80 Writing of Short Two- Voice Pie<

Example 1 ANON.: Menuet*

J : I

~ it. 112. l

" • . .. .. I J I I

) ~ I L l J - -.. ..

: ............_,

j J II

*This and other pieces in this chapter that are marked with an asterisk are from the Notenbiichleinfiir Anna Magdalena Bach (The Liule Notebook for Anna Magdalena Bach). This is a collection of some fortY short and easy pieces, some bearing J. S. Bach's signature, two by other known composers (Couperin and Georg Bohm), and the majority unsigned. Certain of the latter may be by Bach. On the other hand, a good many are in the lighter "gallant" style markedly different from his. The original notebook, as presented by Bach to his second wife, apparently contained only copies of two of his partitas; the other pieces were added over a period of years by Anna Magdalena Bach and others. The original copy is described as being covered with green paper over a hard base, with pressed-in gold rims, two locks, and a red silk ribbon. On the cover were three large gilded letters: A M B, with the date, 1725, below.

Writing of Short Two-Voice Pieces 81

The march in Example 2 is likewise bipartite in structure. But this time, the first part ends in the dominant key. The general principle demonstrated in this example and the preceding one is that movements of dance suites (or similarly constructed pieces) in major modulate to the dominant by the end of the first part, while those in minor normally modulate to the relative major.

Example 2 (unlike Example I) contains much repetition, both within phrases and on a broader scale. The second part begins with a dominant restatement of the open­ing material, a very frequent arrangement in suite movements; the overall plan might be described as A A'. Notice that each of the parts is extended by one measure (in which the lower voice appears to be imitating a drum beat), so that a nine-measure phrase results each time.

Example 2 ANON.: Marche*

90 Writing of Short Two- Voice Pieces

Example Sd PURCELL: Air

)!: :: ~ =; ~ ~ 1:! : ~~~: ~ l )!: :::-:J: :I J 11: ::;~1

- - i ., ~~r etc.

It might be well to point out that most contrapuntal forms use neither the ~eriod .con­struction nor the part-forms seen in the examples in this chapter. Fugues, mvent1ons, canons, and most chorale forms are constructed on a motivic basis and proceed contin­uously, without the complete stops at cadence points and the "double-bar" effect that characterize the part-forms. True, they generally involve broad sections marked by cadential patterns; but at cadence points the motion persists in one or more voices. Consequently the total effect is very different from that of Baroque dance-suite forms.

SUGGESTED ASSIGNMENTS

I. Analyze the dance-suite movement in the Workbook.

2. Analyze a movement or movements from a Baroque dance suite, as specified by the instructor.

3. Write a short two-voice movement in dance-suite style. 4. Write a short contrapuntal piece in freer style.

SELF-TEST

1. What form is most often seen in movements of dance suites?

Page in

Workbook

37

2. What key patterns are likely to be involved within individual movements of dance suites?

3. What is the principal difference, in terms of form, between most dance-suite movements and the Preludes in the Well- Tempered Clavier?

4. Name the four "basic" suite movements. 5. Name four other suite movements sometimes included. 6. Where (and why) are extra notes sometimes introduced in two-voice pieces?

ChapterS

Canon

If a melodic idea in one voice is duplicated in a second voice that begins before the first has finished, the result is called a canon. One type of canon, the round, is familiar even to nonmusicians through such favorites as "Three Blind Mice" and "Row, Row, Row Your Boat"; other types have been used in more serious music for centuries. As a rule, the canonic treatment is applied merely to a portion of a work rather than to the entire composition, though such exceptions as the canons in Bach's The Art of Fugue could be cited.

A distinction is sometimes made between true canon, in which the imitation is carried out consistently, and "canonic imitation," in which the imitation may be dropped after each voice has stated the initial material, as in the stretto sections of some fugues. (Strettos will be discussed presently.)

The first voice in a canon is known as the "leader," while the imitating voice is called the "follower." The Latin terms for these are dux and comes, respectively. If more than two voices are involved, the terms "first follower," "second follower," and so on are used.

THE TWO- VOICE CANON AT THE OCTAVE

The two variables in canonic writing are the harmonic interval-that is, the distance measured vertically between the first note of the leader and that of the follower-and the time interval. The most common harmonic interval is the octave, and that is the one employed in Examples 1, 2, and 3. (The use of other harmonic intervals will be demonstrated in later examples.) The time interval in canons may be anything from one note to many measures, though the use of either extreme is rare. If the time inter­val is very short, the chances are that the listener will not have heard enough of the ~eader to recognize it in the follower; if the interval is too long, he may have difficulty Ill retaining the beginning of the leader in his mind until the same material appears in the follower. In Example Ia the time interval is four measures, in b, two measures.

91

Chapter IO

The Two-Part Invention; Motive Development

J. S . Bach wrote fifteen two-voice compositions which he called lnventionen and fif­teen three-voice works called Symplzonien (Sinfonie. in Itali<m). These an:: now gcner­alty known as the "Two-Part Invention~" and the "Three-Part Inventions." An i~rvention could be defined as a short contrapuntal work Cl.1ltering around the devel­opment of material from one or two motives. Although inventions have been written by other composers from time to time, the number of them is small, r~nd they have not become staples of musical literature as the Bach inventions have. Consequently, when we speak of "inventions," we gencrr~lly have those by Bach in mind. The Two­Part Inventions will be used as the basis for this chapter.

A question that mrght legitimately bl.! raised is this: Why should these works be studied when they represent a form so se ldom encountered (especially by non­pinnists)? Among the rmswcrs that might be given arc the following: (I) In spite of their brevity, the Inventions are music ofthl! highest order. In ~hem, attmctive motivic material is developed in a masterly way; imagination and never-failing freshness combine with an astonishing economy of means. Getting to know this music is con­sequently an enriching experience for all musicians. (2) The Two-Part Inventions involve, on a small scale, most of the contrapuntCJI devices found in larger forms to be studied later. These devices CCJn most easily be introduced in the context of two voices (as opposed to three or four) and in short compositions. (3) The principles of inven­tion construction are not confined to works actually titled Invention. For example, Preludes such as Numbers U and 18 in Book I of The Well-Tempered Clavier and certCJin movements (notably some Preludes) of Bach's Suites and Partit.as arc essen­tially inventions. (4) After doing basic exercises in two voices, students arc usually asked to do some writing of contrapuntal forms. The two-part invention is one that is appropriate for them to undertake at that stage, whereas fugues or chorale forms nor­mCJlly involve at least three voices. Obviously, the Bach Two-PCJrt Inventions serve admirably as models for this type of project. Some of them will now be cxaminc<L and the pnnc1plcs involved in their eonsrruction wiJI be discussed.

126

The Two-Par·t Invention ; M olive Development /2 7

THE 1WOTIVE

The term motive has been defined in variou~ ways. By some it is considered the equivalent of a figure. or the smallest possible unit in a melodic phrase. To others it signifies a melodic statement of somewhat greater length, often one or two measures, though seldom more than four. This Iauer meaning is the one that we shall adopt for present purposes.

Motives in the Bach Two-Part Inventions range all the way from a half measure, as in Example la, to four measures, as in h. ("M.'' there stands for motive, "CM." for countermot ive.)

There is often some corroboration of segments within the motive. In a the only repetition is a two-note figure of a failing 3rd (not enough to qualify as a sequence). In b the whole first mcasun: is n:peated in chamctcristic sequential fnshion.

Most motives define the key and th~.: rhythmic structure quickly. In cases where either of these clements is not entirely clear (for example, if the motive begins on the fifth of the scale), an accompanying voice such as the one in Example lb is gcoerally included to clarify the musical situation. Also, all good motives have some distinct ive f~'arure, melodic or rhythmic or both, that gives them interest and mr~kcs them easily n::cognizable in subsequen t appearances.

Example Ia RACH: l'wo-Parl Invention No. 1

M - ' . CM. M .• .. 01

II ~ .==== - - -

) cJ ... .. • ~:..

li .~ . ~

.~~ . M. M.

E:xample Ib RACI-I: Two-Part I mention No.5 M.

CM.