Date of Award
Spring 2020
Degree Type
Masters Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Music (MM)
School
Music
Committee Chair
Dr. Douglas Rust
Committee Chair School
Music
Committee Member 2
Dr. Danny Beard
Committee Member 2 School
Music
Committee Member 3
Dr. Joseph Brumbeloe
Committee Member 3 School
Music
Committee Member 4
Dr. Edward Hafer
Committee Member 4 School
Music
Abstract
This thesis examines the contributions of tonal analysis to narrative readings of three nineteenth-century pieces. The method used originates from the work of two theorists, Byron Almén and Fred Lerdahl. Almén’s 2008 book, A Theory of Musical Narrative, outlines narrative archetypes. Lerdahl’s 2004 book, Tonal Pitch Space, provides a sophisticated approach to tonal analysis. These methods are combined to analyze striking modulations in Robert Schumann’s “Dein Angesicht” Op. 127, no. 2, tonal ambiguity in Johannes Brahms’s “Der Kranz” Op. 84, no. 2, and the lack of tonal closure in Gabriel Fauré’s “Hymne” Op. 7, no. 2. These striking features and their changes are tracked over the course of each piece. This creates the narrative analysis and allows a narrative archetype to be applied to the piece.
Copyright
Seth Weesner, 2020
Recommended Citation
Weesner, Seth, "Tonal Expectations Defining Narrative Archetypes" (2020). Master's Theses. 745.
https://aquila.usm.edu/masters_theses/745