Beethoven Flashcards
Melody
10
-Mainly diatonic with occasional Chromaticism.
E.g. there is a chromatic scale in bar 25-6 of the 1st subject.
-Chromatic scales are sometimes used to form a lead into a main melody. E.g. bar 69.
-Clarinet and violin share melodic interest. It is typical of the late Classical period to have the clarinet playing the melodic line.
-Sequences.
-Scalic passages.
-Ornaments. E.g. turn in bar 28
-Melodies are often repeated.
E.g. the 1st subject theme is immediately repeated by the clarinet in bar 28.
-The codetta (bar 99-111) is based upon a combination of two motifs.
-Balanced/periodic phrasing. Typical of the Classical period.
-Demi-semi quaver flourishes.
E.g. the clarinet part in bar 17.
Texture
12
-Mostly melody-dominated homophony. Typical of the Classical period.
E.g. at the beginning of the Exposition, the string trio texture consists of a broken chord accompaniment in the viola and a strong harmonic foundation in the cello to support the melody in the violin.
-Begins with tutti homophonic chords.
-There is monophony in bar 2 with only the 1st violin.
-Alteration between monophonic and homorhythmic from bars 40-44.
-Antiphony.
E.g. the clarinet and bassoon are repeated a bar after by the 1st violin at bars 47–50.
-Homorhythmic.
E.g. bar 7 and the beginning of the 2nd subject, bars 53-55.
-Homophonic. E.g. bars 50-53.
-Octave writing.
-6ths in bar 140.
-Pedal notes add stability to the texture.
E.g. Viola plays a dominant pedal in bars 140-153. This also prepares for the return of E flat major.
-Imitation
-Alberti Bass
Instrumentation
9
- A septet is an unusual chamber music combination. This piece has four string instruments (including a double bass, rather than a 2nd violin), a clarinet, bassoon and horn in E flat.
- The clarinet hardly used before the Classical era. By Beethoven’s time, it was an established wind instrument, and here it has an unusually prominent role, equalling the violin in importance. A transposing instrument, the clarinet in B flat sounds a tone lower than written.
- The bassoon and horn usually work together to provide wind harmony.
- The viola generally accompanies with arpeggio figures, bar 61.
- The violin and viola use double stopping for emphasis and to increase the textural density. There is also quadruple stopping in the penultimate bar of the piece in the 1st violin and triple stopping in the viola.
- The violin writing is high in bars 217-8.
- There are some wide leaps in the violin part in bars 216 and 218.
- Articulation is detailed in all instruments. Staccato e.g. the viola part in bars 19-22.
- Dynamic contrast. Forte – piano contrasts in the first two bars. Use of fp (bar 12) and sf (bar 18). Dynamics range from pp to ff.
Structure
9
-This is the first movement of a six movement piece in the style of a Serenade.
-The structure is defined by tonality.
-Sonata form.
-The coda is much longer than earlier composers of the Classical era would have written.
-Introduction: bar 1-18 in E flat.
-Exposition:
bar 18-52 1st subject in E flat,
bar 53-111 2nd subject and codetta in B flat.
-Development: bar 111-154 modulates to C minor, A flat major and F minor.
-Recapitulation: bar 154-187 1st subject in E flat, bar 188-233 2nd also in E flat.
-Coda: bar 233-288 in E flat.
Rhythm
8
- The introduction is in Adagio and simple triple time (3/4)
- Main section is Allegro con brio (fast with vigour) and is in simple duple, (2/2).
- The slow introduction is rhythmically more complex than the main section as it includes demisemiquavers, sextuplets and double dotted rhythms.
- The first subject theme is characterised by three quavers leading to a longer minim tied to a quaver.
- There are syncopated rhythms in the violin and viola over on-beat crotchets in the cello when the theme is repeated in bar 29. Syncopation is again prominent in bars 45-6.
- Sections of continuous triplet rhythms. E.g. bar 76-79, 211-214.
- Many themes begin with an anacrusis.
- There is some rhythmic diminution at the end with crotchets being halved to quavers, e.g. bars 284 to 285.
Tonality
6
- Functional
- E flat major
- Exposition moves to dominant as expected
- Development unexpectedly moves to G major before returning to E flat to A flat (subdominant) and F minor (relative minor of subdominant)
- Recapitulation remains in tonic key as expected
- Imperfect cadence at end of the introduction
Harmony
- Diatonic
- Mostly root and 1st inversion chords
- Static harmony e.g. horn in bar 61-67
- Dominant 7th (arpeggio bar 17)
- Extended pedal points e.g. dom pedal at end of intro
- Augmented 6th (German 6th) chord used to approach cadences
- Neapolitan chord (bar 7)
- Suspensions (bar 23)
- Repetition of chord V I V I at end of codetta typical of Classical era
