Annotation for Schachter, Carl
Rhythm and Linear Analysis: A Preliminary Study
Annotation (by Gary Wittlich):
- This is the first of three articles on rhythm and the analytic methodology of Heinrich Schenker appearing in successive issues of Music Forum.
The article begins with five points that Schachter believes account for why critics
believe that Schenker failed to consider rhythm in his
writings, followed by a narrative that in essence defends
Schenker's principles, in particular the priority of pitch
over rhythm in tonal music analysis. Schachter believes that
there are two fundamental considerations in analysis,
1) analysis of rhythm must be compatible with deep insights
into tonal structure, and 2) "musical analysis has value only
insofar as it helps us to hear." (311). He asserts that there
are two sources of musical rhythm, tonal and durational.
Tonal rhythm is essentially independent of meter;
any succession of tones will have rhythmic characteristics
defined by the relative structural importance of the tones.
Meter, on the other hand, is more closely bound to durational
patterning. Among the other key points are that the analogy
between metrical accent and tonal stability ought not to be
overdrawn (e.g., in the harmonic pattern V7-I, either chord
might be accented or unaccented depending on context), and
that duration and structural importance are not necessarily
related. The article is well-illustrated and also includes
comments on the analytic concepts of Cone, Cooper and Meyer,
and Komar.
- Keywords:
