Ouroboros

This piece, which gives title to the Kotebel album published in 2009, is based on the description of this creature as it appears in the “Book of Imaginary Beings” written by Jorge Luis Borges:

“To us the ocean is a sea or a system of seas; to the Greeks it was a simple circular river that ringed the land mass. All streams flowed from it and it had neither outlets nor sources. […] Heraclitus had said that in the circumference the beginning and the end are a single point. A third-century Greek amulet, preserved in the British Museum, gives us the image which best illustrates this endlessness: the serpent that bites its own tail or, as the Argentine poet Martínez Estrada so beautifully put it, ‘that begins at the end of its tail’. Uroboros (Greek for ‘the one that devours its tail’) is the learned name of this creature which became the symbol adopted by alchemists in the Middle Ages.”



As we can see, Ouroboros can be seen to represent a number of things: the cyclic nature of existence, duality, infinity and, most of all, the concept that the only thing that remains constant in the universe, is change. This concept can be represented perfectly by using a form know in music as “Theme and Variations”. Under this form, a Theme is presented and undergoes a series of variations, some of which can be so elaborated, that it is hard to identify the original theme.

“Ouroboros” presents 7 variations and a coda. The form of the piece is:

Intro – Theme – Var 1 …… Var 7 – Coda

The following chart shows when each section starts (in parenthesis) followed by its duration:
Ouroboros (Theme & Variations) (C. Plaza) – 16:03

  • Theme – 1:41
  • Variation I (1:42) – 0:46
  • Variation II (2:28) – 1:04
  • Variation III (3:32) – 0:38
  • Variation IV (4:10) – 1:29
  • Variation V (5:39) – 0:39
  • Variation VI (6:18) – 2:44
  • Variation VII (9:02) – 4:10
  • Coda (13:12) – 2:51

In the examples, the timing without parenthesis is with respect to the whole piece. The timing in parenthesis shows when the alluded comment happens in the audio fragment.

Theme

The theme picked for Ouroboros is built in such a way that it can be easily recognized through its different variations. The piece starts with a metric of 12/8, that is, 4 groups of 3 beats. It can be counted easily if you follow the bass. The theme stands out clearly at 0:59 after the introduction:

The theme is repeated several times, with the guitar and synth playing at an interval of a Major 3rd. Notice that on 1:20 a supporting theme appears played by a string section.

Variation #1

This first variation is based on a polyrhythmic pattern. The drums play on 4/4, the guitar and strings keep the original 12/8 metric, and the bass plays a 13/8 pattern. As a result, there is a rhythmic displacement and all parts start to gradually move their accents to different places. The guitar introduces the theme and as it introduces the variation in 1:53 (0:09), it gradually moves towards the 13/8 metric of the bass, that starts to dominate. Therefore, the final measure of this variation ends with the bass, creating a sensation of leaving things “in the air” because the variation stops in the third beat of the 12/8.

Variation #2

This variation signals the start of another complex rhythmic section. Instead of modifying the theme, this variation is based on placing the theme under a different harmonic and rhythmic context. The beginning is on a fast paced 4 beat pattern, and when the theme is presented, the band shifts back to 12/8. Notice that at the beginning of the variation, the bass presents a motif that works as a contraction of the rhythmic structure of the theme. The synth joins the bass to form an interplay with parallel high and low pitches performance of the motif.

At 2:44 (0:16) the drum introduces a highly-syncopated pattern, sitting on what is already a complex syncopated structure built by the keyboards and the bass. As explained in Folkloric Rhythms in the Music of Kotebel, the drum pattern is based on an Afro-Venezuelan rhythm called “Luango”. The supporting theme starts at 3:18 (0:50) and is expanded.

Variation #3

This is a short variation where the initial bass pattern and timpani reappear. A harmonic pedal is introduced which a changing harmony, on top of which the guitar develops a lyrical transformation that leads to the fourth variation.

Variation #4

This is a keyboards-only variation. An arpeggiator is used in conjunction with a rich string pad to provide the base on which a synth creates a melody in fantasy form. The harmony turns more obscure as the section progresses until at 5:00 (0:50) the theme appears played by the synth while a stringent guitar repeatedly plays A and B flat, contributing to increase the harmonic dissonance of the passage. Many things are happening from a harmonic point of view, but are beyond the scope of this discussion. However, you may notice that the final chord in the variation is a polytonal chord that condenses the chords used in the previous passage.

Variation #5

A variation of the theme is immediately presented by the guitar. Notice the interplay between the bass and the piano. Both are playing unrelated syncopated patterns, but the cowbell in strict 4/4 helps bind everything together. At 6:00 (0:21) the piano joins the guitar in the development of the theme in preparation for the next variation, that starts with a piano solo.

Variation #6

The piano builds several complex harmonic chords by sequentially adding notes, and then changes to an ostinato arpeggio on top of which an augmented version of the theme is presented. Notice the theme is presented at half the speed and becomes a harmonic embellishment instead of the main melody. A new melody, inspired by the theme now working as a harmonic platform, is played by the synth and starts to build a climax until at 8:06 (1:49) the synth gives way to an extended guitar solo, inspired in the main theme. A snare drum with a march pattern contributes to build the momentum, paving the way for the longest and most intense variation: variation # 7. But first, let’s listen to variation # 6:

Variation #7

This variation alone lasts over 4 minutes. In this case, instead of a variation of the theme, this is really a development of it. The theme is expanded beyond the initial motif. In a way, Variation # 7 can be seen as the development section of the previous variations because it presents and expands what transpired earlier in terms of syncopation, harmony and instrumentation. This section is one of the most intense on all of Kotebel’s discography. The section that starts at 12:09 (3:08) finally shows the theme in all its extension building the final climax of the piece. The synth retakes the original main theme for the last time, before reaching the Coda.

Coda

The Coda is not based on variations of the original theme but rather on variations of the expanded theme as presented in variation # 7. It initially states new musical ideas which gradually transform into some of the developments presented in variation # 7. For example, in 15:07 (6:05), it creates a direct flashback to the syncopated section introduced in 9:35 (0:33), when the expansion of the original theme is exposed for the first time. Approaching the end of the piece, two fragments from variation # 7 are used as a final recapitulation: at 15:19 (6:17) a modified version of the piano passage presented in 10:00 (0:58) and the closing fragment at 15:32 (6:30) based on 11:25 (2:25).

Variation # 7 and the Coda account for approximately 40% of the whole piece. Let’s listen to them:

This is the MIDI template of the piece exactly as I originally conceived it, before sharing it with the other band members. It is a good example that shows the importance of the contribution of the rest of the band when working the arrangements. In addition to the guitar solo of Variation # 6, written by César, notice the innumerable contributions, especially the radical changes introduced in Variation # 2:

This is a video of Kotebel’s performance of Ouroboros at Silver Elephant, during Kotebel’s Japan tour in the summer of 2009. There is a version of this video at a lower resolution in the Internet, but this previously unreleased version includes Variation # 3 as well as the entire Coda:

Credits

Song written by Carlos G. Plaza Vegas. Guitar solo on Variation # 6 by César G. Forero. Arrangements by Carlos G. Plaza and Kotebel.

Carlos Franco: Drums and percussion
César G. Forero: Guitars
Jaime Pascual Summers: Bass
Adriana Plaza Engelke: Keyboards
Carlos G. Plaza Vegas: Keyboards

© 2009 Carlos G. Plaza Vegas. All rights reserved.

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