THE SONATA, ITS FORM AND MEANING AS EXEMPLIFIED IN THE PIANO SONATAS BY MOZART. MOZART. Portrait drawn by Dora Stock when Mozart visited Dresden in 1789. Original now in the possession of the Bibliothek Peters. THE SONATA ITS FORM AND MEANING AS EXEMPLIFIED IN THE PIANO SONATAS BY MOZART A DESCRIPTIVE ANALYSIS BY F. HELENA MARKS WITH MCSICAL EXAMPLES LONDON WILLIAM REEVES, 83 CHARING CROSS ROAD, W.C.2. Publisher of Works on Music. BROUDE BROS. Music NEW YORK Presented to the LIBRARY of the UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO from the Library of DR. ARTHUR PLETTNER AND ISA MCILWRAITH PLETTNER Crescent, London, S.W.16. Printed by The New Temple Press, Norbury PREFACE. undertaking the present work, the writer's intention originally was IN to offer to the student of musical form an analysis of the whole of Mozart's Pianoforte Sonatas, and to deal with the subject on lines some- what similar to those followed by Dr. Harding in his volume on Beet- hoven. A very little thought, however, convinced her that, though students would doubtless welcome such a book of reference, still, were the scope of the treatise thus limited, its sphere of usefulness would be somewhat circumscribed. " Mozart was gifted with an extraordinary and hitherto unsurpassed instinct for formal perfection, and his highest achievements lie not more in the tunes which have so captivated the world, than in the perfect sym- metry of his best works In his time these formal outlines were fresh enough to bear a great deal of use without losing their sweetness; arid Mozart used them with remarkable regularity."* The author quotes the above as an explanation of certain broad similarities of treatment which are to be found throughout Mozart's sonatas. But interwoven with these broad similarities there exists a variety of detail in the movements which is worthy of the closest, the most careful study, not only on account oi its diversity and its inherent beauty, but also on account of the diver- gent views held with respect to many of the passages by various well- known writers on musical form. As a teacher, the writer has found that in analysing the form and construction of a movement it is, whenever possible, of great value to the pupil to deal with a doubtful passage thus : * Sir C. Hubert H. Parry, Grove's Dictionary. v VI MOZART'S PIANOFORTE SONATAS. his (i) To bring to notice the varying views held by different authori- ties; (ii) To compare these views (of which occasionally the number is equal to that of the authorities expressing them), and to discuss the arguments both for and against each of the theories ad- vanced. The course recommended demonstrates the fact that there can be no such thing as dogmatism on this subject, and far from tending to make ihe student quibble, it trains him from the beginning to adopt broad methods in his musical analysis. He is taught to recognise that there are many passages which it is impossible to define with any degree of cer- tainty, and that there will be found a still larger number (more especially in modern music) merging gradually into each other, and making it there- tore impossible to determine the exact starting, or exact finishing, point, both of these being, in some instances, equally indefinite. The subject presented to him in this manner, the student learns important general principles upon which to base his method of work when he meets with cases of doubt. He learns that he should, first of all, in every instance, endeavour to determine for himself the various possible aspects in which the matter under consideration may be viewed. It is of no moment whether the " " question at issue refers to the form of a movement, to the analysis of any particular portions of it, or (when it is not a case of merging) to the point at which an important division, or a special passage, may be re- garded as starting or finishing. In cases such as the last-named, he should note each at carefully place which such start y or close, can con- ceivably be held to occur. So long as he can satisfy himself that he has done all this, so long as he can, not only state clearly what reasons might be urged in favour ot each view, but also give, when possible, some indication of the relative value of different arguments, it is as unnecessary for him to express a decided opinion, as it is often absolutely impossible for him to do so. To offer to students a work embodying the foregoing principles has been the author's aim throughout, and she believes that the idea of a com- parative analysis as extended in scope as that offered in the present volume is quite new in a published work. To carry out her purpose she has made her collection of the opinions and views of well-known writers on musical form as exhaustive as prac- ticable, offering due acknowledgment. PREFACE. Vil The Thematic Schemes accompanying the sonatas are, for the most part, the result of independent analysis, but, in the few instances in which the writer has found that there is a preponderance of opinion not in agree- ment with her own views, the Schemes have been altered so as to be in accordance with those more generally accepted. In furnishing many of the minor details as to construction, etc., in repeatedly calling attention to particular chords, and to the different pro- gressions and passages in which they are found, the author's primary object has been to point out these features to the student who is studying the sonatas with the instrument. He thus very possibly makes his first acquaintance with some of these chords as they occur in actual use. In the case of the more rarely employed chords, his attention in cer- tain instances is also called to the conditions under which they occur : con- ditions to which, in the past, the particular chords in question were re- stricted by special rules which governed their employment and progres- sion.*! Clearly this is a most effective way of studying Harmony. Numerous quotations illustrative of the different points as they occur, have been made, with due acknowledgment, throughout the book, the writer hoping thereby to increase the interest and utility of the volume. From a like motive she has made constant use of equivalent terms to ex- press similar ideas. The author takes this opportunity of expressing her sincere thanks and deep appreciation to Sir W. H. Hadow, M.A., D.Mus., etc., and to Dr. H. H. L. Middleton, F.R.C.O., L.R.A.M., etc., for their valuable per- sonal help. The benefit of their views on various debatable points that have arisen during the preparation of the book has been invaluable. In the production of a text-book such as the present one the works of many writers have necessarily been consulted. The author gratefully acknowledges her indebtedness not only to the authors of these works, but also to their publishers, for, to the latter, in every instance, the copy- right of the works belongs. She sincerely thanks all for their courtesy ?,nd kind permission to make the necessary references and quotations. In * The student must realise that many of the laws which governed the methods of the great classical composers have gradually been relaxed, till to-day freedom is the keynote in composition, and to future generations must belong the task of form- ulating the laws if any which underlie some of the works of our modern composers. t For the rules' and recommendations, etc., which affect the more generally em- ployed chord progressions of which mention is made, the student should refer to one of the numerous text-books on Harmony. Viii MOZART'S PIANOFORTE SONATAS. order to give clearly, and in as concise a manner as possible, the names of the various books above referred to, together with those of their authors and publishers, the author has arranged the following bibliography. In it -will also be found full details of the use made of each individual work. F. HELENA MARKS. 10 MATHESON ROAD, LONDON, W.i4. 1921. BIBLIOGRAPHY. The first column, in all cases, gives the page number with that of the para- graph, or section (marked ) of the work from which the quotation or reference is the refers to of taken ; second column pages and paragraphs the present work. The symbols *, f, etc., refer to footnotes similarly marked. C. BANISTER, HENRY 360, footnote ; 36t; "Lectures on Musical Analysis." 366 956; 43f; 367 960; 11 (d), 14f ; Messrs. G. Sell and Sons } Ltd. 373-74 978 ; 58 (a), 58*, 58. 18-19 ; 127 ; 19 Mrs. Doc. ; 42 (c) ; FISHER, HENRY, 60 106 " ; (c) ; The Musical Examinee." 77 48* ; ; Messrs. J. Curwen and Sons, Ltd. 91-92 50* ; ; 141 719; 115 (c) ; 129 ; 107-108 (g) ; 142 749 ; 115 155; 119 (k), 151*; (c) ; 750-51; 117 (f) ; 209 76 ; ; (a) 143 755; 35*; 212 ; 67 (e) ; 774; 57f; 212-213 ; 108 ; 776 ; 58f ; 217 ; 108 ; 229 109* 777; 141; ; ; 144 779; 142; 23(5 ; 17 ; 784; 149 (a), 150*, 151 237 ; 165 (a) ; 240 791: (Table), 153 (ii, b) ; ; 110 (b) ; 794; 124; 241 111 : ; ( j) 60; 241-242 , 110* ; "The Pianist's Mentor." 242 ; 123 (c) ; 245 ; 146 (a) ; Messrs. J. Cruwen and Sons, Ltd. 105 273; (j): 116 128; 42*; 276; 30 (10, 45 ; (h) i 185, par. ; 152. 290; xxiiif. "Music." GOETSCHIUS, PERCY, Mus.Doc., ETC. " Messrs. G. Sell and Sons, Ltd.