_Vera Scheloga_, before [[35]], [[38]], 10th bar.
* No. 253. _Legend of Kitesh_, before [[15-16]].
* _Shéhérazade_, 2nd movement, [[P]], 14th bar.
Method of emphasising certain notes and chords.
In order to stress or emphasise a certain note or chord, besides the marks of expression [music symbol: decrescendo] and _sf_, chords of 2, 3, and 4 notes can be inserted into the melodic progression by the instruments of the string quartet, each playing a single note; short notes in the wood-wind may also be used as well as a chain of three or four grace notes, in the form of a scale, either in strings or wood-wind. These unstressed notes (anacrusis), generally written very small, form a kind of upward glide, the downward direction being less common. As a rule they are connected to the main note by a slur. In the strings they should not lead up to chords of three or four notes, as this would be awkward for the bow.
No. 254. _The Tsar's Bride_ [[142]]--Anacrusis in the strings.
* No. 255. _Shéhérazade_, 2nd movement [[C]]--Short _pizz._ chords.
* " " " [[P]]--Short wind chords (cf. Ex. 19).
Short _crescendi_ and _diminuendi_ are generally produced by natural dynamic means; when prolonged, they are obtained by this method combined with other orchestral devices. After the strings, the brass is the group most facile in producing dynamic shades of expression, glorifying _crescendo_ chords into the most brilliant _sforzando_ climaxes. Clarinets specialise in _diminuendo_ effects and are capable of decreasing their tone to a breath (_morendo_). Prolonged orchestral _crescendi_ are obtained by the gradual addition of other instruments in the following order: strings, wood-wind, brass. _Diminuendo_ effects are accomplished by the elimination of the instruments in the reverse order (brass, wood-wind, strings). The scope of this work does not lend itself to the quotation of prolonged _crescendo_ and _diminuendo_ passages. The reader is referred, therefore, to the full scores:
* _Shéhérazade_, pp. 5-7, 92-96, 192-200.
Many examples of shorter _crescendi_ and _diminuendi_ will be found in Vol. II.
In the majority of cases, diverging and converging progressions simply consist in the gradual ascent of the three upper parts, with the bass descending. The distance separating the bass from the other parts is trifling at first, and grows by degrees. On the other hand, in converging progressions, the three upper parts, at first so far distant from the bass, gradually approach it. Sometimes these progressions involve an increase or a decrease in tone. The intermediate intervals are filled up by the introduction of fresh parts as the distance widens, so that the upper parts become doubled or trebled. In converging progressions the tripled and doubled parts are simplified, as the duplicating instruments cease to play. Moreover, if the harmony allows it, the group in the middle region which remains stationary is the group to be retained, or else the sustained note which guarantees unity in the operation. Below, the reader will find double examples of both descriptions. The first pair represents a diverging progression, 1. _piano_, in which the human voice takes part; 2. a purely orchestral _crescendo_. The second depicts two similar diverging progressions, firstly a gradual _crescendo_, secondly _dim._, during which the strings become more and more divided as the wind instruments cease to play. Ex. 258 accompanies the apparition of Mlada, Ex. 259, its disappearance. The atmosphere and colouring are weird and fanciful. The third pair of examples forms instances of converging progressions. In the first (Ex. 260) Princess Volkhova relates the wonders of the sea. Then in the middle of a powerful orchestral _crescendo_ the Sea-King appears (Ex. 261). Both examples include a sustained stationary chord of the diminished seventh. The handling of such progressions requires the greatest care.