but another mallet instrument. Also although I mentioned the shouted vocals in the first half of the ear gym sheet I forgot to include them in the response so I probably lost a good mark there...  //Again, you have made a good start Mati. The key word in the question is 'exploit'. How are these instruments **exploited** (used) to create the effects/ feel of the piece. The fact that instrumentation **and** tone colour are the two elements means that you have to be looking for all the extra things that distinguish tone colour from instrumentation; special techniques, use of register, mutes, instrument combinations etc. For example you could describe // // the flute's bright, shrill cold tone colour. It uses a lot of trills and flutter tongue techniques, glissandi on the vibraphone/ keyboard percussion etc. // // 8/10 //