Metamorphosis One

Instrumentation

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Musical Terms (5)

• oscillating thirds English
  The inner-voice accompaniment figure in Metamorphosis One and Five consisting of ascending major thirds alternating steadily in the left hand, underpinning the entire cycle.
  Keep the oscillating thirds absolutely even — they are the stable ground from which the plaintive right-hand melody departs. Any unevenness here disrupts the hypnotic quality of the whole cycle.
• arpeggiated bass pattern English
  A broken-chord figure in the left hand that provides both harmonic content and rhythmic forward motion; the most characteristic texture of Glass's solo piano writing.
  The arpeggiated pattern is the engine in pieces like Metamorphosis and the Etudes. Keep it steady and slightly subordinate to the melody but avoid rigidity — the pattern should breathe with the phrase arc.
• gradual harmonic change English
  A process by which the harmonic field shifts slowly and almost imperceptibly over a long span of time, so the listener cannot easily pinpoint the moment of change.
  Navigate chord shifts smoothly without highlighting them. The listener should sense the landscape has changed without knowing exactly when. Legato pedalling and voice-leading continuity are essential.
• modal shift English
  A movement between two closely related diatonic modes (e.g. from E minor to A minor) without classical preparation or resolution; a hallmark of Glass's harmonic language.
  Rather than hearing these shifts as modulations in the classical sense, feel for the change in 'colour' or emotional weight. They arrive quietly and the music continues as if nothing happened — do not mark them.
• rhythmic displacement English
  The shifting of a melodic accent so that it falls on a different position within the repeating eighth-note stream than before, creating forward propulsion without a change of tempo.
  Common across the Etudes. Identify where the melodic emphasis falls in each variant of a pattern and let it emerge without forcing an accent; over-emphasis destroys the meditative quality.