Text word painting music

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For paintings and other art incorporating text, see Word art.

Word painting, also known as tone painting or text painting, is the musical technique of composing music that reflects the literal meaning of a song’s lyrics or story elements in programmatic music.

Historical development[edit]

Tone painting of words goes at least as far back as Gregorian chant. Musical patterns expressed both emotive ideas and theological meanings in these chants. For instance, the pattern fa-mi-sol-la signifies the humiliation and death of Christ and his resurrection into glory. Fa-mi signifies deprecation, while sol is the note of the resurrection, and la is above the resurrection, His heavenly glory («surrexit Jesus«). Such musical words are placed on words from the Biblical Latin text; for instance when fa-mi-sol-la is placed on «et libera» (e.g., introit for Sexagesima Sunday) in the Christian faith it signifies that Christ liberates us from sin through his death and resurrection.^[1]

Word painting developed especially in the late 16th century among Italian and English composers of madrigals, to such an extent that word painting devices came to be called madrigalisms. While it originated in secular music, it made its way into other vocal music of the period. While this mannerism became a prominent feature of madrigals of the late 16th century, including both Italian and English, it encountered sharp criticism from some composers. Thomas Campion, writing in the preface to his first book of lute songs in 1601, said of it: «… where the nature of everie word is precisely expresst in the Note … such childish observing of words is altogether ridiculous.»^[2]

Word painting flourished well into the Baroque music period. One well-known example occurs in Handel’s Messiah, where a tenor aria contains Handel’s setting of the text:^[3]

Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill made low; the crooked straight, and the rough places plain. (Isaiah 40:4)^[4]

In Handel’s melody, the word «valley» ends on a low note, «exalted» is a rising figure; «mountain» forms a peak in the melody, and «hill» a smaller one, while «low» is another low note. «Crooked» is sung to a rapid figure of four different notes, while «straight» is sung on a single note, and in «the rough places plain», «the rough places» is sung over short, separate notes whereas the final word «plain» is extended over several measures in a series of long notes. This can be seen in the following example:^[5]

In popular music[edit]

There are countless examples of word painting in 20th century music.

One example occurs in the song «Friends in Low Places» by Garth Brooks. During the chorus, Brooks sings the word «low» on a low note.^[6] Similarly, on The Who’s album Tommy, the song «Smash the Mirror» contains the line «Rise, rise, rise, rise, rise, rise, rise, rise, rise, rise, rise, rise, rise….» Each repetition of «rise» is a semitone higher than the last, making this an especially overt example of word-painting.^[7]

«Hallelujah» by Leonard Cohen includes another example of word painting. In the line «It goes like this the fourth, the fifth, the minor fall and the major lift, the baffled king composing hallelujah,» the lyrics signify the song’s chord progression.^[8]

Justin Timberlake’s song «What Goes Around» is another popular example of text painting. The lyrics

What goes around, goes around, goes around

Comes all the way back around

descend an octave and then return to the upper octave, as though it was going around in a circle.

In the chorus of «Up Where We Belong» recorded by Joe Cocker and Jennifer Warnes, the melody rises during the words «Love lift us up».

In Johnny Cash’s «Ring of Fire», there is an inverse word painting where «down, down, down» is sung to the notes rising, and ‘higher’ is sung dropping from a higher to a lower note.

In Jim Reeves’s version of the Joe Allison and Audrey Allison song «He’ll Have to Go,» the singer’s voice sinks on the last word of the line, «I’ll tell the man to turn the juke box way down low.»

When Warren Zevon sings «I think I’m sinking down,» on his song «Carmelita,» his voice sinks on the word «down.»

In Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart’s «My Romance,» the melody jumps to a higher note on the word «rising» in the line «My romance doesn’t need a castle rising in Spain.»

In recordings of George and Ira Gershwin’s «They Can’t Take That Away from Me,» Ella Fitzgerald and others intentionally sing the wrong note on the word «key» in the phrase «the way you sing off-key».^[9]

Another inverse happens during the song «A Spoonful of Sugar» from Mary Poppins, as, during the line «Just a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down,» the words «go down» leap from a lower to a higher note.

In Follies, Stephen Sondheim’s first time composing the words and music together, the number «Who’s That Woman?» contains the line «Who’s been riding for a fall?» followed by a downward glissando and bass bump, and then the line «Who is she who plays the clown?» followed by mocking saxophone wobbles.

At the beginning of the first chorus in Luis Fonsi’s «Despacito», the music is slowed down when the word «despacito'»(slowly) is performed.

In Secret Garden’s «You Raise Me Up», the words «you raise me up» are sung in a rising scale at the beginning of the chorus.

Queen use word painting in many of their songs (in particular, those written by lead singer Freddie Mercury). In «Somebody to Love», each time the word «Lord» occurs, it is sung as the highest note at the end of an ascending passage. In the same piece, the lyrics «I’ve got no rhythm; I just keep losing my beat» fall on off beats to create the impression that he is out of time.

Queen also uses word painting through music recording technology in their song «Killer Queen» where a flanger effect is placed on the vocals during the word «laser-beam» in bar 17.^[10]

In Mariah Carey’s 1991 single Emotions word painting is used throughout the song. The first use of word painting is in the lyric «deeper than I’ve ever dreamed of» where she sings down to the bottom of the staff, another example is also in the lyric «You make me feel so high» with the word «high» being sung with arpeggios with the last note being an E7

In Miley Cyrus’ ‘Wrecking Ball’, every time the title of the song is mentioned, all instruments engage in one huge wall of sound, therefore mimicking the sound of a wrecking ball whenever the chorus comes in.

Burt Bacharach uses word-painting in the song ‘In Between the Heartaches’ from Dionne Warwick’s Here_I_Am album. The song opens on an A-flat minor 11th chord. Dionne sings on the 11th of the chord (on the words…’In Between…’); a high E-flat briefly (on the word ‘the’); and back to the 11th and the 9th of the chord (on the word…’Heartaches…’) Those notes fall IN BETWEEN the notes of an A-flat minor triad (A-flat, C-flat, E-flat) making it a highly sophisticated example of word-painting.

See also[edit]

• Mickey Mousing
• Musica reservata
• Program music
• Eye music

References[edit]

Sources[edit]

• M. Clement Morin and Robert M. Fowells, «Gregorian Musical Words», in Choral essays: A Tribute to Roger Wagner, edited by Williams Wells Belan, San Carlos (CA): Thomas House Publications, 1993
• Sadie, Stanley. Word Painting. Carter, Tim. The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians. Second edition, vol. 27.
• How to Listen to and Understand Great Music, Part 1, Disc 6, Robert Greenberg, San Francisco Conservatory of Music

Рисование слов (также известное как рисование тоном или текст живопись ) — музыкальный прием сочинения музыки, который отражает буквальное значение текста песни или элементов истории в программной музыке.

Содержание

• 1 Историческое развитие
• 2 В популярной музыке
• 3 См. Также
• 4 Ссылки
• 5 Источники

Историческое развитие

Тоновая окраска слов восходит, по крайней мере, к григорианскому пению. Музыкальные паттерны выражали в этих песнопениях как эмоциональные идеи, так и богословские значения. Например, образец фа-ми-соль-ла означает унижение и смерть Христа и его воскресение во славе. Фа-ми означает осуждение, в то время как соль — это нота воскресения, а ла — выше воскресения, Его небесной славы («суррексит Иисус»). Такие музыкальные слова помещаются в слова из библейского латинского текста; например, когда fa-mi-sol-la помещается в «et libera» (например, вступление к Sexagesima воскресенье) в христианской вере, это означает, что Христос освобождает нас от греха через Свою смерть и воскресение.

Словесная живопись развивалась особенно в конце 16 века среди итальянских и английских композиторов мадригалов, до такой степени, что словесная живопись стала называться мадригализмами . Хотя он зародился в светской музыке, он нашел свое место и в другой вокальной музыке того периода. Хотя эта маньеризм стала характерной чертой мадригалов конца XVI века, включая как итальянские, так и английские, она встретила резкую критику со стороны некоторых композиторов. Томас Кэмпион в предисловии к своей первой книге лютневых песен в 1601 году сказал об этом: «… где природа слова everie точно выражена в Примечании… такое детское наблюдение за словами совершенно смешно ».

Живопись слова процветала в период музыки барокко. Один хорошо известный пример встречается в Генделе Мессия, где tenor ария содержит установку текста Генделя:

Каждая долина возвысится, и все горы и холмы сделаются низкими; кривые прямые, и неровности равнины. (Исаия 40: 4)

В мелодии Генделя слово «долина» заканчивается на низкой ноте, «возвышенный» — восходящая фигура; «гора» образует вершину мелодии, «холм» — меньшую, а «низкая» — еще одна низкая нота. «Crooked» поется для быстрой фигуры из четырех разных нот, в то время как «Straight» поется на одной ноте, а в «грубых местах» «грубые места» поются на коротких отдельных нотах, тогда как последнее слово «plain» охватывает несколько тактов в серии длинных нот. Это можно увидеть в следующем примере:

В популярной музыке

Есть несколько примеров рисования слов в современной музыке конца 20-го века.

Один пример встречается в песне «Friends in Low Places » Гарта Брукса. Во время припева Брукс поет слово «низкий» на низкой ноте. Точно так же на альбоме The Who Томми в песне «Smash the Mirror» есть строчка «Rise, rise, rise, rise, rise, рост, рост, рост, рост, подъем, подъем, подъем, подъем… «Каждое повторение слова» повышение «на полутон выше предыдущего, что делает это особенно явным примером рисования слов.

«Аллилуйя «от Леонарда Коэна включает еще один пример рисования слов. В строке» Это звучит так: четвертое, пятое, незначительное падение и большой подъем, сбитый с толку король сочиняет аллилуйя, «тексты означают последовательность аккордов в песне.

Песня Джастина Тимберлейка » What Goes Around «- еще один популярный пример рисования текста. Тексты

То, что происходит вокруг, идет вокруг, идет вокруг

Возвращается полностью назад вокруг

, опускается на октаву, а затем возвращается в верхнюю октаву, как если бы он двигался по кругу.

В припеве «Up Where We Belong «, записанный Джо Кокером и Дженнифер Уорнс, мелодия усиливается во время слов» Любовь поднимает нас «.

In «Кольцо огня » Джонни Кэша, есть картина, перевернутая словами, где «вниз, вниз, вниз» поется на восходящие ноты, а «выше» поется, падая с

В «Мой романс» Ричарда Роджерса и Лоренца Харта m Элоди перескакивает на более высокую ноту на слове «восхождение» в строке «Моему роману не нужен подъем замка в Испании».

В записях Джорджа и Айры Гершвин «Они не могут забрать это от меня», Элла Фицджеральд и другие намеренно поют неправильную ноту на слове «ключ» во фразе «то, как вы поете не в тональности» «.

Другая обратная ситуация происходит во время песни» A Spoonful of Sugar «из Мэри Поппинс, так как во время строки» Просто ложка сахара помогает лекарству. «спуститься вниз», слова «спуститься» переходят с более низкой ноты на более высокую.

В начале первого припева в песне Луиса Фонси «Despacito » музыка замедляется, когда произносится слово «despacito» (медленно). выполнено.

В песне Secret Garden «You Raise Me Up » слова «вы меня поднимаете» поются с возрастающей гаммой в начале припева..

Queen используют рисование слов во многих своих песнях (в частности, в песнях, написанных вокалистом Фредди Меркьюри ). В «Somebody to Love » каждый раз, когда встречается слово «Господь», оно поется как самая высокая нота в конце восходящего отрывка. В этом же произведении текст «У меня нет ритма; я просто теряю свой ритм» ложится на удары, чтобы создать впечатление, что он вне времени.

Queen также использует раскрашивание слов с помощью технологии звукозаписи в своей песне «Killer Queen », где на вокал во время слова «лазерный луч» накладывается эффект фленджера. «в такте 17.

См. также

• Mickey Mousing
• Musica reservata
• Program music
• Eye music

Ссылки

Источники

• M. Клемент Морин и Роберт М. Фауэллс, «Григорианские музыкальные слова», в хоровых эссе: дань уважения Роджеру Вагнеру, под редакцией Уильямса Уэллса Белана, Сан-Карлос (Калифорния): Thomas House Publications, 1993
• Сэди, Стэнли. Word Painting. Картер, Тим. Словарь музыки и музыкантов New Grove. Издание второе, т. 27.
• Как слушать и понимать отличную музыку, часть 1, диск 6, Роберт Гринберг, Музыкальная консерватория Сан-Франциско

Last Update: Jan 03, 2023

This is a question our experts keep getting from time to time. Now, we have got the complete detailed explanation and answer for everyone, who is interested!

Asked by: Dr. Torrey Casper I

Score: 5/5
(10 votes)

Word painting is when the melody of a song actually reflects the meaning of the words. The best way to learn about it is to listen.

What is word painting give a brief example?

Musical depiction of words in text. Using the device of word painting, the music tries to imitate the emotion, action, or natural sounds as described in the text. For example, if the text describes a sad event, the music might be in a minor key. Conversely, if the text is joyful, the music may be set in a major key.

Which genre uses word painting?

Word painting is a device used frequently in Renaissance vocal music, especially madrigals—although it certainly also appeared in church music—in which the musical events are designed to illustrate or reflect the text.

What is characteristics of use of word painting?

Word painting is a compositional style of setting the melody so it vividly depicts the imagery, and actions taking place in the music. For instance words with a negative connotation such as descending, death, ground,etc. will have a melody with a downward movement of pitch.

What is paint music?

Word painting, also known as tone painting or text painting, is the musical technique of composing music that reflects the literal meaning of a song’s lyrics or story elements in programmatic music.

45 related questions found

Word painting (also known as tone painting or text painting) is the musical technique of composing music that reflects the literal meaning of a song’s lyrics. For example, ascending scales would accompany lyrics about going up; slow, dark music would accompany lyrics about death.

Historical development

Tone painting of words goes at least as far back as Gregorian chant. Little musical patterns are musical words that express not only emotive ideas such as joy but theological meanings as well in the Gregorian. For instance, the pattern FA-MI-SOL-LA signifies the humiliation and death of Christ and His resurrection into glory. FA-MI signifies deprecation, while SOL is the note of the resurrection, and LA is above the resurrection, His heavenly glory («surrexit Jesus«). Such musical words are placed on words from the Biblical Latin text; for instance when FA-MI-SOL-LA is placed on «et libera» (e.g., introit for Sexagesima Sunday) in the Christian faith it signifies that Christ liberates us from sin through His death and resurrection.

Word painting developed especially in the late 16th century among Italian and English composers of madrigals, to such an extent that word painting devices came to be called madrigalisms. While it originated in secular music, it made its way into other vocal music of the period. While this mannerism is a prominent feature of madrigals of the late 16th century, including both Italian and English, it encountered sharp criticism from some composers. Thomas Campion, writing in the preface to his first book of lute songs 1601, said of it: «… where the nature of everie word is precisely expresst in the Note … such childish observing of words is altogether ridiculous.»^[1]

Word painting flourished well into the Baroque music period. One famous, well-known example occurs in Handel’s Messiah, where a tenor aria contains Handel’s setting of the text:

Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill made low; the crooked straight, and the rough places plain. (Isaiah 40:4)

In Handel’s melody, the word «valley» ends on a low note, «exalted» is a rising figure; «mountain» forms a peak in the melody, and «hill» a smaller one, while «low» is another low note. «Crooked» is sung to a rapid figure of four different notes, while «straight» is sung on a single note, and in «the rough places plain,» «the rough places» is sung over short, separate notes whereas the final word «plain» is extended over several measures in a series of long notes. This can be seen in the following example:

In popular music

A modern example of word painting from the late 20th century occurs in the song «Friends in Low Places» by Garth Brooks. During the chorus, Brooks sings the word «low» on a low note. Similarly, on The Who’s album Tommy, the song «Smash the Mirror» contains the line

Can you hear me? Or do I surmise

That you feel me? Can you feel my temper

Rise, rise, rise, rise, rise, rise, rise, rise, rise, rise, rise, rise, rise….

Each repetition of ‘rise’ is a half-step higher than the last, making this an especially overt example of word-painting.

«Hallelujah» by Leonard Cohen carries a significant example of the text painting,
«It goes like this the fourth, the fifth, the minor fall and the major lift, the baffled king composing hallelujah.», signifying the movement of the keys and the chord progression, a kind of ambiguous oscillation between moods.

Justin Timberlake’s song «What Goes Around» is another popular example of text painting. The lyrics

What goes around, goes around, goes around

Comes all the way back around

descend an octave and then return to the upper octave, as though it was going in around in a circle.

In the chorus of «Up Where We Belong», the melody rises during the words «Love lift us up».

In Johnny Cash’s «Ring of Fire», there is an inverse word painting where ‘down, down, down’ is sung to the notes rising, and ‘higher’ is sung dropping from a higher to a lower note.

Another inverse happens during the song «A Spoonful of Sugar» from Mary Poppins, as, during the line «Just a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down,» the words «go down» leap from a lower to a higher note.

At the beginning of the first chorus in Luis Fonsi’s «Despacito», the music is slowed down when the word «despacito» (slowly) is performed.

In Secret Garden’s «You Raise Me Up», the words «you raise me up» are sung in a rising scale at the beginning of the chorus.

Queen use word painting in many of their songs (in particular those written by lead singer Freddie Mercury). In «Somebody to Love», each time the word ‘Lord’ occurs it is sung as the highest note at the end of an ascending passage. In the same piece, the lyrics ‘I’ve got no rhythm; I just keep losing my beat’ fall on off beats to create the impression that he is out of time.

In BTS’s «Lie», the whole song is written in minor key to create tensity and dramatic irony. The only lyric that is written in major is «Caught in a lie» which represents the lie of the key signature.^[2]

See also

• Mickey Mousing
• Musica reservata
• Program music
• Eye music

Sources

• M. Clement Morin and Robert M. Fowells, «Gregorian Musical Words», in Choral essays: A Tribute to Roger Wagner, edited by Williams Wells Belan, San Carlos (CA): Thomas House Publications, 1993
• Sadie, Stanley. Word Painting. Carter, Tim. The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians. Second edition, vol. 27.
• How to Listen to and Understand Great Music, Part 1, Disc 6, Robert Greenberg, San Francisco Conservatory of Music

References

Word painting is when the melody of a song actually reflects the meaning of the words. The best way to learn about it is to listen.

Why do musicians use word painting?

Musical depiction of words in text. Using the device of word painting, the music tries to imitate the emotion, action, or natural sounds as described in the text. For example, if the text describes a sad event, the music might be in a minor key. Conversely, if the text is joyful, the music may be set in a major key.

Which of the following is an example of word painting?

Word painting is when the music describes the action. Word painting was popular in 16th century secular music. An example of word painting would be when someone is going down a hill, the music descends as well. Thomas Weelkes uses word painting in As Vesta was from Latmos Hill Descending.

Which best defines the term word painting?

Identify the correct definition for “word painting.” the process of depicting the text in music, be it subtly, overtly, or even jokingly, by means of expressive musical devices (the musical reflection of the text).

When it comes to the Madrigal What is word painting?

Madrigals are secural. One of the strongest, and most recognizable characteristics used in madrigal is word painting. Word painting is a compositional style of setting the melody so it vividly depicts the imagery, and actions taking place in the music.

What is the difference between word painting and declamation?

How a text is set to music is called its declamation. Recitative and word painting are two types of musical declamation: recitative is a speech-like, declamatory singing style that emphasizes the important syllables and words of the text, while word painting is a musical illustration of a word being sung.

What is the best description of text painting in music?

Word painting, also known as tone painting or text painting, is the musical technique of composing music that reflects the literal meaning of a song’s lyrics or story elements in programmatic music.

What is the golden age of acapella music?

The Renaissance period became known as the golden age of a cappella choral music because choral music did not require an instrumental accompaniment.

What is word painting and how was it used in music?

How was word painting used?

Word painting is the technique of creating lyrics that reflect literally alongside the music of a song and vice versa. For example, singing the word “stop” as the music cuts out. For example, Garth Brooks sings the word “low” much deeper than the rest of the lyrics in the track “Friends in Low Places”.

What is an example of word painting?

A modern example of word painting from the late 20th century occurs in the song “Friends in Low Places” by Garth Brooks. During the chorus, Brooks sings the word “low” on a low note. Similarly, on The Who’s album Tommy, the song “Smash the Mirror” contains the line.

What is the word painting in music?

Word painting (also known as tone painting or text painting) is the musical technique of composing music that reflects the literal meaning of a song’s lyrics or story elements in programmatic music.

What is word painting music?

Word painting. Word painting (also known as tone painting or text painting) is the musical technique of composing music that reflects the literal meaning of a song’s lyrics. For example, ascending scales would accompany lyrics about going up; slow, dark music would accompany lyrics about death.

What is text painting in modern music?

text painting. Text painting is a technique of music composition in which the composer deliberately illustrates aspects of the words in the text with localized aspects of the music. It is also called madrigalism (after the Renaissance madrigals who popularized it), word-painting, and less frequently as musica reservata.

Word painting (also known as tone painting or text painting) is the musical technique of having the music mimic the literal meaning of a song. For example, ascending scales would accompany lyrics about going up; slow, dark music would accompany lyrics about death.

Tone painting of words goes at least as far back as Gregorian chant. Little musical patterns are musical words that express not only emotive ideas such as joy but theological meanings as well in the Gregorian. For instance, the pattern FA-MI-SOL-LA signifies the humiliation and death of Christ and His resurrection into glory. FA-MI signifies deprecation, while SOL is the note of the resurrection, and LA is above the resurrection, His heavenly glory («surrexit Jesus»). Such musical words are placed on words from the Biblical Latin text; for instance when FA-MI-SOL-LA is placed on «et libera» (e.g. introit for Sexagesima Sunday) it signifies that Christ liberates us from sin through His death and resurrection.

Composers also experimented with word painting in Italian madrigals of the 16th and 17th centuries. Word painting flourished well into the Baroque music period. One well known example occurs in Handel’s «Messiah», where a tenor aria contains Handel’s setting of the text:

:»Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill made low; the crooked straight, and the rough places plain.» (Isaiah 40:4)

In Handel’s melody, the word «valley» ends on a low note, «exalted» is a rising figure; «mountain» forms a peak in the melody, and «hill» a smaller one, while «low» is another low note. «Crooked» is sung to a rapid figure of four different notes, while «straight» is sung on a single note, and in «the rough places plain,» «the rough places» is sung over short, separate notes whereas the final word «plain» is extended over several measures in a series of long notes. This can be seen in the following example:

A modern example of word painting from the late 20th century occurs in the song «Friends in Low Places» by Garth Brooks. During the chorus, Brooks sings the word «low» on a low note. Similarly, on The Who’s album «Tommy», the song «Smash the Mirror» contains the line

:»Can you hear me? Or do I surmise»:»That you feel me? Can you feel my temper»:«Rise, rise, rise, rise, rise, rise, rise, rise, rise, rise, rise, rise, rise….«

Each repetition of ‘rise’ is a half-step higher than the last, making this a clear example of word-painting.

Justin Timberlake’s song «What goes around» is another popular example of text painting. The lyrics

:»What goes around, goes around, goes around»:»Comes all the way back around»

descend an octave and then return back to the upper octave.

In the chorus of Up Where We Belong, the melody rises during the words «Love lift us up where we belong.»

On occasion, a composer may employ the opposite technique for a humorous effect. In the Broadway musical Once Upon a Mattress, Mary Rodgers has the lead character, Princess Winnifred, belt a brash show tune about her shyness called «Shy».

ources

*M. Clement Morin and Robert M. Fowells, «Gregorian Musical Words», in «Choral essays: A Tribute to Roger Wagner», edited by Williams Wells Belan, San Carlos (CA): Thomas House Publications, 1993
* Sadie, Stanley. «Word Painting». Carter, Tim. The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians. Second edition, vol. 27.
* How to Listen to and Understand Great Music, Part 1, Disc 6, Robert Greenberg, San Francisco Conservatory of Music

ee also

* mickey mousing
* Musica Reservata