When East Meets West

By: Stephanie Latko

What do a Chinese classical piano concerto influenced by traditional Chinese folk songs and a British indie rock symphony have in common?  More than you think.  This blog will explore and investigate the similarities and differences between the Yellow River Piano Concerto, 2nd movement Ode to the Yellow River by Xian Xinghai and Exogenesis, Part 1 Overture, by Matthew Bellamy of Muse.  

Written in 1938, Ode the the Yellow River is a tribute to China’s Yellow River.  The song represents China’s cultural pride and defiance against Japanese invaders.  The 2nd movement, Ode to the Yellow River, was written in praise to celebrate the greatness and strength of the Yellow River.   The composer, Xian Xinghai, shares he was influenced by Rachmaninoff and Tchaikovsky while writing Yellow River.  

Exogenesis is a rock symphony by the indie rock group Muse.  The symphony has three parts and this blog will explore part 1.  The entire symphony was composed by lead singer, Matthew Bellamy and was finally released in 2010.   The symphony tells the story of humanity coming to an end.  In an attempt to save mankind, astronauts must find life on another planet and while on their quest they realize the same thing will keep happening unless humanity can change.  Matthew Bellamy stated in an interview about the piece that he was influenced by: Rachmaninoff, Richard Strauss, Chopin, and Pink Floyd.  

What's The Name Of That Song?

You can’t get that song out of your head.  You find yourself singing and humming the melody over and over again.  It’s haunting you.  While Ode To The Yellow River and Exogenesis Part 1 seem to be very different musical works, they do share a common link: they both use melody dominated homophony.  A single voice is present in both pieces that clearly carries the dominant melody of the piece.  The other instruments merely accompany the main melody.  Each piece develops in very different ways but both are using melody-dominated homophony texture.  Homophony is prevalent in western music so it’s presence in Xian’s composition is interesting and reveals he was influenced by western culture during the creation of the piece.  

Ode to the Yellow River introduces it’s melody immediately in the cello voice.  

Measures 1-6 Ode To The Yellow River Cello Melody

The cello is joined by the viola in measure 8 and the two play in unison.  The cello and viola carry the simple melody without embellishment or ornamentation until measure 16.  

Ode To The Yellow River:  Cello and Viola play melody in Unison

The piano picks up the melody and continues with the main theme from measure 16 to the end of the movement.  While the cello melody is playing, all other instruments are simply accompanying the melody with chords.  When the main melody is picked up by the piano, the accompanying chords are broken into arpeggios and this arpeggio accompaniment is carried through the majority of the piece.  

Ode To The Yellow River:  Piano Melody  and Measure 18 Begin arpeggios

The Overture of Exogenesis uses a single vocal to carry it’s melody.  The melody is not introduced immediately but begins in the 35th measure.  

Exogenesis: Measure 35 Melody begins in vocals - single voice

Throughout the 34 measure introduction, the instruments are playing basic chords with no foreshadowing of the melody.  Similarly to Ode To The Yellow River, the chords are broken up into arpeggios by the cello and they continue through the majority of the piece.  

Exogenesis The Overture: Measure 34 Begin Arpeggio

The melody is almost exclusively carried by the vocal line with exception of measures 59-66 where the electric guitar picks up the main melody and carries it while the vocal carries a single note in the chord.  

Both Ode to the Yellow River and the Exogenesis Overture have a distinct melody that is present throughout the piece.  Although the lead role of playing the melody may change throughout the piece, there is no other theme or melody that is evident in either piece.  Ode to the Yellow River and the Overture of Exogenesis are clearly linked by their use of melody-dominated homophony and for this reason either song will have you humming it’s tune all day.  

A Good, Smooth Legato

Moving from note to note by using smooth and connected sounds is definitely legato and definitely the articulation chosen in both Ode To The Yellow River and the Overture of Exogenesis.  Articulation is another element that links these two pieces.  Both pieces use very long, sweeping phrases for their melody.  The legato style in notated in both works by the use of slurs.  This articulation is carried throughout both songs and the style does not change.  Additionally, the accompanying voices in both songs are also written with a legato style.  

In Ode To The Yellow River, the legato feel is achieved through the use of slurs in the background instruments.  

Legato Melody in Ode To The Yellow River

In Exogenesis, the smoothness is achieved through the use of long notes extended in length by adding a dotted value or tying the values to the next measure.  In both pieces, the melody is smooth and sweeping.  The main theme continues to move throughout each piece with little pause.  Both songs are linked by their legato articulation.  

Legato Melody in Vocal Line of Exogenesis Overture

Accidental? I Think Not!

Another commonality between Ode To The Yellow River and the Overture in Exogenesis is their use of chromaticism.  Although Exogenesis uses chromatic elements more that Ode To The Yellow River, the compositional technique is present in both songs.

In Ode To The Yellow River, chromaticism is evident in measure 50.  The piece is in Bb major.  Common to the folk music of China was use of the Pentatonic scale.  Xian used the Bb pentatonic scale in Ode To The Yellow River which consisted of Bb - C - D - F- G.  In measure 50, the F natural is replaced with F sharp.  This chromatic change noticeably changes the sound of the piece but is quickly resolved in the 51st measure when the F returns to it’s natural state.  

Measure 50: Use of Chromaticism in Ode To The Yellow River

The Overture of Exogenesis heavily uses chromaticism.  The piece was written in A major but uses accidentals throughout the composition.  In the score, there is no key signature stated - all deviations are written in as accidentals.  The composer first wrote the symphony for piano alone and while discussing that piece shared that the piece was in A major.  The most common chromatics used in the Overture are the change from A natural to A sharp followed by the change of D natural to D sharp.  The excerpt shown below also illustrates the use of D sharp and E flat

Use of Chromaticism in the Overture of Exogenesis

These chromatic changes are not as quickly resolved as in Ode To The Yellow River and the effect of the chromatics will be discussed in a separate blog post.  

It's Not What You Said, It's How You Said It!

     How many times have we heard the words “it was the way you said it”?  Tone is very powerful.  It is through exploring the timbre of Ode To The Yellow River and the Overture of Exogenesis that will find our most noticeable contrast between the two pieces.

Ode To the Yellow River has a rich timbre.  The loud dynamics in many parts add to the passion of the piece.  There is a richness to the piano part with it’s complex chords in both the left and right hands.  The many crescendos and decrescendos create the swell and release of emotion throughout the piece.  The composition stimulates feeling of happiness, joy, warmth, and compassion.

Ode To The Yellow River: Wide Use of Dynamics - Crescendo to Forte

     There is a simple timbre in the Overture of Exogenesis.  There are barely any dynamic changes.  Lack of dynamics give the piece a eerie sound.  Much of the melody is monotone - repeating the A note over and over again.  This unvaried note creates feelings of loneliness and mystery throughout the piece.

Exogenesis: Example of monotone melody

Additionally, Exogenesis uses dissonance often in the composition.  The song is full of diminished triads but the most disturbing sounds are produced by using an augmented fourth interval in the electric guitar voice.  The augmented fourth is ugly and disturbing.  In measure 77 all of the voice playing produce the augmented fourth. The natural A is in the vocal melody and is placed against D sharp in the violin, viola, and cello voices.  This dissonance lasts for two measures before it resolves.

The Overture in Exogenesis: Example of Augmented 4th

Exogenesis: Augmented 4th and Dissonance

     Even though Ode To The Yellow River and Exogenesis have many similarities, the difference in timbre is glaring and sets these compositions worlds apart.

It's About Time!

     Meter is another point of contrast between Ode To The Yellow River and the Overture of Exogenesis.  Exogenesis remains in 6/8 time, or simple triple, for the entire piece.  There are no tempo changes at all.

     Contrary to Exogenesis, Ode To The Yellow River moves between simple quadruple 4/4 time and simple triple ¾ time often.

Ode  To The Yellow River:  Frequent Time Signature Changes

Additionally, Ode To The Yellow River uses many tempo changes ranging from the quarter note at 52 beats per minute to 88 beats per minute.  The frequent fluctuation in time signature and tempo keeps the piece lively and joyful.  The tempo changes create the feeling of a river moving and winding- the current speeding up and slowing down as you move down the river.

Ode To The Yellow River: Frequent Tempo Changes

I've Got Rhythm - Who Could Ask For Anything More?

The final variance between Ode To The Yellow River and the Overture of Exogenesis can be found in the Rhythm.  Exogenesis uses a very simple rhythm pattern.  The piece consists of primarily dotted half notes, dotted quarter notes, and eighth notes.  In measure 37, the composition uses sixteenth notes in the arpeggios but the slow meter and 6/8 time keep the rhythm simple and even.  There is very little syncopation in the composition.  The trickiest rhythm is experienced in the vocal line where slurs, dotted quarter notes and an eighth note rest throw off the predictability of the melody.  The sixteenth note arpeggios keep perfect time behind the melody so the piece never loses it’s deliberate feeling.

The Overture Exogenesis: Simple Rhythm Patterns

Ode To The Yellow River creates more complex rhythm patterns.  Combinations of quarter notes, dotted eighth notes, and sixteenth notes create multiple rhythm patterns.  Slurs added to the mix create more variation.  The entire ensemble has a measure of thirty second note runs which adds to the complexity of the piece.

Ode To The Yellow River: Complex Rhythm Pattern

What Does It All Mean?

Xian Xinghai - Yellow River

How do you link a classical piano concerto based on Chinese Folk Music and an Indie Rock Symphony together?  You link them by their foundations.  Both Ode To The Yellow River and the Overture of Exogenesis began with the blueprint of their melody dominated homophony.  They borrowed from the same legato style and used some of the same tools like chromaticism and the foundation was built.  The artists chose different colors and that is where the two pieces begin to contrast.  Timbre, rhythm, and meter took similar foundations and built very different compositions.  Xian built a touching, joyful piece while Bellamy chose to build a haunting, mysterious song.  This investigation teaches us the artist can share the same tools and still create very distinct and identifiable art.  

Matthew Bellamy - Exogenesis 

Bibliography

http://linkingxiantomuse.blogspot.com/

Stephanie Latko

Word Count: 1720

Works Cited

Britel, Wolfgang, and Stewart Spencer. “Yellow River Score Preface.” Music Score. N.p.: n.p., n.d. N. pag. Print.

“Elements of Music.” Elements of Music. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 June 2014. <http://www.wmich.edu/mus-gened/mus170/RockElements.pdf>.

“Elements Of Music- Part Five.” Elements of Music. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 June 2014. <http://trumpet.sdsu.edu/M151/Elements_of_Music5.html>.

Exogenesis Symphony Part 1. Muse Score. Web. 10 June 2014. <http://musescore.com/user/29936/scores/47322>.

“Exogenesis Symphony Part 1.” Muse Score. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 June 2014. <http://musescore.com/user/8216/scores/55518#>. Piano Only

“Muse Exogenesis Symphony Lyrics & Interpretation.” Suite. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 June 2014. <https://suite.io/derek-putz/2b1n2zm>.

“Why is the Augmented 4th the ‘chord of evil’ that was banned in Renaissance church music?” Guardian Unlimited. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 June 2014. <http://www.theguardian.com/notesandqueries/query/0,,-1767,00.html>.

“Xian Xinghai Yellow River Piano Concerto.” Xian Xinghai: n. pag. Print.

Discography

The Yellow River: II. Ode To The Yellow River
Dragon Songs
Lang Lang
Recording Date:  2006

Concerto for Piano and Orchestra
Central Philharmonic Society

Exogenesis: Symphony (Part 1) Overture
The Resistance
Muse
Recording Date:  2010