Modal Mixture Resource

Yale University Department of Music
Modal Mixture and Schubert's Harmonic Practice

Author(s): David W. Beach and Franz Schubert
Source: Journal of Music Theory, Vol. 42, No. 1 (Spring, 1998), pp. 73-100
Published by: Duke University Press on behalf of the Yale University Department of Music
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MODAL MIXTURE AND
SCHUBERT'S HARMONIC PRACTICE*
David W. Beach
Describing
the harmonic
practice
of
any composer,
but
especially
a
composer
like Franz
Schubert,
is a
daunting
task,
and for this reason the
focus of this
study
is limited to a
particular
feature of his
style-modal
mixture. To avoid
any
confusion,
let me
digress briefly
to define
exactly
what is meant
by
that term: It refers to the
borrowing
of elements from
the
parallel
mode,
for
example,
the
borrowing
of elements from A minor
in a
passage
or
composition
in A
major,
or vice versa. Music of the
eight-
eenth
century
abounds with
examples,
most obvious
being
those involv-
ing
a
change
in the
quality
of the tonic
chord,
for
example
the common
practice
of
ending
a
composition
in the minor mode with a
major
har-
mony
or,
at a
larger
level,
the
ending
of a
composition
with an extended
passage
or movement in the
parallel major
mode,
as one
finds,
for exam-
ple,
in Beethoven's Fifth
Symphony.
Of
particular significance
to this
study
is
borrowing
in the other
direction,
that
is,
the
borrowing
in a
major
key
from the
parallel
minor mode. Once
again,
if we
approach
this his-
torically,
one can find numerous
examples
in the literature
ranging
from
simple borrowing-for example,
the local
employment
of a
harmony
from the
parallel
minor
mode,
typically
the minor subdominant or altered
supertonic (both involving t6)
for local "color"-to more extended
pas-
sages. Typically,
more extended excursions into the
parallel
minor mode
73
"Neapolitan"
Diatonic Modal Mixture
(parallel minor)
Si
bII(bi) ii
iii
biii
IV iv
V
v
vi
( D
6vi
VII(vii) b VII b vii
Table
1.
Modal mixture
(major tonic)
found in works of
Haydn
and Mozart are
accomplished through
a
change
in the
quality
of the tonic
harmony. Only
with Beethoven do we find the
dramatic
juxtaposition
of
major
mode with
passages
related to the
paral-
lel
minor,
typically 6III
and
?VI.
One can trace a direct
lineage
of this
practice
from
Haydn
and Mozart
through
Beethoven to Schubert.
The
significance
of modal
borrowing
on Schubert's
style
has been
noted
by
several
authors,
including
Donald Francis
Tovey.
Table
1,
which
outlines
borrowings
from the minor
mode,
is
adopted
from his
article,
"Tonality
in Schubert."' The center column lists those harmonies or
keys
closely
related to the
major
tonic,
which I have
placed
in a
square
to
emphasize
it as the focal
point.
To the
right
are listed chords or
key
areas
related to the minor tonic.2 I have circled 6III and bVI because of their
importance
to the
pieces
we will be
examining
as well as to the
topic
in
general.
To the left of the center column are the
"Neapolitan"
or
Phrygian
relationships,
which,
in deference to
Tovey,
I have extended to the
triad/key
a half
step
below the tonic as well as
above,
since one does on
occasion find that
relationship expressed
in Schubert's music. Not in-
cluded in this chart are those chords
arising
from the combination of
t6
with
~--the
augmented
sixth
chords,
but I mention this chromatic-
modal inflection in
passing
here because the so-called German form of
that
harmony plays
an
important
role in one of the
pieces
we will be
examining.
The remainder of this
study
will be divided into two
parts.
The first
will examine
aspects
of modal mixture as
expressed
in four short
piano
pieces: (1)
the Moment musical
op.
94
(D.780),
no.
2; (2)
the
Impromptu
op. posth.
142
(D. 935),
no.
2; (3)
the
Impromptu op.
90
(D. 899),
no.
2;
and
(4)
the Moment musical
op
94,
no. 6. The succession is from rela-
tively simple
to more
complex,
from instances of modal mixture at more
immediate levels to those
operating
at
deeper
levels of structure. The sec-
ond
part
of the
paper
will examine the
opening
77 measures from the first
74
movement of the
String Quartet
in G
Major (D. 887),
where modal mix-
ture
pervades multiple
levels of the structure from the surface to under-
lying voice-leading patterns.
Four Short
Keyboard
Works
Moment Musical no. 2
The
opening
section
(mm. 1-17)
of the Moment musical
op.
96/2 in
Ab major
is
provided
in
Example
1. As indicated
by
the Roman numerals
on the
score,
this section is divided into two
periods,
each of which is sub-
divided into two
phrases.
An
important
feature of the initial
phrase
is the
prolongation
of
3,
supported by
tonic
harmony, by
its
neighbor
note,
both
at the local and
larger
levels. The second
phrase,
which
prolongs
the dom-
inant,
is divided into two
segments.
A feature of the first of these is the
prolongation
of 2
by
its
upper neighbor
note
cb,
the lowered third of the
scale. The
subsequent part
takes one
step
further in the direction of modal
mixture
by altering
the
prolonged
dominant itself
(gb
in
place
of
gb),
which is
corrected,
so to
speak, only
at the
very
end of the
phrase.
The
initial
phrase
of the second
period
functions
exactly
like its
counterpart
in the first
period,
as does the initial
part
of the final
phrase.
However,
the
motion of the remainder of this final
phrase
no
longer
extends the domi-
nant,
as it did
before,
but is redirected to the
subdominant,
a
process
that
results in the extension of the
phrase by
a full bar. The structural function
of the subdominant
harmony
is to
provide
consonant
support
for the all-
important db.
The
subsequent
section
(mm. 18-35),
which is written in
the
key
of F# minor
(=
Gb
minor or
bvii)
further
prolongs
the
upper neigh-
bor note before its return to
c?(3) supported by
tonic
harmony
in m. 35.
A score of mm. 35-47
(most
of the A'
section)
is
provided
in Exam-
ple
2. The
portion
of this section that is of interest to us is the
expansion
of the final
part
of
phrase
2,
beginning
with the
upbeat
to m. 42. This
pas-
sage-what Tovey
would have referred to as a
"purple patch"-is
an
excursion into the
key
of
Cb
major
(blII).
The motion to
Cb
is never com-
pleted
and instead is redirected to the tonic
supporting
scale
degree
3
(c?),
from which
point
the
phrase progresses
to closure. Note that in the final
approach
to the cadence Schubert makes a
point
of
reiterating
the
ft-fb
exchange
(?6-b6)--circled
in the score to
highlight
them-characteristic
of the earlier excursion toward
Cb (m. 42).
Impromptu op.
142,
no. 2
The first
part (mm. 1-16)
of the
Impromptu
in
Ab,
op.
142,
no.
2,
is
clearly
divided into four-measure
phrases,
which establish a
very
clear
quadruple hypermeter.
This characteristic four-measure
grouping
contin-
75
I
phrase
I
Andantino
phrase
2
4
_ _ _ _
___ia__
I
II
phrase
1
ephrase
2
p
5
lET
i2 up
\0r -/
77\
Example
1. Moment musical
op.
96,
no. 2: 1-17
16
. U. k JI- 11-N M--,
I.- h v ff -f!
1
4,.M
r -U1
r-
4= PE F2
-
6""
I
2".,7
I
pp
Example
1
(continued)
ues after the double bar. The first of these
groups prolongs
the tonic har-
mony,
and in the second
group
the subdominant is
prolonged by
its minor
subdominant,
a
harmony
borrowed from the
parallel
minor mode. Look-
ing
ahead,
we can see that the remainder of this
passage
consists of
six,
not four or
eight
measures,
which
suggests
the
possibility
that these six
are either an
expansion
of the established four-measure norm or a con-
traction of
eight.
I believe the latter is the case.
Beginning
in m.
25,
Schu-
bert restates the minor subdominant of the subdominant
(biv6
of
IV),
and
then transforms it into an
augmented
sixth
chord,
setting up
the
expecta-
tion of its resolution. Instead he omits this resolution and
skips directly
to the minor subdominant in first inversion
(that is,
the minor subdomi-
nant in the
original key), creating
a
longer
connection between mm. 21
and 27. This
Db
minor
harmony
is now transformed into an
augmented
sixth
chord,
which this time resolves as
expected
to the dominant in
preparation
for the return to the
opening
material.
An
interpretation
of the
Impromptu
is
provided
in
Figure
1.
I
will not
comment on the a
section,
but rather will focus
my
comments on the
pas-
sage beginning
in m. 17. The bottom
system provides
a detailed account
of the
harmony,
voice
leading,
and metric
organization
of this b section.
Note that I have taken the
liberty
of
adding
two
measures,
placed
in
brackets between mm. 26 and
27,
providing
a
hypothetical
resolution of
the
augmented
sixth chord above the
Bbb,
which is
equivalent
to the res-
olution of the same
harmony
above
Fb(biv6)
that
actually
occurs two mea-
sures later.
Schubert,
of
course,
does not follow this
path,
but instead
omits those two measures and
skips directly
to the minor subdominant in
first inversion in the
original key.
There are at least two
important
results
of this omission. First it isolates and thus
emphasizes
the
harmony
above
the
Bbb,
which,
as we shall
see,
has
significance
in the Trio.
Second,
by
omitting
the
intervening
dominant,
the overall
progression
of mm. 21-27
is
I-$iv6_i6
in the
key
of the
subdominant,
expanding
the harmonic con-
tent of mm. 21-24. As shown in the middle
system
of
Figure
1,
the voice
leading
of mm. 21-27 is framed
by
a chromatic voice
exchange
connect-
77
L7
. - .
_. -_
-.0
39
5
,6
6
42
6 5
6 4 3
114
[V] IV V
(
3
bIII
(C )
44
cresc.
) [V6] VI
6 5
5 6
-
I
114 b
V I
Example
2. Moment musical
op.
96,
no. 2: 36-47
ing
the subdominant of mm. 21-24 with the first inversion of the same
harmony
borrowed from the minor mode.
Furthermore,
as
noted,
the sub-
dominant
harmony
is
prolonged by
its subdominant borrowed from the
minor
mode,
which contributes to the "dark" color of this
passage.
My
comments on the trio of this
Impromptu
will be limited to its rela-
tionship
to the
passage
we have
just
examined,
(See Figure
2,
which is
my interpretation
of its
larger
harmonic
organization,
voice
leading,
and
metric
scheme.)
The most obvious
connection,
of
course,
is the
expan-
sion of the subdominant from its
important
role in mm. 17 ff. to become
the
key
of the trio. As shown in
Figure
2,
the trio
opens
with a four-mea-
sure
phrase prolonging
the
Db
harmony.
What
begins
as a
repeat
of this
phrase
an octave
higher
is
expanded
to 8 measures
leading
to local clo-
sure. One
expects
a
return
to a
point
of
stability
at the
asterisk,
but instead
the motion is forced
beyond
that
point by
the
harmony
and
accompany-
ing suspensions.
The next
phrase, beginning
in m.
59,
restates the
open-
ing
material in the
parallel
minor
mode,
recalling
the
change
of the
Db
harmony
that had occurred earlier. From this
point
the
harmony pro-
gresses
to a
Bbb major
chord
(written by
Schubert as an A
major chord),
which is
repeated
several times before
moving
to a minor subdominant
harmony
(Gb
minor
chord)
in
preparation
for the dominant and
return
of
the
opening
material. Use of this
Bbb/A
major harmony,
which is shown
to function as the middle member of a
descending progression by
thirds
connecting
the tonic and subdominant in the minor
mode,
recalls the
minor six-three chord above
Bbb
that
played
such an
important subsidiary
role in mm. 21-27.
Overall, then,
the trio
expands
the
modally
inflected
subdominant,
and
along
the
way
makes clear reference to the
important
foreign
element of the earlier
part,
the
Bbb.
Impromptu op.
90,
no. 2
Another work in which modal mixture
figures prominently
is the
Impromptu
in
Eb,
op.
90,
no. 2. Unlike the two works
just
discussed,
this
impromptu
features mixture at the macro-level-as an extended
key
area-as well as at the
phrase
level. The
key
area of the middle section is
bvi
(written
as B minor rather than
Cb
minor for ease in
reading),
which
is the
modally
altered submediant of the
parallel
minor mode. We will
return
to this
point
later
on,
but meanwhile it is worth
noting
the rela-
tionship
of the overall harmonic
motion,
including
this
modally
altered
submediant,
to the work's
ternary design.
A B retrans. A
I/i
bvi
V I/i
An
interpretation
of the voice
leading,
metric
scheme,
and overall
harmonic
organization
of the
opening part (mm. 1-82)
is
provided
in
79
A A
9
F
-
SA A A
Anstieg
IT
a. .
.I
S
2 3 4, 2 3
4.
repeat bars 1-4 4. 47
octave higher 1
2
S6
3 A
3
N
1.2.3
4
.
1 1
--3
4,
1 3 3 4.
6. N
5(ii 43 7V7)
A:
16
IV6-----------------
-------- V6
5
I V65
3313
4A
A
b,_--
a,
1
2
3 4,
2 3 4,
'
2 3 4,
1
2 3 4 bars
1-4: 3 4.
10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10
1,1
iN 6
Db: (I
6iv6
I
biv6
46
Vb6
5 i6
Ab: 16
IV
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
iv6
!6
V6
5
I
ii4 V6 5 I
Figure
1.
Impromptu op.
142,
no. 2
A A A A
S3
*2
1
a
407
N;
1 2 3
4,
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Db(IV):
I
I vi ii V I
A
A
8va _ _ -------------------------------------A A
s
(2)
1
N
1 2 3
4,
1
2 3 4 6 7 8
at
1 2 3
4,
1 2 3 4
...
1 2 3
4,
1
repeat
---
o
! ... ... . . ...
, ,
3
rV6 ivb V I
retransition
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
8,
1
-'
Lt
op
op
Figure
2.
Impromptu op.
142,
no. 2: Trio
A
N N
'1 3 4 5 6 7 8. 1
]3
4 5 6 7 8. repeat bars 1-8
2< 2 octave
higher
4 6 6 4 6 6
3 5 3 5
S 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11.
1 2 3 4
5 6 7 8. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
A A
633L
43
b
N N N
6
6,7--7
7-
-------7
75
V -
,
,
8v___77
7
1---------------
bVV87
6 6 -
v
Figure
3.
Impromptu op.
90,
no.
2,
A section
Figure
3.
The form is
ternary.
The first section consists of three
eight-
measure
phrases,
each of which closes on the
tonic,
with the last
being
written in a
higher register.
The
contrasting
section is written in the
par-
allel minor
mode,
reminiscent in
many ways
to what one finds in the works
of
Haydn
and Mozart. The overall tonal motion is
i-bII-V,
the first two
harmonies
supporting
b3
and the last its
upper uneighbor
note,
which
pre-
pares
the
return
of
03
and the
major
tonic
harmony.
Note that the first
phrase
of this middle section is
11
measures in
length,
created
by
the addi-
tion of a three-measure cadential
pattern
to an
eight-measure
circular
pro-
gression by
fifth,
where each
harmony occupies
a written measure. The
final section
(a')
consists of two
phrases,
the first of which
repeats
the
opening eight
measures of the
piece.
The second
phrase
is
enlarged
from
eight
to
eighteen
measures in
length,
first
by
an
internal
expansion
of the
subdominant
(whereby
the subdominant in first inversion is transformed
into a
supertonic
chord in six-three
position)
and
by repeating
what is des-
ignated
as measures
6,7,
and 8 twice in lower
registers, confirming
the
close of the section and the modal shift back to the
parallel
minor. This
is followed
immediately by
a motion to
bill
(mm. 81-82),
which functions
this time as dominant of
Cb/B?,
the
key
of the middle
part (B)
of the
impromptu.
Figure
4
provides
an overview of the tonal motion of the
coda, which,
as one would
expect,
combines and
juxtaposes
features of the two
major
sections of the
piece.
The initial
phrase,
which is
subsequently repeated
an octave
higher, opens
with a clear reference to the B
section,
both with
respect
to motivic
gesture
and
harmony,
the latter
giving way
almost
immediately
to the tonic. The overall harmonic
motion,
bvi-V-I,
supports
a reminiscence of the descent to closure from
b3.
This
gesture,
borrowed
from the
parallel
minor
mode,
is reinforced in the
subsequent phrases.
Note also the descent to closure from the
important covering
tone
bb (5)
in mm. 267-270
ff.,
indicated in the sketch
by
short-stemmed notes.
Figure
5
provides
an overview of the
harmony and
voice
leading
of
this
impromptu.
The
interchange
between
g
and
gb
(?3
and
b3)
plays
an
important role,
the latter
receiving support
first from the minor tonic and
later
by
bvi,
the
key
area of the B section. The
covering pitch bb (5)
also
plays
an
important
role. The main melodic
gesture
of the B section
pro-
longs
its upper neighbor
note,
covering
the reintroduction of the
primary
tone
(3) by
its
upper neighbor
note,
ab.
Because there are some interest-
ing parallels
between this work and the second movement of the Piano
Sonata in
Bb
(D. 960), I
have
provided
a sketch of the latter in
Figure
6
for
comparison.3
There
are,
of
course,
important
differences. The move-
ment from the
piano
sonata is written in the minor mode
(but
ends in the
major!),
whereas the
impromptu
involves mixture of the minor within the
contest of a
controlling major key.
And the movement from the
piano
sonata
prolongs
5
until the final
descent,
whereas the
primary
tone of the
83
8va --
A
A
A A A
Coda
2
1N2
2 34 5 6
7 8
repeat r
2 3 4
repeat...
etc.
6
W6
5
4 3
c6:
i V
Eb: bvi V i V i
Figure
4.
Impromptu op.
90, no.
2, Coda
impromptu
is 3. But note the
similarity
in the overall harmonic
motion,
where,
in both
cases,
the submediant is the
controlling key
area of the B
sections. And in each a
covering pitch
of the
primary
tone
plays
an
important
role in the outer
sections,
but
particularly
in the middle section
where it
temporarily
assumes a
primary
role.
Moment musical no. 6
The final short
piano piece
to be
examined,
the Moment musical
op.
94,
no.
6,
provides
fertile
ground
to illustrate several
important
matters
related to Schubert's treatment of
harmony,
modal
mixture,
voice
leading
and motivic
expansion, hypermeter,
and
phrase expansion.
An
interpre-
tation of the voice
leading, harmony,
and metric
organization
is
provided
in
Figure
7.
The A section
(mm. 1-16)
is divided into two
eight-measure phrases,
the first
ending
on the dominant and the answer
leading
to closure. I
bring
your
attention to a
particular
feature of the initial
phrase,
the
superimpo-
sition above the main melodic line of the
f2-eb2 dyad
in mm.
2-4,
which
is
highlighted
in
Figure
7
by
a bracket since this idea
plays
an
important
role later in the
piece.
In
fact,
it is
repeated
almost
immediately
in varied
and
expanded
form in the next
phrase.
This
passage (mm. 10-12) pro-
vides the focus for a
very interesting
article
by
Edward
Cone,4
who refers
to this motion toward F minor
(the submediant)
as Schubert's
"promisory
note." The idea is that this
motion,
which is not
completed
here,
must
eventually
be
realized,
just
as a
promisory
note must
eventually
be
paid-
a wonderful
analogy.
It is Cone's contention that this
promise
is fulfilled
in mm. 48-9 with the F minor chord in first inversion. The
problem
with
this
interpretation,
it seems to
me,
is that we do not hear this chord as an
independent harmony
but as an extension
(involving
an
implied
5-6
motion)
of the
preceding
tonic
harmony-a
reference to the
covering
f2-
eb2
motive
of mm.
2-3,
which here is extended.
Perhaps
Cone makes too
much of the unfulfilled motion toward the submediant in mm. 10-12.
Another
way
to
interpret
the C
major harmony
here is that it
provides
con-
sonant
support
for the chromatic
passing
tone e4 within an
expanded
state-
ment of the
f2-eb2
covering
motive,
as I have indicated in
Figure
7.
The initial
phrase
of the B section
opens
with an
augmented
sixth
chord,
which is transformed into a
supertonic harmony
in six-five
posi-
tion
by
means of a chromatic voice
exchange (where
d? becomes
db)
before
progressing
to the dominant.
Clearly,
we have moved into the
realm of the
parallel
minor,
and our
expectation
as the
answering phrase
begins
is that this will be confirmed. Instead Schubert redirects the
motion toward the lowered submediant
(Fb
major,
which is rewritten as
E
major). Though
this
key
is confirmed
by
a
strong
cadence and an
accompanying
descent to closure from
bk,
which
enharmonically equals
85
A A
8
3
8 86
N N
:
A B A etc.
Eb: I bvi V7 I
Figure
5.
Impromptu op.
90,
no.
2,
Coda
A A
5 N
6
A B A' etc.
r5
(A:
I IV
[V]
vi
c#:
i
VI iv V7 i
Figure
6. Piano Sonata in B 6
(D. 960), II
Reproduced by permission
of the
University
of Rochester Press
b3
in the main
key,
the
stability
of the E
major harmony
is undermined
by
our
memory
of the
harmony
that initiated both this and the
preceding
phrase-the augmented
sixth chord with the
dA. Perhaps
this
chord,
with
its
potential
dual
function,
is the real
promisory
note,
a
point
to which we
will return later.
There are some
interesting
issues
regarding
the metric
organization
in
this and
subsequent phrases.
First,
this
phrase (the
one
leading
to the
cadence on
E)
is nine rather than
eight
measures in
length,
the result
being
that the
goal harmony
falls on an accented measure in the
hyper-
metric
scheme, which,
as indicated in
Figure
7,
results in successive
downbeat measures in
conjunction
with the
following confirming phrase.
Second,
note that this
confirming phrase
and its
repetition
are each three
measures in
length-a temporary
shift in the
hypermeter
from the
pre-
vailing duple/quadruple
to
triple.
The
quadruple hypermeter
is reinstated
in the
following phrase (the beginning
of the
retransition),
where the
86
harmony
is redirected once
again
to the dominant
(in
Ab) by
means of the
addition of the
all-important
d? to the
Fb harmony, creating
another
aug-
mented sixth chord. The return to
quadruple hypermeter
is confirmed in
the
following phrase,
which ends on a tonic
harmony,
but note that the
final
phrase
of the retransition is six measures in
length,
which I
interpret
as an
expansion
of four
resulting
from a
written-out
ritardando. One more
matter
regarding
this transition needs to be addressed before we move
on,
namely
the function of the tonic
harmony
in mm. 46-47.
Certainly
it
confirms the return to the
major
mode,
but it
hardly qualifies
as the struc-
tural return to the tonic
harmony.
Rather it seems to function more in a
passing capacity,
as a means of
introducing
the
connecting
dominant and
the reintroduction of the
db neighbor
note
by
means of the motivic third
f-eb-db in mm. 50-53.
The initial
phrase
of the return
(A')
is an exact
repeat
of the
opening
eight
measures.
However,
several
interesting things happen
in the conse-
quent phrase.
First,
Schubert reintroduces in the
opening gesture
the
fb
and the
passing
cb,
elements of the
parallel
minor
mode,
a
gesture
that he
repeats immediately,
as if to confirm that
something
momentous,
perhaps
even
ominous,
is about to
happen.
He does not
disappoint
us,
though
I
doubt we are
prepared
for the sudden outburst that
follows,
which I have
shown
structurally
as a
parenthetical
insertion
(an expansion)
of an
underlying eight
measure
phrase.
This
aside,
which is introduced
fortis-
simo on the third beat of the
measure,
as if to
emphasize
its violent intru-
sion,
opens
with a
V4
of
bII, enharmonically
the same
chord,
though
in
different
position,
as the
augmented
sixth chord that
opened
the initial
two
phrases
of the B section. Here
finally
the full
implications
of this har-
mony
are
realized,
its
promisory
note
paid
in
full,
to borrow Ed Cone's
analogy.
This
V4
of
b6lI
moves on to the
Phrygian
II
(here
rewritten as an
A
major
chord instead of
Bbb)
on its
ways
to the dominant in mm. 69-70.
Instead of
closing,
the intrusion is
repeated
in a lower
register,
which
finally
leads to
closure,
now in the minor mode and in a much darker
reg-
ister than at the
beginning,
in mm. 74-77.
String Quartet
in G
(D. 887),
I:
mm. 1-77
As was noted
above,
the
opening
section of the first movement from
the G
Major Quartet (D.887)
exhibits modal mixture at
multiple
levels
from the surface to
underlying voice-leading patterns.
A score of the first
seventy-seven
measures with some
analytic
additions is
provided
in
Example
3. The movement
opens
with an
introductory phrase
of fourteen
measures which sets out the basic
premises-the
motivic
material,
har-
monic
motion,
and also the mood-of the movement. Note that the
open-
ing gesture (mm. 1-3)
involves modal mixture-the direct
change
from
major
to minor tonic
harmony.
Also
important
to this movement is the
87
A
3A
A A
__
-
'
chromatic
note
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8, 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8.
? N
7 6 6 - 6
6
7 8
45 96
5
5 64 3 3 4 4 3 5
4 4
33
3
3 4 3
1 3 4 5 27 8, 1 2 " 3 4
4l6 6 7 6
'6
1
4
3 416
66 67 6 6
54 5 5 4 6 i4
+6ii V
5
repeat
5th
1w5 6
7,
1. 1 2 3. 1 2 3.
-ru.
E(,VI):
V6-
-7 6 5
I 4- -5 4 3
Figure
7.
Moment
musical
op.
94,
no. 6
A
A A
retransition
____(_ _1_
(
,
repeat
1 2 3 4,
1 2 3
4,
1 2 3 - 4 - bars 1-8 1 2 3 4
--.....
"
.
...
+6 4
3 7
7
6
5 7
3
5
3
5
4
(5)
6 7 5
Ab: I V I I ii
(
A A A
(18)
-
1
(6 3)
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 5 6 7 8.
4
2 6 4 4 6
4 6 4 4 6
3 3 2 3 3 6 5
[V] N6
V46 [V] N6
V4 3
IV
N
V4 3,
Figure
7
(continued)
Introductory
Phrase
Allegro
molto moderato
Violin I
-
Violin
II p,
- -
-2
3 4 -
3
"
4a -
P
PP
---
p.
[
p
MIR
1
ff
V
Example
3.
String Quartet
in G
Major (D.887),
I: 1-77
Var. 1
Var.
2
(aug.)
t t.
-I
~' "L= f
Example
3
(continued)
L IW L( IMJ6sc
cresc.
IransI
S k
..... .
-
I
'"
" ... . f "c.
,j
~6
if
fa
"t - _p _
I
,,
_. -
, "
I
?
I
"t
~6P JS Jlrcres c.
V,
I
Jiml
I
IPi
. , .iv
ED

]f
I
J
I~)
f i
- ..
,
??IITI ?i I,1-I
5( 5 5
"
.
trans.
.
. . .
..
.
. .=
=iWI?c
I
' r
Js c
.
i
F F
O.....
ff
c
I
resc9......
,L , , ,it:
A 4:;b .L .0 AD LdI
"'0930
1
-,"
? ?
I
"
I
"F "
F_
-
I
F.
o=
I I
-
r r
-
r r
- -
r
.
"
6m" "
-'-"
-
-'o-'! '
mo m
'F r"TI
cresc.
ff
ff
fr::.....
Example
3
(continued)
(
Idea 2
f.
, cresc,

".
?am'.-
I
I
wI."
deresc. resc.
p11
__ _deresc. resc. pP
"I
I 1
7.

c"decrec, crsc.pp
]He'%ul-11
TI11,
Ir
INK.."!
"-9
o-p
"
-"a
P" '
J
"

decrec, crsc.PP
.

decres, cres.
sc1
Example
3
(continued)
A
29, 29 29 etc.
5
I V
Figure
8.
String Quartet (D. 887), I:
15-21
descending
chromatic tetrachord from tonic to
dominant,
which is not
stated
explicitly
in this
opening phrase,
but
emerges
as a
primary
idea in
the
following phrase.
The
connecting
lines added to the score show how
this
component
is buried in the texture until the end of the
phrase,
where
the
eb-d
(&6-5)
is
repeated
in the
top part.
Note the
juxtaposition
of this
gesture
with the
e-d,
the
major
mode
counterpart,
in the
following
phrase,
occurrences of which are also
highlighted by
brackets in the
score.
Finally,
note that the fourteen measures of the
opening phrase
are
divided into metric
groups
of
5, 5,
and
4,
where the 5-bar
groups
are cre-
ated
by
extension of an
underlying pattern
of four followed
by
what
might
be characterized
by
an "echo" bar.
Particularly
the final
group
(mm. 11-14)
established
clearly
the
underlying duple-quadruple hyper-
meter which is continued in the
following phrases.
The
descending
chromatic
tetrachord,
implicit
in the
introductory
phrase, emerges
as a
primary component (as
the bass
line)
in the first idea
(mm. 15-23).
Because of the
grouping
and
hypermetric
structure result-
ing
from the
repetition
of the motive in the first violin
part,
we hear the
underlying pattern
as the
descending
tetrachord from the minor mode
(G-FO-Eb-D),
as shown in
Example
3 and
Figure
8. The latter shows that
the voice
leading
of this
phrase
is a 5-6
sequence
above the chromatic
descent,
which
mitigates
an
underlying pattern
in
parallel
fifths. The
melodic descent is stated
explicitly
in the lower
register (viola part)
but
is obscured somewhat in the
top part by
the
repeated
motivic
figure,
which,
as
already
noted,
articulated
--5"
in direct contrast to
&-5"
that is
repeated
at the close of the
introductory phrase.
The
juxtaposition
of ele-
ments of the
major
and minor modes is not
only
successive
(introductory
phrase
to idea
1)
but simultaneous
(violin
motive vs.
underlying
bass
pat-
tern)
in this second
phrase.
What follows are two variations of idea
1,
rounding
out the first tonal
area. The first of these
(mm. 24-32)
is
relatively straightforward,
involv-
94
ing exchange
of
parts (motive
to bass
part)
and melodic
embellishment,
but otherwise the
underlying
voice
leading
remains intact. The second
variation, however,
is far more
interesting.
It
begins
as an
augmentation
(x2)
in the sense that the first three notes of the
descending
bass line
(G-F-Eb),
circled in
Example
3,
are
separated by
four rather than two
measures. The established
pattern
is broken in
m.
43 with the introduc-
tion of the six-five chord above C#. While it is difficult to
predict
how our
expectations
for continuation are affected
by
this
change,
it seems rea-
sonable to
project
a resolution to the
dominant,
probably
after two mea-
sures. But
certainly
we are not
prepared
for what
actually
does follow.
Schubert does move to a minor six-four chord over the
expected
bass
note
D,
then
repeats
this
gesture
twice,
but because of the
underlying
hypermetric pattern,
which is now
duple,
we hear the six-four as embell-
ishing
the six-five
harmony.
In m.
48,
the
neighboring bb
is rewritten as
an a# and the bass moves to
C0
instead of the
expected
D,
and this har-
mony (an augmented
sixth
chord)
is extended for an additional two mea-
sures. Here one
might expect
a resolution to a B
major harmony (or pos-
sibly
a six four over
B),
but instead Schubert
surprises
us once
again by
wrenching
us back to G
major
with a six-three chord over
B,
from which
point
the
phrase pushes
to
closure,
but
only
after
repeating
m. 51 twice.
While one
might
hear the extension of the
augmented
sixth chord and
subsequent repetition
of its
unexpected
resolution as
resulting
in
larger
groups
of four
measures,
as shown in
parentheses
in
Figure
9
(a
sketch of
the voice
leading
and metric
organization
of this
phrase),
the real effect
of these
repeated
measures is the
halving
of the
hypermeter,
an accelera-
tion toward the cadence. Over the course of the
phrase
we hear first a
quadruple hypermeter,
which
changes
to
duple
at the
unexpected
intro-
duction of the six-five
harmony
in m.
43,
which is halved
again beginning
in m. 51 at the
unexpected
resolution to the six-three chord above B.
The
top part
of
Figure
10
represents
the
underlying
voice
leading
of
this
expanded phrase if
the six-five
harmony
on C# had resolved as one
might
have
expected.
Instead the
C#,
after
being
decorated
by
the
D,
moves
through
a
passing
C0
to the B?
supporting
a six-three
chord,
from
which
point
the octave is
completed
with the D
substituting
for the
weaker A at the cadence. Because of the association between the C# six-
five and the B six-three chords-remember that introduction of these two
unexpected
chords coincides with
changes
in the metric
groupings-
there is more than a hint at an
underlying
whole-tone division of the
octave in the bass
spanning
the
phrase,
as shown in the lower
part
of
Fig-
ure 10.
I
do not mean to
suggest
that we hear this
passage
as whole
tone;
in fact this
possible underlying
connection is obscured in the latter half
of the
phrase by
the diatonic fifth. But it is
intriguing
to note that this
potential,
which is
strongly
hinted at
here,
emerges
much more
clearly
in
subsequent passages
from the movement.5
95
(registral simplification)
(1 2 3 4,
1
2 3 4)
1 2 3
4,
1 2
3
4,
1
2,
1
2,
1
2,
1
2,
1
2,
1 1
1 1
I
I
I
I
6 6 6 6
66
6
76
(
5 4 5 4 5
3)
Figure
9.
String Quartet (D. 887), I: 33-54
5th
VS.
5th
diatonic
whole-tone
Figure
10
The cadence in m. 54 closes the first section of the movement and at
the same time becomes the
point
of
departure
for the transition
leading
to
the second idea. This transition is based on a
sequential progression by
ascending
fifths,
where each chord is altered from
major
to minor before
moving
to the next
harmony.
In other
words,
modal mixture
appears
once
again
at the
surface,
as it had in the
opening gesture
of the movement.
Schubert chooses to
stop
this
sequence
at the
FO
major
chord in m.
59,
an
unlikely goal considering
the
point
of
departure,
and sits on that
harmony
for five
measures,
stressing
its
importance.
The
meaning
of this
harmony
is not at all clear at this
point.
That will come
only
when we have an
opportunity
to consider it in the
larger
context
encompassing
the entire
motion to the
dominant,
which falls in m. 77 at the end of the second idea.
The second idea is unusual in at least two
respects.
First,
it functions
to
complete
the harmonic motion to the
dominant,
as
opposed
to the more
usual
practice
of
prolonging
that
harmony.
Second is its static
quality,
which results from
circling
around the same harmonies and
delaying
arrival at the
goal.
The idea
opens
with an
FO
major
chord and
progresses
immediately
to
V3
in the
key
of the dominant. But rather than allow this
harmony
built above the bass note e to resolve as
expected,
the motion is
left
incomplete.
The melodic
g
and bass note e are
given
a new
harmony,
97
-
-
-
-
-
--"
-
--,
- -
,-
- -
---
-
--
--
"-
---
-.,- .,
-
-----
-"
-
.,-
- - - - -
--
-
S I
t
I II I . . .
I
F0
(b:
iv
V#)
#
7
D(V):
III#
V4 ii
III#
V
, ii V4 I V I
33 3
Figure
11.
String Quartet (D. 887), I:
64-77
Idea 2
transition
Idea 1
varied
progressions by
5
6
5
6
5 5
repetitions
8
ascending
fifths 8
5 5
,; qNOP
-
-

/

\ ,
.-
Figure
12
an
E
minor
chord,
from which
point
the motion is redirected to the F#
major
chord once
again.
In
short,
we have
gone
nowhere,
and Schubert
sets out once
again
to reach his
goal.
The
repetition, beginning
with the
upbeat
to m.
69,
is
expanded
from four to
eight
measures in
length.
The
expansion incorporates
an internal motion to a
G
major
chord,
from
which
point
the bass line is allowed to
moveby step
to
closure,
thus
embedding
within the third
F#-E-D,
supporting
the harmonies
III#-V1-I
in the
key
of the
dominant,
a
summary
of the entire motion from tonic to
dominant of the movement to this
point.
This embedded motion is
repre-
sented in
Figure
11,
a sketch of the voice
leading
of the second
theme,
by
the
upward
stemmed and beamed bass notes.
We are now in a
position
to
interpret
the unusual events
beginning
from the close of the first harmonic
area,
the cadence on
G
in m. 54. The
next
point
of arrival
following
the
sequential progression by ascending
fifths is the F#
major harmony
in mm.
59-63,
and from that
point
the sec-
ond idea
completes
the motion to the dominant
through
the
passing
bass
note E. The overall motion of mm.
54-77,
or for that matter of the entire
movement to this
point,
is controlled
by
the
descending
tetrachord from
the
major
mode
(G-F#-E-D)
which stands in contrast to the
descending
tetrachord from the minor mode
(G-F?-Eb-D)
that is characteristic of
the first idea. The role of these two tetrachords in the
underlying
voice
leading
of the movement is shown
clearly
in
Figure
12.6
A
thorough exposition
of modal mixture in Schubert's music would
no doubt involve hundreds of
examples
from
songs
to
symphonies.
I have
purposely
limited
myself
to four short
piano pieces
and the
opening
of
the last
quartet.
Nevertheless I think this is sufficient to indicate the
impor-
tant role of modal mixture on Schubert's harmonic
thinking, ranging
from
obvious surface occurrences to
sophisticated underlying
structure. This
feature of Schubert's
style
is no doubt inherited from
Beethoven,
where
one can find similar
examples.
But with
Schubert,
it becomes an hallmark
of his
style.
99
NOTES
*This article is a revised version of a
paper
written for a
special
weekend celebrat-
ing
the music of Schubert and Brahms at the
Faculty
of
Music,
University
of
Toronto,
October
24-25,
1997.
1. Music and Letters
9,
no. 4
(October 1928). Reprinted
in
Essays
and Lectures on
Music,
collected
by
Hubert Foss
(Oxford, 1949), 134-59.
2. Some authors make a further distinction
among
different
types
of
mixture,
but that
is not
necessary
for our
purposes.
See,
for
example,
Edward Aldwell and Carl
Schachter, Harmony
and Voice
Leading (New York, 1989), chapters
22 and 30.
3.
Figure
6 is a
reproduction
of
Figure
7 from
my
article "The Submediant as Third
Divider: Its
Representation
at Different Structural
Levels,"
Music
Theory
in Con-
cept
and
Practice,
ed. James
Baker,
David
Beach,
and Jonathan Bernard
(Rochester, 1997),
309-35. It is
reproduced by permission
of the
University
of
Rochester Press.
4. Edward T.
Cone,
"Schubert's
Promisory
Note: An Exercise in Musical Herma-
neutics,"
Nineteenth-Century
Music 5
(1982):
233-41.
5. The whole-tone character of
passages
in the
development
section of this move-
ment as well as the variation nature of the thematic material have been noted
by
Carl Dahlhaus in "Sonata Form in Schubert: The First Movement of the G
Major
String Quartet, op.
161
(D. 887),"
trans. Thilo
Reinhard,
Schubert:
Critical and
Analytical
Studies,
ed. Walter Frisch
(University
of Nebraska
Press, 1986),
1-12.
6.
Figures
11
and 12 are based on
Figures
1 and 3 in an earlier article
by
me
pub-
lished in this
journal, "Harmony
and Linear
Progression
in Schubert's
Music,"
vol.
38,
no. 1
(1994):
1-20.
100

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Modal Mixture and Schubert's Harmonic Practice

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