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#WednesdayWagner Since today the @MetOpera is broadcasting "Das Rheingold", let's talk about the Tarnhelm leitmotif. As you know, the Tarnhelm is the piece of gold made by Mime that can convert you in whatever other thing/person you want #COVID2019 #StayAtHome Image
#WednesdayWagner The idea of this leitmotif is to create a transformation in the harmony: you can see a set of 3 chords with a common pitch. This common sound is bound by others that move in opposite directions (by semitones except the last upper movement) #COVID2019 #StayAtHome Image
#WednesdayWagner The key aspect is that the harmony is undefined until the very end. The two first chords can be analysed in different tonalities (indeed, this is a mediant relation), but the last link is the one establishing the key (B Major in this case) #COVID2019 #StayAtHome
#WednesdayWagner So, in the same way that the Tarnhelm can transform you in everything else, its leitmotif can be directed to any key until the very end. This tonal ambiguity will be exploited by Wagner during the whole Ring cycle, especially in Götterdämmerung :) #StayAtHome
#WednesdayWagner Obviously, when I said "B Major", it was not fully true. This B chord is missing the 3rd, so the key is B but the mode is indetermined! This decision fits even better with the concept of transformation inherent to the Tarnhelm #JustSaying
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