Debussy

Question 1

Texture

6

Answer 1

1. Almost entirely homophonic
2. Melody-dominated homophony in bars 9-12 and 42-45
3. Homorhythm or chordal writing (when all parts move together) in bars 1-2
4. Much of the chordal or homorhythmic writing involves parallelism, with all or some parts moving in the same direction by the same intervals. E.g bar 1 (however as there is an A in the bass rather than a G sharp, the parallelism is not strict)
5. Parallelism is varied and resourceful. There are, for example, six-note chords at the beginning, four-note chords underlying the melody in bars 11–12, and eight-note chord streams in bars 35–41
6. Three short octave writing passages provide contrast
   Bars 5-6, 20-22 and 66
7. monophonic e.g. 5-6
8. open triads (gamelan) bar 63-4
9. thick texture with 8 note cluster chords from 35-41

Question 2

Structure- Binary Form

Answer 2

Section A: Bars 1–22
This first section ends on C sharp, the main tonal centre, not in a complementary key as more often (but not always) happens in traditional binary form.

Section B: Bars 23–72
There is a modified repeat of bars 1–8 at bars 42–49 (melody in different octaves, harmony almost all different), which is characteristic of rounded binary form.
Bars 60–61 likewise refer back to bars 9–10 (same melody, different harmony), and bar 66 is a transposition down two octaves of bar 5. The B section of binary form is frequently longer than the A, but the disparity here is unusually marked.

Question 3

Structure- Rondo Form

Answer 3

Theme A appears, though with variations at bars 1-8, 15-22 and 42-49.

Section B appears at bars 9-14, section C at 23-41 and section D at 50-55.

The rondo interpretation breaks down at bar 56 where, instead of Theme A, B returns and leads on to a coda (from bar 63).

Question 4

Structure- Ternary Form

Answer 4

Section A: Bars 1–22
These bars are themselves broadly ternary, in view of the repeat of bars 1–4 in bars 15–18.
As expected with ternary form, Section A ends in the main key (C sharp Aeolian minor).

Section B: Bars 23–41
Includes some quite new material.

Section Av: Bars 42–72
The second A section is a very varied
repeat of the first A section.

Question 5

A characteristically Debussyan aspect of local structure is the…
Give 2 examples

Answer 5

Immediate repetition

1. Bars 1–2 are repeated in bars 3–4 with the addition of G sharp passing notes in octaves in the melody
2. Bar 11 is repeated without any change as bar 12

Question 6

What is the effect of using single or two-bar repetitions?

2

Answer 6

Gives the listener a second chance to hear important steps in the musical argument.
Emphasises the pleasing harmony.

Question 7

Generally there is periodic phrasing (with 2-bar units and multiples) but name three exceptions

Answer 7

1. There are no 8- bar units
2. There is an seven-bar span from bar 35 to 41
3. Blurred by cross-phrasing involving:
   the six- quaver phrase beamed across the barline that separates bars 39 and 40
   the following three quavers plus two crotchets.

Question 8

Melody

3

Answer 8

1. Conjunct (stepwise) movement and small leaps of a 3rd or 4th.
2. The compass (tonal range) of the opening two-bar phrase is just a 5th.
3. The compass is slightly more extended when an important cadence or sectional break
   is approached – notably in bars 7–8, 38–41 and 67–71 – presumably to emphasise that important cadence.

Question 9

Rhythm and Metre

9

Answer 9

1. Simple Triple Time, customary for a sarabande
2. The second beat is emphasised in many bars. Particularly in the second bar of a two-bar phrase, for example in bars 2 and 24
3. Continuous quaver chords (most notably in bars 39–41)
4. A two semiquaver-quaver figure (bar 5) or the reverse (bar 23)
5. Triplet quavers, though they only appear in bars 1 and 3 and their modified repeats at bars 42 and 44
6. hemiolas prepare for final cadence bar 67-8
7. cross phrasing (emphasis of weak beat) obscures tonality and dance rhythms
8. syncopation in bass bar 38-41
9. augmentation bar 40-41

Question 10

Tonality

8

Answer 10

1. key signature is misleading as first 8 bars are entirely modal
2. avoids tonic-dominant harmonic function
3. avoidance of tonic chord in the first 8 bars.
4. Palindrome (read forwards/backwards/horizontal/vertical and stays the same) used for colour, not functional in first bar
5. quartal harmony (bar 23)
6. few cadences. Cadence in B major in bar 8
7. modal cadences are often imperfect
8. tertiary relationship created when music is repeated a third higher/lower (bar 9-10)
9. based upon the Aeolian mode transposed to C sharp

Question 11

Sections of the piece

Answer 11

A B A C A D B Coda

A 1-8
B 9-14
A 15-22
C 42-49
D 50-55
B 56-62
Coda

Question 12

Tonality of first two bars

Answer 12

Tonal ambiguity, the melody could represent E major, whereas the harmonisation is closer to (modal) C sharp minor

Question 13

Tonality from bar 1-22

Answer 13

Mostly in C sharp Aeolian minor
In the middle there is clear tonal contrast, with A sharp often replacing A natural
The tonality in the middle is often ambiguous, suggesting G sharp Aeolian minor or D sharp Aeolian minor.

Question 14

Tonality from bars 23–41

Answer 14

To begin with, the melody suggests C sharp Aeolian minor still, together with the very low I–V–I outline in bars 24–25.
There is a shift up a minor 3rd (in sequence: bars 27–28), to suggest E Aeolian minor.
After this (bars 29–30) there is a very strong tonal contrast (A sharp Aeolian minor?)
Modal F sharp minor is featured in bars 35–38.

Question 15

Tonality from Bars 42–72

Answer 15

Repeat of the opening (bars 42–45) is expected to be C sharp minor Aeolian again, but the D major chord makes it ambiguous
C sharp Aeolian minor is much clearer subsequently in bars 46–49.

Question 16

Harmony

17

Answer 16

• The harmony is generally ‘non-functional’ –tonic, dominant and subdominant chords do not establish and maintain traditional major and minor keys
• chord ‘streams’ rather than chord progressions e.g. bars 35–41.
• Some cadences are original in that chords a 3rd apart are involved – respectively E major to G sharp minor in the opening phrase.
• parallel 5ths.
• Parallel octaves are mostly doublings of the principal melodic line (as in bar 1).
• Many individual chords are just ‘ordinary’ triads in root position. (Inversions of triads are avoided).
• Many seventh chords (in root position), including the very first chord of the piece.
• ninth chords (e.g. in bar 11, 3rd quaver beat).
• quartal harmony – that is, harmony based on 4ths rather than 3rds of ordinary triads and seventh chords. e.g. bar 23
• sometimes re-harmonises a melody when it re-appears. e.g. different harmonisation of the opening melody when it recurs in bars 42–45.
• added note harmony e.g. triads with added 6th, minor/major 7th and dom 7ths
• parallel chords based on whole tone scale (bar 24)
• chromatic passing notes (11-13)
• dominant 7th dont resolve
• dissonance, false relations e.g. A natural and A sharp in bar 9-10
• functional harmony bar 55-56
• final cadence is modal

Question 17

Instrumentation

8

Answer 17

• solo piano
• over five octave range but there are no very high notes
• some left-hand chords extend to well over an octave and have to be spread
• influenced by the gamelan
• sequence of open triads (63-64)
• low bass notes and rising open chords based upon quartal harmony (67-68)
• quartal harmony (23)
• bass clef in both hands (22-23) and both hands in treble clef (38-39)