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Don Mclean

Don Mclean. Brittany Taylor Music 1010. Biography. Born on October 2 nd , 1945 in New Rochelle, New York. Asthma. Swimming Lessons Opera Lesson. Becoming a Performer. Networking within the music community Befriending Erik Darling Recording with Lisa Kindred. Education.

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Don Mclean

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  1. Don Mclean Brittany Taylor Music 1010

  2. Biography

  3. Born on October 2nd, 1945 in New Rochelle, New York

  4. Asthma • Swimming Lessons • Opera Lesson

  5. Becoming a Performer • Networking within the music community • Befriending Erik Darling • Recording with Lisa Kindred

  6. Education • Villavona University • Iona College • Offer at Columbia University

  7. Early Music Career • Harold Leventhal Management internship • Caffe Lena • Traveling with Pete Seeger

  8. First Album • Tapestry- recorded in 1969

  9. Honors • “Killing Me Softly With His Words” • Honorary Doctorate-2001 • Inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame- 2002 • Inducted into National Academy of Popular Music Songwriters Hall of Fame- 2007

  10. Currently • Married to Patrishafor 27 years • Has two children • Lives in Camden, Maine

  11. Composition History for “American Pie” • Recorded in 1971 • Reached number one on the national charts in the first month • Remained on the UK charts for 53 weeks • Re-released by Mclean and covered by many artists

  12. Meaning of “American Pie” • Mclean’s own experience of being a newspaper boy • Deaths of Buddy Holly, JFK, and McLean's father • 60-70’s political upheavel

  13. “American Pie” • Inducted in the Grammy Hall of Fame • Voted #5 in “Songs of the Century” poll by Recording Industry Association of America • Gateway to Mclean’s musical career

  14. Composition History of “Vincent” • Written in 1970 • Recorded in 1971 by United Artists Records • International hit

  15. Meaning of “Vincent” • Based on the life of Vincent Van Gogh • Written from the prospective of his art • Purpose was to illustrate that Van Gogh had an illness

  16. Listening Guide for “American Pie” • 0:00 verse one: Piano begins with mezzo piano volume with descending chords playing the harmony, vocals singing the melody • 0:23 vocals ending on a fermata, quadruple meter is being used. • 0:25 key change, piano plays an arpeggio, vocals sing in an arch contour, tempo is probably andante. • 0:59 silence

  17. 1:04 chorus guitar enters at a faster tempo than the previous minute of music, probably moderato, vocals using conjunct arch contour, piano playing arpeggios higher on the scale • 1:27 guitars tempo pick up to probably allegro, drum • 1:34 Verse two begins, tempo is medium/fast, piano and guitar are playing harmony arched contour • 1:55 • 2:06 vocals reach a falsetto, piano plays harmony louder than the guitar that is strumming a fast rhythm

  18. 2:26 chorus, cymbals can be heard, more vocals are added in unison • 2:36 vocals are the loudest here with some piano and drums emphasizing the beats • 2:43 Verse three begins, piano playing harmony, • 3:11 key change, cymbals, arched contour, vocals are singing in the conjunct arched contour, piano playing harmony, tambourine is keeping rhythm • 3:42 chorus • 3:53 all instruments stop except the drums and piano giving great emphasis on the vocals. The electric guitar play a descending disjunct contour into the next verse. • 4:02 verse four begins. Piano is playing harmony and tambourine is keeping the tempo at a moderate rate. • 4:11 Vocals do an impressing ascending contour that is conjunct, piano is playing harmony, and tambourine is still being used, the tempo is still probably allegro

  19. 4:27 quadruple meter is being used and vocals give great emphasis on those beats. Electric guitar is playing up the scale in a conjunct form, piano is playing harmony • 4:59 chorus begins, piano is playing harmony and you can hear many chords being played, also more vocals are added in unison- homophonic • 5:10 electric guitar is playing chords and vocals • 5:18 Verse five begins, tambourine keeping a allegro tempo, piano playing the harmony • 5:45 electric guitar is sliding on the frets, drums are being played at a slow tempo, • 6:15 chorus piano is playing chords as the harmony, tambourine is keeping a moderately fast beat, • 6:26 drums play at a slow tempo, electric guitar is playing monophonic notes • 6:32 verse six begins, tempo slows dramatically to maybe andante, and the piano plays a conjunct contour arch, piano is playing harmony and is the only accompaniment to the vocals

  20. 6:57 piano is the only accompaniment and is playing the harmony with chords • 7:22 vocals are doing conjunct arch contour for the melody, the piano is the only accompaniment playing the harmony, and tempo is fairly slow probably adagio • 7:40 chorus begins, acoustic guitar begins playing, and tempo is a little faster- andante, • 7:57 vocals are almost the only sound with a few strums of the guitar • 8:05 chorus repeats, tempo picks up slightly by the guitar • 8:13 more vocals are added in a homophonic sound • 8:33 song ends

  21. Listening Guide for “Vincent” • 0:00 song begins, begins verse 1, acoustic guitar is playing harmony, vocals are the melody, tempo is fairly slow, andante-moderato, • 0:24 vocals do an ascending conjunct contour, harmony is pleasant and played by the guitar • 0:40 vocals do a conjunct ascending and descending arch contour0:47 guitar makes a staccato note change • 0:49 chorus, the melody is nearly monotone, the harmony is being played by the guitar, and tempo is slow probably andante • 1:26 verse two begins, ascending contour by the vocals, strings begin playing the harmony, maybe a viola? • 1:43 vocals do a descending conjunct contour, tempo of the music is slow, and guitar is louder than the strings

  22. 2:14 chorus • 2:48 strings stop • 2:50 Bridge begins, guitar playing harmony and seems to get a little louder, tempo is still slow, • 3:10 vocals do a descending conjunct contour • 3:15 guitar plays the harmony in minor chords giving the song a dissonant feeling • 3:36 verse three begins, vocals do an ascending conjunct contour, gives resolution to the bridge and has a consonant feeling to it, • 3:45 the vocals do a descending ascending descending contour • 3:53 vocals do a descending conjunct contour, • 4:04 strings enters again and do an ascending conjunct contour, guitar is playing the harmony, and strings are louder than the guitar • 4:25 chorus • 4:45 vocals do a descending conjunct contour • 4:58 the vocals do an ascending conjunct contour, guitar is very soft • 5:10 guitar plays final ascending conjunct notes and ends with a chord that resolves all the dissonance of this song • 5:15 song ends

  23. References • http://ww.don-mclean.com

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