Struggling to answer questions for GCSE Music: Brandenburg Concerto? Well, struggle no longer – this is the place to be!
Struggling to study for GCSE Music: Brandenburg Concerto?
Panicking that there are only a few months left to revise absolutely everything?
Then this is the place to be!
As a grade 9 ex-GCSE music student myself, I know all the best tips and tricks for doing well in your exam. Using this Brandenburg Concerto analysis, you can boost your grades as quickly as possible!
I have tried to make this information as concise as possible so you can get the best value for your time spent reading. Make sure you write everything down and learn it thoroughly. Reading alone will not help you absorb this information!
This article is all about how to pass Edexcel GCSE Music: Brandenburg Concerto.
GCSE Music Brandenburg Concerto
I’m tentatively assuming most of the people reading this will already have the GCSE Anthology of Music recommended by Edexcel. If not, here is a link to where you can buy it.
Unfortunately, the anthologies are very expensive. However, if you are lucky, you can find a second hand one on amazon or ebay.
Thankfully, Brandenburg Concerto No.5 is out of copyright, so you can find it on that lifesaver of a site called IMSLP. Here is the link to where you can find it – scroll down to page 20 to find the 3rd movement.
Context of Brandenburg Concerto
Brandenburg Concerto No. 5 was written by Bach for the Margrave of Brandenburg (hence its name!). He wrote it along with five other concertos, and presented them to the Margrave in 1721.
Brandenburg Concerto is very solidly part of the Baroque period. Here are some features you could listen out for:
- Polyphonic textures
- Use of figured bass (read on to find out what this is!)
- Lots of ornamentation
- Light articulation
Can you spot any of these features of Brandenburg Concerto No. 5?
Instrumentation of Brandenburg Concerto
Brandenburg Concerto is a concerto grosso, which is a concerto with several soloists instead of just one. You won’t really find this structure outside of the Baroque era.
A concerto grosso has two groups: the soloists (the concertino) and the larger orchestra (the ripieno). In this concerto, the concertino consists of flute, violin and harpsichord (cembalo in the score), whilst the ripieno consists of a string orchestra. The harpsichord also plays the continuo part. More on this later!
The harpsichord is like a piano, except the strings are plucked rather than hit with hammers, and it has a really interesting role in this piece. First of all, it was one of the first concertos to use the harpsichord as a solo instrument. Secondly, it also acts as an accompanying instrument when it has no solo line.
One more thing about the harpsichord! See those small numbers under the stave? That’s called figured bass. Read the harmony section to find out what this means.
Structure of Brandenburg Concerto
For your GCSE, you will be studying the third movement of the Brandenburg Concerto, which is a gigue. More on this in the tempo section!
This movement uses a structure called ternary form, or ABA. This means that the third section is the same as the first. The first section (A) begins at bar 1 – there is no introduction. The B section begins in bar 79, whilst the second A section begins at bar 233.
Tonality of Brandenburg Concerto
This movement moves through lots of different keys, as was common in the Baroque era.
The overall tonality of Brandenburg Concerto is D major, although by bar 17 we have already moved to A major. This is the dominant of of D major. However, we are in E major just a few bars later, in bar 25. Told you we moved quickly!
We hover about between these three keys over the next section, mostly sticking with D major. However, Bach shakes things up a bit for the B section (bar 79), taking us to B minor, our relative minor. We then move to F# minor by bar 99. We move through these keys a few more times, before arriving back in D major for the second A section at bar 233.
Don’t worry, you won’t need to use these bar numbers! Unless you are writing an essay that is, but if that’s the case you will have the score to help you.
Harmony of Brandenburg Concerto
The main focus of Baroque harmony is tension and release. Remember this!
Bach uses a basso continuo in this piece, a common feature in Baroque music. This means a bass instrument (the cello and double bass) and a keyboard instrument (the harpsichord), which fills in the harmony.
This movement uses lots of perfect cadences, as is typical of Baroque music. Examples can be found in bars 16-17 and 24-25, amongst others.
You can also find lots of pedal notes. A good example is the tonic pedal from bars 79-85, which emphasises the new key of B minor. There is a dominant pedal in bars 217-221 as well, which acts as dominant preparation.
Another example of tension and release is the suspension in bar 129.
Alright, I promised more detail on harpsichord figured bass, so here we go! This bit only applies when it plays an accompaniment role. See those small chords in the right hand? Originally only the bass line was written in these places, so the harpsichordist would have had to improvise! Luckily, however, they have included those small chords for us poor musicians who can’t make up music on the spot…!
Anyway, an example of figured bass is the 6/4 in bar 147. This indicates a second inversion chord built above E – so an A major chord.
Right, that’s enough obscure Baroque harmony! If you have a question on harmony and are stuck, listen for the bass line. For example, you could highlight the rising octave bass line in bars 136-141, or the chromatic bass line of bars 132 and 133.
Melody of Brandenburg Concerto
The first thing you need to do when revising this movement is listen to the first two bars. On repeat, several times. Sing it, play it, have nightmares about it. Remember it! This is what it looks like:
Those first two bars form the theme (or subject). It pops up all over the place, so listen out for it.
The subject begins with a rising perfect 4th at the beginning and ends with a falling perfect 5th. Bach develops it throughout – for example, when the flute plays it in bar 3, it opens with a rising perfect 5th instead of a perfect 4th.
This melody (pictured below) is called the counter-subject, another melodic idea you can find throughout the music. It is played by the violin in bars 3 and 4, and is repeated throughout.
The counter-subject is characterised by conjunct quaver movement.
These melodic ideas are developed throughout the B section.
Bach uses a lots of scalic passages, such as bars 15 and 16 in the harpsichord part. This adds to the virtuosity of the music and is typical of the Baroque era.
Bach also uses sequences throughout the movement, such as the ascending sequence in bars 114-118, cementing the melodic idea in the listener’s mind.
The marking cantabile in bar 148 means in a singing style.
Another typically Baroque feature of this movement is the use of ornamentation. Examples include trills (bars 19 and 21) and appoggiaturas (bars 80 and 82). These help decorate the melody. However, trills also have a more interesting role. The harpsichord struggled to sustain notes, so composers used trills to lengthen them.
If you have a melody question and you’re stuck, see if you can hear the theme and compare it to its original form.
Texture of Brandenburg Concerto
The overall texture of the Brandenburg Concerto is polyphonic, as is typical of Baroque music.
The recurring use of a theme which is repeated at different pitches (see the melody section!) means this movement also has a fugal texture.
Fugal textures naturally create imitation, which you can hear throughout the movement. There is also lots of dialogue throughout, which is where instruments interact without playing the same music. An example can be found in bars 155 – 162.
The subject is normally two bars long. However, in bar 40 the right hand enters with the subject early – the left hand, which begun playing the subject in bar 39, hasn’t yet completed its two bars of subject. This is called stretto.
The B section (bar 79) uses a melody and accompaniment texture (with the melody in the flute) for a few bars, thinning the texture and creating some variety. However, the violin and harpsichord still have some melodic interest, as was typical in the Baroque era.
Here are some other interesting texture points throughout the movement:
- The movement opens with a monophonic texture for two bars, before the flute enters in bar 3
- 3rds in, for example, the flute and violin, and in bar 20 in the harpsichord
- The unison between flute and violin in bars 137-147
- Some brief canon in octaves in bars 163-176
Rhythm, metre and tempo of Brandenburg Concerto
First things first, this movement is a gigue. This is a type of lively, fast dance, perfect for the last movement of a concerto. This fits with the tempo marking of Allegro, which means fast.
The metre is 2/4, or simple duple time.
Bach opens the movement with an anacrusis (or upbeat).
Throughout this movement, Bach uses rhythm to create a sense of liveliness. We can see this through the use of dotted rhythms and triplets in the theme, for example. The triplets create a gigue-like feel, as this dance is normally in compound time.
Bach uses lots of semiquavers throughout, such as those in bars 25-27, adding to the virtuosity of the music. There are also lots of tied notes across bar lines, creating some mild tension which is resolved when the tie ends.
You can also find quaver rests throughout the movement – for example, between the chords in bars 29-37. This keeps the articulation light, as was favoured during the Baroque era.
Coda
And there we have it! A rather detailed analysis of everything you need to know for Edexcel GCSE Music Brandenburg Concerto, from harmony and texture to tonality and structure.
This article was all about GCSE Music: Brandenburg Concerto.
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