Lecture Nine

Classical-Era Form: Sonata-Allegro Form II, The Symphony:— Music for Every Person, & The Solo Concerto 

This lecture completes the survey of the Classica-era instrumental musical forms with a further exploration of sonata-allegro form. Two additional sonata-allegro form movements are analyzed and discussed, the first movement of Haydn’s Symphony No. 88 in G Major and the overture to Mozart’s opera Don Giovanni. Regarding the overture to Don Giovanni, we examine the long, tragic introduction that precedes the brilliant and comic sonata-allegro form and questions its meaning here at the onset of the opera; it is an element to be discussed at length at the end of this lecture and in an examination of Le Nozze di Figaro. Secondly, we explore the Classical-era symphony as both an orchestral genre and a social phenomena—it had become by the early nineteenth century the musical property of the rising middle class. We first differentiate between “orchestra” (a performing ensemble) and “symphony” (a multi-movement compositional played by an orchestra). The Baroque antecedents of symphony—the orchestral concerto and the Italian opera overture (“Sinfonia”) are described and discussed; a Baroque, Italian-style overture by Handel is compared directly to an early Classical-era symphony by Stamitz. We then examine the tremendous influence, both direct and indirect, of opera on the genre of symphony. Lastly, before turning to Opera we examine the Classical-era solo concerto, a genre which fitted perfectly the homophonic/tune-dominated ideal of the Classical era. This lecture first discusses the perfection of the violin family and the invention of the piano during the Baroque era, instruments that became the essential beneficiaries of the concerto repertoire during the Classical era. In particular, we discuss the invention of the piano and compare the sound of an early piano to a harpsichord. Mozart’s incredible piano concerti—twenty-seven in all—are discussed as a pinnacle of his compositional output. We then explore double exposition form, the adaptation of sonata-allegro form to the needs of the Classical-era solo concerto. The first movement of Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 1 7 in G Major is examined as an example of both the Classical-era solo concerto and double exposition form.

Outline:  We begin by reviewing sonata terminology and sonata-allegro form, which represents an adaptation of opera to instrumental music. 

A.    In the exposition (Act I), we meet the “characters.”

1.     Theme I is typically dramatic, while theme 2 is typically lyric.

2.   The themes are always in different keys, and they are separated by an unstable modulating bridge.

3.     The cadence theme/material is non-thematic and harmonically stable.

4.     The greater the contrast between the themes, the greater the potential for conflict and drama. 

B.    In the development section (Act II), the characters/themes interact. The development is harmonically unstable.

C.    In the recapitulation (Act III), the themes return in their original order, but with important changes. Theme 2 is in the home key.

D.    The coda (“curtain music”) is optional but usually included in Classical-era sonata-allegro form movements. 

II.     Featured Music: Haydn, Symphony no. 88, first movement (1788) 

A.    A slow introduction—”Ye olde solemn musicke”—precedes the playful theme 1. 

B.    The exposition is light in mood and displays minimal thematic contrast.

1.     Theme 1 is brief, highly motivic, and in G Major. It is a square and regular (“poetic”) theme.

2.   Theme 2 is very brief, highly motivic, and in D Major. It is a jagged and irregular (“prose-like”) theme. 

C.    The development is in two large sections, the first soft and the second

D.    In the recapitulation, theme 1 returns with a brief flute solo. Theme 2 is extremely abbreviated. 

E.     The coda features theme 1. 

III.    Featured Music: Mozart, Overture to Don Giovanni (1787)

A.    The overture is in sonata-allegro-form—common for opera overtures.

B.    Don Giovanni is also known as Don Juan. 

C.   The exposition is light and playful, as befits this supposedly “comic” opera.

1.     Theme 1 is in the brilliant key of D Major. It is elegant and substantial, as befits Don Giovanni himself.

2.     Theme 2 is in A Major. A comic and “avian” theme, it represents Leporello.

D.    The introduction (which precedes the comic theme 1) is heavy and tragic in tone. Why such a dark introduction to an otherwise light and brilliant overture? More in Lecture Twenty-Nine!

The Symphony:     Music for Every Person 

Outline: The meaning of much musical terminology is ambiguous and non-specific.

A.    Motet means literally “word” piece (vocal music).

B.    Cantata means literally “sung” piece (vocal music).

C.   Sonata means literally “sounded” piece (instrumental piece).

D.    Symphony/sinfonia can have either of the following meanings:

1.     Ensemble (vocal and/or instrumental)

2.     Sounding together

E.     For our purposes:

1.     A large group of instruments playing together is an orchestra.

2.   Certain works played by an orchestra are called symphonies/sinfoniae. 

II.     The Classical-era “symphony” is typically a substantial four-movement work for orchestra, designed to explore a range of moods (and body parts). 

A.    Movement one is typically emotionally and intellectually challenging. It is usually sonata-allegro form.

B.    Movement two is usually a lyric respite from the rigors of the first movement.

C.    Movement three is usually a moderately paced dance: minuet and trio.

D.    Movement four is typically upbeat and brilliant, often a rondo or another sonata-allegro-form movement. 

III.    The antecedents of the four-movement symphony are found in Baroque opera.

A.    Baroque opera distinguished between lyric singing and action singing.

1.     The aria is lyric singing, performed by a soloist and intended to provide character identification.

2.     Recitative is action music. It is transitional, bridge-like music.

B.    The various parts of a sonata-allegro form movement have their

analogues in the various parts of an opera.

1.     The themes are equivalent to arias.

2.     The modulating bridge is equivalent to recitative. It is unstable, transitional, developmental music.

Musical Example: Haydn, Symphony no. 88, first movement (1788)

IV.    The Enlightenment/Classical style crystallized in Vienna during the late eighteenth century.

A.    The Viennese Classical style combines Italian and German traditions with:

B.    Operatic principles of character contrast and dramatic development — aria and recitative.

C.    This style was called “Classical” because it was held to resemble ancient Greek art in its celebration of clear lines, proportion, and aesthetic purity.

D.    Music became a popular entertainment during the Classical era.

E.     Orchestral music became a favored venue for the new middle-class listeners.

1.     They found it more accessible than Italian opera.

Musical Example: Mozart, Don Giovanni, finale ensemble (1787)

2.     They found it more exciting and spectacular than chamber music.

Musical Example: Haydn, Op. 76, no. 3, first movement (1787) 

3.     They were attracted to big settings and big sound, which the symphony provided. 

Musical Example: Beethoven, Symphony no. 5, fourth movement opening (1808) 

V.     By 1800, the Classical-era symphony had become truly the province of the middle class. It owed much to Baroque opera.

A.    Baroque-era Italian-style overtures typically had three sections: fast -slow - fast. They were essentially homophonic and orchestral—they were often performed as separate concert entities. They provided the model for Classical-era symphonies. 

Musical Comparison:  

Handel, Saul, Overture (1739)  & Stamitz, Symphony in A Major, first movement (c. 1750) 

B.   Baroque dance suites provided the model for Classical-era minuet and trio. 

Musical Comparison:  

Lully, minuet and trio from The Temple ofPeace (1689)

Haydn, Symphony No. 88, third movement (1788) 

C.     Sonata-allegro form lies at the dramatic core of the Classical symphonic experience. It is an abstract rendering of an operatic scene.

The Solo Concerto 

Outline: We turn now to the Classical-era solo concerto, which fit perfectly the homophonic ideal of the Classical era.

A.    Technical developments during the Baroque era created resonant instruments capable of performing alone before an orchestra. The most important of these instruments were the violin and the piano.

B.    The violin/violin family were perfected in Cremona, Italy, during the Baroque era.

1.     By the late Baroque, the violae da braccio family had replaced the violae da gamba family.

2.     Da braccio instruments have thicker strings than da gamba instruments, as well as a soundpost and bass bar. As a result, they have a much fuller and richer sound and are better suited for instrumental music.

3.     The violin family includes the violin (soprano), the viola (alto), the violincello or ‘cello (tenor), and the contrabass or bass violin (bass).

4.     A series of violin-builders in Cremona brought these instruments to perfection: Nicola Amati (1596—1684), Antonio Stradivari (1640— 1737), and Giuseppe Guarneri (1687—1742).

C.    The piano (pianoforte/fortepiano) was invented by Bartolomeo Cristofori in Florence in 1709.

1.     It was originally called “Gravicembalo col pian eforte” (“big harpsichord with soft and loud”). That is, it can produce both loud and soft sounds.

2.     Pianos replaced harpsichords by c. 1800.

Musical Comparison:

Bach, C minor fugue, Well-Tempered Clavier Book I, (c. 1720)

Mozart, K 545, fortepiano (1788) 

II.     Mozart wrote twenty-seven piano concerti, seventeen of them during the Vienna years (1781—91). These concerti crystallized all that came before them and became the models for all those that followed. 

III.  Featured Music: Mozart, Piano Concerto no. 17, first movement (1784) 

A.    Mozart wrote this piece (including a cadenza) for his student Barbara Ployer.

B.    The movement is in double-exposition form.

1.     This form adapts sonata-allegro form to the medium of concerto.

2.   It was not Mozart’s invention but was brought to its artistic height by him.

3.     Double-exposition form features two separately composed expositions.

a.    In exposition I (tutti exposition), the orchestra plays the themes.

 b.    In exposition 2 (solo exposition), the soloist plays the themes.

c.    An extra, third theme is often reserved for the soloist.

d.    The themes typically do not modulate in exposition 1: modulation occurs instead in exposition 2.

 e.    The recapitulation becomes a composite of expositions 1 and 2.

4.   Mozart’s movement is a thematic tour de force in the “galant” style.