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Sonic Patterns and Compositional Strategies in Queen's ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  26 August 2015

NICK BRAAE
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Abstract

Queen's ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ (1975) has been the subject of many academic analyses; the song has not been considered, however, in the context of Queen's wider output. This article examines ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ in relation to Queen's idiolect as identified from the group's songs written between 1973 and 1975. ‘Idiolect’ refers to the common musical details of an artist's output or segment of their output. I subdivide the category of an idiolect to include sonic patterns and compositional strategies. The former accounts for patterns that are consistent in their presentation across songs, the latter accounts for patterns that differ in their presentation across songs. The formal and harmonic structures of ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ reflect the group's common compositional strategies; the song's textural arrangements highlight Queen's sonic patterns. ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ occupies a unique place in Queen's output, as the first song to present all the major elements of the group's idiolect.

Type
Articles
Information
Twentieth-Century Music , Volume 12 , Issue 2 , September 2015 , pp. 173 - 196
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press, 2015 

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References

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Discography and track listings

The discography below lists the albums from which songs were cited in this article. I have provided full track listings for the Queen albums that formed the basis of the analysis, so that readers can locate within Queen's output the songs discussed in detail.

AC/DC. 1980. Back in Black. Albert Productions, SD 16018.Google Scholar
AC/DC. 1988. Blow Up Your Video. Albert Productions, CDP 748977 2Google Scholar
AC/DC. 1990. The Razors Edge. Albert Productions, 467462 1.Google Scholar
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Jerry Lee Lewis. 1975. Boogie Woogie Country Man. Mercury, SRM-1-1030Google Scholar
Jerry Lee Lewis. 1993. All Killer, No Filler: The Anthology. Rhino, R2 71216Google Scholar
Jerry Lee Lewis. 2006. Last Man Standing: The Duets. Artists First, AFT-20001-2Google Scholar
Queen. 1973. Queen. EMI, EMC 3006.Google Scholar
A1. ‘Keep Yourself Alive’Google Scholar
A2. ‘Doing All Right’Google Scholar
A3. ‘Great King Rat’Google Scholar
A4. ‘My Fairy King’Google Scholar
B1. ‘Liar’Google Scholar
B2. ‘The Night Comes Down’Google Scholar
B3. ‘Modern Times Rock ‘n’ Roll’Google Scholar
B4. ‘Son and Daughter’Google Scholar
B5. ‘Jesus’Google Scholar
B6. ‘Seven Seas of Rhye’ (Instrumental)Google Scholar
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B3. ‘Nevermore’Google Scholar
B4. ‘The March of the Black Queen’Google Scholar
B5. ‘Funny How Love Is’Google Scholar
B6. ‘Seven Seas of Rhye’Google Scholar
B6. 1974. Sheer Heart Attack. EMI, EMC 3061.Google Scholar
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A7. ‘Seaside Rendezvous’Google Scholar
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