Earth and Air and Rain

 

 

 

Poet: Thomas Hardy

Date of poem:

Publication date:

Publisher:

Collection:

History of Poem:

Poem

 
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Content/Meaning of the Poem:

Speaker:

Setting:

Purpose:

Idea or theme:

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Synthesis:

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Musical Analysis

Composition date:

Publication date:

Publisher: Boosey & Hawkes - Distributed by Hal Leonard Corporation

Tonality:

Transposition:

Duration:

Meter:

Tempo:

Form:

Rhythm:

Melody:

Texture:

Vocal Range:

Tessitura:

Dynamic Range:

Accompaniment:

Published comments about the music:

Pedagogical Considerations for Voice Students and Instructors:

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Pitch Analysis
  pitch
stanza 1
stanza 2
stanza 3
stanza 4
total
highest
A
G
F
E
D
middle C
B
A
G
F
lowest
E

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Interval Analysis of Vocal Line
interval
direction
stanza 1
stanza 2
stanza 3
stanza 4
total
occurrences
minor 3rd
up
minor 3rd
down
major 3rd
up
major 3rd
down
perfect 4th
up
perfect 4th
down
perfect 5th
up
perfect 5th
down
minor 6th
up
minor 6th
down
major 6th
up
major 6th
down
minor 7th
up
minor 7th
down
octave
up
octave
down
total
up
total
down
grand
total

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Rhythm Duration Analysis of Vocal Line
  stanza 1 stanza 2 stanza 3 stanza 4 total
16th note
8th note
dotted 8th
quarter note
dotted quarter
triplet
half note
dotted half
 
stanza total

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Audio Recordings

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Over Hill and Valley:
Songs of Ralph Vaughan Williams and Gerald Finzi
Christopher Bowman and David Chafe 161140 Over Hill and Valley album cover
  • Christopher Bowman, baritone
  • Works: Finzi's Earth and Air and Rain. Please click on image to view complete listing.
  • Released: Nov. 2007
  • Record Label: Christopher Bowman and David Chafe 161140
  • Playing time: 54 minutes

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The British Music Collection: Gerald Finzi
Decca 468 807-2 The British Music Collection: Gerald Finzi

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Song Recital
EMI Classics 08285 album cover
  • Works: Finzi's Rollicum-Rorum and To Lizbie Browne from Earth and Air and Rain. Please click on album image to view complete listing.
  • Released: Aug. 2008
  • Record Label: EMI Classics 08285
  • Playing time: 61 minutes

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Songs: Brahms - Faure - Finzi - Schubert
Jonathan Lemalu and Roger Vignoles - EMI Cllassics album cover
  • Works: Finzi's Rollicum-Rorum and To Lizbie Browne from Earth and Air and Rain. Please click on album image to view complete listing.
  • Released: Sept. 2002
  • Record Label: EMI Classics 75203
  • Playing time 60 minutes 46 seconds

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The Songs of Gerald Finzi to Words by Thomas Hardy
The Songs of Gerald Finzi to Words by Thomas Hardy
  • Works: Disc I: Finzi's Earth and Air and Rain, Till Earth Outwears, I Said To Love; Disc II: A Young Man's Exhortation, and Before and After Summer.
  • Recorded: December 1984; rereleased Aug. 2009
  • Hyperion CDA66161/2 MCPS.
  • Playing time: 116 minutes and 34 seconds

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A Treasury of English Song
A Treasury of English Song - Hyperion album cover
  • Works: Finzi's To Lizbie Browne from Earth and Air and Rain. Please click on album image to view complete listing.
  • Released: May 2004
  • Record Label: Hyperion HYP30
  • Playing time 76 minutes

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Gerald Finzi
  • Works: Disc 1: Finzi's Before & After Summer, Till Earth Outwears, I Said to Love; Disc 2: Finzi's A Young Man's Exhortation, and Earth and Air and Rain.
  • Recorded: Disc 1: December 1967; Disc 2: April 1970; Rereleased in 2007
  • Lyrita SRCD.282.
  • Playing time: 1 hour and 59 minutes total; Disc I: 62 minutes and 41 seconds; Disc II: 56 minutes and 30 seconds.

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The English Song Series - 15
Finzi: Earth and Air and Rain, By Footpath and stile & To a Poet - Naxos album cover

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Unpublished Analysis Excerpts


 

The following is an analysis of **** by Gerhardus Daniël Van der Watt. Dr. Van der Watt extended permission to post this excerpt from his dissertation on October 8th, 2010. His dissertation dated November 1996, is entitled:

 

The Songs of Gerald Finzi (1901-1956) To Poems by Thomas Hardy

 

This excerpt comes from Volume II and begins on page *** and concludes on page ***. To view the methodology used within Dr. Van der Watt's dissertation please refer to: Methodology - Van der Watt.

1. Poet

Specific background concerning poem:

2. Poem

CONTENT/MEANING

STYLE

FORM

3. Synthesis

Setting

1. Timbre

VOICE TYPE/RANGE

ACCOMPANIMENT CHARACTERISTICS

2. Duration

METRE

RHYTHM

Rhythmic motifs

Rhythmic activity vs. Rhythmic stagnation

Rhythmically perceptive, erroneous and interesting settings

Lengthening of voiced consonants

SPEED

3. Pitch

MELODY

Intervals: Distance distribution

Interval
Upwards
Downwards
Unison
Second
Third
Fourth
Fifth
Sixth
Seventh

 

Interval
Bar no.
Word/s
Reason/s

Melodic curve

Climaxes

System no.
Pitch
Word

Phrase lengths

TONALITY

System no.
From - To
Suggested reason/s

Chromaticism

HARMONY AND COUNTERPOINT

Non-harmonic tones

Harmonic devices

Counterpoint

4. Dynamics

FREQUENCY

RANGE

VARIETY

DYNAMIC ACCENTS

5. Texture

No. of parts
No. of beats
Percentage
2 parts
3 parts
4 parts
5 parts
6 parts

6. Structure

7. Mood and atmosphere

General comment on style

 

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The following are comments about Finzi's song set EARTH AND AIR AND RAIN by Curtis Alan Scheib. Dr. Scheib extended permission to post this excerpt from his dissertation on February 17th, 2012. His dissertation dated 1999, is entitled:

 

Gerald Finzi's Songs For Baritone On Texts By Thomas Hardy: An Historical And Literary Analysis And Its Effect On Their Interpretation

 

This excerpt begins on page thirty-four and concludes on page thirty-five.

Earth and Air and Rain

The ten songs that comprise Earth and Air and Rain first appeared in print in Novemeber of 1936. Boosey and Hawkes, Finzi's publisher, also decided to print single editions of two of the songs in the group. 'To Lizbie Browne' and 'Rollicum-rorum.' This was against Finzi's wishes as he was adamant about having his songs published in groups. That he awas able to get Boosey and Hawkes to publish all ten songs in one book was an unusual occurrenece as no British composer had been able to get such a large group of songs published together since the turn of the century. (Banfield, 204) Also, there was not a large recital market for so large a group of songs in English. Although there were performances of some of the songs following their publication, the first professional performance of the entire set did not take place until 24 March 1943 when they were presented by Robert Irwin and Howard Ferguson at a National Gallery Concert. (Banfield, 208) (Scheib, 34-5)

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Curtis Alan Scheib, “Gerald Finzi's Songs For Baritone
On Texts By Thomas Hardy: An Historical And Literary Analysis
And Its Effect On Their Interpretation",
(DMA diss., College of Creative Arts at West Virginia University, 1999), 34-5.
Stephen Banfield, Gerald Finzi: An English Composer
(London: Faber and Faber,1997), 208.
Stephen Banfield, Gerald Finzi: An English Composer
(London: Faber and Faber,1997), 204.