=Formation of Harmonic Design=.—Side by side with the ultimate
development of polyphonic music in its perfected instrumental form,
the forms of the new harmonic style were being worked out, by long
processes of development. Finally, just as the Fugue came to be adopted
as the highest form of the old school, so the Sonata was chosen as
the most dignified exponent of the new art. But, while the old school
arrived at a high state of perfection at the hands of Handel and Bach,
the necessity for inventing and experimenting with the possibilities of
the new forms made the first attempts in this direction seem childish
and crude beside Bach’s work; so that it was several generations
after him before the harmonic style was brought to the stage at which
it could be made to express ideas of equal magnitude, and do it
successfully.
=Development of the Sonata=.—The original plan associated with the
Sonata was that of combining several movements in such a way as
to appeal, in the completed product, to all kinds of _emotion_,
_intellectual_, _spiritual_ and _physical_. In the hands of its
founders, the Italian violinists, the exposition of this thought had
been mainly contrapuntal. We have seen how Domenico Scarlatti arrived
at a style in which a single part, supported by an accompaniment, was
applied to the clavier, in a manner which brought out its striking
characteristics; and we have now to trace the progress of this style in
Germany, up to the point where the various contributions of different
composers could be united into a systematic and fixed form, sufficient
for the free expression of the highest musical inspiration, and adapted
to all the varied demands of instrumental music.
=Essential Elements of a Sonata=.—Certain points seem to have been
generally agreed upon as necessary components of the Sonata. The
first was its _union_ of _several movements_, from two up to five, or
occasionally even more. The second was that the _first movement_ should
display the most _ingenuity_ and _elaboration_. This movement thus
came to receive the most attention, and showed a process of evolution
from the simple dance form consisting of a modulation from a principal
key to a contrasting key and back again, to a _highly organised_ and
conventional _art-form_—a form, moreover, of such a capacity that it
could be used as the mould for the principal movement of a wide range
of compositions, from a short pianoforte sonata to a grand symphony.
=Changes in the Old Dance Form=.—In this evolution, the first half
of the dance form was made to consist of a Subject, either thematic
or melodic, clearly defining the key, and then a modulating passage,
generally freer in its runs and arpeggios, leading up to the point of
contrast; and the first section was then repeated. The greatest changes
took place in the second half. At first, this consisted in the repeat
of the Principal Theme in the contrasting key, and a return to the
first key through modulations similar to those in the first section;
later, however, since this design gave little opportunity for a display
of the composer’s originality, the enunciation of the Subject in the
contrasting key was followed by a free passage, which gave ample scope
to the composer’s fancy; after which the subject again appeared in the
principal key, with a concluding passage in the same key.
=Establishment of the Cyclic Form=.—The form as a whole was now
practically divided into three sections, and a better balance was
given to this division by the omission of the second appearance of the
Subject in the contrasting key, and the substitution of other material,
either relevant or contrasting. The movement now assumed a cyclic
form—a statement, leading to a point of contrast, a free fantasia,
and finally the statement, leading to a close. This was practically
the course of development of what has been named the Sonata Form, up
to the time of Haydn. We are now prepared to consider the especial
contributions of composers to this form.
=First Printed Clavier Sonata=.—The first printed clavier sonata seems
to have been published by =Johann Kuhnau= (1660?-1722). This was in the
key of B-flat, and was the last of several pieces in the same volume.
In the preface, the author gives a semi-apology for its introduction,
saying that he sees no reason why sonatas should not be written for the
clavier as well as for any other instrument. This sonata begins with
an Allegro, followed by a fugal movement; and in the following Adagio
movement, the tendency to put the slow movement into a contrasting key
is illustrated, as this is in D-flat major. After another Allegro,
there is a _Da Capo_ to the first part.
=Other Sonatas by Kuhnau=.—It was difficult for the early sonata
writers to break away entirely from the old polyphonic style; and when
a part appeared in the nature of a Free Fantasia, they generally had
recourse to fugal work, having _no precedent_ in _harmonic music_ to
fall back upon. Thus, in his seven sonatas published in 1696, entitled
“Fresh Fruits for the Clavier,” which show more individuality in
melodic invention, Kuhnau uses the fugal style whenever the harmonic
forms fail him. These sonatas show a prevalence of ornaments, which,
he says, are “sugar to sweeten the fruits.” A remarkable collection of
clavier pieces are his six Bible sonatas, in which the form is entirely
outside of the development traced above, since the various movements of
each sonata simply follow the lines of a Bible story, like that of the
“Combat between David and Goliath,” which they illustrate. As samples
of program music, they proceed in the steps of Pachelbel, and others on
record. Kuhnau studied law, and was from 1682 organist at St. Thomas’
Church, at Leipzig, where he preceded J. S. Bach.
=Frederick the Great’s Influence=.—A great impetus was given to German
clavier music by the interest with which, like all other forms of
instrumental music, it was viewed by Frederick the Great of Prussia
(r. 1740-86). This warlike but thoroughly Teutonic monarch gathered
at his court a brilliant coterie of instrumentalists, delighting to
perform with them on his favorite instrument, the flute. Although this
musical inspiration was disturbed by the wars in which he engaged, and
especially by the Seven Years’ War (1756-63), the growth of clavier
music was nevertheless steady.
=Musical Journals=.—A number of musical journals which appeared from
1760 on, contributed also to this enthusiasm, in giving clavier
composers a medium for bringing their works before the public, and also
in giving them the chance to profit by one another’s experiments. Many
writers thus came to the fore, who aided materially in the elaboration
of harmonic music material.
=Other Early Composers=.—Of these, =Gottfried Heinrich Stoelzel=
(1690-1749), chapel-master at Saxe-Gotha, wrote an “enharmonic” clavier
sonata in three parts, a Largo in C minor, in 4/4 time; a short
fugue; and a 3/8 movement, in harmonic form, in which experiments in
modulation were tried. His successor at Saxe-Gotha was =Georg Benda=
(1721-95), who published a number of clavier pieces and sonatas,
besides two concertos for clavier and string quartet, all of which
show a desire for genuine expression in the harmonic form. The first
four-hand sonatas seem to have been published by =Charles Heinrich
Müller=, of Halberstadt, in 1783, and another appeared in 1784, by
=Ernst Wilhelm Wolf= (1735-92), court chapel-master in Saxe-Weimar,
the writer of numerous other clavier sonatas and concertos showing
great purity and originality of style. At the court of Frederick the
Great, at Berlin, =Christoph Nichelmann= (1717-62), a pupil of Bach,
and =Carl Fasch= (1736-1800) were successively second harpsichordists.
Both wrote sonatas, those of the former in two movements, while those
of the latter had generally three, of a brilliant and attractive
style. =Friedrich Wilhelm Marpurg= (1718-95), the distinguished Berlin
theoretician, was more successful in contrapuntal work than in his
sonatas, written in freer style.
=Georg Christoph Wagenseil= (1715-77), pupil of J. J. Fux, court music
teacher and celebrated clavier virtuoso, wrote sonatas for clavier and
violin and a number for clavier alone.
=Wilhelm Friedemann Bach=.—Perhaps the most striking developments,
however, were at the hands of the sons of J. S. Bach, who were all,
having come under his direct instruction, of refined musical judgment,
while some of them possessed marks of his genius. Of these, =Wilhelm
Friedemann Bach= (1710-84), the eldest, called the Bach of Halle,
from his long residence there, studied at the University of Leipzig,
distinguishing himself in mathematics; was organist at Dresden and
Halle successively, and finally came to Frederick the Great’s court,
at Berlin, through the influence of his brother Carl. Although he
possessed great gifts as a player and composer, his dissipated habits
brought him to disgrace, and he died in poverty. He wrote many clavier
compositions, showing a bold use of harmonies, and including sonatas
which have decidedly instrumental themes and development. A large
number of his father’s manuscripts known to have been in his possession
have been irretrievably lost.
=Johann Christian Bach=, the London Bach, youngest of J. S. Bach’s
sons, was born at Leipzig in 1735, and died at London in 1782. He
studied with his brother, Carl, after his father’s death, and,
afterwards going to Italy, became organist at the Milan Cathedral.
Gaining great favor in this capacity, he was appointed concert-director
at London in 1759, and there he became a popular favorite, producing
several operas and receiving the appointment of music master to the
royal family. His Italian experiences influenced his sonata writing,
as his _subjects_ are in the style of the popular, though somewhat
trivial _Italian melody_. Yet he introduced some striking improvements,
notably that of employing a _second contrasting subject_, instead of a
mere modulating or closing passage, at the end of the first and third
sections of the sonata form. His graceful and melodious works were
fashionable in London society.
[Illustration: C. P. E. BACH.]
=C. P. E. Bach=.—The third and greatest of Bach’s sons was =Carl
Philip Emanuel Bach=, the Berlin Bach. Inheriting his father’s love of
genuine and forceful expression, he had no less lofty ideals of his
art, though recognizing his inferiority in talent. Also, perceiving
that the harmonic school was in the line of progression, he devoted
himself to it, thus producing purely _harmonic works_, which were only
limited by the lack of resources thus far discovered. He was born
at Weimar, in 1714, and, though a student of law and philosophy at
Leipzig, he finally decided to give rein to his natural bent toward
the musical profession. Conducting and composing for a musical society
at Frankfort, he was appointed first clavier player at the court of
Frederick the Great, at Berlin, where he stayed from 1740 to 1767, in
high favor on account of his sterling musicianship, and enjoying the
society of many distinguished musicians of the day. In 1767, he became
musical director of the principal church in Hamburg, where he remained
till his death, in 1788. A vigorous worker throughout his life, he left
a large number of compositions, including two hundred and ten clavier
pieces and fifty-two concertos for clavier and orchestra, besides much
chamber music, eighteen symphonies, oratorios and cantatas.
=C. P. E. Bach’s Sonatas=.—His most enduring and important work was in
connection with the pianoforte sonata, since under his hands it began
to assume _definite shape_. In the six sets of sonatas published,
the number of movements is generally fixed at three, of which the
third is frequently in the harmonic form of the Rondo, which consists
in the recurrence of a principal theme, with modulatory episodes
between its appearances. Hence the order of movements, which, in the
earlier writers, took all sorts of forms from fugue to dance form,
becomes Allegro, Adagio, Rondo. Bach’s _themes_ are also made very
characteristic, founded upon some easily-recognized _instrumental
figure_. In the _development_ portion of the sonata form he does not
resort to the polyphonic style, but _uses phrases or sections from
the first part in new combinations and keys_. Sometimes, also, the
direction is given in the repeat of the first section, to introduce
variations of the text at will.
=His Theoretical Works=.—Bach published at Berlin, in 1753, an essay on
“The True Method of Playing the Clavier,” in which he gives a definite
exposition of his father’s reforms in playing, treating the position of
the hand, embellishments and artistic rendering, which he says should
touch the hearts of the hearers. A second part, published in 1762,
discusses the science of accompaniment and improvisation.
=Adoption of the Piano=.—The clavichord, notwithstanding its feeble
tone, remained his favorite instrument on account of its powers of
expression, in which he delighted. His brother, Johann Christian, was
one of the first definitely to adopt the new pianoforte. J. G. Müthel
published in 1771 what were probably the first compositions mentioning
the pianoforte for their performance, a duet for two pianofortes or
harpsichords; after the time of C. P. E. Bach, clavier compositions
were written in general distinctively for the pianoforte and not for
the clavier.