Repetition is necessary in music, adding emphasis and strength to our ideas, creating a sense of form or structure, and providing clarity and musical meaning for our listeners.
Nonetheless, too much literal repetition is dull, creates a feeling of boredom and can even lead to aversion reactions from our listeners (disliking and pushing away) if repeated excessively.
By using varied Forms of Repetition, our music can benefit from all of the essential and positive effects that repetition brings...without inducing the negative drawbacks of boredom and aversion.
These forms of repetition have been used for centuries by the greatest composers of all time. Well constructed musical works are dependant upon a balanced approach to repetition. The last five hundred years of music have been endlessly original as these operations have allowed for a seemingly infinite variety of combinations from the same twelve tones.
*When an idea is complex, literal repetition helps clarify it. When an idea is simple, the other forms help add interest and excitement.
These techniques can be applied first to small musical ideas, fragments or motifs. After using them to construct larger phrase segments from small ideas, these same techniques can be used on entire sections to add interesting relationships into the overall form of your piece.
Note: all forms are very common and most effective when used in various combinations, relying on a balance between literal repetition and the other forms.
Literal repetition (used sparingly) -
very powerful, but short-lived positive effects, repeating the same idea exactly, without any change
Literal Displacement- repeating the same idea exactly, but the starting point has shifted, creating a syncopated rhythm effect.
Octave Displacement - repeating the same idea exactly, but choice notes have shifted register, creating an interesting angularity of line. Sometimes heard as a sudden popping upward or downward, or percolating melodic effect
Fragmenting/Truncating -To use only a small piece or section from the melodic idea or to end prematurely.
Embellishment/Ornaments- key melodic notes are in the same place, but various details are added between them to "dress up" the recognizable melody. There are many types of embellishments and ornaments, each more or less common within certain musicalstyles - these include: interval compression/expansion, interval filling, enclosures/mordents, appoggiatoras, neighbor notes, grace notes and trills.
Internal Expansion - phrase begins and ends the same, but is longer due to addition of new connecting material in the middle. The connecting material is often generated with combined forms of repetition, even from another part of the piece, but it can also just be a freely composed idea.
Sequencing - repeating idea at different pitch levels using transposition (can be exact chromatic or diatonic transposition).
Inversion - repeating idea with inverted intervals, i.e. notes move same distance but in opposite direction.
Example: Step up becomes step down, skip down becomes skip up, leap up becomes leap down, etc.
Augmentation - larger note rhythms (time expanding) but with same note order and phrase shape
Diminution - smaller note rhythms (time shrinking) but with same note order and phrase shape
Retrograde - musical idea in reverse
Quiz yourself - Use the below sound files which contain listening examples for you to identify. Or try the vocabulary flashcards.
Forms of Repetition listening quiz 1
Comments (0)
You don't have permission to comment on this page.