[Listening extract audio not available in printed QP] In a music drama, a melodic idea recurs with a character. When the character is in danger, it is playe...

(a) Term for the recurring musical idea associated with a character [1]

The answer is leitmotif. A leitmotif (German: 'leading motif') is a short, distinctive musical idea that is consistently associated with a particular character, object, emotion or concept throughout a music drama. Whenever that character appears or is referenced, the leitmotif is heard, creating a web of musical associations that the audience learns to recognise.

The technique is most closely associated with Richard Wagner, who used dozens of leitmotifs in his music dramas, particularly the Ring Cycle. Unlike Berlioz's idee fixe (which represents a single character across a multi-movement work), Wagner's leitmotifs represent many different elements and are woven together, combined and transformed throughout the continuous musical fabric.

(b) Two ways danger is conveyed through transformation of the leitmotif [2]

Any two of the following (one mark each):

• The idea is changed to a minor key, which creates a darker or more threatening mood [1]. Major keys generally sound bright and stable, so shifting to minor immediately signals that something has changed for the worse
• The tempo is increased, adding urgency or tension [1]. A faster statement of the same melody creates a sense of haste and alarm, as though events are accelerating beyond control
• Low brass instruments (trombones, tuba) play the theme, giving it a heavier, more ominous quality [1]. The deep, dark timbre of low brass is naturally associated with threat and power, contrasting with the brighter sound the motif might have when played by higher instruments in safer moments