Perception Key: Swing Low, Sweet Chariot

Study an image of sheet music for "Swing Low, Sweet Chariot". Answer the following questions:

1. What is the proportion of tonic notes (F) to the rest of the notes in the composition? Can you make any judgments about the capacity of the piece to produce and release tension in the listener on the basis of the recurrence of F?
2. Are there any places in the composition where you expect F to be the next note but it is not? If F is always supplied when it is expected, what does that signify for the level of tension the piece creates?
3. On one hand, the ending of this piece produces a strong degree of finality. On the other hand, in the middle section the sense of finality is much less complete. Is this difference between the middle section and the ending effective? Explain.
4. Does this music evoke feeling in you? If so, what kind of feeling? Does the music interpret this feeling; help you understand it? If so, how does the music do this?
5. Would a piece that always produces what is expected be interesting, or would it be a musical cliché? What is a musical cliché?