14.2.2: Phrases
- Page ID
- 258560
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A phrase is a relatively independent musical idea that ends in some type of cadence. The cadence might be inconclusive or conclusive. An inconclusive cadence sounds unfinished and leads us into the next phrase. A conclusive cadence sounds final. We will review cadences in the next section of this chapter.
Most pieces of music are broken into phrases of about the same length. The piece might have phrases that are four measures long or eight measures long (these are the most common, but not the only options). When analyzing a piece of music, determining the phrase length can help narrow down where to look for a cadence. When listening to a piece of music for dictation, determining phrase length can help break the musical information into reasonable segments of material and can help us listen for patterns. Often, when singing a melody, we tend to breathe at the end of a phrase. However, that is not always the case.
Example
Study this example of the traditional Mexican folk song, "La Cucaracha" and sing it using solfège.
While singing this melody, we might choose to breathe at the end of the second measure (we do not count the pickup as a measure). However, when we look at the notes in the melody, we see that these two measures are only outlining the tonic triad and there is no implication of a cadence. We continue through the downbeat of measure four and through the descending melodic line, we end on A - the fifth scale degree in the key of D major (sol). Melodically, this will sound unfinished and is an inconclusive cadence. We have completed the end of a relatively independent musical idea, but this is not the final ending. It is still progressing somewhere else.
In the pickup into measures five and six, we find similar material as the beginning, but it is outlining an A major triad: A, C-sharp, and E. This is the dominant triad in the key of D major. Through the material in measures seven and eight, we progress stepwise until we end on do. Ending on do implies a perfect authentic cadence after the strong presence of notes from the dominant triad.
Through analysis both using our ear and reading the music, we can determine that these are four-measure phrases because the end of the phrase is determined by the presence of a cadence.