Musical Form

Please take handout

I. Musical Form (5 Variations on a Theme)
A. Form as balance of unity/variety

B. Form as musical architecture

C. Form as hearing aural identity/difference

D. Form as a continuum

Repetition Total Contrast

E. Form as web of relations:
(How is what I’m now hearing related to what I’ve heard?)
II. Conventions and Common
Forms
A. Conventions for writing musical forms
B. Binary (2-part) Form

C. Ternary (3- part) Form

D. Variation Forms (Theme and Variations)

E. Rondo Form
III. Brahms Piano Quartet in g minor,
finale (Rondo alla Zingarese )
A. Piano quartet = Piano, violin, viola, ‘cello
B. Finale = last movement of a piece
C. Begins in g minor (g= tonic; minor mode)
D. Rondo (expect form)
E. alla Zingarese (in gypsy style)
F. All in duple meter
“ Form-within-Form” of Opening (A)

a a’ b b’ a a”
___ ∧__ ___ ___ ∧ _ _ . .
(b=ornamented
descending sca
le)

+ transition =^7-^8 cadence

scal
e

b b’ a a”’
 A B A C D B C

aabb’aa’’ | tran +bb’| aa aabbaa aaba’ba’

Transition D C
section of Strings strings C+B A
A
Cadenza
(piano) only B Combined
Strings+piano
+
piano Coda
tran+bb
Exam #1 Format:

1.10-12 Multiple Choice Listening Questions

many based on Schumann, I bear no grudge
(“Ich grolle nicht”)

2. 2-3 Objective sections concentrating mainly on

vocabulary from reading, lectures, listening
assignments