'Release' - Afro Celt Sound System

'Release' - Afro Celt Sound System

1. Harmony

   • piece is in c minor
     • drone is on the note C
   • repeating chord sequences
   • mostly diatonic harmony
   • there are some chromatic notes
     • (the ascending strings)
   • afew extended chords
     • (7th and 9th)
   • the harmonic rhythm is slow and feels although it remains on the same chord for the majority of the piece

2. structure

   • the full structure is:
     • intro
       • verse 1
         • verse 2
           • solos
             • verse 3
               • build
                 • outro

3. melody

   • there's a female and a male singer
   • the vocal melody is repetative
   • there are some spoken parts, including vocal samples
   • the singers sometimes sing vocables (nonsense lyrics)
   • the melody lines are all short phrases
   • before the first verse the female sings in free time and it creates an improvisational sound
   • solos are taken by the uilleann pipe, whistle and hurdy gurdy
   • the fiddle melody uses double stopping
   • vocals use glissando and ornamentation

4. texture

   • the start is monophonic
     • however the texture throughout is homophonic
   • at the beginning the texture builds by adding one loop at a time
     • the loops drop in and out also causing texture to change
       • there are many overlapping loops causing the piece to have a polyphonnic feel
   • there's a heterophonic texture during the outro as solo instruments play the same thing with slight variations

5. rhythm / metre

   • the time signature is 4/4
   • lots of repetitive riffs and ostinato patterns
   • syncopated throughout
   • 4 bar loops
   • some notes are accented to make them louder
   • triplets are used
   • sextuplets are used
   • semi-quavers are slightly swung (giving the piece a relaxed quality)

6. tonality

   • the piece is in C minor
   • the piece has a modal feel at all times

7. instruments / sonority

   • african instruments
     • kora
     • talking drum
   • celtic instruments
     • hurdy-gurdy
     • fiddle
     • whistle
     • accordian
     • bodhran
     • uilleann pipes
   • dance music instruments
     • synthesiser
       • string pad
       • soft pad
       • bass
       • bells
     • male and female vocals
     • breath samples
     • drum machine
     • electric piano
     • shaker
     • tambourine
   • some playing techniques include glissando, ornamentation, double stopping and open / closed high hat
   • the vocals contain reverb throughout the entire track
   • the synth drone uses a filter to adjust the EQ and create a 'sweeping' sound

8. background info

   • this is a piece of fusion music, combining elements of african music, celtic folk and electronic dance music
     • 1999 release
   • the group frequently collaborated with various artists over the years, including sinead o'connor who sang in release

9. tempo

   • piece is in free time at beginning
   • from bar 50 the pace is 100bpm