The fine art of repetition. : An analysis of compositional techniques and their application in the musical Chess.

The fine art of repetition – en analys av kompositionstekniker och dess applicering i musikalenChess, (The fine art of repetition – an analysis of compositional techniques and their application in the musical Chess) This master thesis is an in-depth analysis of the musical construction of Chessby Benny Andersson, Björn Ulvaeus and Tim Rice. The thesis takes as starting points the hypothesis that there is a unified structure based on a couple of intervals, namely the triton and the second and that the musical can be conceived as a through-composed piece despite its various genres and song styles. The research questions are: In what way are specific intervals, melodic figures and chords in combination with tonal centres used to reinforce the lyrical narrative and create a musical cohesive unit? How does the chosen musical parameters display the main character’s psychological and emotional development? My method is musical analysis by close reading of the vocal score combined with watching and analysing a live performance of the show on DVD. The results show a fairly through-composed piece of musical theatre, with frequent motivic development and convincing harmonic relationships, both between songs and scenes