In recognising intervals one should think of the notes as the start of a tune one knows.
The traditional version of ‘Away in a Manger’ starts with the fifth falling to the third, to
the tonic, then to the fourth below. The more modern version starts with the tonic
preceded by the fourth below. Examine other tunes for intervals of thirds, fourths, fifths,
sixths and octaves. A fifth above a given note is the same note as a fourth below but is an
octave higher.
In recognising chord sequences and cadences always listen to the bass notes. A perfect
cadence moves from chord V to I. It sounds finished and there are no shared notes
between the two chords. A plagal cadence moves from chord IV to I and so also sounds
finished but the key note is present in each of these chords. This cadence is used when
singing ‘Amen’. An imperfect cadence moves from any chord to chord V and sounds
unfinished. An interrupted cadence moves from V to VI and so starts like a perfect
cadence but there is an element of surprise because it does not go to chord I.
In a modulation test, practise singing the notes of the major and minor triads. Major
triads sound happy and minor triads sound sad. Keep the original tonic in mind
throughout the example by humming it gently and then checking to hear whether it is still
in the final chord. Consider if a piece in a major key has moved to the subdominant,
dominant or relative minor. If the original tonic is still in the last chord and the last chord
is major then the modulation has been to the subdominant. If the last chord is minor then
the modulation has been to the relative minor. If the tonic is not still there and the key is
major then the modulation has been to the dominant.
AUTHENTICITY
‘Since the beginning of the twentieth century, the musical work has very much been
regarded as an intentional object. It is studied in a one way communicational model as a
sort of message from the composer to the listener, and is identified with the composer’s
intentions, as visible in the notation. The idea is that the composer has striven for a
definitive and unchangeable shape, and that when there is a conflict between different
sources one has to eliminate the confusion in order to reach the composer’s ultimate
version. To understand a piece of music is to look at the score; to convey the work to the
public is to play what the composer has written. Fidelity to the musical work is
tantamount to fidelity to the score.
The modern work concept is said to have emerged at the end of the eighteenth century.
From an interpretative point of view, however, the modern “authentic” musical work
emerged rather at the beginning of the twentieth century. In a broader perspective, it can
be seen as a reaction against the musical ideals of the nineteenth century and the self
indulgence of performers seeking to put their personal stamp on the music.
A study of interpreted editions, transcriptions, arrangements, revisions, ossias [alternative
readings], different versions of the same piece, interpretative variants and conflicts of
academic philological interests suggests that in the nineteenth century the musical work
was seen as something quite different to how it was portrayed in the twentieth century. It