Musical Analysis #2 - When A Heart Breaks

                                                             

                               "When A Heart Breaks"


 - - - - - -  Ben Rector  - - - - - - 
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I would like to take this opportunity to create a mini tribute to my cat, Champ, who I lost on January 27th.

Champ and I spent a fulfilling 15 years together. I was seventeen, and he was six weeks when our journey started; we experienced significant milestones together, and I am struggling to comprehend how life will be without him. Our days consisted of binge-watching crime shows, staring at the birds through the window, and sunbathing on the balcony - and he always consoled me when I would 'sloppy-cry' over life's unfair moments. I'll never stop missing him.

                               

When I feel the weight of the world's emotions on my shoulders, and all I want to do is hideaway, I listen to this song. There is a type of healing that goes with letting your feelings escape while listening to music; and When A Heart Breaks has always been one of my go-to sad songs. The combination of a sad song, a good cry, and a glass of wine is therapeutic - try it!

                                      “There Are Two Means Of Refuge From The Miseries Of Life: Music And Cats.”

                                                                                                                           -Albert Schweitzer


  *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *     

Lyrics
When A Heart Breaks is about the heartbreak and desperation when someone is diagnosed with a terminal illness. Fortunately, this isn't something I have had to experience, myself or with a loved one, but I would only imagine the agony that news brings and all the unanswered questions.

The first verse introduces the scenario:

"I woke up this morning
And I heard the news
I know the pain of a heartbreak
I don't have answers
And neither do you
I know the pain of a heartbreak"

Ben mentions Jesus in his Chorus. He has expressed his faith as a Christian and says it influences his music, but he has made it clear that he is not a Christian artist. He can maintain his freedom when writing songs and not feeling pressured to write a certain way. I appreciate his subtle way of implying that most people take Jesus for granted or that they don't ask for his forgiveness or prayers until they are in this type of situation.

Reference to Jesus:

"This isn't easy
This isn't clear
And you don't need Jesus
Til you're here

Then confusion and the doubts you had
Up and walk away
They walk away
When a heart breaks"

As the song progresses, the story behind the song comes to light; this is the connection I make with Champ's death. One day he was seemingly healthy, and the next day the veterinarian had something different to say, and sleep seemed to be the only thing that calmed my anxious mind.

The story continues:

"I heard the doctor
But what did he say
I knew I was fine about this time yesterday
I don't need answers
I just need some peace
I just need someone who could help me get some sleep
Who could help me get some sleep"

             By now, we have a better understanding of how meaningful the words to a song can be, and the impact they have on us.                       There is a song we can relate to any emotion we feel and event we go through.


Melody

The melody of a song is often the most memorable element of a song. Even when you're zoned out, and lyrics are going through one ear and out the other, the melody sticks with you. Or when you hear a song for the first time, it's generally the melody that draws you in. I think a lot of that has to do with the organization and patterns that our brains desire, and that a melody often provides, as Mrs. Kljiach mentioned in our lecture - almost an unconscious act. 


The piano does a nice job of accompanying Ben in this first verse, and beyond. As the song continues, an acoustic guitar and light percussion can be heard; I can hear the percussions more than the guitar. Nonetheless, the three instruments together blend nicely, adding their important element to the song. The melody in this song can easily be described as conjunct, as it is smooth, and easy to follow along; I enjoy the simplicity.


This may be a no-brainer, but I find it helpful to watch a live performance of a song to get a better understanding of the development of the instrumentation - it does not always align perfectly with a recorded version but can be helpful. 



Rhythm
The count of this song is in a 4/4, also known as, common time. The tempo is moderately slow and the BPM ranges from 69-72. 

Another element in this song is the duration of silence that we "hear" during the chorus. There are noticeable pauses that Ben takes, adding a deeper emphasis on the lyrics and the meaning of the song.

As stated above, the tempo of this song does not vary much. When I listen, though, I feel like the energy behind the song increases the tempo. Also, in some of his live performances, the overall rhythm is increased to amp up his show.


Song Structure
 The song structure of When A Heart Breaks is quite simple and has eight parts.
Intro:
G    C    Em
G    Em       
G    C    Em
C    Em    D
 Verse 1:
"Woke up this morning"                                                                                     Chorus 1:
 "This isn't easy"
Verse 2:"I heard the doctor"
Chorus 2:"This isn't easy"
Bridge:"When a heeeeeeeeeart breaks"
Chorus 3:
 "This isn't easy" 
         
Outro:
C  G  Em  D

I love the length of the outro as I feel it gives the listener more time to digest the strong emotions of the song, like a moment to decompress. 


Timbre
The melody in this song can easily be described as conjunct, as it is smooth, and easy to follow along, and I think it's the range that allows that. The range in this song remains pretty constant. There are a few words that are sung where a higher pitch is heard; "eeeeeeeeeasy" or "heeeeeeeart breaks," but overall When A Heart Breaks is accomodating. Ben has a tenor voice, and the quality of his voice meshes nicely with the timbre of the instruments. 

The dynamics of this song remain relatively the same, too. Although there is a slight peak towards the end of the song, it is not very drastic.

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The story behind the song
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Q: “When a Heart Breaks” is one of your more popular songs on iTunes. Where were you physically and emotionally when you wrote that song?

A: "I just woke up with that idea. So I walked to the piano in the living room, started playing and it just kind of happened. Sometimes, when you write, it feels like a process and, like, I don’t want to say like work, but it feels like work. That song just kind of came out pretty intuitively and pretty quickly. I just remember feeling, like, a deep peace, when I had written it. It was just like, “I hope that affects people, and I hope it comforts people.” So that’s kind of where I was at. I mean, I was not in like a heartbroken place or anything. It just kind of came to me."

                                                                                               -Interview with Kara Blumquist & Ben Rector


                                                                                      Live performance below                                                                     

 

Click HERE for Brand New by Ben Rector.

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|Sources|

“Ben Rector - When A Heart Breaks (Chords).” Guitar.Com, 15 Feb. 2015, https://tabs.ultimate-guitar.com/tab/ben-rector/when-a-heart-breaks-chords-1710288. Retrieve 9 Feb 2021.

Rector, Ben. “Ben Rector ‘When a Heart Breaks’ Sheet Music in B Major (Transposable) - Download & Print.” Musicnotes.com, www.musicnotes.com/sheetmusic/mtd.asp?ppn=MN0127757. Retrieved 9 Feb 2021

Redding, Sarah. “A Different Type of Musician.” Talon News, 2 Jan. 2016, www.talon.news/opinions/anew-type-of-musician/. Retrieved 9 Feb 2021

Webmaster, et al. “Webmaster.” The Baylor Lariat, 20 Mar. 2013, baylorlariat.com/2013/03/20/musician-explains-inspiration-shares-tales-behind-song-writing/. Retrieved 9 Feb 2021.

Comments

  1. Hi Leigh, wonderful song choice. I feel you when you discuss you and your cat. I had to make the hard decision last year to put my cat of 12 years down. He had been there for me through everything and I heavily relied on him. He was Orange and his name was George. His one year was just four days ago actually. :) I agree with you when you state that those gaps of silence better the song! A song you might enjoy that I rather enjoy is, Ocean (Where Feet May Fail) by Hillsong UNITED. Anyways, great song choice and beautiful layout of your music analysis. Thank you!

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  2. Hey Leigh, you created a beautiful blog post this week. You did really well at putting your heart into this piece of work. I can tell that this song truly does mean a lot to you, solely based off of how passionately written your blog post was. When discussing the lyrics, you made several personal connections to the parts that resonated most with you, which made the post very sentimental and engaging to read. You also did well at noticing the smaller details of the song and the rhythm. You noticed the slight hesitations that the vocalist had in his breathe which helped to create an emphasis on the lyrics, which is something that not many people typically notice. A song that you might enjoy that has a similar rhythm and melody as this one, is The City by Sam Fischer, here is the link! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z4_lzaMdLo8

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