Hello all, I'm starting a new article series featuring short tips in orchestration. Here's a quick sampler!
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Digital Orchestration Tip #02 - Creating Movement in Background Harmony
This short article serves as a quick tutorial in finding active alternatives to typical static "pad" writing when scoring a harmonic background.
In Bar 1 of the example, we see a relatively simply voiced "Static" G major triad. Violin I and Violas are in divisi, with Violas playing open strings for added sonority and the glassiness of strings played without vibrato. This is a perfectly acceptable solution and it sounds good. It definitely serves its purpose.
However, an alternative, more "Active" solution to a harmonic background is presented in Bar 2. The content is nearly identical, with key differences being:
1. Violin I is still playing divisi, but with the 2nd part arpeggiating the 3rd (B) and 5th (D) of the chord in order to add some movement and flesh out an entire G major triad.
2. Violin II is now playing an unmeasured trill on its original note (G), which subtly introduces the added 9th (A) of the chord to lend a slight sophistication to the harmony. This also occasionally creates an interval of a major 2nd with Violin I, creating a hazy effect.
3. Violas are playing the same notes (G and D), still on open strings, but creating movement by undulating slowly between them..
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In essence, we have used variety of measured and umeasured (slow and fast) ornamentations of the original notes to "excite" the harmonic background of the music, without creating a new rhythmic feel or adding any counterlines.
As always, though, you should use your ears to determine when such a technique is necessary, and to what degree. Sometimes all you really need is a pad.
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This article is part of a series I'm starting on my website. If you're interested, I will be archiving the articles here:
http://www.xiaoanmusic.net/#!articles/c13t2
