Performing and composing ideas
John Barry demonstrates the following techniques and devices in Out of Africa. Each one can be transferred to other genres of music and should be considered when composing and performing music.
| In performance | In composing | |
| Leitmotif | Learn to perform a selection of leitmotifs. Think about how each one links to the character or place it represents. | Compose a leitmotif to represent a superhero. The melody could include intervals of a fifth and sixth. Think about how this could be adapted to represent a villain. |
| Glissando | Research which instruments are capable of performing a glissando and how they do this. Experiment with glissandos on an instrument. | Think about the impact of a glissando in a piece of music. How could it be used in an original composition? |
| Repeating rhythm | Identify repeated rhythms in a piece and whether the dynamics or articulation are altered to change the mood or atmosphere of the music. | Think of ways of altering the rhythms of a leitmotif by augmenting or diminishing the value of the notes. |
| Lyrical phrasing | Out of Africa relies on long, sustained phrasing. Phrases imply musical sentences. Identify where the sentences are in a performance piece. Think about where breaths or change of bowing should take place. | When composing melodies, think about whether the vocalist or instrumentalist can play the various phrases in one breath each. This gives a good starting point for writing clear phrase structures. |
| Leitmotif | |
| In performance | Learn to perform a selection of leitmotifs. Think about how each one links to the character or place it represents. |
| In composing | Compose a leitmotif to represent a superhero. The melody could include intervals of a fifth and sixth. Think about how this could be adapted to represent a villain. |
| Glissando | |
| In performance | Research which instruments are capable of performing a glissando and how they do this. Experiment with glissandos on an instrument. |
| In composing | Think about the impact of a glissando in a piece of music. How could it be used in an original composition? |
| Repeating rhythm | |
| In performance | Identify repeated rhythms in a piece and whether the dynamics or articulation are altered to change the mood or atmosphere of the music. |
| In composing | Think of ways of altering the rhythms of a leitmotif by augmenting or diminishing the value of the notes. |
| Lyrical phrasing | |
| In performance | Out of Africa relies on long, sustained phrasing. Phrases imply musical sentences. Identify where the sentences are in a performance piece. Think about where breaths or change of bowing should take place. |
| In composing | When composing melodies, think about whether the vocalist or instrumentalist can play the various phrases in one breath each. This gives a good starting point for writing clear phrase structures. |