BEETHOVEN'S TRANSCENDENCE OF THE ADDITIVE TENDENCY IN OPUS 34, OPUS 35 ...

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BEETHOVEN'S TRANSCENDENCE OF THE ADDITIVE
TENDENCY IN OPUS 34, OPUS 35, WERK
OHNE OPUSZAHL 80, AND OPUS 120
DISSERTATION
Presented to the Graduate Council of the
University of North Texas in Partial
Fulfillment of the Requirements
For the Degree of
DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY
By
Ernest J. Kramer, B.M., M.M.
Denton, Texas
December, 1989
OC.X
Kramer, Ernest J., Beethoven's Transcendence of the
Additive Tendency in Opus 34, Opus 35, Werk ohne Opuszahl
80, and Opus 120. Doctor of Philosophy (Music Theory),
December 1989, 442 pp., 12 tables, 322 examples,
bibliography, 82 titles.
The internal unity of the themes in a sonata-allegro
movement and the external unity of the movements in a sonata
cycle are crucial elements of Beethoven's compositional
aesthetic. Numerous theorists have explored these aspects
in Beethoven's sonatas, symphonies, quartets, and concertos.
Similar research into the independent variation sets for
piano, excluding Opus 120, has been largely neglected as the
result of three misconceptions: that the variation sets,
many of which were based on popular melodies of Beethoven's
time, are not as worthy of study as his other works; that
the type of hidden internal relationships which pervade the
sonata cycle are not relevant to the variation set since all
variations are, by definition, related to the theme; and
that variations were composed "additively," that is, one
after another, without any particular regard for their order
or relationship to one another.
The purpose of this study is to refute all three of
these incorrect assumptions. Beethoven was concerned with
the order of variations and their relationship to one
another, and he was able to transcend the additive tendency
in a number of ways. Some of his methods included registral
connection, registral expansion, rhythmic acceleration,
textural expansion, dynamics, articulation, and motivic
similarities.
Chapter I contains a discussion of the role of the
variation set in Beethoven's overall output. The teachers,
composers, and works which may have influenced him are also
discussed as well as his training in variation composition.
Finally, those factors which Beethoven employed to unify his
sets are listed and explained. Chapters II-V are devoted to
detailed analyses of four striking variation sets: Opus 34,
Opus 35, WoO 80, and Opus 120. Chapter VI presents a
summary of the findings. It suggests that each of the sets
investigated has a unique form and that each variation has a
distinct place and purpose.
Copyright by
Ernest J. Kramer
1989
TABLE OF CONTENTS
LIST OF TABLES v
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS vi
Chapter
I. BEETHOVEN AND THE VARIATION SET 1
II. SIX VARIATIONS IN F MAJOR,
OPUS 34 56
III. FIFTEEN VARIATIONS IN Eb MAJOR,
OPUS 35 116
IV. THIRTY-TWO VARIATIONS IN C MINOR,
WERK OHNE OPUSZAHL 80 197
V. THIRTY-THREE VARIATIONS IN C MAJOR,
OPUS 120 298
VI. CONCLUSIONS 425
BIBLIOGRAPHY 437
IV
LIST OF TABLES
Table Page
1-1. Beethoven's independent variation sets for piano . . 5
2-1. Opus 34, links and cross-references 112
3-1. Opus 35, the overall form and grouping 192
3-2. Opus 35, links and cross-references . . . . . .. 193
4-1. WoO 80, links and cross-references 292
5-1. Opus 120, sectional divisions suggested by
previous analyses 301
5-2. Opus 120, sectional divisions suggested by the
analysis presented in Chapter V 417
5-3. Opus 120, links and cross-references . . . . . .. 419
6-1. Opus 34, different structural levels 428
6-2. Opus 35, the various subgroups found in the
first group (Introduction through
Variation VII) 429
6-3. WoO 80, the overall structure 430
6-4. Opus 120, the overall structure 431
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
Example Page
1-1. Heinichen, a passage and its underlying
structure 16
1-2. Opus 120, measure 1 of Variation XI and XII
displaying the melodic turn motive 16
1-3. Opus 120, measure 1 of Variation IV and V
displaying the rhythmic short-short-long
motive 17
1-4. WoO 80, Variations I-III, measure 1 18
1-5. Opus 35, measure 1 of the Basso del Thema
(1 voice), A_ due (2 voices), A_ tre
(3 voices), A. quattro (4 voices), and
the Thema (7 voices) 19
1-6. Opus 57, second movement, measure 1, 17, 33,
49, 71, displaying an upward registral
expansion 20
1-7. Opus 35, measure 1 of the Basso del Thema,
the Thema, Variation I, and Variation II
displaying rhythmic acceleration 21
1-8. WoO 80. Measure 1 of Variations I and II
displaying common articulation and touch . . . 22
1-9. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Sonata in F, K. 332,
movement I, measures 5-8 displaying two
rhythmic strata 24
1-10. WoO 80, the link formed by the secondary rhythmic
stratum in measure 6 of Variation V and the
primary rhythmic stratum in measure 1 of
Variation VI . . .. 24
1-11. WoO 80, measure 1 of Variations X and XI
displaying an exchange of parts 25
1-12. WoO 80, measure 1 of Variations XV and XVI
displaying the retention of one voice
while another is varied 26
vi
1-13. WoO 80, measure 1 of Variations VII and VIII
displaying the retention of one voice while
another is replaced 26
1-14. WoO 80, measures 5-8 of the theme and 1-2 of
Variation I displaying the registral
connection of a to g 28
1-15. Opus 34, measure 6 of the theme and measure
2 of Variation I displaying invariance . . .. 29
1-16. Opus 35, measure 24 of Variation VI and measure 1
of Variation VII 30
1-17. Mozart, Ah, vous dirai-je, Maman, theme,
measure 23; Variations I and II, measure 1 . . 41
1-18. Mozart, Ah, vous dirai-je, Maman, measures
1-8 of Variations VIII and IX 43
1-19. Haydn, Arietta con Variationi in A major:
(a) measure 16 of Variation VII and measure
1 of Variation VIII; (b) measures 15-16
of Variation VIII and measure 1 of
Variation IX 47
1-20. Haydn, Arietta con Variationi in A major, a
comparison of measures 11-16 of Variation XII
and measures 1-3 of Variation XIII 48
1-21. Haydn, Arietta con Variationi in A major,
measure 1-2 of Variations III and IV 49
2-1. A Schenkerian interpretation of key
relationships in Opus 34 58
2-2. Opus 34, theme, measures 1 and 9 63
2-3. Opus 34, theme, measure 1; Variation I,
measures 5-6; Variation VI, measures 57-59 . . 64
2-4. Opus 34, Variation I, measures 3-6 65
2-5. Opus 34, the enharmonically-equivalent diminished
seventh chords between variation pairs . . .. 66
2-6. Opus 34, theme, a metric reduction 67
2-7. Opus 34, the rhythmic motive in Variations
II, IV, V, and VI 68
VII
2-8. Opus 34, theme, measure 4; Variation I,
measures 7 and 12; Variation IV, measures
4 and 21-23; Variation VI, measures 3-4 . .. 69
2-9. Opus 34, Variation VI, measure 13 70
2-10. Opus 34, the connection between measures
21-22 of the Thema and measure 1
of Variation I 71
2—11. Opus 34, Variation I, a metric reduction 73
2-12. Opus 34, Variation I, measures 1-2 and 15-16 . .. 75
2-13. Opus 34, Variation I, measures 1-4 75
2-14. Opus 34, Variation I, the turn in measures
1-2 and 3 76
2-15. Opus 34, Variation I, measures 19-20 77
2-16. Opus 34, Variation I, measure 17 77
2-17. Opus 34, Variation I, measure 21 78
2-18. Opus 34, the connection of Variations I-IV
by using d as a common-tone and as a
leading-tone 79
2-19. Opus 34, measure 8 of Variation II and
measure 7 of Variation III 79
2-20. Opus 34, Variation II, measures 1-2, 5-6,
15-16, and 19-20 80
2-21. Opus 34, Variation II, measures 9-14 82
2-22. Opus 34, Variation II, measures 6 and 20-21 . .. 82
2-23. Opus 34, Variation III, measures 8-10 83
2-24. Opus 34, Variation III, measures 12-13 .84
2-25. Opus 34, Variation III, measure 4 84
2-26. Opus 34, the e^ link between
Variations III and IV 85
2-27. Opus 34, the central position of Variation IV . . 86
2-28. Opus 34, Variation IV, measures 1-4 . . . . . . . 87
viii
2-29. Opus 34, measures 1-2 of the Thema and
Variation IV 88
2-30. Opus 34, Variation IV, measures 1-4 88
2-31. Opus 34, Variation IV, measures 19-22 89
2-32. Opus 34, Variation IV, measures 9-13 90
2-33. Opus 34, Variation IV, measures 15-22 91
2-34. Opus 34, Variation IV, a metric reduction . . .. 92
2-35. Opus 34, Variation V, measures 4 and 6 95
2-36. Opus 34, Variation V, measures 2 and 9 . . . . . .95
2-37. Opus 34, Variation V, measures 12-14 96
2-38. Opus 34, Variation V, measures 19-22 . . 96
2-39. Opus 34, Variation V, measure 23-28 97
2-40. Opus 34, Variation V, a metric reduction 98
2-41. Opus 34, measures 1-2 of Variations V and VI . . 100
2-42. Opus 34, a comparison of measure 2 of
Variations II and VI 101
2-43. Opus 34, Variation VI, measures 12-13 102
2-44. Opus 34, Variation VI, measures 14-15 102
2-45. Opus 34, Variation VI, measures 17-18 102
2-46. Opus 34, Variation VI, a metric reduction . . .. 104
2-47. Opus 34, Variation VI, measures 29-30 . . . . .. 106
2-48. Opus 34, Variation VI, measures 34-39 106
2-49. Opus 34, Adagio molto, measures 3-5 107
2-50. Opus 34, Adagio molto, measures 18-20 109
2-51. Opus 34, Adagio molto, measures 9-10 109
2-52. Opus 34, Adagio molto, measures 21-25,
the registral isolation and resolution
of bb2 110
IX