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Mildred Pierce (1945)


Home > Film: Mildred Pierce > Theme: Work > Instance: 0:36:12




Instance
Theme name: Work
Borrowed from: The Life of Vergie Winters (1934)
Start time: 0:36:12
End time: 0:36:42
Total duration: 0:00:30
Page #: 51
Measure #: 1
Scene: Reel 4 Part 2
Key: G - D - F - Db - Eb
Meter: 2/2
Tempo (bpm): 100
Marking: Allegretto grazioso
Instrumentation: orchestra, strings
Description
On-screen: Mildred works as a waitress
Description: Upbeat, busy music featuring light woodwinds and playful strings as we see a montage of waitresses working; this theme was borrowed from an earlier Steiner score (The Life of Vergie Winters, RKO, 1934), which the cue sheet identified as "Old Lavender"
Music annotations: [m. 1] mf; [m. 4] rall; [m. 5] a tempo; [m. 7] Hugo: molto grazioso - (dialogue + narration over it) str, W.W., celeste, harp bells; [m. 8] rall; [m. 9] a tempo; [m. 21] one tone higher; [m. 24] poco rall
Film annotations: [m. 2] (Montage); [m. 13] Dissolve; [m. 21] In 6 weeks
Orchestration annotations: [m. 1] str / W.W. / celeste / harp / bells; [m. 12] horn; [m. 13] add cel, piano (bells?) / vibra; [m. 17] cel piano etc.; [m. 19] vibra
Analysis: The theme features a succession of melodic ideas and moves fluidly between keys; the first, dotted-rhythm idea moves from G to D major, then steps up briefly to Eb major; an ascending scalar motive in D major is then repeated a chromatic mediant higher in F major; the final section features a calmer eighth-note gesture within a rising chromatic sequence (Db64 - G9 - Eb64 - A9)
Tags

64 chord | added-note chord | altered dominant | chromatic mediant | chromatic sequence | common-chord modulation | foreign key modulation | hectic | heroine | leading lady | montage | restaurant | rushing | self-borrowing | sequential modulation | serving | upbeat | voice-over | waitress | working

Media