From Alamy,com The Eagles, 1976. Courtesy: CSU Archives/Everett Collection
Character/story of the piece – clearly knowing that this piece has been arranged from a song that was written by the American band, Eagles is important. The meaning of the lyrics can be interpreted in different ways however many seem to believe the song is addressing someone who is afraid of commitment. There are instances in the piece where there is a feeling of desperation and others where there is more resolution. The arrangement by Dan Coates is sensitive to the original song and the player should imagine the singer when playing this piece.
Form – this piece contains two parts, with each part consisting of a verse and chorus. The first section is a little longer than the second section.
Main part of the music – this should occur in bar 27 and this is reinforced by the use of a crescendo at this point. Considering that the song is wistful and has a slightly melancholic character, the dynamics at this point should not be too loud. The dynamics should not exceed mezzoforte at this point.
Phrasing – all of the phrases in this piece of music commence with an anacrusis and the player should consider how this contributes to the character. The first section contains four phrases, and the second section contains three pieces. The phrases in the first section are all four bars in length. In the second section the last phrase is lengthened by one bar. The player should consider how one phrase connects to the subsequent phrase. Some phrase beginnings are more forceful than others.
Tempo, time signature and rhythmic patterns – one recording that is available plays this piece at a beat of a crotchet equalling 72 beats per minute. In my opinion this is a little fast, 66 crotchet beats per minute is preferable. If this piece is played too fast, the character will be altered. It must have the ‘space’ to allow some subtle rubato that will reflect a singer singing this song. This piece is in quadruple time however there are two changes of time signature to duple time which provide the piece with a little tension and forward movement. The listener must be made aware of these two bars. Some players may find the rhythmic patterns in this piece a little difficult to master. Fortunately, in most bars the LH is providing the beat. The player must ensure that the beat remains constant regardless of what patterns the RH is playing.
Touch/Articulation – the melody throughout this piece should be played cantabile, it should be played with weight from the shoulder. The amount of weight used is dependent on the dynamics of the phrase. At times the RH has two parts to play, the lower part is shown with the stems of the notes going down. (A little part-playing occurs in the bass too). The lower part needs to be played with some resonance as at times it helps to sustain the overall sound as well as in some instances playing on its own. These lower parts should be played sympathetically in comparison with the upper part, supportive but not intrusive. There are no articulation marks written in and this is not surprising considering the character of the piece. It should be played legato throughout, and this must be achieved with the fingers as the pedal should not be relied upon to achieve this.
There are occasions where the RH will need to play the upper note of a chord louder than the other note(s) and this applies to the LH as well. At times the LH has a lovely descending melodic progression which needs to be highlighted.
Balance between the hands – as would be expected, the balance should be clearly to the upper part that has the melodic line. This does not mean to say that the LH should be in the background as it has an important role to play in this piece. For example, in bar 5 the LH chord on beats 3 and 4 provide the lead-in to the following RH pattern. And, for example in bar 9, the LH provides the momentum into the subsequent phrase.
Dynamics – as mentioned previously, the dynamics should not be too loud considering the character of the music. When commencing to play this piece, the player should think of the dynamic level they wish to play the penultimate phrase, as the dynamics used elsewhere should be within the mezzoforte of this phrase. Subtle changes in the dynamics can be achieved by altering the dynamic level of the LH. The LH, for example could be louder in the second section in comparison to the first section.
Pedal – this piece must be played using the pedal and many pedal markings are shown in the piece. Some modifications and additions are required to what is shown on the music. The player must possess sophisticated pedalling skills, half-changes and fluttering are necessary here.
Rubato – a little rubato used in this piece will be effective. Nonetheless, rubato should not be overused as it could become predictable. Apart from a slight hesitation at the start and the observance of the ritards in the piece, all rubato should be balanced. Regarding the hesitation at the start, the player should allow some of the sound to fade before playing bar 1. A slight hesitation at the climax, with a little acceleration prior to it, is appropriate.