The Form of Dream Theater's Introductions

Being a Dream Theater fan and a music theory lover leads to strikingly nerdy moments when listening to their music. One of these nerdy moments was when I realized that there were similarities to the form of their introductions. I started to really notice it with the songs from the album, A View from the Top of the World. I then went to compare this to other albums and found some interesting results. Dream Theater, whether they know it or not, has created an introductory form that works brilliantly, and I’d like to share this with you. The songs that we will be analyzing are: “Bridges in the Sky”, A Dramatic Turn of Events; “The Enemy Inside”, Dream Theater;  “The Alien”, A View from the Top of the World; and “Awaken the Master”, A View from the Top of the World. 

Cover art by Hugh Syme

Bridges in the Sky

Technically this song has an introduction that uses a throat singing patch and some choral ideas. I will be excluding that from the analysis of the introduction for the purpose of this article. Though I will not speak about it, the eerie and ominous introduction is no stranger to Dream Theater (i.e. “Pale Blue Dot”, “Sacrificed Sons”, “Dance of Eternity”, etc.). 

This song's introduction follows this form:

Riff A - Transition - Riff B - Transition - Riff C - Transition - Riff B - Verse 

At the 1:36 mark, Riff A is introduced. It is just a mono guitar panned to the left for the first whole play through of the riff. Upon its repetition, the guitar that is panned right is introduced, as well as drums and bass. For the most part, it is still a solo guitar, with the drums and bass outlining a rhythmic figure. For the third and fourth repetition of the riff, the band is playing in full: stereo guitar, full drum set groove, and bass. For this song, the keyboard (Jordan Rudess) is not part of the first iterations of Riff A, but this will change for the later songs that will be analyzed. It’s important to point out that this first section of the introduction uses the riff as its focal point. It establishes the tempo, meter, key, style, texture, and timbre for the rest of the song (although of course there will be contrasting sections to the introduction, but these are secondary ideas with the purpose of contrasting). This establishment will give the band the freedom to distort what they have set up at a later point in the song, whether it be meter changes, key changes, or timbre changes.

At 2:01, the end of Riff A naturally allows for the band to transition into another section. At this point, the transitional run on the guitar brings us into Riff B. This is a more horizontally feeling riff that has a fully strummed guitar and consistent double bass drum groove. The focus of this riff is to reinforce the pulse and flow that has been established. I like to call this section the “head-banging” section. Due to the fact that its purpose is to strengthen the pulse and flow, there is an inclination to bang your head while enjoying the music. This is not so uncommon to us metal enthusiasts. This lasts for two repetitions, with the second repetition ending with a transitional phrase, leading into Riff C.

At 2:14, Riff C begins. Now the keyboard is introduced to the mix with an organ-inspired patch. Since Riff A established and Riff B reinforced, Riff C has the liberty to contort what has been set up. This is accomplished with a rhythmically complex riff with technical playing from the performers. I refer to the rhythmically offset phrases (on top of the already metrically complex foundation), the aurally interesting scale ideas, and the technical abilities of the players. Riff C is stereotypical progressive metal. It is meant to be shown off and mess with whatever expectations you had been building. Yet when the meter and harmony are tampered with, it further reinforces what was established early on. This causes the return back to Riff B to be a release of tension and pleasing to the listener. An analogy for the return to Riff B from Riff C is like when a song reaches a section built on dominant harmony. It messes with the listener's perception of what is expected and what has been established, creating tension, which in turn reinforces the tonic (or the 'expected', 'normal', 'home').

After a transitional phrase, the return to Riff B occurs at 2:29. Again, this riff is full of energy and is meant for “head-banging.” This full riff happens twice and then heads into the transitional riff that leads into the verse. The inspiration from Riff A can be heard in this riff, but it still stands on its own in setting up the verse.

The Enemy Inside

Form:

Riff A - Riff B - Riff C - Transition - Riff A Fragmented

A lot of what occurs in this introduction is similar to what was established in 'Bridges in the Sky.' The song starts with Riff A, which focuses on the riff, with some rhythmic outlining from the drums and bass. Upon the riff’s third repetition, the keyboard joins in with one of Rudess’ iconic synth sounds. Once again, this introductory riff is establishing the important aspects of the song. This allows for Riff B, which occurs at 0:27, to reinforce everything that has been set up. As mentioned previously, Riff B is more horizontal and focuses more on flow and phrasing, creating the 'head-banging' inclinations.

At 0:40, Riff C is introduced, serving the same function as it did previously. It is meant to contort whatever expectations have been set up, which is the progressive metal way of composition. This section is more rhythmic and technical than the sections prior. Not only is the rhythm and meter building tension, but the harmony creates a strong dissonance that needs release. Maximum tension can be achieved when creating dissonant harmony in combination with dissonant rhythms. Thus, the purpose of tension in music: To create the desire to return to 'normalcy' which was established prior to the tense section of the song. This desire to release the tension is what allows for contrasting sections such as these to not only give direction to the piece, but reinforce what has already been established, especially in an introductory section.

The section concludes by transitioning back to a rhythmic variation of Riff A. At 0:57, the riff that sets up the verse is presented, which sounds like it is a new riff, but it also sounds familiar. If you compare Riff A to this new riff which we can call Riff A fragmented, you’ll hear similarities in the rhythmic structure. The notes are not the same, but it is apparent that Riff A fragmented is the foundation and perhaps the inspiration for Riff A. It is the bare-bones version. This makes sense compositionally because oftentimes the introduction will be written towards the end of the creative process. Riff A fragmented may have already been established, and when it came time to write the introduction, it must have inspired the opening riff. Just as in the last song, this last riff is a transition into the verse.

The Alien

Form: 

Riff A - Riff B - Riff C - Riff B - Riff C - Transition - B Section - Riff A Variation 

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Short detour

The songs off of this album have longer introductions, which is historically accurate to what occurs when form becomes second nature. When a specific form works and creates a cohesive composition, composers are able to be creative with how they can alter the form yet keep its integrity. Rondo form allowed for composers to create songs quickly by filling in the template (yes, I know that is a huge understatement), but at a certain point in history, composers would extend transitions and create longer micro-sections within the macro-sections. Since this is the band’s most recent album, it makes sense that A View from the Top of the World  pushes the boundaries of what Dream Theater has set up as a band. 

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Back to “The Alien”

From 0:00 to 0:48 is Riff A. What’s cool about this section is that it is almost like a theme and variation. Riff A is established right at the beginning, but it is more so establishing a rhythm rather than trying to establish a tonality (It’s also sort of a drum feature, which is such a cool way to kick off the album). The interval at the beginning is a tritone (reminiscent to “YYZ” by Rush), which isn’t really setting up a tonality, but perhaps letting the listener know that the scale and harmony for the song includes this devilish interval. The explanation for focusing more on the rhythm may be that the band wants the listener to be able to traverse the 17/16  time signature. I was once told by a professor, “While it might be fun for a composer to write in odd time signatures and create a technically demanding piece, will the listeners have fun? Perhaps the technically advanced listener, but this narrows your target audience. A great composer can create the same technically demanding piece, but make it accessible to any audience" (I’ve paraphrased that). This is essentially what Dream Theater has done. They’ve created this technically demanding piece that would require a performer to spend a considerable amount of time being comfortable with the meter, yet the song is still accessible to whatever audience cares to listen. At 0:20 begins the theme and variation section, where the rhythm stays the same, still establishing the time signature, but the harmony is starting to change and develop. This includes palm muting on the guitar, playing on higher frets and eventually playing on higher strings. This second half of Riff A builds tension which leads into Riff B (0:49), our notorious “head-banging” riff. Just as Riff B has been for the past two songs, it is reinforcing what has been established. In this case, it does so by syncopating within the 17/16 signature, which when accompanied by the drums, fools us into feeling a groove that’s in 4. After this repetition, we hear Riff C at 0:53,  which is technically demanding due to the nature of the piece itself. To complicate it a bit more and make it technically challenging, they sequence a riff on a bluesy scale that modulates up a minor third upon its repetition. This leads back into Riff B at 1:02, with a double time feel in the drums but still keeping this feeling of 4. At 1:07 Riff C comes back but in a different key, but still follows the same sequence. 

At 1:12 there is a transition after the end of Riff C. If this song were to be conforming to the form of the past two songs we’ve analyzed, we’d expect to hear the song to start heading toward the verse. This isn’t the case for this song. After Riff C, there is a slow section that introduces themes and ideas that will be heard throughout the piece. One example would be the introduction of a descending bassline motif that acts as a transitory figure later on. This B section has slow rhythms with lyrical guitar playing over the top of the mix. The introduction of this B section to the form of Dream Theater’s introductions is sort of a proprietary template for this album. 2:10 brings us back to a rhythmic outline of Riff A, which acts as a transition into the verse. 

Awaken the Master

Form: 

Riff A - Riff B - Riff C - Transition - B Section - Transition - Verse

I saved this song for last because it seems to be the most ambiguous with its form. It can be analyzed in a few different ways, but I’m going to share the form that I think best coincides with its functionality. It almost seems like the band is taking the form that they’ve created and messing around with it, but you can still see the skeleton of the 'typical' form they’ve constructed (which is once again analogous to western music history when composers started to ‘mess around’ with traditional form as a sort of musical jest).

The song starts with Riff A played only with guitar, which is panned left. I don’t want to delve too deep into this riff, but it is rhythmically interesting. It starts with a measure of 7/16 grouped 4-3. This is the foundational idea that is continuously added to, resulting in the full riff. The first repetition is the measure of 7/16 followed by a grouping of three sixteenth notes. The second repetition is the measure of 7/16 followed by two groupings of three sixteenth notes. The third repetition returns to the measure of 7/16 followed by one grouping of three sixteenth notes. The fourth and final repetition adds one more grouping, resulting in the measure of 7/16 followed by four groupings of three sixteenth notes. The time signatures put together would look like this:

This full riff repeats three times initially. The second and third times are fully mixed with drums and bass, but outlining rhythmic fragments. The keyboard is introduced in the third repetition. The riff then continues with full drums, bass, and keyboard. The keyboard takes some melodic liberties over the riff, eventually soloing at 0:56.

At 1:03 begins what I interpret as Riff B. I would understand how someone may think of this as a transition, but it almost acts as both a transition into Riff C and its own standalone idea. Using the criteria that has been established through the previous three songs, it can be made clear what is occurring. Riff B has always been a reinforcement riff, which in this case, Riff B is reinforcing the odd set of meters that was established with Riff A. It focuses on the horizontal feel of these meters and how the song is going to flow through them. This is where I’ll refer back to why I claimed this introduction is ambiguous. The band has taken the Riff B ‘slot’ and is using it for a transition into Riff C. What makes it interesting is that this transition riff also meets the criteria that the band has established for Riff B in previous songs. For those reasons, I hear it as Riff B, and not just a transitional idea. Riff C (1:15) backs up this claim by simply matching the criteria for what has been established as a Riff C. This is made true by Riff C having: rhythmic complexity and harmonic complexity. Rhythmic complexity is already the foundation of this song, but the harmonic and melodic complexity established in Riff C is what confirms it as such. The use of sequencing and modulation makes it sound how it is expected to sound. Therefore, we can use Riff C to back up the claim that Riff B has already been introduced, making it the riff prior to this section.

The use of a B section was established by 'The Alien' and is present in this song as well. At 1:38, the B section begins with longer phrases, lyrical piano, and lyrical solo guitar. This section is introducing ideas that will be heard later on. There is then a transition into the verse riff, which isn’t really related all that much to what has been present in the introduction. It still stands true to what has been present in the other songs because it is a rhythmic fragmentation of an idea that is being developed.

Final Thoughts

I put the songs in this order specifically because it presents the development of the introduction form. The first two songs help us understand how the form functions and how each section inside of it creates the introduction as a whole. The last two songs match what would be expected of music after a form has been agreed upon and proven to work. The form gets altered and messed with, but still holds its integrity. The beauty of progressive popular music is that there is no desire for a universally agreed upon concept. This introduction form is specific to Dream Theater and doesn’t need to be used by another band to make their music just as good or better. As a matter of fact, most fans enjoy listening to distinct and different progressive metal bands due to the desire for unique listening experiences.