Week 8 assignment: essay – interrelationships reflection apa format | Applied Sciences homework help
- Would a piece that always produced what is expected be interesting? Or would it be a musical cliché? What is a musical cliché?
musicaL structures The most familiar musical structures are based on repetition—especially repetition of melody, harmony, rhythm, and dynamics. Even the refusal to repeat any of these may be effective mainly because the listener usually anticipates repetition. Repeti- tion in music is particularly important because of the serial nature of the medium. The ear cannot retain sound patterns for very long, and thus it needs repetition to help it hear the musical relationships. Theme and Variations A theme with variations on that theme constitutes a favorite structure for com- posers, especially since the seventeenth century. We are usually presented with a clear statement of the theme that is to be varied. The theme is sometimes repeated so that we have a full understanding, and then modifications of the theme follow. “A” being the original theme, the structure unfolds as A1-A2-A3-A4-A5 . . . and so on to the end of the variations. Some marvelous examples of structures built on this principle are Bach’s Art of Fugue, Beethoven’s Diabelli Variations, Brahms’s Variations on a Theme by Joseph Haydn, and Elgar’s Enigma Variations. Rondo The first section or refrain of a rondo will include a melody and perhaps a develop- ment of that melody. Then, after a contrasting section or episode with a different jac16871_ch09_224-253.indd 236 12/11/17 9:02 PM 237
MUSIC
melody, the refrain is repeated. Occasionally early episodes are also repeated, but usually not so often as the refrain. The structure of the rondo is sometimes in the pattern A-B-A-C-A—either B or D—and so on, ending with the refrain A. The rondo may be slow, as in Mozart’s Hafner Serenade, or it may be played with blazing speed, as in Weber’s Rondo Brillante. Fugue The fugue, a specialized structure of counterpoint, was developed in the seven- teenth and eighteenth centuries and is closely connected with Bach and his Art of Fugue. Most fugues feature a melody—called the “statement”—which is set forth clearly at the beginning of the composition, usually with the first note the tonic of its key. Thus, if the fugue is in C major, the first note of the statement is likely to be C. Then that same melody more or less—called the “answer”—appears again, usually beginning with the dominant note (the fifth note) of that same key. The me- lodic lines of the statements and answers rise to command our attention and then submerge into the background as episodes of somewhat contrasting material inter- vene. Study the diagram in Figure 9-5 as a suggestion of how the statement, answer, and episode at the beginning of a fugue might interact. As the diagram indicates, the melodic lines often overlap, as in the popular song “Row, Row, Row Your Boat.” Sonata Form The eighteenth century brought the sonata form to full development, and many contemporary composers still find it very useful. Its overall structure basically is A-B-A, with these letters representing the main parts of the composition and not just melodies. The first A is the exposition, with a statement of the main theme in the tonic key of the composition and usually a secondary theme or themes in the dominant key (the key of G, for example, if the tonic key is C). A theme is a melody that is not merely repeated, as it usually is in the rondo, but is instead developed in an important way. In the A section, the themes are usually restated but not devel- oped very far. This full development of the themes occurs in the B, or development, section, with the themes normally played in closely related keys. The development section explores contrasting dynamics, timbres, tempos, rhythms, and harmonic possibilities inherent in the material of the exposition. In the third section, or re- capitulation, the basic material of the first section, or exposition, is more or less repeated, usually in the tonic key. After the contrasts of the development section, this repetition in the home key has the quality of return and closure. The sonata form is ideal for revealing the resources of melodic material. For in- stance, when contrasted with a very different second theme, the principal theme of the exposition may take on a surprisingly new quality, as in the opening movement of Beethoven’s Eroica. FIGURE 9-5 The fugue. jac16871_ch09_224-253.indd 237 12/11/17 9:02 PM 238 ChAPTER 9 The symphony is usually a four-movement structure, often employing the sonata form for its opening and closing movements. The middle movement or movements normally are contrasted with the first and last movements in dynamics, tempos, timbres, harmonies, and melodies. The listener’s ability to perceive how the sonata form functions within most symphonies is essential if the total structure of the sym- phony is to be comprehended. PERCEPTION KEY Sonata Form 1. Listen to and then examine closely the first movement of a symphony by Haydn or Mozart. That movement, with few exceptions, will be a sonata form. If a score is available, it can be helpful. (You do not have to be a musician to read a score.) Identify the exposition section—which will come first—and the beginning of the development section. Then identify the end of the development and the beginning of the recapitulation section. At these points, you should perceive some change in dynamics, tempo, and movements from home key or tonic to contrasting keys and back to the tonic. You need not know the names of those keys in order to be aware of the changes.