The Classical StyleBy CHar.es ROSEN The Classical Style Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven Arnold Schoenberg Sonata Forms The Musical Languages of Elliott Carter Plaisir de Jouer, plaisir de penser Conversation avec Catherine Temerson The Frontiers of Meaning Three Informal Lectures on Music The Romantic Generation By CHARLES ROSEN AND HENRI ZERNER Romanticism and Realism The Mythology of Nineteenth-Century ArtCopyright © 1997, 1972, 1971 by Charles Rosen All rights reserved Printed in the United States of America First published as a Norton paperback 1998 ‘The text of this book is composed in 10/11.5 Times Roman with the display set in Times Roman ‘Composition by The Maple-Vail Book Manufacturing Group Manufacturing by Courier Companies Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Rosen, Charles, 1927- ‘The classical style : Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven / Charles Rosen. — Expanded ed. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 0-393-04020-8 1. Classicism in music. 2. Haydn, Joseph, 1732-1809—Criticism and interpretation. 3. Mozart, Wolfgang Amadeus, 1756-1791— Criticism and interpretation. 4. Beethoven, Ludwig van, 1770-1827— Criticism and interpretation, 5. Music—18th century—History and ctiticism. I. Title. MLI9S.R68_ 1997 780" .9'033—de20 96-2735 cP ISBN 0-393-31712-9 pbk W. W. Norton & Company, Inc, 500 Fifth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10110 ‘yorw.wwmorton.com, W. W. Norton & Company Ltd., Castle House, 75/76 Wells Street, London WIT 3QT 73890The Classical Style Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven EXPANDED EDITION Charles Rosen DT W.W. Norton & Company New York ¢ LondonFor Helen and Elliott Carter Zangler: Was hat Er denn immer mit dem dummen Wort ‘klassisch’? Melchior: Ah, das Wort is nit dumm, es wird nur oft dumm angewend't. Nestroy, Einen Jux will er sich machen [Zangler: Why do you keep repeating that idiotic word ‘classic’? Melchior: Oh, the word isn't idiotic, it's just often used idiotically.]Contents Preface to the First Edition ANew Preface Acknowledgments Bibliographical Note Note on the Music Examples I INTRODUCTION 1. THE Musica LaNGuaGe OF THE LATE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY 19 Period style and group style, 20; Tonality, 23; Tonic-dominant polarity, 25; Modulation, 26; Equal temperament, 27; Weakening of linear form, 28, 2. THEORIES oF FoRM 30 Nineteenth-century conception of sonata form, 30; Twentieth-century re- visions, 32; Schenker, 33; Motivic analysis, 36; Vulgar errors, 40. 3. THE ORIGINS OF THE STYLE 43 Dramatic character of the classical style, 43; Range of styles 1755-1775, 44; Public and private music, 45; Mannerist period, 47; Proto-classical symmetries and patterns, 49; Determinants of form, st. Il THE CLASSICAL STYLE 1. THE COHERENCE OF THE MUSICAL LANGUAGE 37 Periodic phrase, $7; Symmetry and rhythmic transition, 8; Homogeneous (Baroque) vs. heterogeneous (classical) rhythmic systems, 60; Dynamics and ornamentation, 62; Rhythmic and dynamic transition (Haydn Quar- tet op. 33 no. 3). 64; Harmonic transition (modulation), 68; Decorative vs. dramatic styles, 70; Conventional material, 71; Tonal ‘stability and reso- lution, 72; Recapitutation and articulation of tension, 74; Reinterpretation and secondary tonalities, 78; Subdominants, 79; Contrast of themes, 80; Reconciliation of contrasts, symmetrical resolution, 82; Relation of large form to phrase, expansion technique (Haydn Piano Trio, H.19, 83); Correspondence of note, chord, and modulation, 89; Articulation of rhythm, weight of individual beat, 90; Sonata style and eccentric material: fantasy’ form (Mozart, Fantasy K. 475), 915 Audible vs. inaudible form, 93; Extra-musical influence, 94; Wit in music, 95. 2. STRUCTURE AND ORNAMENT 99 Sonata forms generalized, 99; Structure vs. ornament, 100; Ornamentation in the late eighteenth century, 101; Radical change in function of decoration, 107, Ill HAYDN FROM 1770 TO THE DEATH OF MOZART 1, StRING QuaRTET MW Haydn and Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach, 111; Beginning in a false key, 112; Innovations of the Scherzi quartets, thematic accompaniment, 115; Energy latent in musical material, 120; Dissonance as principal source of energy, 120; Directional power of material, 29; Sequence as source of energy, 134; Reinterpretation by transposition, 135; Relation of string quartet to classical tonal system, 137; Further development of Haydn's string quartets, 138; String quartet and the art of conversation, 141.Contents 2. SYMPHONY Development of the orchestra and symphonic style, 143; stylistic progress, 146; Sturm und Drang style, 147; Symphony no. 46, 147; Weakness of rhythmic organization of early Haydn, 149; Symphony no. 47, 151; In- fluence of opera, 153; Symphony no. 75, 155; New clarity and sobriety, 157; Symphony no. 81, 157; Wit and symphonic grandeur, 159; Oxford Symphony, 159; Haydn and ‘pastoral, 162. IV_ SERIOUS OPERA Problematic status of opera seria, 166; Conventions of opera seria and buffa, 167; Bighteenth-century tragedy, 168; High Baroque style, 169; Dra- matic and elegiac modes, 170; Gluck, 170; Neo-classical doctrine, 171; Music and the aesthetic of expression, 173; Words and music,173; Gluck and rhythm, 174; Mozart and Idomeneo, 177; Recitative and ‘complex forms, 178; Fusion of seria and buffa, Marriage of Figaro, 181; Fidelio, 183. V MOZART 1, THe Concerto Mozart and dramatic form, 185; Tonal stability, 186; Symmetry and the flow of time, 187; Continuo piaying in the late eighteenth century, 1913 Musical significance of the continuo, 194; Concerto as drama, 196; Open- ing ritornello, 197; Concerto in E flat K.271, 198; Piano exposition as dramatization of orchestral exposition, 205; Symmetry of climax, 207; Secondary development within recapitulation, 211; Slow movement of K.271 as expansion of opening phrase, 211; Mirror symmetry, 212; Concerto finale, 213; Sinfonia Concertante K. 364, 214; Thematic relationships, 2153 K.412, K.413, K.4i5, 218; K.449, 219; K.456, modulating second. theme, 221; Dramatic range of slow movement, 223; Variation-finales, 225; K. 459 and fugal finales, 226; K. 466, art of rhythmic acceleration, 227; The- matic unity, 233; K. 467 and symphonic style, 235; Slow movement, im- provisation, and’ symmetry, 238; K. 482, orchestral color, 240; K.488, articulation of close of exposition, 241; Slow movement and melodic struc- ture, 243; K.503, technique of repetition, 251; Major and minor, 254; Sense of mass, 256; K. 537, proto-Romantic style and loose melodic’ struc- ture, 258; Clarinet Concerto, continuity of overlapping phrases, 260; K. 595, resolution of chromatic dissonance, 263. 2. STRING QuINTET Concertante style, 264; K.174, expanded sonority and expanded form, 265; K.515, irregular proportions, 267; Expansion of form, 273; K.516, problem of classical finale, 274; Major ending to a work in’ the minor, 276; Ex- pressive limits of the style, 277; Place of minuet in the order of move- ments, 280; Virtuosity and chamber music, 281; K.$93, 281; Slow intro- ductions, 282; Harmonic structure and sequences, 283; K. 614, influence of Haydn, 286, 3. Comic OPERA Music and spoken dialogue, 288; Classical style and action, 289; En- sembles, sextet from The Marriage of Figaro, and sonata form, 290; Sex- tet from Don Giovanni and sonata proportions, 296; Tonal relations in opera, 298; Recapitulation and dramatic exigency, 301; Operatic finales, 302; Arias, 306; ‘Se yuol ballare’ from The Marriage of Figaro, 308; Coincidence of musical and dramatic events: graveyard scene from Don Giovanni, 309; Comedy of intrigue, 312; Eighteenth-century concept of per- sonality, 313; Comedy of experimental psychology and Marivaux, Cost viii 143 164 185 264 288Contents fan tutte, 314; Virtuosity of tone, 316; Die Zauberflote, Carlo Gozzi and the dramatic fable, 317; Music and moral truth, 319; Don Giovanni and the mixed genre, 321; ‘Scandal and politics, 322; Mozart as subversive, 324. VI HAYDN AFTER THE DEATH OF MOZART 1, THE POPULAR STYLE Haydn and folk music, 329; Fusion of high art and popular style, 3325 Integration of popular elements, 333; Surprise return of theme in finales, 337; Minuets and popular style, 340; Orchestration, 342; Introduction as dramatic gesture, 345. 2. P1ano TrIo Reactionary form, 351; Chamber music and pianistic virtuosity, 352; In- struments in Haydn's day, 353; Doubling of bass line by cello, 354; H.14, 355; H.22 and expansion of the phrase, 356; H.28, Haydn's early style transformed, 359; H.26, acceleration of motivic elements within a 361; H.31, luxuriant variation technique, 362; H.30, Haydn's chromaticism, 363. 3, CHuRcH Music Expressive vs. celebrative aesthetic, 366; Opera buffa style and religious music, 367; Mozart’s parodies of Baroque style, 367; Haydn and religious music, 368; Oratorios and pastoral style, 370; ‘Chaos’ and sonata form, 370; Beethoven’s Mass in C Major, problems of pacing, 373; D Major Mass, 375. VII BEETHOVEN 1, BEETHOVEN Beethoven and post-classical style, 381; Beethoven and the Romantics, 381; Substitutes for dominant-tonic relationship, 382; harmonic inno- vations of the Romantics, 383; Beethoven and his contemporaries, 386; G Major Piano Concerto, creation of tension by tonic chord, 387; Return to classical principles, 389; Eroica, proportions, codas, and repeats, 392; Waldstein, unity of texture and theme, 396; Appassionata and unity of work, 399; Romantic experiments in Beethoven C Minor Variations, 400; Program music, 401; An die ferne Geliebte, 402; Years 1813-1817, 403; Hammerklavier, intimate relation between large form and material, 404; Role of descending thirds in construction of sequence, 407; Se- quential structure of development of the Hammerklavier, 409; Relation to large key-sequence, 413; Relation to thematic structure, 415; Ag vs. Ab, 420; Metronome and tempo, 421; Change in style since op.22, 4225 Scherzo, 423; Slow movement, 424; Introduction to finale, 427; Fugue, 429; Place of Hammerklavier in Beethoven's work, 434; Transformation of variation form into classical form, 440; Op.111, 441; Beethoven and the weight of musical proportions, 445. 2. BEETHOVEN'S LATER YEARS AND THE CONVENTIONS OF His CHILDHOOD Beethoven's originality and the style of the 1770s, 449; The cadential tril in op. 111, 449; The traditional final trill in concerto cadenzas, 450; The suspended afterbeat: ‘Sonata op. 101, 457; Conventional concerto figuration transferred to piano sonata, 458; Two stereotypes of the 1770s: Subdominant in the recapitulation, relative minor in the development, 460; Subdominant transferred to coda, 463; Convention and in- novation: Relative minor in Mozart's K. 575 and Coronation Concerto, 467; Haydn's ix 329 351 366 319 449Contents consistent use of the stereotype, 471; Beethoven's naked display of the convention, 474; Stereotype and inspiration in op. 106, 484; The two conventions in op. 110, 488; Integration and motivic alteration in op. 110, 494; Integration of tempi, 499; Espressivo and rubato, 499; Radical key relations and dramatic structure, 501; Dramatization of the academic elements of fugue, 502; Unity of tempo and the rhythmic notation of the finale, 506; Beethoven's amiability, 507; Pushing back the limits of contemporary style, 508; Synthesis of 18th-century conventions of the varia- tion set, 509; Late Beethoven, r8th-century sociability, and the language of music, 510. Epitocue 513 Schumann's monument to Beethoven (C Major Fantasy), 451; Return to Baroque, 453; Change in tonal language, 453; Schubert, 454; His re- lation to classical style, 455; Use of middle-period Beethoven as model, 456; Classical principles in late Schubert, 459; Classical style as archaism, 460. INDEX OF NAMES AND WORKS 523Preface to the First Edition T have not attempted a survey of the music of the classical period, but a description of its language. In music, as in painting and architecture, the principles of ‘classical’ art were codified (or, if you like, classicized) when the impulse which created it was already dead: I have tried to restore a sense of the freedom and the vitality of the style. I have restricted myself to the three major figures of the time as I hold to the old-fashioned position that it is in terms of their achievements that the musical vernacular can best be defined. It is possible to distinguish between the English language around 1770 and the literary style of, say, Dr. Johnson, but it is more difficult to draw a line between the musical language of the late eighteenth century and the style of Haydn—it is even doubtful whether it would be worth the trouble to try to do so. There is a belief, which I do not share, that the greatest artists make their effect only when seen against a background of the mediocrity that sur- rounded them: in other words, the dramatic qualities of Haydn, Mozart, and Beethoven are due to their violation of the patterns to which the public was conditioned by their contemporaries. If this were true, the dramatic surprises in Haydn, for example, should become less effective as we grow familiar with them. But any music-lover has found exactly the contrary. Haydn’s jokes are wittier each time they are played, We can, of course, grow so familiar with a work that we can no longer bear to listen to it. Neverthe- less, to choose only the most banal examples, the opening movement of the Eroica Symphony will always seem immense, the trumpet call of Leonore No. III will always be a shock to anyone who listens once again to these works. This is because our expectations do not come from outside the work but are implicit in it: a work of music sets its own terms. Howthesetermsare set, how the context in which the drama is to be played out is created for each work, is the main subject of this book. I am concerned, therefore, not only with the meaning or the significance of the music (always so difficult to put into words) but also with what made it possible to possess and to convey that significance. In order to give some idea of the scope and variety of the period I have followed the development of different genres for each composer. The con- certo, the string quintet, and comic opera were obvious choices for Mozart, as were the symphony and the string quartet for Haydn. A discussion of Haydn's piano trios will convey the idiosyncratic nature of the chamber music with piano of that time. Opera seria demanded separate treatment, and Haydn’s oratorios and masses provided an occasion to discuss the general xiPreface to the First Edition question of Church music. The relation of Beethoven to Mozart and Haydn clearly needed to be defined by a more general essay, but the major part of the examples could be drawn easily from the piano sonatas. By such subter- fuge I have hoped to represent all the important aspects of the classical style. ‘There isa glaring inconsistency inthe pages that follow: ‘classical” has always a small ‘c,’ while ‘Baroque,’ ‘Romantic,’ etc., are proclaimed by their initial capitals. The reason for this is partly aesthetic: I have had to use the word ‘classical’ very often, and the capital letter—turning it into a proper name as if it denoted something that really existed—was too much to face on every page. Although I believe the concept of a style is necessary for an under- standing of the history of music, I should not wish to dignify it with the status of solid fact. In any case, I am willing to accept the inadvertent conse- quences of this whimsical typography. The word ‘classical’ with a small ‘c’ implies a style that is exemplary and normative. Like High Renaissance painting, the music of the classical period still provides a standard by which the rest of our artistic experience is judged. New York, 1970 Charles RosenA New Preface ‘Twenty-five years after this book first appeared, I feel as if it had been written by someone with whom I am only distantly acquainted and for whose actions Iam not responsible. Nevertheless, the kindness of the publisher in sug- gesting a new edition obliges me to face, if briefly, some of the more interest- ing criticisms that have been made, and perhaps even to try and clear up some misunderstandings. If I were writing this book today, it would be so different that I had to reject the idea of any substantial revision as impractical. I have, however, added a new chapter on Beethoven in order to define more precisely his relation to the two famous composers that preceded him. Ina very generous review, Alan Tyson complained that I began the discus- sion of Haydn’s quartets essentially with op. 33, instead of opp. 17 and 20, which he felt ought to have been treated in greater depth. I asked Tyson whether my account of what we call the classical style was too restrictive and should be altered to include Haydn's opp. 17 and 20, or whether I was mis- taken in thinking that the earlier quartets did not already satisfy all the essen- tials of the definition I had offered. He replied that he was not sure which one of these alternatives was the right one, but that he had always believed one had to study the earlier works in order to understand those that followed. This principle would entail an infinite regress, of course, but that is only to be expected in the writing of history. (Perhaps of greater moment to a lover of Haydn’s music is that opp. 17 and 20 are too beautiful not to be given a more extensive examination.) However, op. 33 displays the first appearance in Haydn’s quartets of the ‘obligato accompaniment’ as defined by Guido Adler in his article on Vien- nese classicism in the Handbuch der Musikgeschichte (1924)—that is, a tex- ture in which the accompanying voices, while still subordinate to the main voice, are created from the same motifs that make up the principal themes. This technique is essential to the method of thematic development in Haydn, and also in Mozart, Beethoven, and almost all later Western European music. The expression ‘obligato accompaniment’ is not known to The New Grove (1980), but at any rate, it was known to Beethoven, who once said that he ‘came into the world with an obligato accompaniment and knew no other. The technique of deriving the accompaniment from the motifs of the princi- pal voice was, indeed, elaborated in the symphonies that Haydn wrote just, before the quartets op. 33.! Haydn’s declaration that op. 33 was composed 1T discussed this development in my Sonata Forms, rev. ed., New York, 1988, pp. 177-187. xiiiA New Preface according to entirely new principles has been characterized as a sales pitch, but I still believe it should be taken seriously: in these works, he applied his, symphonic experiments to quartet literature for the first time, and he also developed here an original sense of rhythm partially inspired by opera buffa. In any case, I was not concerned primarily with the origins of the style (al- though I am eager to grant that a knowledge of the origins is an aid to general comprehension) but with its constitution. I wanted to understand what made it so efficient. Classical texture, of course, had many sources. In 1984, Eric Weimer criti- cized my neglect of the role played by opera seria and pointed out that many aspects of Haydn’s instrumental style were developed in the operas of Jomelli and J. C. Bach during the decade that preceded Haydn's op. 33.7 What he acknowledges as new in op. 33 is only ‘the manner in which Haydn took standard accompanimental fragments—one can even say standard accompani- mental rhythmic motives—gave them melodic identity and then carefully and consistently used them in both melody and accompaniment.’ I am not aware that I was claiming any more than that, but this single innovation still seems to me the touchstone of classical counterpoint. The revival of counterpoint in late eighteenth-century Germany was pointed out in 1801 by Triest (first name unknown) in a brilliant series of articles, published in the Allgemeine Musikal- ische Zeitung, on the development of German instrumental music: the decline of the contrapuntal style under the powerful influence of opera allowed banal accompaniment figures to dominate instrumental works; many musicians after the middle of the century deplored the practice and launched a concerted effort to gain back the richness of the old-fashioned contrapuntal style. We may observe that the fugues in Haydn’s opp. 17 and 20 Quartets attest to this ambition, as do the contemporary quartets of Florian Leopold Gassman; to a certain extent, however, they represent a revival of a past tradition. Only with the symphonies of the 1770s and the quartets of op. 33 was Haydn able to accommodate both the modem hierarchy of melody and accompaniment that gave such clarity to his textures and the complex contrapuntal detail that gave new power to his work. James Webster would also start the classical style a decade or more before op. 33, insofar as he thinks the term has any serviceable value left. In an admirable study, Haydn's ‘Farewell’ Symphony and the Idea of Classical Style, he accuses me, with the greatest possible courtesy, of a prejudice against the earlier works of Haydn.? Since he has written the finest account of the earlier period, he goes some way toward convincing me that he may be right. He has certainly given me a deeper appreciation of the works composed before 1780. I should have done them greater justice, and the few pages 2Bric Weimer, Opera Seria and the Evolution of Classical Style 1755-1772, Aan Asbor, 1984, pp. 46-94. Cambridge, 1991. xiv