Bohemian Rhapsody

The song

The song, almost six minutes in length, begins with a four-part harmony a cappella introduction, which are entirely multitrack recordings of Freddie Mercury. The grand piano enters halfway through this intro.

Related Topics:
A cappella - Multitrack

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This is followed by a ballad, which is primarily Mercury's vocals over the piano/bass guitar/drums backing track. The piano part incorporates a distinctive figure in which Mercury employs "cross-handed" playing, keeping the bass notes ringing by use of the sustain pedal, and using his left hand to double-up on the treble notes.

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The guitar enters during the second verse, with May playing a series of harmonies. After the lyric "shivers down my spine", May created a 'shiver' sound by playing the strings behind the bridge of his guitar. At the end of the second verse, the first guitar solo appears. This was created by May, and is melodically different from the verses, as he didn't like a guitar solo to be simply a repeat of the melody.

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Now begins a pseudo-operatic midsection, which contains the bulk of the elaborate vocal multitracking. The dynamics vary greatly from bar to bar, from a single Mercury voice and a solo piano, to 84-part vocal choirs. The choir effect was created by having Mercury, May and Taylor sing separate low, mid and high sections three times. The band used the bell effect for lyrics "Magnifico" and "Let him go." Also on "Let him go", Taylor singing the top section carries his note on further after the rest of the 'choir' have stopped singing.

Related Topics:
Opera - Piano - Bell effect

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This operatic section leads (with the voices singing "for me" on a block B-flat major chord, topped by a remarkable sustained high B-flat falsetto from Taylor), into an aggressive hard rock section with a guitar riff that was written by Mercury. After double tracked vocals by Mercury over the top of the guitar, there are three ascending guitar runs, which May described as something he had to "battle with" when performing the song live.

Related Topics:
Falsetto - Hard rock

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The song then returns to the ballad style. A guitar accompanies the lyrics "ooh yeah, ooh yeah", to give the effect of trumpets. This was done by playing the guitar through an amp designed by Deacon. The song progressively becomes quieter until finally closing with the barely audible sound of a gong.

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The sections may appear separate, but there are numerous lyrical and musical motifs that they share. For instance, there are melodic motifs that occur in the ballad which foreshadow parts of the operatic section.

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