OMS Essay
Strawberry Fields Forever (SFF)
A. Introductory comments
and questions
[1]
If we try to compare SFF against a great song by Brahms (e.g. Sapphische
Ode, sung by Thomas Quasthoff), how does SFF measure up? SFF
is quite
popular even among many top musicians, so it would seem appropriate to
attempt a comparison. (Is a comparison feasible? We think so.)
[2] In some ways SFF is rather careless and loose; in other ways it is
well-organized and rather tightly composed. Explain.
[3]
Other contrasts in SFF: "Far-out" vs pedestrian; attractive vs homely;
emotional vs non-emotional; comprehensible vs almost-incomprehensible;
lyrics range from eloquent to careless; sophisticated compositional
technique vs careless technique; polished sound vs "grainy" sound.
[4] Is SFF just "psychedelic rock" and nothing more?
[5] The opening (up thru the words "Strawberry Fields Forever) makes a
very strong impression. Explain.
[6] SFF is populated with many odd sounds and effects, but yet it holds
together and has a good overall "sound". Explain.
[7] Listening to SFF is like taking a nice warm bath.
B. Analytical comments
[1]
The Genesis effect is very strong. For this effect to be strong, the
music needs to stimulate and highlight the "beginning" and "sense of
beginning" in the music. Consider how this operates in SFF:
-
The introductory mellotron passage has an "unusual" sound: An
unfamiliar instrument, and a grainy effect. The sound is
somewhat
startling (=attention-grabbing). This is an excellent way of alerting
the listener that something "brand new" is happening.
- The introductory lyrics tell the listener that something new is
happening: "Let me take you down, ‘cause I’m going to …"
-
The phrase " ‘cause I’m going to" is reinforced by the swooping
downward sound from the band (which itself has a rather "new" sound).
[2] The Termination effect is very strong. There is an extreme
multiple-termination, as follows:
Coda:
"Strawberry fields forever, Strawberry fields forever, Strawberry
fields forever" which itself feels a little like 3 terminations.
Brief tag immediately after [3:01]
Chaos#1: Band futzing around [3:04]
Fadeout. [3:27]
Silence. [3:33]
Chaos#2: Sounds like music playing backwards. [3:38]
Another fadeout. [3:58]
[3]
There is extensive usage of: Sonic effects, funny sounds, oddity.
Humans are very sensitive to effects like these – they function as
alerts, they are easy to grasp (a great deal of music elsewise is
subtle and evanescent), they help a listener to organize what is
experienced. Also, effects like this are often pleasurable (mostly so
in SFF).
They also help the listener to easily experience SFF as something that
is "far-out".
[4] The lyrics at time suggest to the listener (tell the listener) how
to experience the music, e.g.:
"Let me take you down .."
"I’m going to …" "Strawberry fields"
"Nothing is real"; "nothing to get hung about"
"Living is easy with eyes closed …"
"Misunderstanding all you see"
So
the message of the lyrics is to expect an experience that is rather
far-out and easy to misunderstand; but the listener is told to
experience it in a relaxed (loose) way.
In fact, we don’t find
most of the music itself to be that extreme taken by itself (SFF is not
extreme in the way that say Varese or Boulez is extreme). But we think
the words have a strong effect on how a listener experiences the music
(or how the listener thinks they experience the music?)
[5]
Unlike mainstream classical music – which is almost always highly
crafted throughout – SFF is loosely crafted in many places. At times it sounds
almost careless in its construction (e.g., the wide variety of odd
sonic effects seem rather random in their selection). This
imparts a specific effect, which we call "looseness". In SFF, we think
the result of this effect in the listener is relaxation, a sense of
freedom, an expectation that "anything goes". Looseness is an effect
which feels natural and pleasurable to most listeners.