Studying at York
Analysing Classical Sonatas - MUS00184H
- Department: Music
- Credit value: 20 credits
- Credit level: H
- Academic year of delivery: 2024-25
Module summary
This module provides an approach to the discussion of Sonata form; through the module students will learn how analyse tonal music in detail, to apply methodologies from recent writings within the field of Formenlehre, and to (re)construct some music for themselves.
Related modules
Students taking this module need to be competent with extracting information from a written score; they also need to have a grounding in the harmonic language of western art music within the Classical period.
Module will run
| Occurrence | Teaching period |
|---|---|
| A | Semester 1 2024-25 |
Module aims
‘Sonata Form’ is one of the most familiar ways in which composers of the Classical period and beyond structured music – but what actually does it involve? What are the principles that we can draw from the study of the music in question? How might we then effectively theorise about it? This project will consider some of those questions by looking at the analysis of music by Haydn, Beethoven, Mozart, and Schubert. We will take as our ‘text’ James Hepokoski’s Sonata Theory Textbook and work through his presentation of ideas from his and Warren Darcy’s seminal Elements of Sonata Theory. Not only will we think about the music through this lens, but we will also consider the theory itself, and place it in the context of other writers. Students will have the possibility to show their understanding of this music either through written analysis (which can range further afield in terms of historical period) or stylistic composition of a sonata movement.
Module learning outcomes
By the end of the taught part of the module, you should:
-
Be able to study, in detail, compositional structures and processes revealed within a range of works from the Classical period;
-
develop analytical skills and techniques and extend in-depth knowledge of specific repertoire;
-
apply theoretical writing to the study of music, and begin to think critically about the application of such theoretical approaches;
-
be able to communicate analytical understanding in either written or musical form.
Third years: On completion of the module, in your independent work, you should demonstrate learning outcomes C1-6 and, depending on submission route, C9 or C10. https://www.york.ac.uk/music/undergraduate/modules/learning-outcomes/
Indicative assessment
| Task | % of module mark |
|---|---|
| Essay/coursework | 100 |
Special assessment rules
None
Additional assessment information
Assessment is through the submission of coursework (submitted during the end-of-semester assessment period), involving either:
- An essay of approximately 3000 words which presents an analysis of a choice of sonata movement (including from outside the Classical period, where appropriate) agreed in discussion with the module tutor, with attendant analytical annotation of the score (100%);
or
- A composition of a sonata movement, of appropriate length and complexity to the style adopted, written for string quartet, piano solo, or piano and one other instrument (violin, cello, etc) with attendant analytical annotation of the submitted score (100%).
Indicative reassessment
| Task | % of module mark |
|---|---|
| Essay/coursework | 100 |
Module feedback
You will receive written feedback in line with standard University turnaround times.
Indicative reading
Our principal text will be:
Hepokoski, James. A Sonata Theory Handbook. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2021.
We will also refer to (amongst others):
Burstein, L. Poundie. Journeys through Galant Expositions. New York: Oxford University Press, 2020.
Caplin, William E. Classical Form: a Theory of Formal Functions for the Instrumental Music of Haydn, Mozart, and Beethoven. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1998.
Caplin, William E. Analyzing Classical Form: an Approach for the Classroom. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2013.
Caplin, William E., Hepokoski, James, Webster, James, and Berge´, Pieter [Ed.] Musical Form, Forms & Formenlehre: Three Methodological Reflections. Leuven: Leuven University Press, 2009.
Gjerdingen, Robert O. Music in the Galant Style. New York: Oxford University Press, 2007.
Greenberg, Yoel. How Sonata Forms: A Bottom-Up Approach to Musical Form. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2022.
Hepokoski, James and Darcy, Warren. Elements of Sonata Theory: Norms, Types, and Deformations in the Late-Eighteenth-Century Sonata. New York: Oxford University Press, 2006.
Rosen, Charles. Sonata Forms. [Rev. ed.] New York: Norton, 1988.