Textures & Acoustic Environements

Track 1:

1.
At first, the texture is monophonic as there is a unison melody with a rhythmic accompaniment (drum hits) then the drums develop rhythm and hi-hats are added into the mix, whilst some of the brass players hold notes which serve as a drone which assists the other musicians playing the melody.

After the dance, the texture becomes homophonic because while half of the band is doing the melody line, the other half accompanies it by singing "hey, sexy lady!" then shortly after that, it becomes monophonic for a moment then it turns polyphonic because instead of the other half of the band singing "hey, sexy lady!", they play it through their brass instruments so two individual melodic lines are playing at the same time, then they drop out so it becomes monophonic because you can just hear the melodic line then it ends with the texture being homophonic.

2.
Yes. Because they're outside, they don't have any reverberation so they can play as loud as they like and everything in the music can still be heard. For instance, if they performed their cover of "Gangnam Style" inside a room (especially how they played it), there would be a lot of reverberation and a lot of things within the music would clash with each other and wouldn't sound particularly nice in comparison to playing it outside. On top of that, the overall loudness of the performance would increase tenfold.

3.
Yes. I noticed a difference in the drums and brass as the camera moved positions. From 0:27 onwards, the detail of the drums becomes more and more vivid the closer the camera gets (notice the hi-hats). (Note: 1:01 - 1:06, the detail of the drums spikes).

When it comes to the brass band itself, from the very start, it sounds like they're playing at a live outdoor venue and you happen to be a distance away. The closer you get, the sound of the brass becomes much more clear and defined, especially from 1:48 onwards.


Track 2:

1.
In regards to the first group, it starts off being homophonic as they all sing the melody together in their respected vocal ranges, then it turns polyphonic as the bass singers (both furthest away from the camera) sing their part, the soprano/tenor singer (in the middle) sings the melody which is then repeated by the woman in blue almost a bar after (that would make it a canon) and the woman in green (baritone) assists the bass singers. After the group, there are two tenor singers who are singing together in a monophonic texture.

2.
They are in a cathedral/church with a hard floor (most likely marble) and a round ceiling, on top of that, there is a lot of space within the building.

3.
Yes. I think it's appropriate for this environment because there aren't too many of the same types of vocals (a pair of the same, at most). Also, there isn't too much going on at the same time, so you can hear all the vocals mix in really well together.


Track 3:

1.
The texture is homophonic as it's a band performing together. The drums provide the rhythmic accompaniment so the band can stay in time together. The pianist plays the role of a bass player throughout whilst the synth player is playing and repeating little melodies in a subtle manner so the attention stays more on the singer, then he has an improvisation section to himself which lasts for about 8 bars (maybe 8 and a half). The singer is accompanied by the guitarist who strums chords during the chorus and picked notes for half of the first verse.

2.
Because it's recorded in what appears to be a studio that specializes in acoustic recordings, it gave the instruments a raw sound that hasn't been mixed down at all which, in my opinion, worked out really well for the band.