A compositional technique that reflects the literal meaning of song, e.g. if the lyrics mention "mountains", the melody rises and is high pitched; likewise "valleys" equals low pitched melodies, etc. Tone painting goes as far back as Gregorian Chant and was often used in Renaissance and Baroque compositions. The most well-known example is perhaps Handel's "Every Valley Shall be Exalted"
Looking for composition lessons on Word Painting?
See the Word Painting Composition Lesson from my publication, "Music Tells My Story", pg. 50:
RSS Feed