Comprehensive Musical Analysis by John D. White

Author:John D. White
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Scarecrow Press
Published: 1994-03-16T05:00:00+00:00

Figure 67: Mozart, Fantasia in F Minor, for Organ, K. 608

Middle-analysis of Figure 67 elicits the descriptive information that it is a period of two four-bar phrases, the first concluding with a half cadence, the second with an authentic cadence, both imperfect. The excerpt remains consistently in a four-part texture (with two small exceptions at the final cadence) with no voice crossing and in normal four-part vocal ranges. This fact, really a function of sound (texture) rather than harmony, is unremarkable from the stylistic standpoint other than to tell us that in this instance Mozart was adhering to the four-part texture derived from choral style which had been the norm since the Renaissance. It should also be noted that the excerpt begins and ends with triads with the third in the top voice (position of the third) and that triads in this position occur frequently throughout the excerpt. All four elements, of course, contribute to the hymn-like quality of the excerpt, as well as to other aspects of its overall beauty.

Since Figure 67 is a short excerpt, it cannot be considered from the point of view of macroanalysis, so let us now draw conclusions from the data collected in micro- and middle-analysis. First of all, it should be noted that the key of the piece, A-flat major, contributes an indefinable something to the evocative quality. This is very difficult to put into concrete terms, but slow movements in A-flat major do have something in common, as do fast movements in C minor, concerto allegros in D major, etc. There has been disagreement on this point. It has been argued, since standards of pitch level have changed over the centuries, that today we actually hear pieces written two centuries ago in a different (usually higher) key than that intended by the composer. It has been argued that the performer’s concept of particular key is actually created by factors such as the “feel” of the key or tonal center on the keyboard or its appearance in the notation. Many musicians, however, tend toward an empirical acceptance of specific moods associated with specific keys, regardless of changes in pitch standards and other factors.

The prevalence of triads with the third on top is another factor which contributes to the affective qualities of the excerpt. This, too, is hard to define. But for purposes of clarification, compare the excerpt in Figure 41 (slow movement of the Beethoven Sonata, Op. 13, Pathétique) with the Mozart excerpt in Figure 67. Both are slow movements, both are in the key of A-flat major, and both begin with the tonic triad in root position with the third on top. The similarity in mood between the opening bars of the two pieces is unmistakable, a fact which lends empirical support to the theory of specific affective qualities associated with specific keys, and that triads in position of the third (third on top) evoke a specific characteristic mood.

In reductive linear analysis of this passage (Figure 67) the third on top would also be significant from a Schenkerian perspective.

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