Music - Monash Enhancement Semester II analysis. (Structural) - 'Danzon for Piano trio' by Paquito D'Rivera

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                Monash Enhancement Semester II analysis.      George Harisis.                                           

                (Structural)

                                 

                ‘Danzon for Piano trioby Paquito D’Rivera

Danzon or dance is a piece for piano trio by the renowned Cuban performer and composer Paquito D’Rivera. The piece is written for piano and two separate parts which have the option of being performed by a cello, trombone or bassoon in the bass part, and a violin, clarinet or trumpet in the treble part. The piece, like D’Rivera’s musical style, blends traditional Cuban dance rhythms with contemporary jazz harmonies which create a fusion of Latin/jazz styles. Danzon is a structurally simple work with its thematic material clearly identifiable within the differing sections. For the sake of this analysis, it will be assumed that the bass part is played on trombone and the treble on violin.    

Introduction (Section I (A))

The piece begins with a calm, repeating motif in the bass of the piano. It is in F major and for the first eight bars, it maintains a harmonic rhythm of one chord per bar, F major root and Bflat minor 2nd inversion.

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  • At figure A, this piano part serves as an accompaniment for a lyrical trombone solo, which is then imitated by the violin.

                                     

  • This first section is relatively short, (12 bars), and acts as a prelude into the faster dance section.

  • Two bars before section B, is marked Piu Mosso and the piano along with the violin and trombone play a unison rhythmic motif to lead into the next section.

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