Barbershop Arranging — Part 8: “If You Love Me, Really Love Me” Analysis

Deconstructing the stylings of master arranger David Wright

This is Part 8 of a 10-part series on barbershop arranging, and the second of three arrangement-analysis posts. The full guide is here. See Part 7: “Down Our Way” Analysis for an explanation of the analytical methodology.

In Part 7, we deconstructed a simple polecat to see how the concepts from Barbershop theory apply in practice. In this second arrangement analysis, we’ll emphasize the topics from Down Our Way and extend them, setting our sights on a gold-medalist chorus and quartet chart from the ~2010s. In particular, we’ll learn how to harness harmonic rhythm, leverage augmented chords, and abandon customary chord spellings to achieve greater artistry.

The song

In this post, we’ll be analyzing an excerpt from barbershop legend David Wright’s setting of If You Love Me, Really Love Me, debuted by the Ambassadors of Harmony in their 2009 gold-medal-winning contest package. The song also served as a longstanding repertoire piece for the quartet Forefront, who would go on to win gold medals in the quartet contest in 2016. See below for a video of the Ambassadors’ performance.

The Ambassadors of Harmony in their gold-medal winning performance of “If You Love Me, Really Love Me” (arr. David Wright ca. 2009).

Though Wright’s arrangement is deserving of every possible superlative, the original song is a work of art by itself. French vocalist Édith Piaf introduced it in 1950 under the title Hymne à l’amour, in remembrance of the love of her life who had recently perished in a plane crash while traveling to see her.

Wright’s arrangement is nearly five minutes long and would take far too long to analyze in its entirety. To permit the depth of analysis we’ll require, we’ll look at just the first verse:

The first verse of “If You Love Me, Really Love Me” (arr. David Wright ca. 2009). Transcribed by Chris Lewis.

As usual, here’s our Circle of Fifths for reference:

The Circle of Fifths for harmonic motion, presented again for easy access during our analysis.

1. Melody

As usual, we’ll start our arrangement by putting the melody in the Lead line. The melody is a little rangier than we’ve seen, spanning a major tenth in the first verse alone, but we can trust that our Lead(s) will be up to the challenge:

The melody line of the first verse in “If You Love Me, Really Love Me.”

2. Chords

Next, we’ll write in the basic chord structure from the original arrangement, using some combination of a primary source (e.g. a recording or original score) and our own arranger’s prowess.

The basic chord structure of the first verse in “If You Love Me, Really Love Me.”

We see that the chords largely follow the Circle of Fifths, but with some minor tonality and small interruptions along the way. (Recall that we can always jump anywhere from our “home base” of the C Major Triad, but we’d expect to resolve eventually back to C by following the Circle of Fifths from the chord to which we jump).

1. C → E → A → Dm → G → C (Jump to E, then resolve per the Circle of Fifths)
2. C → F → C (Small interruption. Jump to F, then right back to C.)
3. C → A → D → G (Jump to A, then resolve per the Circle of Fifths)

We see that some measures must be harmonized by two chords (e.g. m. 2), while others are harmonized by only one chord (e.g. m. 3).

3. Faster harmonic motion

Some of the measures harmonized by only one chord seem a bit stagnant, particularly after we’ve seen an enticing two chords in the opening measure (C → E7). That is, we currently have a fairly slow harmonic rhythm—the frequency with which the chords change relative to the notes—averaging one chord per bar.

We can address this by looking for ways to change chords at least once within every measure, rather than only between measures. This faster harmonic rhythm will help maintain interest given the slow tempo, and it will incidentally help us inject more Dominant 7 chords, as barbershop is wont to require.

Let’s see what David Wright does. Our existing chords are shown in blue (though some may have turned into Dominant 7ths), while new chords are colored in red:

• m. 3. Am → C7 → Dm. This progression is an unintuitive choice at a glance, but it’s actually quite common in barbershop literature. We can transform an A minor chord in root position to a C7 by “peeling” the two A-naturals apart to a G and Bb, leaving the C and E unchanged. From this C7, we can then raise the C to a C# to produce a C# Diminished 7 chord, in which the C# serves as a leading tone to D and in which the C#–G Tritone further pulls the ear toward D minor. (We’ll do this later though.) This trick allows us to introduce Tritone tension that resolves into D minor, despite the melody note being pinned on C-natural and preventing the standard Am → A7 → D minor progression (which would require C#).

• m. 4. D → D7 → G7. This progression is more expected: we can introduce a Dominant 7 to guide the ear from the D minor area intuitively into G7. We’ll deal with the conflicting F-natural on “sud-” in the next section.

• m. 6. C → E7 → F. We add motion in this measure by reusing our progression from measure 2, C → E7. However, this time we surprise the ear by using a non-standard (read: non-Circle of Fifths) Dominant 7 resolution from E7→F. Here, E7 serves as a passing chord roughly equivalent to a Diminished 7 into F. We used this exact same progression in Down Our Way in the previous post.

• m. 7. F → Bb7 → C. We dress up the harmony here by flowing from F into its next stop on the Circle of Fifths, Bb, and then progressing back to C via another non-standard, but compelling and powerful Dominant 7 resolution (VII7 → I). Note that the melody F-natural fits both F and Bb7.

• ms. 8–9. C → A7 → D7 → G7. In these final two measures of the verse, we return to C to follow the strong VII7 → I progression back into C (a much less clunky choice than moving to A7 directly). From C, we jump to A7 and resolve every two beats along the Circle of Fifths to the original G7 destination.

4. Handling non-chord tones

We now have faster and more compelling harmonic motion, but, as is almost guaranteed to happen when we futz with the chords, we now have quite a few non-chord tones (NCTs)—melody pitches that don’t fit into the chords we’ve chosen—that we’ll need to address:

• ms. 3. “if” (melody A vs. C7)
• ms. 4. “sud-” (melody F vs. D7), “run” (melody E vs. D7)
• ms. 5. “If” (melody E vs. G7)
• ms. 6. “me, real-” (melody C vs E7)
• ms. 7. “let” (melody G vs. Bb7)
• ms. 8. “I” (melody F vs. A7)

The remaining non-chord tones that we need to harmonize more thoughtfully.

Fast fixes

Some are easily fixed using tactics we’ve seen before. We can use sixth chords in measures 3, 5, and 7: specifically, a C6 to harmonize the A in ms. 3, a G6 to harmonize the E in ms. 5, and a Bb6 to harmonize the G in ms. 7. We can fix “sud-” in ms. 4 by simply delaying the move to D7 until the following eighth, on “-ly”; this is a harmonic move on a weak beat, which we’ve previously avoided, but Dm and D7 are interchangeable enough that the sudden progression doesn’t shock the ears.

We can use a C6 chord to harmonize the A on “if” within the C7 chord area.

We can use a Bb6 chord to harmonize the G on “let” within the Bb7 chord area.

The Half-Diminished 7 again

For the E-natural on “run” in ms. 4, we can use our trusty Half-Diminished 7, serving as a Dominant 7 with a suspended root. Here, that means a functional D7, but with the D raised to an E to accommodate the melody note. This is less of a literal “suspension” than we’ve seen previously given that the melody doesn’t come from an E in the previous chord, but it’s still plenty valid and plenty common in barbershop, particularly since the melody resolves back down to D in the next chord (G7).

We can harmonize the E-natural on “run” using a Half-Diminished 7 chord, functioning as a D7 with a suspended root.

🌟 New topic: Augmented chords

The other NCTs in ms. 6 and 8 feature a melody suspension that we haven’t seen before: a flat sixth relative to the chord root, resolving down to the fifth relative to the chord root. Like other suspensions, the flat sixth (also framed as the “augmented fifth”) can be harmonized without leaving the current chord area. To accomplish this, we use an augmented chord, effectively a major triad with the fifth sharpened, notated with a “+” after the chord root. Here’s what it sounds like:

An audio sample of a C augmented chord, notated as C+.

The augmented chord is particularly appropriate when it resolves into the Dominant 7 in the same chord area before the progression moves on.

The common resolution from an Augmented Chord to a Dominant 7 on the same root.

In context, this means:

• ms. 6. We can harmonize the C-naturals on “me” and “real-” with an E+ before resolving into an E7 on “-ly.”

We can harmonize “me, real-” using an E+ that resolves to an E7.

• m. 8. We can harmonize the F on “I” with an A+ before resolving to an A7 on “won’t.

We can harmonize “I” using an A+ that resolves to an A7.

Demo

That should handle all of our NCTs in this verse. Here’s what the finished harmonization sounds like with all NCTs resolved:

The final harmonization adjusted to handle all NCTs in the melody.

5. Writing each part

Now that we have our chords, we need to spell them in such a way as to maximize harmonic amplification and streamline voice leading, while also being artistically appropriate.

We’ll move more ponderously through the part-writing this time, for two reasons. First, we want to appreciate when David Wright sticks to the basic choice and when he opts for something else, so we’ll want to see the basic choices first. Second, we’re going to encounter some wrinkles along the way that will cause us to reconsider choices we made in previously notated parts.

Bass

As usual, we start with the Bass, preferring roots when the lead is not already on the root, and preferring fifths otherwise. This spelling scheme maximizes chord stability. Here’s what the default Bass part sounds like against the Lead:

Notating the Bass part, primarily on roots and fifths.

Tenor

Moving ahead with the Bass on the standard choices, we next add the Tenor part. We keep the Tenor slightly above the lead, preferring thirds and sevenths in four-part chords, and preferring pitches in Major and minor triads that simplify voice leading and most strengthen the chord.

Due to the high lead part, the Tenor in this song must often dip below the lead, as in ms. 5–8. Further, there is one awkward spot on the last note of m. 2, “the,” in which singing the third or seventh of the E7 would require an awkward jump in the Tenor part. Instead, we backtrack and drop the bass from the root to the fifth (B), and allow the Tenor to sing the root, E, which the Tenor sings in the following chord anyway.

Notating the Tenor part, slightly above the Lead. We’ve made one change to the Bass in m. 2 to improve Tenor voice leading.

Baritone

The Baritone part consists of the remaining notes in any four-part chords, or for triads, the notes that would most strengthen the chord. The Baritone part falls fairly easily out of the unused pitches in this case. The only adjustment we need to make is on the downbeat of m. 7, “love,” in which we lift the Tenor from middle C to F to allow the Baritone to sing the middle C instead (the Lead and Bass have already claimed the A and F, respectively, below). This change results in a spelling of the F Major triad with no pitches doubled.

Notating the Baritone part using the leftover pitches from each chord. In so doing, we’ve had to change the chord spelling in m. 7, beat 1.

6. Making it Wright

The harmonization we’ve derived thus far is standard given how the song’s original chord progression maps into the barbershop style. Next, we’ll look at how master arranger David Wright sands away the splintery bits and breathes beauty into each line.

The motivating questions for this stage center on the experience of the individuals singing the arrangement. Are there any awkwardly quick jumps? Are there any chord motions that happen on unstressed syllables, that would make the word difficult to deliver naturally? Are there any spots we can add more harmonic motion with a chord area, to give the singers something more exciting to sing?

m. 1. Avoid an awkward jump

The first measure features one such awkwardness: a large bass jump from D down to G on a quick eighth-note pickup. Wright smooths this over by keeping the Bass on the D, the fifth of the chord, for both eighths, and having the Lead and Baritone simply exchange their F and G pitches. This breaks with the norm of putting the Bass on the root when the Lead isn’t singing it, but it makes for a voicing that is much simpler to execute and much less clunky to listen to.

The Bass remains on D for “If the” to avoid a fast, awkward jump between vocal registers.

m. 2. Improve word stress

On the word “tum-ble,” we note that the Bass currently ascends from B on the first syllable up to E on the second. This motion will tend to coax the singer into emphasizing the second syllable, yielding “tum-BLE” instead of “TUM-ble.” To fix, Wright keeps the Bass on the B for both pitches and has the Lead and Baritone exchange their pitches across the two chords. Again, this keeps the Bass in second inversion when the Bass could otherwise jump to the root, but it makes the lyric easier to deliver with proper word stress.

The Bass remains on B for “tum-” and “-ble” to avoid improper word stress on the second syllable.

m. 3-4. Tonicize a harmonically stagnant measure

We spend the entirety of Measure 4 in the D chord area, which is a bit of a ponderous pause in our harmonic motion. To add interest for both singers and listeners alike, Wright instead tonicizes the key of D.

This starts with an adjustment to the final chord in m. 3: Wright lifts the Bass from C on “if’ to C# on “the” to create passing motion, a leading tone, and a Diminished 7 chord that resolves firmly into D minor.

The Bass approaches the Dm chord through a C#, creating a Diminished 7 chord that better tonicizes the D.

In m. 4, Wright pendulates between D triads and A7 dominants through the first portion of the measure. The execution here is interesting: following the initial D minor chord, the melody remains on F, but Wright moves the other parts to their would-be A7 positions, creating an A+ (A augmented) chord that functions to the ear as A7 proper.

The harmony parts toggle between D chords and A7-ish chords to add interest.

Then on the second syllable of “sud-den-ly,” Wright moves all four parts through A7 again before landing on a D7 chord in first inversion. Basses rarely sing first-inversion chords due to their relative instability, but here, it allows the Bass to make a smooth, stepwise ascent from D-natural on “sud-” to A-natural on “run,” so it works well from a singer’s standpoint.

m. 5. Enrich the G7 chord area

Wright embellishes the harmonic flavor in the following G7 measure as well. Instead of resolving directly from the D chord area to G7, the harmony takes an unexpected turn into a Bb triad. This is a powerful choice that perks up the audience in their chairs and assures them that this will be no simple, stock arrangement. From Bb, the Bass and Baritone parts pass through Dm7 (D being the dominant of G7) before finally landing on G7. Overall, these chord motions exemplify a swipe, a series of chord changes sung around a sustained melody pitch to avoid stagnation.

An exciting Bb chord substitutes for a more standard G7, but the harmony eventually returns to G7.

On the final two eighth notes of the measure, Wright reworks the chords to end on a G7 stalactite chord—a Dominant 7 spelled as 5, 3, 7, 1, with the seventh “hanging” like an icicle off of the high root. To get there, Wright moves through an E minor chord rather than a G6. He does this by changing the Bass note from G down to E to create opposing, stepwise motion in the Lead and Bass parts. (This also allows the Tenor to remain comfortably on the high G on “If you.”) Stalactite chords are extremely common thanks to their overall stability combined with the exciting Major 2nd rub between their top two notes.

The Bass transforms a G6 into a proper E minor chord to facilitate stepwise motion into the next measure.

m. 7. Add suspense on “love me”

In measure 7, Wright chooses to add a bit of drama by abandoning the comfort of the F Major chord area slightly early, in favor of a tense Half-Diminished 7 on “me.” The Half-Diminished 7 here functions as a Bb7 with a suspended root (Bb, D, F, Ab becoming C, D, F, Ab).

A Half-Diminished 7 on “me” functions as a Bb7 with a suspended root—and adds drama.

Wright lingers on this suspenseful chord for over two beats before finally resolving into Bb7 chord area on “let it.” The Bass drop from high Ab to low Bb then lands like a thunderclap as the harmony settles solidly into C Major on the downbeat of m. 8—a veritable EDM drop of the barbershop world.

m. 8. Unwind crossed parts

The Tenor dips below the Lead quite a few times during this verse, because the Lead part gets quite high in places. In m. 8, Wright lifts the Tenor back above the Lead on “hap-” and lifts the Baritone to middle C:

The Tenor and Baritone parts lift higher to mirror the Lead’s descent in “hap-pen,” creating a cool trio effect.

This is a slight adjustment to our previous voicing, but it allows the top 3 parts to move downward in tandem across the two syllables of “hap-pen,” which is an undoubtedly fun effect that is likely more interesting for singers as well.

m. 9. Adding tension through stepwise motion

The verse ends in measure 9 on a Circle of Fifths progression from A7 → D7 → G7, with the chords changing every two beats. To make the G7 feel even more satisfying, Wright injects some additional tension in the D7 chord area by moving the Bass from A to Ab on the second beat of the final measure. This results in an illegal chord consisting of D, F#, G# (i.e., Ab), and C!

The Bass resolves from D7 to G7 through an Ab that results in a passing non-chord.

Seeing master arrangers break rules is always a satisfying reassurance that artistic intent bests conformity in Barbershop arranging. Here, the resultant chord is unrecognized, but that makes it all the more exciting. Further, the three harmony parts can all simply move down a half-step to resolve from this non-chord into G7, and the Bass now has a lovely stepwise motion from the A in D7 to the G in G7. So while the chord itself is an odd choice at first glance, the part movement it enables is clearly sensible to the ears.

Demo

Here is the final arrangement after all of Wright’s artistic adjustments:

David Wright’s final arrangement of the first verse of “If You Love Me, Really Love Me.”

Reflection

Through this post, we’ve seen how a beautiful, gold-medal arrangement comes to be, from first principles all the way to subjective choices made to bring the song even more to life. Here were the steps, in sum:

1. Notate the melody in the Lead part.
2. Notate the chords.
3. Increase harmonic motion where needed.
4. Handle non-chord tones.
5. Notate the Bass part.
6. Notate the Tenor part, adjusting the Bass if needed.
7. Notate the Baritone part, adjusting the Bass and Tenor if needed.
8. Add polish, surprise, and delight.

As a parting exercise, you’re encouraged to look ahead to Verse 2 (“If it seems that everything is lost…” through “let it happen, darling, I won’t care”) and analyze it. Is the chord progression largely the same as in the first verse? Where the chords are the same, are the chord spellings the same? Where are there differences overall? How do those differences help the development of the arrangement?

The Ambassadors video again, starting from the end of the first verse.

Proactively analyzing the works of master arrangers is one of the fastest ways to perfect the craft of Barbershop arranging. Hopefully this has been a helpful introduction to the process.

Next, we’ll surge into to the cutting edge of the barbershop style, and into our final post of the series.

Next: Part 9: “I’ll Be Here” Analysis
Full guide: Barbershop Arranging: A Modern Guide