AS Music
Unit 3: Developing musical
understanding
A guide for students
Vocal music 2010
Fauré Après un rêve
1
Developing musical understanding works for 2010 .... 3
Instrumental music ........................................................................... 3
Vocal music ....................................................................................... 3
About this document ........... Error! Bookmark not defined.
Gabriel Fauré .............................................................. 4
Context....................................................................... 4
Après un rêve .................................................................................... 4
Text ............................................................................ 5
Translation (NAM with corrections) ................................................... 5
Translation (alternative 1) ................................................................ 6
Translation (alternative 2) ................................................................ 6
Tonality ...................................................................... 7
The cycle of fifths .............................................................................. 7
The climax ......................................................................................... 8
Harmony .................................................................... 9
Harmonic scheme .............................................................................. 9
Bars 1 - 5 ........................................................................................... 9
Notes: bars 1 - 5 .............................................................................. 10
Bars 6 - 11 ....................................................................................... 11
Notes: bars 6 - 11 ............................................................................ 11
Bars 12 - 17 ..................................................................................... 12
Notes: bars 12 - 17 .......................................................................... 12
Harmonic structure so far....................................................... 12
Bars 26 - 29 ..................................................................................... 13
Notes: bars 26 - 29 .......................................................................... 13
Bars 30 - 35 ..................................................................................... 13
Notes: bars 30 - 35 .......................................................................... 14
Bars 36 - 41 ..................................................................................... 14
Notes: bars 36 - 41 .......................................................................... 14
Bars 42 - 48 ..................................................................................... 15
Notes: bars 42 - 48 .......................................................................... 15
Metre & rhythm ........................................................ 16
Thematicism ............................................................. 17
Texture..................................................................... 18
Setting ..................................................................... 18
Structure .................................................................. 19
Score .................................. Error! Bookmark not defined.
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Developing musical understanding works for
2010
Instrumental music
1. Bach Brandenburg Concerto No. 4, movement 1
22. Mozart Piano Sonata in B flat, 1st movement
19. Poulenc Sonata for Horn, Trumpet & Trombone
9. Shostakovich String Quartet No. 8, movement 1
Vocal music
35. Monteverdi Ohimè, se tanto amate
39. Fauré Après un rêve
32. Tavener The Lamb
53. Ray Davies Waterloo Sunset
56. Van Morrison Tupelo Honey
63. Familia Valera Miranda Se quema la chumbambá
3
Gabriel Fauré
French composer 1845 – 1924.
Context
The work is a mélodie, which is a genre similar to the German Lied.
Après un rêve
Written 1877. Published 1878.
Text by Romain Bussine.
4
Text
Dans un sommeil que charmait ton image
Je rêvais le bonheur, ardent mirage;
Tes yeux étaient plus doux, ta voix pure et sonore,
Tu rayonnais comme un ciel éclairé par l'aurore;
Tu m'appelais et je quittais la terre
Pour m'enfuir avec toi vers la lumière,
Les cieux pour nous entr'ouvraient leurs nues,
Splendeurs inconnues, lueurs divines entrevues,
Hélas! Hélas! triste réveil des songes
Je t'appelle, ô nuit, rends moi tes mensonges,
Reviens, reviens radieuse,
Reviens ô nuit mystérieuse!
Translation (NAM with corrections)
In a sleep charmed by your image
I dreamed of happiness, passionate delusion;
Your eyes were softer, your voice pure and full,
You were radiant as a sky lit by the dawn.
You called me and I left the earth
To escape with you towards the light:
For us, the skies parted their clouds
Unknown splendours, divine glowing half seen…
Alas! Alas, sad waking from dreams!
I beg you, O night, to give back to me your illusions:
Come back, come back in your radiance:
Come back, O mysterious night!
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Translation (alternative 1)
In a slumber charmed by your image
I dreamed of happiness, ardent mirage;
Your eyes were more tender, your voice pure and clear.
You were radiant like a sky brightened by sunrise;
You were calling me, and I left the earth
To flee with you towards the light;
The skies opened their clouds for us,
Splendors unknown, glimpses of divine light...
Alas! Alas, sad awakening from dreams!
I call to you, oh night, give me back your illusions;
Return, return with your radiance,
Return, oh mysterious night!
Translation (alternative 2)
In a slumber which held your image spellbound
I dreamt of happiness, passionate mirage,
Your eyes were softer, your voice pure and sonorous,
You shone like a sky lit up by the dawn;
You called me and I left the earth
To run away with you towards the light,
The skies opened their clouds for us,
Unknown splendours, divine flashes glimpsed,
Alas! Alas! sad awakening from dreams
I call you, O night, give me back your lies,
Return, return radiant,
Return, O mysterious night.
6
Tonality
C minor.
The tonal structure, however, is quite typical of its time, with an ever shifting
harmonic spectrum, releasing evocative dissonances onto dissonances. The
continuous employment of the chord of the half-diminished 7 ensures that
the sense of key is never truly anchored.
The cycle of fifths
The work opens with a simple C minor triad and follows on a forwards leading
cycle of fifths chord progression:
C
[G (B¨ in bass)]
F
B¨
E¨
A¨
D§
G
C
The chain of dominant ninth chords pushes the tonality onwards but ensuring
the return to the tonic minor by bar 9.
The unprepared modulation to B¨ minor is simply a device whereby the
harmony can shift to A¨ major to a tentative E¨ major in first inversion before
finally arriving at E¨ major, albeit briefly, at bar 15, via a brief chromatic
progression through F half-diminished 7 in second inversion to a B¨ sus 4
dominant 7 to a full dominant 7 in bar 14.
The cycle of fifths is employed once more with a restatement of the
harmonies of bars 2 - 10 at bars 17 - 25. After this revisiting for obvious
formal effect, the E§ in the bass at bar 26, with both A¨ augmented 5 and C7
in first inversion, which strongly suggests a modulation to F minor, the
subdominant minor. However, Fauré's harmonic idiom is more subtle than
that and finds a D¨ major chord at bar 27, a clear chord substitution,
which is a chord of the flattened supertonic, or Neapolitan chord. This
chord, instead of confounding the C tonality, simply confirms the central
7
pitch by acting as a harmonic device which brings the harmony finally and
briefly to F minor, to G dominant 7 sus 4 to G dominant 7. The surprise
resolution of this is, however, a luminous C major, the tonic major, at bar
28. The effect is quite dramatic if not marred on this NAM recording with the
soprano singing an E¨ rather than an E§ , lending an unwelcome blues edge
to the moment. The C major tonality is reaffirmed at bar 30, and given
added weight by the declamatory octave Cs from the Soprano.
The climax
From here the music becomes more turbulent in emotional and harmonic
terms the effect of which is heightened by the increase of harmonic speed to
one chord per beat. A brief modulation to B¨ minor at bar 32 is soon
dispelled by the E¨ dominant 9, which, not surprisingly, does not reach A¨ but
is interrupted by a rare and very brief chord of the tonic minor. You may
have noticed how rare the tonic actually is. From here the climactic passage
merely flirts with the idea of returning to the tonic, the Bª in the bass never
quite functioning as a leading note. The G dominant 7 in first inversion of
the first two beats of bar 37 is interrupted by a D half-diminished 7 in 3rd
inversion. Bar 40 plays with the listeners expectations with a D dominant 7,
which should go to G, the work’s dominant, D being the dominant of the
dominant and therefore a highly potent chord. This modulation is again
interrupted buy an E¨ chord in 1st inversion.
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It is interesting to see how Fauré constantly alludes to C minor in the bass,
whilst the harmonies evade the tonic chord but for one brief sounding in bar
43 beat 3. At last the final dominant pedal in the bass steers the harmony
reluctantly home in the final perfect cadence at bar 46 beat 3.
Harmony
Harmonic scheme
This is a work which revels in complex, chromatic harmonies with a high
degree of exotic and evocative harmonies.
Bars 1 - 5
Bar 1: C minor
Bar 2: beats 1 -2 C minor
beat 3 E¨ ^7 2nd inversion
Bar 3: beats 1 – 2 F 7/9
beat 3 F7
Bar 4: B¨ 7/9
Bar 5: beats 1 – 2 E¨ 11 (minus 3rd & 7th)
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beat 3 E¨ ª5/7/¨9
Notes: bars 1 - 5

Of the seven chords represented only the Cm chord of bars 1 – 2 are
consonant

The Cm chord is the sole minor sonority of the five bars
Note the largely chromatic descending voice at the bottom of the right
hand chord which is reflected in the voice at bar 5 beats 2 – 3.

Note the cycle of fifth in the bass.
The final chord of bar 5 is highly complex and dissonant:
Here in reduction the chromatic motion is clear and that the tensions in the
first two chords are released in a highly effective and linear manner.
(Remember that F¨ is enharmonically the same as Eª.
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The resolution to Dª half diminished 7 or DØ which is a typical characteristic
of the harmony of the period, where a dissonance is released onto a further
dissonance. This has the effect of forcing continuous harmonic motion.
Bars 6 - 11
Cycle of fifths
Bar 6: Beats 1 -2 A¨ ª5
beat 3 Dª half diminished 7
Bar 7: beats 1 – 2 G7
beat 3 D half-diminished 7/G in bass
Bar 8: G7
Bar 9: Cm
Bar 10 B¨m 1st inversion
Bar 11: beats 1 – 2 B¨m7
beat 3 Eª diminished 7
Notes: bars 6 - 11

Of the nine chords represented only the Cm chord of bar 9 is
consonant

Note the cycle of fifth in the bass.
The expressive use of the B¨m7 chord in 1st inversion at bar 10 allows for
chromatic motion in the bass from C to D¨. The use of B¨m is a particularly
colourful addition to the harmonic scope.
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Bars 12 - 17
Bar 12: beat 1 Fm 1st inversion; beat 2 Fm7 1st inversion; beat 3 Dª
half-diminished 7 3rd inversion + Dª diminished 7 3rd inversion
Bar 13: beats 1 – 2 E¨ 1st inversion; beat 3 Cm
Bar 14: beat 1 F half-diminished 7 3rd inversion; beat 2 B¨7 sus 4;
beat 3 B¨7
Bar 15: E¨
Bar 16: beats 1 – 2 E¨ ª5 1st inversion; beat 3 G7
Bar17: beats 1 – 2 Cm; beat 3 E¨7 2nd inversion
Notes: bars 12 - 17

Out of the 14 chords represented 5 are consonant
Harmonic structure so far
Bars 1 - 16
Bars 17 – 25 as bars 2 – 10
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Bars 26 - 29
Bar 26: beat 1 A¨ ª5 2nd inversion; beats 2 – 3 C7 1st inversion
Bar 27 beats 1 ½ D¨ 1st inversion; beat 2 (½) Fm; beat 3 G7 sus 4 –
G7
Bar 28: C major (tonic major)
Bar 29: beat 1 – 2 D¨7 2nd inversion; beat 3 Dª half-diminished 7 1st
inversion
Notes: bars 26 - 29

Note how the C dominant 7 in bar 27 beats 2 – 3 suggest a
modulation to F minor.
However Fauré follows the chord with a D¨
chord in 1st inversion delaying the resolution to F minor to a single
quaver at the centre of the bar

The D¨ chord is a Neapolitan chord, a chord of the flattened supertonic

Note the use of the tonic triad at bar 28
Bars 30 - 35
Bar 30: beats 1 – 2 C; beat 3 C7 3rd inversion
Bar 31: F7 1st inversion
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Bar 32: beat 1 B¨m sus 4/sus9; beat 2 B¨m; beat 3 B¨7/9 (third in
voice)
Bar 33: beats 1 – 2 E¨ 7/9; beat 3 B¨11
Bar 34: E¨7
Bar 35: beat 1 Cm; beat 2 E¨ 2nd inversion; beat 3 B¨m7
Notes: bars 30 - 35

Note the double suspension between bars 31 – 32

Note how the E¨7 of bar 34 does not resolve to A¨ in the following bar
but to Cm
Bars 36 - 41
Bar 36: beat 1 G half-diminished 7; beat 2 C7/9; beat 3 Fm
Bar 37: beats 1 – 2 G7 1st inversion; beat 3 D half-diminished 7
Bar 38: beat 1 G7 1st inversion; beat 2 G7; beat 3 G7 3rd inversion
Bar 39: beat 1 Cm 1st inversion; bear 2 D half-diminished 7; beat 3 C7
2nd inversion
Bar 40: beat 1 Fm; beat 2 Cm 1st inversion; beat 3 D7
Bar 41: beat 1 E¨ 1st inversion; beats2 – 3 F7 1st inversion
Notes: bars 36 - 41

Note how the D dominant 7 does not resolve to G minor but to E¨ in 1st
inversion.
The G in the bass shows that the E¨ chord is a chord
substitution for B minor

Note how the harmonic speed is almost every beat
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Bars 42 - 48
Bar 42: beat 1 B¨7; beat 2 G7 in 1st inversion; beat 3 A¨ diminished 7
Bar 43: beat 1 D half-diminished 7 3rd inversion; beat 2 G7 sus 4 (in
bass); beat 3 Cm
Bar 44: beats 1 – 2 E¨; beat 3 E¨ 1st inversion
Bar 45: beat 1 E¨ ª5/9 no 7; beat 2 G7; beat 3 Cm 2nd inversion
Bar 46: beat 1 G sus4; beat 2 G; beat 3 G7
Bar 47: Cm
Bar 48: Cm
Notes: bars 42 - 48

Note the suspension from bar 42 – 43 and its expressive intensity

Note how from bar 42 the preparation for the final resolve to the
tonic, C minor, is careful and unambiguous

Note the use of a tonic pedal in the bass from bar 44 beat 3 – bar
46
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Metre & rhythm
3/4 simple triple time.
The opening three crotchets of the Voice at bar 2 is a very strong feature
and are followed by a crotchet and a pair of quaver triplets.
The boldness of the rhythm gives the works prime motif a clear and
unambiguous character.
The extensive employment of quaver triplets in the voice does give a feel
of 9/8 or compound triple time. The feeling of triple time, however, is
strong and is greatly enhanced by the harmonic speed. The use of triplets
and ties does add an expressive air to the melody which is a perfect foil
against the constant semiquaver chords of the Piano right hand.
The rhythm and metre are given intensity with the increase in the harmonic
speed at bars 36 – 41 and the crotchet motion of the bass, providing the
work with an emotional climax.
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Thematicism
The work has two very distinct motifs which are exposed in bars 1 -2 which
define the theme of the work. The first is a bold, three crotchet statement in
bar 2:
This idea, Motif A is answered by a crotchet tied to three quaver triplets
followed by three quaver triplets, Motif B. The two are often stated in
conjunction, such as at bars 13 – 14 in free inversion.
And in a more elusive guise at bars 9 – 10
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where the crotchet motif is developed to include a triplet.
At bars 24-30 the three statements of the theme appear in a freely
sequential manner, each repetition being a variation.
Motif B is used independently at bars 32 -33
and bars 36 -37.
On idea which emerges as significant towards the end of the work is the
minim plus crotched first appears in the voice at bar 4. The motif appears in
11 subsequent bars as a minim  +  or  + e.x and helps to bring the work
to its conclusion.
Texture
Homophonic.
Setting
The setting is largely syllabic although there are highly expressive if brief
melismas associated with Motif B at bars 7, 21, 33, 37 and at bar 45 at
the close of the work.
Bars 6 - 8
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Structure
The work is strophic:
Verse 1 bars 1 – 16
Verse 2 bars 17 – 30
Verse 3 bars 30 beat 3 – 48
The final verse acts as an ecstatic variation on the previous verses and the
second verse begins as the first but is different after bar 26 so the work can
be considered to be in modified strophic form, a more poetic structure,
allowing the drama inherent in the text to be reflected in the music.
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