Creating Variation within Traditional Classical Music Forms
MUS 428
November 19, 2013
Creating Variation within Traditional Classical Music Forms While much of the Classical era music is stereotyped for sounding the same, there is much variation within the style and music of that period. Although there are many different forms and variations of those forms, deviations in that respect are not as easily recognized to the casual listener. It takes some attention and focus to notice a formal variation. What the casual listener will recognize are deviations which grab attention of those who may have not been paying any attention before, or which defy the expectations of those who have been paying attention. The most effective techniques are deviations in rhythm, dynamic, and harmony. Rhythm usually creates an expectation in the ear of the listener, based on convention. For example, if you hear a piece coming to a cadence point and the chords come in short stabs on the offbeats for an even number of bars, you would expect it to land on the downbeat of the subsequent bar, whether it be after the 4th bar, 8th bar, etc. In other words, you expect a resolution of the rhythmic tension. When it goes unresolved, in this case if it were to finish on another offbeat, that would stick out, because it defies the expectation established by convention. In Beethoven's Violin Concerto in D Major, on page 21 of the score, the violin starts playing a continuous triplet line, accompanied by nothing shorter than a quarter-note length. At this point, there is nothing interfering with the now lilting triplet feel. However, after about 11 bars of this, the accompaniment adds straight eighth notes on top of the triplets, which stand out in stark contrast to the violin rhythm. Probably the most obvious of techniques to defy expectation is dynamic contrast. Haydn's “Surprise” Symphony makes comical use of this technique. The second movement of the work starts with a very quiet statement of a simple melody, which repeats but with a sudden,
November 19, 2013
Creating Variation within Traditional Classical Music Forms While much of the Classical era music is stereotyped for sounding the same, there is much variation within the style and music of that period. Although there are many different forms and variations of those forms, deviations in that respect are not as easily recognized to the casual listener. It takes some attention and focus to notice a formal variation. What the casual listener will recognize are deviations which grab attention of those who may have not been paying any attention before, or which defy the expectations of those who have been paying attention. The most effective techniques are deviations in rhythm, dynamic, and harmony. Rhythm usually creates an expectation in the ear of the listener, based on convention. For example, if you hear a piece coming to a cadence point and the chords come in short stabs on the offbeats for an even number of bars, you would expect it to land on the downbeat of the subsequent bar, whether it be after the 4th bar, 8th bar, etc. In other words, you expect a resolution of the rhythmic tension. When it goes unresolved, in this case if it were to finish on another offbeat, that would stick out, because it defies the expectation established by convention. In Beethoven's Violin Concerto in D Major, on page 21 of the score, the violin starts playing a continuous triplet line, accompanied by nothing shorter than a quarter-note length. At this point, there is nothing interfering with the now lilting triplet feel. However, after about 11 bars of this, the accompaniment adds straight eighth notes on top of the triplets, which stand out in stark contrast to the violin rhythm. Probably the most obvious of techniques to defy expectation is dynamic contrast. Haydn's “Surprise” Symphony makes comical use of this technique. The second movement of the work starts with a very quiet statement of a simple melody, which repeats but with a sudden,