Daniel, ma belle

[Cloud_ax]

[colbertnationgirl]

The standard description of the sonata form is as follows:


Introduction
The Introduction section is optional, or may be reduced to a minimum. If it is extended, it is generally slower than the main section, and frequently focuses on the dominant key. It may or may not contain material which is later stated in the exposition. The introduction increases the weight of the movement, and also permits the composer to begin the exposition with a theme that would be too light to start on its own, as in Haydn's Symphony No. 103 ("Drumroll"). Usually, but not always, the introduction is excluded from the exposition repeat.

Occasionally the material of introduction reappears in its original tempo later in the movement. Often, this occurs as late as the coda, as in Mozart's String Quintet K. 593, Haydn's Drumroll Symphony, or Beethoven's Piano Sonata No. 8 ("Pathétique").


Exposition
The primary thematic material for the movement is presented in the Exposition. This section can be further divided into several sections. The same section in most sonata form movements has prominent harmonic and thematic parallelisms (although in some works from the nineteenth century and onward, some of these parallelisms are subject to considerable exceptions), which include:

First subject group – this consists of one or more themes, all of them in the home key (also called the tonic). So if the piece is in C major, all of the music in the first group will be in C major.
Transition – in this section the composer modulates from the key of the first subject to the key of the second.
Second subject group – one or more themes in a different key from the first group. If the first group is in a major key, the second group will usually be in the dominant. In pieces in a major key this will be the perfect fifth higher; if the original key is C major, for example, the key of the music of the second group will be G major. If the first group is in a minor key, the second group will generally be in the relative major, so that if the original key is C minor, the second group will be in E flat major. The material of the second group is often different in rhythm or mood from that of the first group (frequently, it is more lyrical).
Codetta – the purpose of this is to bring the exposition section to a close with a perfect cadence in the same key as the second group. Often the codetta contains a sequence of themes, each of which arrives at a perfect cadence. The whole of the exposition may then be repeated. Often the last measure or measures of the exposition are slightly different between the repeats, one to point back to the tonic, where the exposition began, and the second to point towards the development.

Development
The development generally starts in the same key as the exposition ended, and may move through many different keys during its course. It will usually consist of one or more themes from the exposition altered and occasionally juxtaposed and may include new material or themes – though exactly what is acceptable practice is a famous point of contention. Alterations include taking material through distant keys, breaking down of themes and sequencing of motifs, and so forth.

The development varies greatly in length from piece to piece, sometimes being relatively short compared to the exposition (e.g. the first movement of Eine kleine Nachtmusik, K 525/I by Mozart) and in other cases quite long and detailed (e.g. the first movement of the "Eroica" Symphony by Beethoven). However, it almost always shows a greater degree of tonal, harmonic and rhythmic instability than the other sections. At the end, the music will turn towards the home key and enter the recapitulation. The transition from the development to the recapitulation is a crucial moment in the work.

The last part of the development section is called the retransition: it prepares for the return of the first subject group in the tonic, most often through a grand prolongation of the dominant seventh. Thus, if the key of the movement is C major, the retransition would most typically stress the dominant seventh chord on G. In addition, the character of the music would signal such a return, often becoming more frenetic (as in the case of the first movement of Beethoven's "Waldstein" Sonata, Op. 53). A rather notable exception to the harmonic norm of the retransition occurs in the first movement of Brahms's Piano Sonata No. 1, Op. 1. The general key of the movement is C major, and it would then follow that the retransition should stress the dominant seventh chord on G. Instead, it builds in strength over the seventh chord on C, as if the music were proceeding to F major. At the height of the musical tension, this chord triumphs with great volume and wide registral scope on the downbeat, only to take up immediately the first theme in C major – that is, without any standard harmonic preparation.


Recapitulation
The Recapitulation is an altered repeat of the exposition, and consists of:

First subject group – normally given prominence as the highlight of a recapitulation, it is usually in exactly the same key and form as in the exposition.
Transition – now altered so that it does not change key, but remains in the piece's home key.
Second subject group and codetta – usually in roughly the same form as in the exposition, but now in the home key, which sometimes involves transformation from major to minor, or vice versa, as occurs in the first movement of Mozart's Symphony No. 40 (K. 550). More often, however, it may be recast in the parallel major of the home key (for example, C major when the movement is in C minor like Beethoven's Symphony No. 5 in C Minor, op. 67/I). Key here is more important than mode (major or minor) - the recapitulation provides the needed balance even if the material's mode is changed, so long as there is no longer any key conflict.

Coda
After the final cadence of the recapitulation, the movement may continue with a coda, which will contain material from the movement proper. Codas, when present, vary considerably in length, but, like introductions, are not part of the "argument" of the work. The coda will end, however, with a perfect cadence in the home key. Codas may be quite brief tailpieces, or they may be very long and elaborate. A famous example is the finale of Beethoven's Symphony No. 8 along with the first and fourth movements of the Symphony No. 5; further examples of extended codas from Beethoven include the first movement from the Piano Sonata No. 23 ("Appassionata") and also the third movements from the Piano Sonata No. 14 ("Moonlight") and the Piano Sonata No. 17 ("Tempest").


A note on terminology
Some, in lieu of the above terminology, refer to the "primary theme" and "secondary theme" (abbreviated P. and S., respectively) instead of the first and second subject groups as well as the "closing" (abbreviated Cl. or Kl., as in the German term "Klose") instead of the codetta. Parts of the sonata form are also sometimes called the "main" and "subordinate theme" or the first and second "subjects".

[Cloud_ax]

[colbertnationgirl]

[Cloud_ax]

[colbertnationgirl]

[Cloud_ax]

Kari, you are awesome

[colbertnationgirl]

Rondo, and its French equivalent rondeau, is a word that has been used in music in a number of ways, most often in reference to a musical form, but also in reference to a character-type that is distinct from the form. Although now called rondo form, the form started off in the Baroque period as the ritornello form, coming from the Latin word ritornare meaning "to return", indicating the return to the original theme or motif ("A"). Although consisting of a few differences, some people use the two terms interchangeably.

In rondo form, a principal theme (sometimes called the "refrain") alternates with one or more contrasting themes, generally called "episodes," but also occasionally referred to as "digressions," or "couplets". The overall form can be represented as ABACADA ... The number of themes can vary from piece to piece, and the recurring element is sometimes embellished or shortened in order to provide for variation.

The form began to be commonly used from the classical music era, though it can be found in earlier works. In the classical and romantic periods it was often used for the last movement of a sonata, symphony, concerto or piece of chamber music.

Rondo was often used by baroque composers to write Ritornello rondos. They were used in the fast movements of baroque concertos and contrast the whole orchestra (who play the main theme) against soloists (who play the episodes.) But Ritornello does differ slightly from other Rondos in that the theme is often different when it recurs but is always distinguishable as the same theme.

Classical pieces often end with a rondo. The fourth movement of a piece is often a rondo. Concertos and sonatas, however, have the third movement as a rondo.

A common expansion of rondo form is to combine it with sonata form, to create the sonata rondo form. Here, the second theme acts in a similar way to the second theme group in sonata form by appearing first in a key other than the tonic and later being repeated in the tonic key. Unlike sonata form, thematic development does not need to occur except possibly in the coda.

Rondo has a character-type (as distinct from the form) equates to music that is fast and vivacious—normally allegro. Music that has been designated as "rondo" normally subscribes to both the form and character. On the other hand, there are many examples of slow and reflective works that are rondo in form but not in character. Composers such as George Gershwin normally do not identify such works as "rondo".

[colbertnationgirl]

Kari, you are awesome

Hmm, not really.

But thank you. You are soooodeliciousawesome.

[Cloud_ax]

Kari, you are awesome

Hmm, not really.

But thank you. You are soooodeliciousawesome.

Hmm, not really.

But thank you.

[colbertnationgirl]

Kari, you are awesome

Hmm, not really.

But thank you. You are soooodeliciousawesome.

Hmm, not really.

But thank you.

Yes really.

[colbertnationgirl]

Most strictly, a piece in binary form is characterized by two complementary, related sections of roughly equal duration. The first section will start in a certain key, and will usually modulate to a related key:

compositions in major keys will typically modulate to the dominant, the fifth scale degree above the tonic
compositions in minor keys will typically modulate to the relative major, the major key centered on the third scale degree above the tonic. But the fastest binary module modes the leynome.
The second section of the piece begins in the newly established key, where it remains for an indefinite period of time. After some harmonic activity, the piece will eventually modulate back to its original key before ending. In 18th Century compositions, it was common for both A and B sections to be separated by double bars with repeat signs, meaning both sections were to be repeated.

Binary form is usually characterised as having the form AB, though since both sections repeat, a more accurate description would be AABB. Others, however, prefer to use the label AA'. This second designation points to the fact that there is no great change in character between the two sections. The rhythms and melodic material used will generally be closely related in each section, and if the piece is written for a musical ensemble, the instrumentation will generally be the same. This is in contrast to the use of verse-chorus form in popular music - the contrast between the two sections is primarily one of the keys used.

[Cloud_ax]

Hmm, not really.

But thank you. You are soooodeliciousawesome.

Hmm, not really.

But thank you.

Yes really.

nooooo

[colbertnationgirl]

Simple vs. Rounded
Occasionally, the B section will end with a "return" of the opening material from the A section. This is referred to as rounded binary, and is labeled as ABA'. In rounded binary, the beginning of the B section is sometimes referred to as the "bridge", and will usually conclude with a half cadence in the original key. Rounded binary is not to be confused with ternary form, also labeled ABA - the difference being the B section in ternary form is completely contrasting with the A material, as in, for example, a minuet and trio.

If the B section lacks such a return of the opening AA material, the piece is said to be in simple binary.


Sectional vs. Continuous
If the A section ends with an Authentic (or Perfect) cadence in the tonic key, the design is referred to as a sectional binary. This refers to the fact that the piece is in different tonal sections, each beginning and ending in their own respective keys.

If the A section ends with any other kind of cadence, the design is referred to as a continuous binary. This refers to the fact that the B section will "continue on" with the new key established by the cadence at the end of A.


Symmetrical vs. Asymmetrical
If the A and B sections are roughly equal in length, the design is referred to as symmetrical.

If the A and B sections are of unequal length, the design is referred to as asymmetrical. In such cases, the B sections is usually substantially longer than the A section.


Balanced Binary
In some simple continuous binary forms, there is a kind of "rhyme" between the closing gesture of the first reprise and the closing gesture of the second. In other words, the cadential material at the end of the first reprise (in the key of the dominant) will return, transposed to the tonic, at the end of the second reprise. This is referred to as balanced binary.

[colbertnationgirl]

Yes really.

nooooo

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