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Csardas

The Csardas is the traditional form of Hungarian folk dance music developed in the 18^th century and derived from the word Csarda, which is the Hungarian word for pub. It was first popularized by Roma Music bands in countries neighboring Hungary such as Serbia, Slovakia, and Croatia. Traditionally, it is a courting dance for couples played by a Gypsy orchestra in 2/4 or 4/4 time using syncopated rhythms. Structurally, a piece will begin with a slow section (the lassau) and end with a fast section known as the friss (literally meaning fresh), adding complexity to the piece as the tempo is constantly changing.

Vitto Monti, (1886- 1922) made famous for his work with Csardas was an Italian composer, violinist and conductor.

Rock and Roll

Spawning from roots in blues, folk, country and gospel Rock and Roll developed in the United States in the late 1940’s. The main characteristic of rock and roll is the accentuated backbeat for the most part played by the snare drum. The genre had an enormous social impact and influenced hairstyles, fashion and lifestyles. Pop music today is heavily influenced by rock and roll. Typically, there are one or two electric guitars being played as well as a bass guitar, drum set and a vocal melody.

Queen was a world famous British Rock group formed in 1970. They had great success with their music but none of their singles had as much of an impact as Bohemian Rhapsody, a song so successful that it gained the reputation as a ‘rock anthem’.

Analysis of Czardas

Instruments used

- Violin

- Cello (3 à 2 accompaniment and 1 lead)

Analysis of Bohemian Rhapsody

Bohemian Rhapsody is arguably the most famous piece of work by the rock band Queen full of rock and classical elements. Recorded in 1975, the song takes on a more progressive feel as it is full of tempo changes, key changes and intricate phrasing. It is out of the norm of the time as normal rock/pop songs had simple structures typically consisting of an introduction, verse, chorus, verse, chorus, bridge, chorus, outro. Bohemian Rhapsody has no chorus, and the different sections seem to have little in common, being in different tempos and keys. The instrumentation includes guitar, piano, bass, drums and vocals. During the recording the band used multi-track recording to dub sometimes up to 80 voices in one bar.

Musical Link

There are many similarities between the two pieces, texturally, they are both primarily homophonic; in terms of tempo, both pieces have a constantly changing tempo; rhythmically, both pieces share some distinct qualities; and structurally both start with a slow, calm sections and build up to upbeat vibrant sections.

Homophonic Texture

One of the musical links between the two pieces Bohemian Rhapsody by Queen and Csardas by Vittorio Monti is that both have homophonic texture. Homophonic texture occurs when there is one main melody accompanied by chords (creating harmony). The goal is to have the attention focused on the melody which is supported and colored by sounds of subordinate interest. It is distinct from monophonic texture which is a single melodic line without accompaniment and polyphonic texture where simultaneously two or more melodic lines of equal importance are being played (often found in a fugue).

Homophonic texture is first seen in Bohemian Rhapsody 15 seconds into the song. The piano acts as a backing harmony while the vocals are the primary melody. For the rest of the nearly 6 minute anthem the homophonic texture is consistent. The only exception to this can be seen in the operatic section (3:03 – 4:07) where dynamically the piece is rapidly switching from instruments, to acapella and from homophonic texture to monophonic.

In the composition Csardas, homophonic texture is seen in the majority of the piece. Initially (coincidentally the first 15 seconds as well), the texture is monophonic, as both accompanying cellos are playing the same harmonic line. The introduction of the lead violin changes the texture to homophonic; the accompanying instruments continue playing a bass-line and the addition of a lead melody creates homophony. At no point throughout the duration of the piece do the lead cello/violin play together, and are alternately playing the melody every x bars (call and answer, length of call and answer varies from 2 bars to 16 bars), meaning at no point does the piece switch to polyphonic texture. However there are sections of the song where monophonic texture is revisited (such as from 1:08 to 1:12) where there is only one melodic line being played with no accompaniment.

Tempo

The tempo helps to establish a mood in both pieces, bringing them from somber, minor tones into brighter, more energetic sections. Bohemian Rhapsody begins very slowly at an adagio tempo where Csardas begins even slower at a largo tempo. In each section Bohemian Rhapsody continues to quicken, by the C section reaching a vivace (lively) tempo, this serves to create tension, impatience and reflects how the narrator is becoming more confident and standing up for what he believes. In the final section of Bohemian Rhapsody (A¹) the tempo slows again returning to an adagio tempo which brings the mood back down and serves as falling action as the piece comes to a conclusion and the narrator gives up hope.

Csardas begins at an incredibly slow tempo of largo, (in the lassau sections) but reaches prestissimo by the end of the piece (in the friss sections). As there are no lyrics the tempo enhances the mood. The slow tempo in the A sections create a darker, serious mood. The B sections have incredibly fast tempos and give a vibrant, happy mood and as they were originally intended, encourage dancing. In the second friss section the tempo gradually quickens from a largo tempo and the piece becomes more exciting until a presto tempo is reached (through free time) which serves as a climax and conclusion. Overall this piece has 5 tempo changes.

Structure/Dynamics/Mood

Bohemian Rhapsody has a unique structure for its genre. Each section seems completely distinct however there are elements lyrically and musically which unite the sections. Lyrically, the song tells a story and as the piece moves from section to section the story develops with it. The music reinforces this story, so well, that arguably one can understand and follow the story with only the music.

The structure can be viewed as A, B, C, A¹, where A is the introduction, B is the operatic part, C is the hard rock/guitar solo and A¹ is the outro (similar to introduction). The initial A section begins very slowly in 2/4 timing in the key of Bflat major. After 15 seconds the grand piano enters and the timbre of the piece changes. At 1:23 the drums are introduced and the piece becomes louder (forte) and more powerful, the mood is still somber. The introduction of the guitar at 2:19 creates anger and tension. A guitar solo takes over the main melody as the vocals are dropped and gradually the piece increases in volume (crescendo) which brings it to the operatic section (B).

The operatic section is now in a new key (A major) and tempo, the mood has now changed from somber and depressive to lively, the lyrics still indicate a struggle but the mood is much more hopeful as it seems that the new section has brought on the will for the narrator to fight against his troubles. The time signature has also changed from 2/4 to 4/4 and dynamically this section is very intricate, constantly switching volumes from fortissimo to piano and from monophonic to homophonic texture which creates tension and establishes an argument going back and forth from the narrator to his troubles. There is a heavy usage of staccato and accents throughout this section. A crescendo starting at 4:02 concludes the B section and offers an interlude to the C section.

The C section commences with an abrupt tempo change and once again the piece quickens from an allegro to vivace tempo. The timbre has change again as it is now driven by heavy distortion guitar. The guitar ascends to a resonant crescendo. Three ascending guitar phrases (octaves apart) make a bflat7 chord ultimately creating the crescendo which is the climax of the composition. The timbre in this final section is complex as Brian May (guitarist) utilizes the settings on his amplifier and guitar to create a trumpet sound out of his guitar.

The final section A¹ can be viewed as a reprise to the first A section. The mood is the same, depressive and somber, the key returns to Bflat major, the tempo slows and the timbre is similar. Slowly the song decrescendo’s until there is nothing left but a faint gong which serves as the conclusion of the piece. Here again the dynamics serve to enhance the narrator’s feelings where he has given up and concludes that ‘nothing really matters’.

In Csardas there are no vocals, and like Bohemian Rhapsody mood is expressed through the music and structure, however in this piece it is exclusively musical. The structure of this piece is different than Bohemian Rhapsody, and can be viewed as A (lassau) B (friss) A¹ (reprise of lassau) B¹ (reprise of friss and finale). The sections are similar in their moods and dynamics. In the A sections, the backing cellos are playing droned and dragged out notes, which add to a darker mood. The lead melodies played by the lead violin/cello are very sad which leads to believe that the piece is in a minor key.

The B sections are very up-tempo, very lively and very exciting. Both lead instruments are playing incredibly fast playing short notes (staccato) and playing down chromatic scales. It creates a sense of urgency in the piece and makes the mood much brighter. The backing cello’s are as well playing very choppy staccato notes and add to the sense of urgency.

In the A¹ section the mood, volume and tempo are both brought back down and although there are different melodies being played, mood is similar to that of the original A section. The difference of this section is that the volume continues to decrease as the other instruments (backing cellos) fade away leaving the lead violinist playing a very slow and quiet melody (monophonic and pianissimo volume), which serves as the end of this section.

The B¹ section begins with the tempo being in tempo robato (free time) as it hastily increases from largo to presto. Along with the tempo, the volume is also increasing, heightening the tension and importance, ending on fortissimo where all the instruments are playing as loud and as fast as they can. The finale of the song has both the lead cello and lead violinist playing the same harmony (homophonic) again with short, choppy and incredibly fast notes. Like the first A section, the accompanying cello’s are playing short, staccato notes which adds to the urgency and tension as the piece reaches its climax. All the instruments end on the tonic chord which is played for 1 bar.

Conclusion

There are clearly some similarities and differences between the classic rock piece Bohemian Rhapsody and the early 18^th century Csardas piece Csardas. Both share a prominent homophonic texture as well as constant tempo changes. Structurally the pieces differ but both use dynamics as a form of expressing mood.