Independent Project Performance Evaluation

'An individual performance is not just unique...it displays the signature of a person' (Godlovitch 1998) and this is what I aimed to show in my performance of my song 'Ophelia's Soliloquy'. I wanted to show my artistic flair and interests while also communicating the character of choice and the play. I think I was successful in this although I think I could have improved upon this by being a lot more confident with my performance which the audience would have received better. 

I think my musical choices worked very well. The use of the motif connected the song and story together but to develop this next time I would make more of the motif and develop it further in terms of tempo and melodically develop this as well to put more emphasis on it like my research showed there is in other musicals. Something else I think worked well was referencing Shakespeare and using quotes directly from his plays as this connected the audience to the play straight away but the way i which I used them still kept it modern because I purposely picked quotes with contemporary language. If I were to do this again, I would try to use even more of these. I would also try reference the fact that Ophelia is connected with flowers more, perhaps using one of her floral songs that is already in the play, because although melodically I communicated the floral roots, I think that this could've been more apparent if I referenced it in the lyrics as well. I think that despite me wanting to use just piano and voice to communicate Ophelia and her feelings I think that it would have been good to have one or two instruments in the chorus before the rap and the rap, to layer the texture. This would convey her being driven into madness further, and also if it was stringed instruments could express the fact that Hamlet is a horror story with ghosts. In my opinion, the rap worked the best and I know this through audience feedback. The decision to keep the piano accompaniment simple worked well as it meant that I could put all the emotion and concentration into doing the rap and making sure it was in time. Although next time with more practice I would try making the piano part a little bit more difficult, not just for the rap but throughout.

I've learnt the importance of research in creating a piece. My song started a lot different to where it ended up and this was because of research to help me understand not only the character better but also the genre of my song and background of the play Hamlet which each brought me to structure my song and add certain musical elements such as a motif. I've learnt how to take existing material and adapt it such as the Shakespeare quotes and Musical Theatre references. I've learnt not just to do this subtly like in the verses but also obviously like in the rap depending on the desired impact. My piano skills have not just improved through my independent project but also doing other activities such as playing for a Musical Theatre group and playing for my church on a Sunday morning. In both of these situations I also have to sing and play at the same time which has been really beneficial which I think you could see in my performance. I need to continue this so I can develop my piano accompanying skills even further.

Bibliography 3

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ElsaGal  (2014). Love is a Open Door – Frozen HD 1080p. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nPImqZo0D74

Godlovitch, S (1998).  Musical Performance:  A philosophical study. Routledge. London. 

Hayley Jenkins (2016). Thunderworld Group 3. Available at:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2bE5XyF8FRI&feature=youtu.be 

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                                                        Shakespeare, W (1623). As you like it. London, U.K. First Follio. 

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Shakespeare, W (1598). The Merchant of Venice. London, U.K.  Francis Meres

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Sections Explore

The intro of the piece straight away introduces the falling motif of A G# F# E. This is because this would connect to another song in the Musical and it also sets the atmosphere for the song. Adding the octaves underneath playing the root note of the chord and then changing to the broken chords keeps it engaging and sets the romantic tone that is also quite melancholy. 

For the pre verse I really wanted to start with Shakespeare line to reference the play of Hamlet straight away.  This automatically sets the emotion of the song because it is uncertain and about her thoughts about the relationship between her and Hamlet. She is in thought, speaking to herself about whether Hamlet and her are going to work out. 

To be or not to be, that is the question about us.

Will we play our love scene, that is the question about us.

There is then a bit of a musical break where a new theme develops of a broken chord but alternating between notes. This allows the tempo to pick up and for it to stylistically change to become less of a ballad and to become more upbeat Musical Theatre which is then also continuing in engaging the audience after drawing them in at first so they can see whether this relationship works out or not and what is going to happen. 

In the next verse the theme of the song becomes more apparent which then leads well into the chorus. In this verse the Musical Theatre references start to be introduced so that the audience can relate to the genre of my song as this is communicated through the tempo picked up and the lyrical references.

I had a dream in time gone by it didn't come true

I thought this was my season of love but that's not true

Because seasons come and seasons go, but now I know

No matter if you run towards love, it'll always run from you

For the chorus of my song the lyrics are simplistic whilst the accompaniment is a bit more spritely and fun. It brings the texture down after the first sections of the song being complex. The first sections reflect the complicated thoughts that she is thinking but for the chorus it comes down to the simple fact that she wants to be with him but he doesn't want to be with her.

I wanna be with you, but you don't wanna be with me.

I wanna be with you, but you don't wanna be with me.

The second verse then goes back to the complicated feelings as it re enforces the emotions expressed in the first verse. It also references Shakespeare again to keep this theme going throughout the piece to emphasises that it is based upon a Shakespeare play. In continues to address Hamlet as if these are the words that she wants to say to him but isn't brave enough to.

All the world's a stage but I don't wanna play the part no more.

If love is blind then what am I fighting for. 

Everyday it aches and aches, the hurt goes on and on.

But I can't make you love me.

The next chorus is similar to the first chorus but develops at the end to communicate her build of emotions. It shows desperation through the tempo and dexterity of her words and also communicates her going crazy whilst also building atmosphere which then leads into the rap where her emotions build even further.

I wanna be with you, but you don't wanna be with me.

I wanna be with you so bad I can barely breathe.

I wanna be with you so bad I can barely see. I can't see clear. I can't think clear. 

But I know this is right.

The rap then adds comical effect to juxtaposes with the tragedy of the rest of the piece. It references lots of different Musicals which attracts my target audience and links the piece to the Musical Theatre genre. It is a fast tempo which communicates her being driven into madness with love for Hamlet. 

I'd do anything, for you dear anything

I would give you everything

But you don't want my anything

You just close every door to me

You keep denying love for me

Now all I have are memories now you're no longer around

You can't feel the electricity

But I feel the spark inside of me

And while I'm defying gravity you never move of the ground

I've got 99 problems and Maria ain't one

She doesn't trample on my heart the way that you've done

Ah wella wella wouldn't it be lovely to no longer be alone

But I love him,God I love him but only on my own

But life it is cruel, it is a circle goes round and round

It is the circle of life now and anything goes

And at the end of the day it will leave you in pain

And tomorrow, he won't love ya, and your heart breaks again

At the end I just repeat the first chorus but don't finish it. I pause on the F# chord unexpectedly to suggest that she has too much emotion and the ends up killing herself which is reflected by the motif ending the song, which would then continue onto the rest of the musical. It leaves simplistically after all the craziness has ended therefore suggesting her drowning in the river like at the in Hamlet. Ending on the octave F# suggests the horror element of the play Hamlet.

Rap

I really wanted to modernise Shakespeare to appeal to a contemporary audience and to do this I've tried to play to my strengths and added a rap. This has been proven to work with a Musical Theatre audience with such musicals as Hamilton. To help me look at the impact of rap I researched the opening song called 'Alexander Hamilton' (Wait4It Burr 2016). In this they use swearing to add to the affect of the rap but I feel like this wouldn't be suitable for the character of Ophelia because she is so delicate, naive and feminine. Originally I wanted to take a speech that Ophelia actually says in Hamlet and adapt this so that I could rap it and fit a modern day audience. I also wanted to use more Shakespeare language to still link it back to its roots even further. However I decided this wasn't applicable and would be more comedic if I took lines from different musicals. I wanted to add comedy to what is quite a tragic piece therefore when she ends up committing suicide it makes it more sombre. The comedic element juxtaposes the melancholy mood of the melody and theme by creating a mockery using musical lyrics. I felt like this was more appropriate then my initial idea and worked better.

I'd do anything, for you dear anything

I would give you everything

But you don't want my anything

You just close every door to me

You keep denying love for me

Now all I have are memories now you're no longer around

You can't feel the electricity

But I feel the spark inside of me

And while I'm defying gravity you never move of the ground

I've got 99 problems and Maria ain't one

She doesn't trample on my heart the way that you've done

Ah wella wella wouldn't it be lovely to no longer be alone

But I love him,God I love him but only on my own

But life it is cruel, it is a circle goes round and round

It is the circle of life now and anything goes

And at the end of the day it will leave you in pain

And tomorrow, he won't love ya, and your heart breaks again

Accompaniment wise I want to keep it simple as I will be rapping at the same time as playing. I also want to keep it simple because I want the words to be the focus and if there is too much of a busy accompaniment part it can be distracting. Therefore I will just  change the rhythm throughout. Another musical technique I will also use is a octave swap just to allow me to keep the piano part interesting and engaging yet not making it too difficult and challenging for me. The use of timed pauses at the end of the word add to the emotional intensity to them lines after the comedic use of the rest of the rap.

Musical Theatre References

Because my song is of the Musical Theatre genre, I feel that it is important that it has aspects that will attract and target a Musical reference. I figured a good way to do this was through using lyrical references from other songs in Musicals with the possibility of musically adding references to famous motifs in Musical. I look at a song called 'Life is not a Musical' (Life is not a Musical 2010) from the Musical of the same name as this does this very well to add comedic effect. Although this is a different tempo and theme to my song, it explores similar elements especially the section where it lists off different lines from musicals which I hope to later add a similar section to my song but as a rap. 

Like Jean Valjean, I pray to God

For a good witch Glinda, to come and save me

Like the Phantom of the Opera, I could love her from afar

Deuteronomy could give me some advice to ease my broken Eponine heart

That would be a start

Even though the rap will be similar set up to this, it will use lyrics rather then character references. The other parts of my song where I reference musicals will do this more subtly but so that it is known that this reference is being made. The first reference in my song is 'Lets play a love Scene' from Fame (TheDancingCat22 2011). This suits the song because not only does it reference a Musical, it also refers to the fact that Hamlet was originally a play and just emphasises its Shakespeare roots. Another reference is I Dreamed a Dream from Les Miserables (verycoolsound 2010). This song is appropriate because it is a song where Fantine is conveying about a person she loved but left her. It is the same heartache that Ophelia is feeling after yearning for someone who doesn't love her back. It is also quite a melancholy song which is similar to mine. The next song reference within the verse is 'Seasons of Love' from Rent (Lyric Videos 2011) which is a popular, well known Musical Theatre song and is connect thematically as is similarly about love. 

To express the Musical Theatre genre even further I researched Love is an Open Door from Frozen (ElsaGal 2014). I tried to mimic the bass pattern rhythmically to create a upbeat, foot tapping atmosphere which takes away from the seriousness of my song. I then adapt this later on, adding more notes but still playing in the same rhythm just to make it more interesting and engaging.

Motif for the piece

In almost every Musical there is a musical motif that keeps recurring through the whole of the Musical. Sometimes this can be more then one and are usually introduced at the beginning of the show so it can be used throughout. For example, the motif in West Side Story is a tritone motif (West Side Story - The Making of a Classic 2016) and is poignant as it is often used to build tension and used as a warning for something bad happening for example in the opening (Rebecca East 2011)). From hearing a motif it should connect you automatically with the emotion and make you think of that Musical and this is why developing just the right motif was extremely important.  Sometimes Musicals can have more then one thematically link musically, for example in West Side story 'Bernstein used the tune of the opening notes of Maria as a unifying phrase throughout the show. (Shang and Paige, 2015)

The motif for my song needed to reflect the dainty and vulnerable nature of my character Ophelia, but also suggesting the floral watery death that awaits her. Therefore I decided to play it quite high in pitch, with option to change it to lower if needing to suggest her descent into madness, also changing the tempo if I use it in this situation. I have chosen a falling phrase because of this and think that this communicates not only the water but also the flowers. Although it sounds like quite a romantic motif I also think it sounds quite tragic and sad, almost melancholy which is exactly what this song is. I also end the song with this delicate falling phrase of A G# F# E because after all the madness of the rap to represent her craziness, when it ends with just the falling phrase, this suggests that she has committed suicide, which is what happens in the play Hamlet. (Shakespeare 1603)

Independent Project Devising

After properly researching I felt more confident to start writing my song. I played around with lots of different chords until I finally found a chord pattern that I felt confident with playing and that I felt was appropriate to my genre of Musical Theatre - A, E, F#, E, D. By playing it constantly and just humming and improvising I slowly developed a catchy chorus that I I felt was appropriate and worked from there. 

I wanna be with you, but you don't wanna be with me.

I wanna be with you, but you don't wanna be with me. 

Then to emphasise what the song was based on, I wanted to open the song with the quote 'to be or not to be that is the question' (Shakespeare 1603) which connects the audience already to the character because everyone can relate to a point of uncertainty in their life, whether that be about a relationship, in Ophelia's case, or just general uncertainty. Then 'play our love scene' references two things that are appropriate to my song. The first being a Musical Theatre reference as it references 'Lets play a love Scene' (TheDancingcat22) from Fame as this is something I want to do throughout the piece. I think part of my audience I'm hoping to attract through this would be Musical Theatre lovers and therefore references other Musicals are almost like an inside joke but I want to do this subtly at the beginning so that this is not the focus but later on I want to allow this to add comedic affect to add to the tragedy of her dying at the end. 

To be or not to be,

That is the question about us.

Will we play our love scene

that is the question, about us.

From composing the bare bones of the chorus and pre verse I was able to develop a structure that I felt would be successful and tell the story well, leaving her time to develop emotionally yet still keeping the piece musically and emotionally engaging. It follows a Musical Theatre pattern yet challenges classic musicals by adding a rap which allows it to very contemporary and modern to help reach a younger audience, whilst the Shakespeare stereotypically will reach an older audience. This way it aims at all ages.

• Introduction
• Pre Verse
• Instrumental
• Verse
• Chorus
• Verse
• Chorus
• Rap
• Chorus
• End