February 24th, 2017

figure 1

figure 2

The trumpet starts to spit out it's awesome rhythmic riff on :05..as seen in figure 1, the rhythm gets faster as the subdivision increases. This I believe is a tonal painting for blood spurting out of Mario's temples faster and faster as Scarpia screams "piu forte". Most of the other instruments are on the beat so the trumpet's off beat nature really is emphasized. I have always wondered why Puccini is in the time signature 6/8 here, which is a rather dance like time meter. This could be a play on how Scarpia finds torture, pain, and suffering enjoyable, as it is almost a sort of pastime for him. As we move into the time change on :28, into a more expansive 3/4, Tosca's high C is actually more like a scream, not only for her, but for the trumpets as well, which are actually their highest note on the instrument. Audio is Renata Scotto, Placido Domingo, and Renato Bruson. Conductor is James Levine, MET