Length Of The Regular Phrase
Fortunately for the work of analysis,
there are certain established landmarks of forms, so conscientiously
observed, and so firmly grounded in the practices of classic writing
(because the necessary consequences of natural law), that it is
generally practicable to fix fairly regular and plausible boundaries to
the phrase, notwithstanding the freedom and elasticity which
characterize the application of the syntactic pri
Therefore the student will find that a phrase, in the great majority of
cases, covers exactly four measures, and will seldom be misled if he
looks for the end of his phrase four measures beyond its beginning.
This refers, be it understood, only to measures of average size (in the
ordinary time denominations, 3-4, 4-4, 6-8 measure). If the measures
are uncommonly large (9-8, 12-8), the phrase will probably cover no
more than two of them; or, if small (2-4, or 3-4 in rapid tempo), the
phrase may extend to the eighth measure. The operation of this
four-measure rule is exhibited with striking regularity and persistence
in the Jugend Album of Schumann (op. 68); throughout its forty-three
numbers there are probably no more than a half-dozen phrases whose
length differs from this standard. For example:
It will be observed that the first (and also the third) of these
phrases consists of two exactly similar two-measure motives. This
seems to lend some confirmation to the idea of a two-measure phrase;
but the student is warned against deviating from his four-measure
standard, upon such evidence as this. Many instances will be found,
like these, in which the impression of a complete phrase is not gained
until the motive of two measures has been thus repeated; the
repetition is necessary, in order to finish the sentence, and this
proves that the two measures alone do not constitute the complete
idea which we expect the phrase to represent.
The same regularity of dimension will usually be found in all kinds of
dance music; in technical exercises (for instance, the ?tudes of Czerny
and others); and in all music of a simple or popular character.
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More
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1 Augmentation Of The Regular Form
To this species belong those forms (small and large) which are provided with a separate Introduction, or Interludes, or an independent Coda (in addition to, or instead of, the usual consistent coda). For example, Beethoven, pianoforte sonata, op.... 2 Abbreviation Of The Regular Form
This consists chiefly in the omission of the Principal theme after the Development (that is, in beginning the Recapitulation with the Subordinate theme). Other contractions, by omission of portions (Parts) of important thematic members, during the... 3 Dislocation Of Thematic Members
By this is meant, any exchange or alteration of the regular and expected arrangement of members. This can refer, naturally, only to what occurs after the Exposition,--that is, during the Recapitulation; for it is the Exposition which determines th... 4 Mixture Of Characteristic Traits
This process tends to affiliate the two distinct classes of larger or higher forms, whose respective characteristics were explained and compared at the beginning of Chapter XVI. Upon very careful revision of this explanation, and reference to the ... Afterword
The expression Musical Forms is often used, somewhat carelessly and erroneously, with reference to Styles or Species of composition, instead of to the structural design upon which the music is based. The Barcarolle, Mazurka, ?tude, Anthem, and so f... Application Of The Forms
The use of the various forms of composition, that is, their selection with a view to general fitness for the composer's object, is, primarily, simply a question of length. The higher aesthetic law of adjusting the design to the contents, of which w... Beats
The beats are the units in our System of Measurement,--as it were, the inches upon our yardstick of time; they are the particles of time that we mark when we count, or that the conductor marks with the beats of his baton. Broadly speaking, the ordi... Cadences In General
A cadence is the ending of a phrase. Strictly speaking, every interruption or break between figures, and between all melodic members, is a cadence; but the term cadence is applied to nothing smaller than entire phrases. The cadence is the point ... Causes
The possibility of deviating from the fundamental standard of phrase-dimension (four measures) has been repeatedly intimated, and is treated with some detail in the text preceding Example 17, which should be reviewed. It is now necessary to examine... Causes
Despite the many points of resemblance between the various forms to which our successive chapters have been devoted,--the natural consequence of a continuous line of structural evolution to which each plan owes its origin,--they are separate and ind... Classification Of The Larger Forms
The Sonatine form is the smaller variety of two practically kindred designs, known collectively as the Sonata-allegro forms. In order to obtain a clear conception of its relation to the latter, and also to the Rondo-forms, it is necessary to subje... Contents Of The Phrase
The question may arise, what is it that makes a phrase,--the rhythm, harmony, or melody? Strictly speaking, all three; for music subsists in the ceaseless co-operation of these three primary elements of composition, and no phrase is wholly complete... Defining The Figures
It is not always easy to distinguish the figures in a melodic sentence. While they are unquestionably analogous to the words in speech, they are by no means as concrete, nor are they separated as distinctly, as the words upon a written or printed s... Dissolution
When any section of a higher form starts out with a perfectly definite structural intention, pursues this intention for a time (sufficient to establish it), but then insensibly diverges and gradually adopts a new modulatory direction,--as transition... Distinction Between Bipartite And Tripartite Forms
We learned, in the preceding chapter, that the Two-Part Song-form is a composition of rather brief extent, with so decisive a perfect cadence in its course as to divide it, in a marked manner, into two separate and fairly individual sections or Par... Enlargement By Repetition
The first and simplest method is to increase the length of the period-form by the process of repetition; repetition of the entire sentence, or of any one--or several--of its component members, in a manner very similar to that already seen in connec... Evolution
It cannot have escaped the observant student of the foregoing pages, that the successive enlargement of the structural designs of musical composition is achieved by a process of natural growth and progressive evolution. No single form intrudes itse... Exact Repetitions
When Part I,--or Parts II and III together,--are to be repeated without any changes, it is customary to employ the familiar repetition-marks (double-bar and dots); with first and second ending, if, for any reason, some modification of the cadence-me... Exceptions
In its ordinary, normal condition the phrase is a musical sentence four measures in length. But this rule has its necessary exceptions; necessary because, as we have learned, the principle of Variety is quite as vital as that of Unity or symmetry. ... Group Of Parts
In some, comparatively rare, instances, the arrangement of perfect cadences is such that,--coupled with independence of melodic formation and character,--the composition seems to separate into four or more individual sections or Parts, with or with... Inherent Irregularity
Finally,--there exists another, third, condition, besides those mentioned at the head of this chapter, whereby a phrase may assume an irregular dimension; not by doubling or dividing its length (as in the large and small phrases) nor by the processe... Length Of The Regular Phrase
Fortunately for the work of analysis, there are certain established landmarks of forms, so conscientiously observed, and so firmly grounded in the practices of classic writing (because the necessary consequences of natural law), that it is generall... Lesson 1
The student is to study this chapter thoroughly, and write answers to the following questions; if possible, without reference to the text:-- 1. What does Form in music mean? 2. Define the conditions which constitute good form. 3. When is a c... Lesson 10
Analyze the following examples of the Three-Part Song-form. The first step, here again, is to fix the end of the First Part; the next, to mark the beginning of the Third Part, by determining where the return to the beginning is made. These points e... Lesson 11
Analyze the following examples of the enlarged Three-Part Song-form. As before, the form of each Part should be defined, and introductions and codas (if present) properly marked. All of the given examples belong to this chapter, but are not classi... Lesson 12
The following examples all belong to the Song with Trio. They should be analyzed as usual, each Song separately, defining the Parts, their form, and other details, as minutely as possible. Careful analysis is the first condition of intelligent inte... Lesson 13
Analyze the following examples. They are not classified; the student must determine whether the form is pure First Rondo, or an intermediate grade between Rondo and Song with Trio. One of the examples is a genuine Song with Trio; and one is a Thre... Lesson 14
Analyze the following examples, as usual. Review the directions given in Lesson 13:-- Beethoven, pianoforte sonatas: op. 10, No. 3, last movement. Op. 14, No. 2, last movement (called Scherzo). Op. 79, last movement (very concise). Op. 13... Lesson 15
Analyze the following examples, as usual. They represent chiefly the Third Rondo-form, but one example each of the First and Second Rondo-forms have been introduced, to stimulate the vigilance of the student. Review the directions given in Lesson ... Lesson 16
Analyze the following examples of the sonatine-form, in the usual exhaustive manner:-- Beethoven, pianoforte sonatas; op. 10, No. 1, Adagio. Op. 31, No. 2, Adagio. Mendelssohn, Andante cantabile in B-flat major (pianoforte). Mozart, pianof... Lesson 17
Analyze the following examples, as usual, carefully defining all the details of the form, according to the general plan adopted in our text:-- Beethoven, pianoforte sonatas; op. 2, No. 1, first movement (diminutive, but very complete and perfect)... Lesson 18
Analyze the following examples of Irregular form. They are classified, as in the text:-- 1. Beethoven, sonata, op. 81, first movement. Beethoven, sonata, op. 49, No. 2, first movement. Beethoven, sonata, op. 2, No. 3, first movement. Beet... Lesson 19
The student may now indulge in independent research, in the careful analysis of the following works: The pianoforte sonatas of Haydn (every movement of each). The sonatas for pianoforte and violin of Mozart, Beethoven, Brahms, Rubinstein, Grieg,... Lesson 2
Write careful and complete answers to the following questions:-- 1. What is Time, as applied to music? 2. What is tempo? 3. Give a full definition of the beat. 4. By what time-value is it most commonly indicated? 5. Give a full definiti... Lesson 3
Analyze the third Song Without Words of Mendelssohn (A major, the so-called Hunting Song); first of all, locate the principal melody,--it is not always the uppermost line of tones; then divide this melody into its melodic motives, marking the breaks... Lesson 4
Procure the Jugend Album, op. 68, of Schumann, and mark the phrases in Nos. 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 13, 18, 20, and others. In the given numbers the phrases are all regular,--four measures in length. Analyze in the same manner Mendelssohn's Songs... Lesson 7
Analyze the following examples. Locate the cadences; compare the phrases and define the degrees of Unity and of Variety exhibited in the melody, or elsewhere; and mark such irregularities of forms (or extensions) as may be found:-- Mendelssohn, ... Lesson 8
Analyze the following examples. They are not classified; therefore the student must himself determine to which of the above three species of enlargement each belongs: Mendelssohn, Songs Without Words, No. 29, measures 1-21, (first 4 measures an ... Lesson 9
Analyze the following examples of the Two-Part Song-form. Define the form of each Part, marking and classifying all cadences; and indicate introductions and codas (or codettas), if present. The first step in the analysis of these forms is to divide... Locating The Cadences
Next to the recognition and comparison of the different melodic sections of a composition (in a word, the melodic delineation of the whole), the most significant task in music analysis is the locating and classifying of the cadences. They are the a... Measures
A measure is a group of beats. The beats are added together, in measures, to obtain a larger unit of time, because larger divisions are more convenient for longer periods; just as we prefer to indicate the dimensions of a house, or farm, in feet or... Melody
Any succession of single tones is a melody. If we strike the keys of the piano with two or more fingers of each hand simultaneously, we produce a body of tones, which--if they are so chosen that they blend harmoniously--is called a Chord; and a ser... Modification Or Disguising Of The Cadence
The most natural and characteristic indication of a cadence is the longer tone, seen in the examples to which reference has just been made; for a tone of greater length than its fellows is, in itself, the most conclusive evidence of a point of repo... Modified Repetitions
The quality and extent of the changes that may be made, in order to enrich the composition without altering its structural design, depend, as has been intimated, upon the judgment and fancy of the composer. The student will find no part of his anal... Origin Of The Name
The fully developed Sonata-allegro form is the design in which the classic overture and the first movement of the symphony, sonata and concerto are usually framed. The student must be careful not to confound this musical form with the complete sona... Part I
The statement of the principal idea; the presentation of the melodic and rhythmic contents of the leading thought, out of which the whole composition is to be developed. It is generally a period-form, at least, closing with a firm perfect cadence i... Part Ii
The departure (more or less emphatic) from this leading melodic statement. It is, for a time, probably an evident continuation and development of the melodic theme embodied in the First Part; but it does not end there; it exhibits a retrospective b... Part Iii
The recurrence and corroboration of the original statement; the reproduction of Part I, and therewith the fulfilment of the important principle of return and confirmation. The reproduction is sometimes exact and complete; sometimes slight changes, ... Perfect Cadence
There is one method of checking the current of the melodic phrase with such emphasis and determination as to convey the impression of finality; either absolute finality, as we observe it at the very end of a composition, or such relative finality as... Phrase-addition
The phrase is the structural basis of all musical composition. By this is meant, not necessarily the single phrase, but the phrase in its collective sense. The phrase is, after all, only a unit; and the requirements of Variety cannot be wholly s... Preliminary Tones
It is a singularly effective and pregnant quality of the element of musical rhythm, that its operations are not bounded by the vertical bars which mark off the measures. That is to say, a rhythmic figure (and, in consequence, a melodic figure or mo... Relation To The Three-part Song-form
In a former chapter (XIII) the Three-Part form was defined as the type of perfect structural design, upon which every larger (or higher) form is based. Nowhere is the connection more striking, and the process of natural evolution out of this germ ... Repetition Of The Parts
The enlargement of the Three-Part Song-form is effected, in the majority of cases, by simply repeating the Parts. The composer, in extending the dimensions of his original design, resorts as usual to the most legitimate and natural means at his dis...