3.3: Hybrid Phrase-Level Forms

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Mark Gotham, Kyle Gullings, Chelsey Hamm, Bryn Hughes, Brian Jarvis; Megan Lavengood, and John Peterson
VIVA - Virtual Library of Virginia

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Key Takeaways

A hybrid form combines the beginning of one archetype with the ending from another.
- Possible beginnings are antecedents, presentations, or compound basic ideas.
- Possible endings are consequents, continuations, or cadential endings.
Although any beginning could be combined with any ending, some pairings are more common than others (see Example 7).

Chapter Playlist

What’s a hybrid form?

In The Phrase, Archetypes and Unique Forms, we looked at two phrase-level formal archetypes: the sentence and the period.

We found that these forms divide into two parts. A sentence divides into two subphrases: a presentation and a continuation. A period divides into two phrases: an antecedent and a consequent.

Example 1. An antecedent + continuation in Beethoven, Piano Sonata Op. 13, II, mm. 1–8 (0:00–0:32).

A hybrid form occurs when the beginning of one archetype is paired with the ending from another archetype. In Example 1, an antecedent is followed by a continuation.

How do we know the first part is an antecedent rather than a presentation?
- It ends with a weaker cadence, whereas presentations don’t end with cadences.
- It has a basic idea followed by a contrasting idea, whereas presentations have a basic idea followed by a repetition of the basic idea.
How do we know the second part is a continuation rather than a consequent?
- Rather than beginning as consequents do with a basic idea, it begins with fragmentation, which is characteristic of continuations.
- It begins with a feeling of instability created by the dominant that continues after the half cadence, rather than the stability that’s typical of a consequent’s beginning.

So far, we know two beginnings (presentation and antecedent) and two endings (continuation and consequent), but there’s actually one more possible beginning (compound basic idea) and one more possible ending (cadential). Below, we’ll outline these new beginnings and endings and provide ways to help distinguish between them.

Beginnings

New: The Compound Basic Idea (c.b.i.)

A compound basic idea in Haydn’s Piano Sonata in C, Hob. XVI:35, I, mm. 1–8. — Example 2. A compound basic idea in Haydn’s Piano Sonata in C, Hob. XVI:35, I, mm. 1–8 (0:00–0:05).

A compound basic idea (c.b.i.) is an antecedent without a cadence, as seen in Example 2.^[1]

How is Example 2 like an antecedent?
- It contains a basic idea followed by a contrasting idea.
How is Example 2 different from an antecedent?
- It doesn’t end with a cadence. Notice how the bass sits on G across mm. 3–4: although the melody comes to a point of rest, the lack of harmonic motion in the bass evades the half cadence (HC) that might have appeared there.

Summary: The Three Beginning Types

The three beginnings that appear in hybrid phrase-level forms are antecedent, compound basic idea, and presentation. Example 3 provides a summary of the characteristics that differentiate each of these beginnings.

[table id=8/]

Example 3. Characteristics that differentiate beginnings.

Endings

New: Cadential (cad.)

A cadential ending in Haydn, String Quartet Op. 64, No. 4, II, mm. 1–8. — Example 4. A cadential ending in Haydn, String Quartet Op. 64, No. 4, II, mm. 1–8 (0:05–0:10).

A cadential (cad.) ending harmonizes a particular bass pattern (demonstrated in Example 4).^[2]

\[(\hat3-\hat4-\hat5-\hat1)\]

mi $(\hat3)$ : I⁶
fa $(\hat4)$ : ii⁶ or IV
sol $(\hat5)$ : V⁽⁷⁾ (often elaborated with cadential $^6_4$ )
do $(\hat1)$ : I

\[(\hat3-\hat4-\hat5-\hat1)\]

The clearest cadential endings are four measures long with one bass note per measure.

Summary: The Three Ending Types

The three endings that appear in hybrid phrase-level forms are consequent, continuation, and cadential. Example 5 provides a summary of the characteristics that differentiate each of these endings.

[table id=9/]

Example 5. Characteristics that differentiate endings.

Hybrid Possibilities and Examples

The three possible beginnings and three possible endings are shown in Example 6. While any beginning on the left could be paired with any ending on the right, Example 7 shows that there are some pairings that are more common than others.

Below, we provide examples for all hybrids in the “slightly less common” and “occasional” categories (Examples 8–12). We already provided examples of the period and sentence in The Phrase, Archetypes, and Unique Forms.

The examples we provide in this chapter are all eight-measure archetypes, but as we show in the next chapter, these forms can be any length.

[table id=10/]

Example 6. Possible beginnings and endings. Any beginning on the left can theoretically pair with any ending on the right.

[table id=11/]

Example 7. Pairings of beginnings and endings sorted by degree of commonality.

Listening to Phrase-level Forms

With so many possibilities, it might seem overwhelming to try to sort through the various possibilities. Example 13 offers a suggested listening strategy that can help determine what kind of beginning and ending you’re hearing.

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