Music Composition DUMmIES

Concerto ..............................................................................................

In a concerto, a composer explores contrasts — between having a large

ensemble playing a section of music and then having a soloist or a much

smaller group present the same or a very similar section of music. It’s with

this type of arrangement that we get our superstars of classical music, such

as pianist Lang Lang and violinists Itzhak Perlman and Alban Berg. The soloists

often carry as much weight as the long-dead composers themselves do.

Symphony............................................................................................

A symphonyis a melding of several different musical forms and is usually

performed by an orchestra. There are traditionally four movements in a

symphony:

Sonata allegro

Slower movement

Minuet or scherzo

Combination of sonata and rondo, a thematic repeat of the first movement

This is just one configuration, however. The true idea behind a symphony is

that it combines several different musical forms into one piece of music har-

moniously. Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5 is perhaps the most universally rec-

ognized symphony ever written.

Fugue....................................................................................................

The fuguewas the first musical form to fully utilize the left hand of the pianist.

In this form, the treble clef and the bass clef take turns carrying the melodic

line of the music. Bach, who was a southpaw himself, invented the technique

of counterpoint, which led to the development of the fugue.

Divertimento .......................................................................................

A divertimentois a light, short form of instrumental chamber music having

several very short movements. As its name implies, composers wrote pieces

in this style chiefly for the entertainment value.

150 Part III: Harmony and Structure