Some questions about music form

What are some basic music forms, and what exactly makes one different from the other?

I know almost NOTHING when it comes to music theory, I only know how to play it. ^^ I am working on writing it, and figure I should know some rules to start with, then go from there.

For instance, I hear stuff like sonata, rondo, dance, scherzo, fugue, requeim, etude... What are the major differences?

Thanks in advance. :happy:

BTW, yes I know I am dumb. :closedeyes:

lol another dumb question... What is a parallel fifth, and why are they so bad?

I can answer the second one, but I'm about as smart formwise as you.

Parallel fifths are when two voices move parallel, beginning a fifth apart and ending up a fifth apart. Say you've got D over G, and those notes move to C over F. That's taboo unless you mean it for effect (as is often the case in bass figures). Parallel octaves are similarly discouraged, although in piano literature open parallel octaves are often used to underline a melody. Also, in the orchestra, the piccolo often doubles an octave above the flute, and the contrabass an octave below the cello.

When these happen without your intent, they can detract from the quality of the passage they invade. Don't be afraid to use them when you want to, but watch out for them otherwise. Also, note that these only go for PERFECT fifths and octaves. Say you've got E over A moving up to F (not F#, it's diminished!) over B? That's allowed, the fifths aren't all perfect.

okay this is the difficult part of music. In my form and anaylsis class they show you over an intensive semester what some forms are...I shall sum up for you.

Sonata form- A famous form from about the late baroque to now. There is a theme presented in one key. it is usually the first thing you hear. From here it transitions to a new theme in a different tonal area or key. After that there is another transition and some other endings and things. This whole section is called the Exposition.

The next section is called the development and is often hazy and highly developmental. You will see composers going through many different keys and restating the melodies from the first and second tonal area(from the exposition) in new keys or new rhythms...there is usually a transition to each section of this development that takes you to the next key. this can go on forever.

The Recapitulation is the third and final part. In form it resembles the Exposition. In this section you here the first tonal area(from exposition) restated. Then you hear a similar transition to the second theme, only this time it stays in the tonic key (which is the first key and often mentioned in the title of the piece eg. Sonata in F major) then you hear some more little endings and sometimes a little tag at the end.

There is Sonata Form...

Requiem-This is another name for a mass, which is a movement of several sacred choral works. The form is unimportant, and each movement has the text that relates to it...some common movement titles are: Kyrie, Agnus Dei, Credo. All these are historically derived from the catholic mass and fit with the service. A requiem mass is one for a funeral. One touching mass is the Requiem by Gabriel Faure...Let me tell you there are few experiences in life that equal being a singer for this piece. i did it in a cathedral and at a protestant church.

Rondo- Basically the form looks like this ABACA this means that there are three sets of material all presented in this order. They can be in any key and often there are transitions between each of the sections. Another form of Rondo is the extended form ABACABA. The C section is typically te longest and the most highly developmental.

I hope this helps....

What are some basic music forms, and what exactly makes one different from the other?

Someone else just described some forms, and you can find more info on Wikipedia. Especially if you look up particular forms on Wikipedia, you'll get a lot of info.

I don't really see what the point is in having so many different formally-outlined forms, unless you're writing a period piece or something and you're taking style and all of that into account along with the form itself.

Tertiary forms, sonatas, scherzos, minuets, and everything else that can easily be fit into an overall A-B-A pattern, really don't have any major differences. With sonata, you're suggesting a pattern to your key changes. With scherzo, you're suggesting a smaller A-B-A within each larger A-B-A (as if, in sonata form, the exposition has a mini-development in the middle, and so would the actual development, and recap, too). Using any of these forms, you're obviously suggesting an order as to how you're presenting material, developing it, and then returning to it.

Rondos, binaries, and theme with variations are different. As Trombtar just pointed out, rondos can be represented by the sequence A-B-A-C-A-D-A-E... etc., or A-B-A-C-A-B, or even A-B-C-B-D-B (where the first section is not the actual rondo). Pretty much the main theme, then something else, then the main theme, then another something else. Binaries just have two major sections. I don't really understand how that works out, but alright. And then with theme with variations, you present a theme and then gradually morph it throughout the work, usually until it's something completely new and different, and then you might return to the original theme again. So theme with variations is sort of like one big development section.

Other "forms" are more just patterns or styles or whatever, and do not actually reflect the order in which material is presented (ie, chaconne). Fugues have some order in their exposition, and episodes like strettos, but that's about it. I don't know whether you could consider a fugue a form or not; I guess that's a more subjective thing.

The point of form (not of choosing this form or that form, but of form itself), is mainly just to make the music memorable. If your listener can't remember the material very well, then it's not going to be that big of a deal for him/her when you do something revelatory with it while developing it. I think that's why sonata form is so big: the exposition is typically very clearly organized, and then usually repeated for good measure, before anything else is done with the material. And even then, back in the classical period, even the developments often weren't very daring with the original material.

It all goes back to memory, and the pace at which you present new musical events. A good form presents things at just the right pace, without boring the listener, or overwhelming them.

If you want to learn form, then I suggest reading Schoenbergs ''fundamentals of music composition'' it takes you from absolute no-knowery to mastery! :unsure: Do you have MSN? I could send it to you (in pdf form of course).

I think this is a good e-book of music form:

http://www.musique.umontreal.ca/personnel/...n/bk/index.html

At the end, in the Glossary you have a description of some musical forms too.

Miguelio