What do you hear?

Listening Practice

This guide is to help you recognize the audio examples and prepare for the Listening Quiz.

OPERA

Operatic Conventions. As we’ve learned, opera relies on certain musical and dramatic conventions to effectively present drama through music. The following excerpts feature examples of three important operatic conventions: recitative, aria, and ensemble.

Recitative is a speech-like style of singing that allows the singer to freely deliver the text. This style follows basic speech rhythms or speech patterns, lacks any steady rhythmic pulse, and avoids memorable melodic patterns. It sounds like the characters are just having a conversation, but sort of singing it. Recitative is used when the characters need to engage in dialogue or deliver important plot information. The simplicity of the music in recitative makes it easier to hear the words and the accompaniment usually consists only of a keyboard instrument like harpsichord and a cello. 

The following excerpts showcase the speech-like sounds and simple accompaniment of recitative. Notice that there's no real "melody" for your ear to hang onto and you can hear the back and forth exchange of several characters:

Aria is the “song part” of opera in which a solo singer expresses and reflects their feelings and responses toward the dramatic situation. Arias have a steady pulse and a clear, memorable melody. They usually also feature elaborate orchestral accompaniment Words and phrases of the poetic text may be repeated. The orchestra accompanies, but instruments may also function as wordless characters that counterpoint and converse with the voice. The following excerpts present examples of operatic arias:

Ensemble is like an aria in that it likely features a steady pulse, memorable melody, and orchestral accompaniment, but it is sung by two or more characters. Ensembles allow the contrasting emotions of different characters to be heard simultaneously. In the following excerpts, notice how you can isolate the voices of the different characters:

Leitmotivs were developed in the nineteenth century by the German composer Richard Wagner. Leitmotivs, or “guiding motives,” are musical motives that are associated with a specific character, theme, or locale in a drama. These musical ideas are presented mostly in the orchestra and are developed through the course of Wagner’s elaborate music dramas. The use of leitmotivs helps to tie together the complex mythological world

The following excerpts present examples of leitmotivs that Wagner uses in his opera The Valkyrie.

Wotan’s Spear: This severe-sounding motive represents the power of Wotan.

Brünnhilde’s Sleep Motive: This chromatically-descending line represents the character Brünnhilde as she falls into a magical sleep.

“Take the ‘A’ Train,” (1939) composed by Billy Strayhorn, was one of Duke Ellington’s signature pieces and is a classic example of Big Band Jazz from the Swing Era:

Kind of Blue (1959) by Miles Davis is considered the pinnacle of the modal jazz era. “So What” is the first track from this album:

Free Jazz seeks to explore Jazz with few restrictions. The music could be based on a single phrase or melody, a set of chords (in no specific order), or maybe just an idea. The following example is excerpted from Ornette Coleman’s seminal 1960 album Free Jazz:

Fusion is Jazz mixed with Rock & Roll, Rhythm & Blues, and is played on electric instruments. This excerpt of the standard “Afro Blue” is performed by some of the key figures in Fusion, including Chick Corea, Herbie Hancock, John McLaughlin, and Wayne Shorter: