THE DEVELOPMENT OF MELODIC ORNAMENTATION IN
MODERN MUSIC
By
ELSIE FRANCES RHODES
THESIS
FOR THE
DEGREE OF BACHELOR OF MUSIC
IN
MUSIC
SCHOOL OF MUSIC
UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS
1921
/
R W
UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS
CNj
a.
u
CO
THIS IS TO CERTIFY THAT THE THESIS PREPARED UNDER MY SUPERVISION BY
ELSIE FRANCES RHODES
ENTITLED . .THE. . DEVELOPMENT. . OF. . .MELODIC ORNAMENTATION. . IN
MODERN. MUSIC
IS APPROVED BY ME AS FULFILLING THIS PART OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE
DEGREE OF.. BACHELOR OF MUSIC IN MUSIC
Digitized by the Internet Archive
in 2015
https://archive.org/details/developmentofmelOOrhod
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Introduction
Diruta
Gabrieli-Merulo
The Parthenia
Cacc ini-Mont everde
Friscobaldi
Mar sen ne
Henry Purcell
Corelli
Scarl at t i-Handel
Geminiani-Tartini
J.S. Bach
C. Ph. E. Bach
Leopold Mozart
Nicolo Pasquali-J. C. F. Bach
Turk
Gluck- Haydn
W. A. Mozart
Beethoven
Web er-Schub ert
Viott i-Kreutzer-Rcde-Paganini-spohr
Rossini-Bel'lini-Donizett i
Hunan el -Czerny
Mendels s ohn-Schumann
Grieg-Chopin
Berlioz-Liszt-fagner
Conclusion
1
13
17
18
22
22
23
26
27
27
29
32
44
56
59
61
64
65
68
73
74
77
77
80
82
86
87
MUSICAL ORNAMENTATION
"Up to tne time of Beethoven, many important points in the exe-
cution of music were matters of tradition. Tempo, for instance; pitot
in vocal music a capella; gradations of piano and forte; tne way to
play accompaniments from a figured bass; "Diminutions", "Divisions",
and the way to render certain embellishments in both vocal and instri
mental music; all were left, more or less to the discretion of the
*
executants." Questions of taste and style have ever been decided
by an appeal to tradition. In the case of practical musicians tnere
has always been a tendency to deviate from once accepted traditions;
and even when they are theoretically followed, they are frequently
found to be incomplete or perverted.
In attempts to apply tne explanation of an ornament given by
this or that composer to contemporary music or even to music of his
own, a number of puzzling questions as to practice arise, towards
which tne tables, just because they are tables - that is to say, ab-
stracts - fail to furnish a sufficient answer. Some such questions
are: Is tne ornament diatonic, or does it require an accidental?
Does it fall on the beat of the main note, as usual, or can it be
meant to precede the main note? Is it quick or slow? If slow, in
what relation does it stand to the main note - what proportion of th(
duration of the main note does it occupy? TChicn has the stress, -
the ornament or the main note? If the ornament has the sxress, which
part of the ornament? One author contradicts another. In the end
the student is forced to the conclusion that practice was somewhat
lax throughout, - no matter what was taught, or who taught it, - and
* Notes taken from reading Daunreutner "Musical Ornamentation".
Quoted passages marked. Definitions - Grove * s Dicticnarv.
2
that satisfactory answers to particular questions can only be obtains:,
by historical comparison.
As to division, and especially to impromptu expansions and
variations which come under that head in the vocal airs, the viol,
cembalo, and flute solos of the 17th and 18th centuries, we fortu-
nately possess a few completely recorded specimens - the Adagios fron
the first six Violin Solos of Corelli (Op. 5), the "Double de Rossig-
nal” of France. Couperin, the Agremeus and Doubles to the Barabandee
in J.S. Bach's Suites, certain florid arias of Handel, his Air with
five Doubles (D-mincr) in the third set of harpsichord lessons, and
the Adagio in F which opens his second Suits. Pieces such as the
slow movements of the Concertos for the Flute, which Quantz wrote
for Frederick the Great, and the collections of vocal divisions con-
tained in Burney's History are also good examples, shewing the im-
portant part division played in the execution of solo music during a
considerable number of years.
The tables and specimens given in aue order later present int-
eresting material for tracing the gradual differentiation of orna-
ments proper, as expressed by signs, from the endless variety of di-
visions. This process will be found to be practically complete in
the time of Bacn and Handel, when divisions are, for the most part,
written out in full and incorporated in the text, and a variety of
signs remain to express the ornaments.
Some accurate knowledge of the manifold and various steno-
graphic signs for ornaments, - graces, greppi, tremoli, tremlemens,
agr emeu's, manieren- is indlspensible to the student. The signs and
the quaint things they stand for are already in part obsolete, and
are tending to disappear mere and more completely as time goes on;
'
3
but several of them still occur in daily practice, and the entire
number cannot be ignored, were it only for the fact that John Sebas-
tian Bach makes extensive use of so many. If any player, who is not
fully conversant with Bach, tries to render the Prelude in C sharp
minor (Preludes and Fugues, Part II), he will find the ornaments in-
dicated in almost every measure a source of doubt and difficulty.
They form an integral part of the Master's design, and it is impossi-
ble to play the piece without them. Yet not only in this instance,
but in very many important instrumental pieces by Bach, players are
confronted with a series of puzzles of like nature.
It would be idle to inquire where, when, or by whom any particu
lar sort of musical grace or ornament was first introduced. Like
local peculiarities of accent and pronunciation, such things arise
whenever people sing and play upon instruments. They are improvised
by one person, imitated by another, until they become common property
and rules are laid down for their execution. Many indications of the
presence of conventional ornaments have been found in mediaeval vocal
music, both ecclesiastical and secular. In church music the grace
notes, improvised and interpolated by the singers, gave rise to flori<|
counterpoint and divisions. In secular songs, the graces appear as
short additions to the tune,- little trills, beats, inflections of
the voice, and the like. Early in the 16th century they are of fre-
quent occurrence in instrumental music too.
The attempts of early instrumentalists to introduce changes in-
to their versions of popular tunes and their transcriptions of contra'
punt a 1 vocal music, led to what was called Diminution - the beginning
of Figuration. In Diminution, the melodic outlines are preserved,
while rhe main notes of a subject are changed into notes of shorxer
.
.
.
.
• . . ■
.
4
duration; and tne divergence between divisions on the one hand and
graces on the other has hardly begun. The early attempts at dim-
inution in Italy are usually no more than a conglomerate of rather
clumsy graces; though as early as 159b, Diruta tried to establish a
distinction between certain diminutions, consisting of little turns
and runs, which he calls "Grcppi", and certain others consisting of
shakes of greater or less duration, which he calls "Tremoli".
With some of tne organists of the 16th and 17th centuries the
art, or rather the trick of diminution was nothing else than an easy
method of replacing the long notes of a piece of vocal music by
groups of short notes or diatonic runs, by the insertion of little
shakes, turns, and appcggiature, by syncopation, and by the use of
dotted quavers or crotchets followed by shorter quavers or semi-
quavers. In Germany tnis process was known as "organisiren" , "colo-
rieren" (to furbish up for the organ, to colour). From Paumann to
Woltz (1571-3617), German organists "coloured" everything in a dull
mechanical fashion. Diminution in the hands of French organists is
identical with that of the Italians and Germans; perhaps a little
more reticent than the former, a little more tasteful than the lat-
ter. In Spain and Portugal vocal pieces set out in diminution for
the organ were known as Glosas. The favorite "Glceas" and "Alcados"
consisted of the introduction of groups of three or six notes -
equivalent to our turn, mordent, - ana transient shake - or of some
bits of florid counterpoint tastefully applied.
To the great ana comparatively very early group of English com-
posers, Byrde, Bull, Orlando Gibbons, Peter Phillips (1600), belongs
the credit of having first made really artistic use of Diminut ion, or
Division, as they called it. In their hands division takes the four
.
.
.
5
of variations on popular tunes - the tune being given to the treble.
Whether composing variations or merely preludizmg, the English mas-
ters run into division abundantly. Like the Italians, Merulc and tne
two Gabrielis, they take the trouble to write out tneir long trills
in full, or at least to indicate them with sc many notes that there
can be no doubt as to when and where a rather snort or a prolonged
shake is meant. Elaborate ornaments - tne quaint "double-relisn" ,
the "elevation", for instance - are also carefully written out note
for note; but for the simpler graces, such as short shakes, mordents,
beats, and the slur or slide, they employ a stenographic sign - whici:
amounts to no more than one or two little slanting lines drawn thru'
the stem of the note, and of which the latter is the form most fre-
quently met with. These signs are the earliest instances of a spe-
cies of stenography employed to indicate ornaments in music for keyed
instruments.
The English masters thus make division the groundwork, and
use graces as true embellishments. They distribute their graces in
rather an indiscriminate fashion, often indicating them profusely as
pertaining to the inner parts, ana in places where it is difficult tc
make out how they can nave played any sort of grace without a sense
of incongruity. For considerable time after Byrde, Bull, and Gibbons,
musical publications abroad contain divisions and ornaments elabo-
rately written out, side by side with graces indicated by a few sim-
ple signs. Such is tne case, for instance, in Frescobaldi 1 s works
(1608-1655-45), where certain short trills are marked t. and tr. ,
while everything else is fully written out; and the same method of
notation is found in the works of his pupil Froberger who died 1667.
About 1650 a number of ratner complex ornaments begin tc take
'
1
.
■
6
something like a permanent form. At the same time, the use or vari-
ous and more elaborate signs to express them, together with a steadi-
ly growing subtlety of interpretation is found to be rapidly on the
increase. In the matter of ornamentation the influence of early
English, French, German, and Italian lute players upon cembalists,
and even organists, is abundantly evident. "Lute players, profession-
al and amateur, went to the French Court from England, came to the
English Court from France. " French lute music was sometimes tran-
scribed from lute tablature to staff notation, and published for the
clavecin." "No instance of the contrary has come to light; but as
late as 1717 the designation "choses lutees" is used by Francois
Couperin to express the notation of pieces in which the chords are
played arpeggio, or else rhythmically divided or "broken", lute
fashion. "
In the publications of French clavecinists, everything that per-
tains to division is incorporated in the text, and the numerous and
choice ornaments Which they, as the neaas of a school, approve of, are
indicated by those signs with many of which we are still familiar.
In the hands of the next generation of clavecinists, during the
reign of Louis XV, the ornate French style attains its fullest de-
velopment. It may be studied in the "Pieces de Clavecian" of Francoin
Couperin (1668-1733) ; the Suites of Dienpart, some features of which
J.S. Bach thought worthy of imitation; the Pieces and "Concerts en
Trio" of Rameau, and its method is clearly set forth in the classical
school of French harpsichord playing - Couperin’s "L’Art de toucher
de Clavecin", in 1717. It was from this distinguished school of
chambounieres and the Couperins that J.S. Bacn got his signs.
Daunreutner "Musical Ornamentation", Vol.I.
7
"The tilings expressed by tne French stenographic characters
are or course much older than the characters themselves, and proba-
bly reached Bach from all parts of Europe - from the English virginal
players and composers of the Parthenia through Sweelinck of Amster-
dam and some of his many disciples, Bmtehude of Ldbeck, Bruhns of
Iiusum, Schridt of Halle, and Reinken of Hamburg - from Frescobaldi
in Rome through his pupils Froberger and Franz Tunder, who became
organist at Lidbeck - through the South German organist and cembalist
George Muffat, who spent six years in Paris in Lulley's time - from
Pachelbel, organist at Mrnberg - from friends and colleagues whom
Bach heard and admired in his youth, such as George B6hm, organist
at Ldneburg, and Johann Gottfried Walther, organist at Weimar - from
the older members of his own family - and even from Faust nia Haase
and the vocalists of the Italian Opera at Dresden. n *
However this may be, it is certain that Bach's use of signs is
mainly based on French models. The German names for the French signs
as set forth in C. Ph. Emanuel Bach’s "Versuch doer die Wahre Art das
Clavier zu Spielen" (Essay on the true way of playing the Clavier),
1753, are still in use. They have the merit of being simple and
definite, and for that reason deserve to be adopted.
In the matter of "Manieren" (German term for graces), C. Ph. E,
Bach also follows in the wake of the French masters, whom he praises
for their accuracy, neatness, and good taste. But his view embraces
a far more extensive field than Couperin's, and he goes into many
subtle details, of which Couperin apparently had no notion. By the
aid of numerous examples, he explains all the signs separately, and
adds sundry complications of his own. His book represents the
*
Daunreuther "Musical Ornamentation", Vol.I.
8
high-water mark of the clavier before the advent of the pianoforte.
(Before ana after J.S. Bach German musicians applied the term clavier
in a general way to all instruments with a key-board) . C. Ph. E. Bac
is admitted to be the leading representative of the German school of
"clavier” playing. None the less it would be a mistake to accept him
as the sole guide to his father’s works, even in the matter of graces
of which he makes so great a specialty, he dees not profess to be a
guide to any man’s practice other than his own; and though he speaks
reverently of his father and quotes his words as these of a "great
man", he quotes them simply to enforce his own views.
The practice of J.S. Bach cannot be traced without constant
reference to the works of his predecessors and the contemporaries of
his early days. At the time of his death, 1750, musicians did not
feel the value of his example as we now feel it, and few were aware
of more than one side of his genius. Few really followed and con-
tinued in his ways as a practical organist and clavier-player, still
less as a composer for keyed instruments. his sons and disciples
started each on some by-way of hi3 own and strove to develop some
specialty. Accordingly, none of that remarkable cluster of instruc-
tion books wnich appeared soon after Bach's decease can be taken as
adequately representing him, though for the most part, they emanate
directly from the circle of his pupils and friends.
The great number ana variety of graces and conventional divi-
sions constantly employed by the Italian vocalists and violists, the
French and German lutenists, clavecinists , and organists of the 16th,
17th, and the first half of the 18th century, is only superficially
accounted for by a reference to the prevailing taste of the time.
From a musician’s point of view, divisions and graces are part
9
and parcel of musical speech*- elements of style* having a common
origin. The explanation of their rapid development lies in our in-
; stinct for variety and in tne delight wnich variety gives. "With
a group of poets the vocabulary may increase whilst the range of
simile* comparison and image widens, until a need is felt for concen-
tration and a more careful choice of words. So, with a school of
composers, the tendency of divisions and graces to luxuriate may
bring about a desire for some check."* It would seem that the influ-
ence which got the upper hand of random ornamentation, was developed
in thorough bass,- tne harmonic system with its figured continuo. In
early days* in secular songs as well as in solo music for the lute,
the use of graces was permitted without much regard to regularity of
time or any special rate of speed* and the instinct of executants
could be trusted to secure an acceptable result. But when* in the
course of the 17th century* a change from the contrapuntal to the
harmonic method of treatment became more and more marked*- wnen
pieces of mu3ic came to be founded on some simple well balanced ser-
ies of fundamental harmonies*- it was felt that divisions and orna-
ments ought to chime exactly with the rhythmic movement of tne bas-s.
Expert harmonists among composers were thus induced to determine the
exact position of each grace* and to show by some sign what sort of
grace was best for a particular note in a particular position.
On the other hand, most vocal and many instrumental virtuosi
chose to insert divisions and graces whenever and wherever they
thought fit. They prided tnemselves on their apparently impromptu
performances and strongly inclined towards tempo rubato. In this
connection* more and more frequently cases arose when composers found
j! * Daun rant her "Musical Ornamentation",
.
■
-
' :
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,
10
it worth while to prevent vagaries and to describe the ornaments in
small notes (grace notes) or to define the signs for sucn ornaments
by means of a table.
J.S. Bach went furtner than tnis. Not only did he accept the
highly specialized signs and the practice of writing "les agremes”
in full, but finding that the licence of executants was still an im-
pediment, he chose to incorporate many of the ordinary ornaments and
virtually to embody them in his text. Thus, it has come to pass thai
certain traditional ornaments fully written out form a by no means
inconsiderable part of J.S. Bach’s figuration. In the mature works
of Bach's two greatest successors, Beethoven and Wagner, the instinct
for a grand style has led to the almost total extinction of the
graces as such, and ta t.ne absorption even of some of the simplest
of them; witness the very frequent occurrence of the common turn,
broadly written out and fused with the context in ^agner's "Tristan"
and "Me 1st er singer ”,
’’Many a curious fact or inference with regard to the true ori-
gin of certain things, or the connection of one thing with another,
has come to light. For instance: the Italian "Partite sopra 1’ an
of Frescobaldi 1 s time prove identical with the early English vari-
ations and divisions of the Parthenia. " "It would appear that the
rather absurdly so-called cyclical forms before the sonata - the
Suite and the Partita ardsefrom the practice of lute players."*
Lutenists, who were in the habit of playing from the bock, found it
convenient to copy pieces in the same key one after another, so that
they might be in a position to play several pieces in succession
without having to stop and fumble the leaves, or to re-tune the open
* Damiretather "Musical Ornamentation".
a 1
11
bass strings of the lute. This is tne true origin of the "ordres des
pieces", "suites des pieces", etc.
The fact tnat time signatures -
a
d 4-j ,
3 3 3 M
2 2
4- 1
1 1 1 T 1
1 2 4- 4- /
1 2
2 II
in the 17th century, and probably all along, were meant - besides
their usual significance to suggest the speed of the units of time -
that is,- the tempo in the modern sense, as we would now write
Largo g ~ is clearly brought cut in Frescobaldi ' s preface to his
Capricci, Canzone, and Recercari" (1624) ana in Purcell’s Lessons
(1691).
The peculiar disposition of early Italian organs, (See the
specification of one of the organs of St. Mark’s, Venice, Circa, 1580,
p 55 Damir eat her ’Musical Ornament at ion", Vol.I, and the directions
for registration witn regard to the various modes, p 56), and their
light touch compared with German organs, explains how tne organists
in Italy came so readily to fall into division and to cultivate a
taste for little trills and fioriture. A clever organ builder, like
Attegnati of Brescia, produced an instrument easier to manipulate;
and in the hands of ingenious players the result was the Toccata.
Elaborate ornaments are sometimes discovered in the alto or
tenor parts of old pieces written out note for note, imbedded in the
text, ana conveying to the eye, if not to the ear, an impression of
an intolerable combination of discordant sounds. Yet such passages
are readily intelligible and can be played in a satisfactory manner,
i-L only tne player realizes that he is dealing with a "grace".
The musicians of the Ibth and 17th centuries, were brought up
on the ecclesiastical scales,- the modes, with the rise of the opera
13
and the growth of instrumental music, thorough-bass, to some extent,
replaced counterpoint, and the modern major and minor scales made
taeir way rapidly. Yet, up to the time of Bach and later, melodies
written in the modes formed tne theme of many a fine piece,- for in-
stance, some of Bach's Chorales.
It is natural, therefore, that the feeling of Bach's predeces-
sors and contemporaries should incline towards diatonic progressions
generally and, in the case of ornaments, towards diatonic changing
notes. This being sc, it ceases to be a matter for surprise when we
find so many instances of ornaments fully written out, in which the
changing notes, in shakes, mordents, and turns are simply diatonic.
"Organists will remember the case of the two mordents on the fifth B,
with which the theme of Bach's Fugue in E minor (No. Ill of the first
set of six Preludes and Fugues for the Organ) begins. "* "The acces-
sory note belonging to these mordents is meant to be the diatonic
$
fourth. A,- not A-sharp. " Ornaments were diatonic before and in
Bach's time, and they must be so interpreted. But Bach's followers
beginning with Beethoven discarded the greatest number of signs for
graces which they included in their music broadly written out. How-
ever, graces themselves are not extinct. It is tne method of no-
tation which has changed; signs for graces have been abolished, while
the grace notes are expressed in the text, either in smail type or
fully incorporated in the time of the measure.
I)aunreuther, "Musical Ornamentation", Vol.I.
f
■
Graces smootn and shaked from Christopher Simpson, "The Divi
sion Violist 1,1
Diruta - How To Play Groppi (How to Improvise Divisions)
Groppi are played in various ways, that is, witn crochets,
quavers, and semi-quavers; also with semi-quavers and demi semi-quavers
They move diversely, ascending and descending diatomcally ; also
witn accidentals as in the following examples. (Daunreutner "Musical
Ornamentation", Vol.I.)
Groppi with accidentals -
Further examples of Groppi -
(Sub i ect )
. .
.
Subject. Doric iioae transposed, requires h for its minor
third and for the cadence.
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How to Play Tremoli (Shakes)
Play all tremoli lightly ana with agility, ao net perform them
with the key below, but with the key above. If a Tremolo is to be
made upon a minim, the Tremolo will last only naif a minim - that
is, one crochet. The s.arne thing takes place with notes of any other
value; that is, the shake takes just half the value of tne main note
.
III
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Sub i ect
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Shakes according tc Diruta, take up half the value of the main
note and stop upon it; they start with tne main note* and they are
played with the upper accessory. Like Groppi, shakes are diatonic un-
less a cadence demands an accidental. But in the example of tremo-
letti given above, there is a case of the lower accessory note form-
ing part of the snake; and the first example of diatonic groppi con-
tains a snake with the lower diatonic accessory. Again Diruta stig-
matizes shakes "with the key below" a3 bad practice; his examples,
however, snow that mordents - i. e. , shakes or half-shakes, with the
lower accessory tone or semi-tone, were common enough in his time.
Moreover, his groppi exhibit shakes which start with tne upper acces-
sory and net with tne main note as ne demands. This ambiguity in
Diruta is representative of the vexatious question whether shakes
shall start with the accessory or with the main note which persists
to the present day,
Andrea Gabrieli 1510-1586
groppi and Tremoli from "Canzcn Ariosal’.
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examples of music engraved on copper plates: 1611 is the date of first
publication, bur most of the pieces are older. Dr. Bull's may be
uen years older than tncse of Orlando Gibbons; Byrde' s twenty years,
or even more. The Parthenia was reprinted, always from the same
plates, in 1613, 1635, 1650 or 1651, and 1659. Tne Parthenia con-
sists of 21 pieces; eight by Byrde, seven by Dr. Bull, six oy Orlande
Gibbons. Some are grouped witn a view to being played in succession.
Byrde: Prelude, Pavana and Galiardo "Sir William Petrs" - in G minor-
the Pavin is a stately piece, in square time, the Galiard, somewhat
quicker , in triple time; Prelude and Galiardo "Mrs. Mary Brcwnlo" —
in C; Pavana "The Earle of Salisbury” and two Galiards in A minor.
Bull: Prelude, Pavana, and Galiardo "St. Thomas" Wake" in G; fwo
Galiards in D minor. Gibbon's pieces are not grouped. A stave of
six lines for each hand; clefs F, C and G, placed upon various lines:
To facilitate the reading of extra lines, two clefs on a stave:
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Time signatures:- (£■ (= ^ or
9 (= £) (= \)
Accidentals, both sharp and flat in plenty, carefully placed
before or below each particular note concerned. Sharps stand for
naturals if a natural is required after a flat. Rests are omitted
wherever an omission is feasible. No special indications of tempo,
the time signature was deemed sufficient.
Divisions (groppi, tremoli, tiratae) abound. Side by side witt
these very numerous graces are indicated by two oblique lines, or a
single oblique line, rising from left to right, ^and Such lines
are drawn across the stem of the notes - /+? . Unfortu-
nately there is no evidence of sufficiently early date to show the
particular graces these signs stand for. We know that certain kinds
of graces were constantly employed by the instrumentalists of the
time. It is likely, that the sign in the Parthenia sometimes
stands for an appoggiatura from below or from above, or for a double
appoggiatura. The double sign ^occurs with varying significance uj
to the time of J.S. Bach. The sign in the Parthenia sometimes
stands for a short shake, but if placed over long notes which cannot
well be sustained, and especially ever prolonged notes at the end of
a section, it probably signifies the reiteration of a note.
A vibrato, in the sense of lute players of old and the violin-
ists of today, that is, a very slight and rapid fluctuation of the
pitch, produced by a tremulous motion of the finger upon the strings
is impossible on keyed instruments. But an effect closely resembling
it can be got upon the clavichord. The earliest instance in which a
substitute for vibrato is written out in full occurs in Froberger’s
30
"Suite de Clavessin in D". A later and familiar example is container
in the bass of J.S. Bach's Gavotte in G minor.
The shortest piece in the Parthenia, No. VI, Byrde's Pavana,
"The Earle of Salisbury" show how the graces occur and how they are
played
rJ j.
ri-jr
— 1 —
zz=
4=
n i <
_j 1 ^ -j t- i 7
.» o .y j — ^ *
- i . A' !
' ^ Jr -
z> ~
1
. : lr If
T* 1
— n
’j. i *
■P r
i.
i n —
1 — v* 2
1 ,
i > . i
J L
-ku 1 J.
Played, tnus:
— ^
. 0 - # * ^ W
^ '
. i
' r M & * lT
& # M—
-
1
1 \ \ w
^ “ 9
1 1 -fc=±_jJ i ^ n
m } U-u h=m-i
A volume of music for the virginals and harpsichord in the
Britisn museum contains the following signs for graces, and their
explanat ions :
A .v i\
, ft \ ^ F d 1
— — F : l
A — FT
1 y 1 j \r
r i
U 1 ! ' ?; —
j jk • m
.j
* . * a -
r—
O ' ' > A* * °
^ »■ 0 p
* • 9 •!* f • r' i
1 *
p-
i
f # c !
O ??
1
1
1 1
, |
?T
’ O
O’ &
05=
r~rr
>»
1 TTj
>
T ^
j 1
c
1
T j
1 ^ < ? ...
/ £ j
ri
i
s.
-i l—i
— i
1
-ar— *
m
~
fi
1 1
*•
— ^ —
? rfT :
1
U
- —
•
—
■« - - ■
s
-e3»-
— f-
t
The names and signs for Purcell's graces are obsolete - but the thing!
intended still exist and the directions apply. Purcell's piece
”Almand tt is a good example of his ornamental style. Matthew Locke
and Jon. Froberger who lived at the same time offer notning new from
Frescobaldi who was given above.
Signs and Marks cf Chambonnieres 1670
m
-
Arcangelo Corelli - 1653-1713. Corellis' "Opera Quinta" con-
tains the solo sonatas which the composer performed on special oc-
casions. These sonatas consist of a plain violin part over a bass,
sometimes figured, sometimes not. Corelli's own embellishments ap-
pear above the plain violin part. A few measures is given below
from the Adagio from Sonata II.
prompted him to avoid the use of all but the most familiar ornaments
They include the common shakes, mordents, turns, and appoggiature.
Scarlatti's .shakes may as often be begun with the main note as with
tne upper accessory. He is fond of the slide, of the acciaccatura.
28
the arpege figure - and the glissando.
Handel, like Scarlatti has comparatively few signs, and none
tnat are ambiguous. his shakes may occasionally but not as a rule,
begin with the main note. Fine specimens of combined graces and di-
visions are given in ms Adagio in F which begins the second Suite
and the Air in D minor from tne third suite. Concerning the arpeg-
gio chords in such pieces as tne preludes to Hanael ' s Suites I. ,V. ,
the player is at liberty to "break" them up and down several times
in succession - to widen them and even intersperse them witn acci-
accature as he sees fit, ana. as Handel has himself done in tne last
four measures of the prelude to the Suite in D-minor, No. lit. Tne
dot, with Handel, as with J.S. Bach, in many cases has but an approx
imate value: for instance, in the Overture to the Suite in G minor,
„ VT . t n n — r=t
I? n r
After snort shakes tne dot often stands for a snort rest.
. Allemande. Suite in D minor. No. III.
Table of Ornaments
1. The plain snake is appropriate for quick movements; and it
may be made upon any note, passing immediately to the ensuing note -
£
2. The turned shake made quick ana long is fit to express
gaiety.
b. The superior apoggiatura is supposed to express love, affe
tion and pleasure.
4. The inferior apoggiatura has the same qualities with the
preceding, except that it is much more confined, as it can only be
made when the melody rises the interval of a second or third, making
a beat on the following note.
that is:-
' •
.
■
■
-
30
5. Holding a note. It is necessary to use this often sc melo
dy note may be heard during a shake.
6. The Staccato. This expresses rest, taking breatn or
changing a word.
. t ■ r ,
±
7-8. Swelling and Falling the Sound. These two elements may
be used after each other; they produce beauty and variety in the
melody.
_<2_
iEZEF
9-10. Piano and Forte.
I
F
V
[ Lu EJ I
ZZ
t
11. Anticipation. was invented with a view to vary tne melo-
dy, without altering its intention.
© © V-tk® f i
. s ,r « ^ ^ * f » s.
—
.
I 'ofc-P
.
.
’ .
31
12. Separation. Designed to give a variety to the 'melody and
takes place most properly when the note rises a second or third; as
also when it descends a second, then add a beat and swell the note,
and then make the apoggiatura to the following note.
In modern notation:
13. Beat.
*
• *
J
■ ■ ' 9
b2
Giuseppe Tartini (1692-1770)
Trill - (Violin Sonata in G minor).
J.S. Bach 1685-1750
Bach’s ornaments are diatonic, that is, they are to be sung or
played with the notes of the scale. Chromatic inflections alien to
the scale are permitted only in case of modulation, or to avoid an
abnormal interval. Augmented intervals cannot form part of an orna-
ment, and ornaments comprised in a diminished interval, that is, a
chromatic turn in a diminished third such as E flat, D, C sharp, D -
are inadmissible unless Bach has fully written them out. Ornaments
belong to the time of the main note. On keyed instruments orna-
ments and the notes or chords supporting them in the same hand must
be struck together; if a chord is played arpeggio the ornament forms
part of the arpeggio. All ornaments, whether indicated by signs or
by small notes, are subject to the beat - they must be treated as
essential to the melodic progress of the part in which they occur,
and rendered so as to agree with the dominant pulsations of the time
Shakes - prolonged snakes rather than snort ones, generally start
with the upper accessory. Shakes upon a note with a dot stop at or
33
near the dot - a short note following the dot is usually taken some-
what shorter than it is written. Shakes and mordents upon a pro-
longed note, when sucn note is tied on to another and shorter note
of the same pitch, stop before the latter, without emphasis and with-
out closing notes. Appoggiature are far more frequently short than
long. The duration of appoggiature depends upon the speed of a move-
ment, upon the harmonic basis, and the prevailing rhythms. All pro-
longed approggiature have the stress and the main note following a
long appoggiatura is meant to be taken rather softly.
Bach’s Table of Ornaments
Signs and How they are Played.
■
b4
Compl et e List of J. S. Bach 1 s Or na me nts and the Signs f or Them
Tnller, long a/Wjx aw
Prall-Triller
Triller, with prefix from above * o Owv
Triller, with prefix from below o 0>w
Mordant, snort
Mordant, long r>o
i
crv
) 'i
- rt fi *
Vorschlag, from above, snort
Vorschlag, from below, short
Nachschlag. . .sign N placed after a note, tnus:-
/
or else expressed by means of a tiny note rsembling
an ordinary appoggiatura, thus:- J. 1 '
Doppelscnlag g
Schleif'er
Anschlag ... a sort of double appoggiatura always
written out
Arpeggio
Acciaccatura
Begung
Groppo (Gruppo)- The word only; no distinct sign.
Double Signs
Combination of Appoggiatura and Mordent. . . . cyj .O d 7
Combination of Appoggiatura and trill
Combination of Dcppelschlag and Prall-triller jvj
Combination of Arpeggio and acciaccatura /
f
35
Ornaments - Illustrations
Shakes beginning with the upper accessory are marked m, n ; t,tr
The repercussions may vary from
upwards; their num-
ber is entirely at tneplayer's discretion.
Shakes should always be started with the accessory wnen the
main note nas just been struck: -
Shakes, with closing notes. The closing notes are frequently
written out; where they are not sc written they may be added or not
as the player chooses.
Fugue a minor.. Preludes and Fugues, Part I., measures 51&52.
t=t
1
f * ~ * f
±= mi
s
# ^ » f # y m-0
^ « * * €
mu
Fi
'o
g- * ' " . < s «■ - —
U-klcU
Often also the closing notes instead of being written out are
indicated by a perpendicular stroke to the right of the sign a syJ
wf f>
^ t"* 4 "
Trill and Mordant of Bach's own Table.
36
it
&
rT, # ; < y
[i‘ l Ij iL
n
m
e
# ? * f * 0 w+ m + wf 9 f *' f m £ ~w
sm
g
^= :
Shakes ascending in chromatic succession may or may not be tak-
en with closing notes, as the player chooses.
Organ Sonata II, C minor, bar 11, before end of Vivac§ -
br
to °
;jo '•
■WE A
If- —
r*
U — —
1 — L —
a. When the snake starts ex abrupt o Fugue XIII, part 11.
'
37
b. When the snake starts after a note staccato - or after a
rest, Fugue VI, part 1, bar 2 -
c. When the melody skips, and the shake thus forms part of
some characteristic interval; as, for instance, the interval of the
seventh in the theme of Fugue XV, part 1, bars 25 & 26.
Written
d. When the movement of the base would be weakened if the
shake were begun with the accessory. Fugue IV, part ii, bar 32.
e. Shakes upon dotted notes, when no closing notes are intend-
ed, step at or near the dot; the short note following the dot often
loses a little of its value, and the dot in such cases frequently
stands for a short rest.
/^W
58
Shakes with a prefix from below.
Italian Concerto - close of Anaante.
Shakes with a prefix from above.
Portita, B minor. Overture.
Slurred shakes. Sonata for violin ana cembalo. F miner.
39
Shakes upon a long note which is tied on to a shorter one of
the same pitch stop before the latter, without stress ana without
closing notes.
Prelude IX. E major, bar 4.
JjL
tr/ m
— 7 1 a A * &
3pE
ffilllD )JJ s
The sign for tne shake occurs combined with that for the ap-
poggiatura.
Gvv'vW
1| » O
±
A slow shake fully written out occurs in Invention IX, measures
3 ana 7.
^b\n l qL -
0
l wj
L i » e=t —
-# —
6 fe M — Wr+==b=f=-/j —
UJJ | i4-i
-1- =
The Mordent
Mordent - short - Partita IV, Mineut.
/W
iy ^
a.
.
'
.
40
Mordent fitted into the time or the bar. Preludes and Fugues,
Fugue VIII, oar 21.
ET#
v ‘ * o
- L h ^ —
td p
w #
6 A ^
t
r i—ULxsrii -
■■ ■
l
— T 1 i il , j 1
4- Jfc. * 1 1 1
( 7
.'hai /.cJ: 1 L
X* 9 sm. 4k 9
~W * * f—
i y ^
t — i — r f —
— — : t. m u a * « ~
I -T , 1 — t~
1 — 1 — 1 — ss —
— 1 1
i 1 — a
Diatonic mordents fully written out. Organ Sonata II, C minor
Allegro, bar 6^3.
f-HH
■~s — A A
# n
r.-FFf
/ Jrv k 1
'TT7 r ^ r
jm xk & 4k 9 f 9 ^
_l * 1 1
lm° b a
r 1 l i / t 1 f
— 1 — ^ #-
t 7=t. 1 ^-r- 1 -
-stJ —
- 1 y g.. *
/ , fn, FTh
—
i (V) b <© « <© 1 r <• <*
1 1
p / 7 *
►M
Mordent Died to the preceding note. Organ sonata VI.
Mordenx -prolonged.
Invention VII, E minor. As with shakes, prolonged mordenxs
upon dotted notes should stop on xne dot.
:
Organ Prelude and Fugue XIV, B miner
Doppeiscniag - Turn: C\9 and u
b. Between two notes
Schleifer - slide.
Arpeggio
43
Arpeggio downwards and upwards occurs in Kleine Pr&ludien, rto
When an appoggiatura is applied to an arpeggio chord; it takes
its place as one or the notes or the arpeggio, and occasions a delay
of the particular note to wmch it belongs equal to the time re-
quired for its performance; whether it be long or short.
f
-fez » a
-3 — J
=q- ■' ' : —
-iCul 3
_
— 1 a£2
« —1
, f K
1
- 4 -
U
tl
t iv
^^1
i
3 s - — =
an 2T
1
. I T
Arpeggio and acciaccatura indicated by signs.
Sarabande Suite - a major
%
n
' ■" "- 1 S ’
3 9 * ' 0 ' '
7
44
In Bach’s time double dots were net in common use, and the
single dot was employed to express prolongation in a somewhat less
strict way than we are now accustomed to. Bach, hand el, and all
their contemporaries often take the dot to mean a prolongation eithei
mere or less than one naif.
Suite I, D minor.
Concerning Graces of C. Ph. E. Bach
"uraces are useful, - in fact, indispensable. They serve to
connect the notes, they enliven them, and give them a special weight
and emphasis; they render them agreeable, and thus attract especial
attention; tney help to bring out the sense of the music whether it
be sad, cheerful, or otherwise; they always contribute their share
to the effect; they offer opportunity to the player to exhibit his
gifts of style and expression; and an indifferent composition can be
made more attractive by their aid; while without them even the best
melody may appear empty and void of meaning. 1,1 But though the graces
1. Daunreuther, "Musical Ornamentation".
45
are very useful they may do much harm if they are ill-chosen or em-
ployed too frequently and in the wrong place. Therefore, those com-
posers have done best who have plainly indicated the graces which be-
long to their pieces instead of trusting to the discretion of incom-
petent executants. Graces may be divided into two classes; those
indicated by certain conventional signs or by means of certain small
notes, that is graces proper; in the other class tnose for wnich no
particular signs are in use, but which consist of many short notes
written out in full, that is, divisions. All graces must be kept at
a proper rate of speed, having regard to the duration of the main
note as well as to the prevailing tempo and sentiment of the piece,
how ana then a particular grace is indicated over a long note, al-
though the grace is not of sufficient duration to fill up the entire
note. In such case tne final note of the grace must be dwelt upon
until the next main note occurs, for all graces are introduced with
the object of connecting the main notes one with another. All graces
indicated by means of small notes belong to the following main note;
therefore tne main note which precedes a grace should never lose any
part of its value, wnereas the main note which follows the small noteii
will lose so much of its value as is required for the grace.
Appoggiature count among the most important ana indispensable
graces. They improve the melody as well as the harmony. They render!
the melody agreeable, for tneyform a smooth connection between one
note and anotner. They give variety to tne harmony wnich witncut
them might seem too plain. The following example shows the manner
in which appoggiatura are to be played - that is, louder than the
following main note and its embellishments, ana legato whether the
legato be specially indicated by a slur or not. These directions
46
serve for all appoggiatura whicn are meant to connect the notes.
w
g§
a
3
jnz
t
n
zi
-<*=?-
3 =
4 :
z=
+
T
Appoggiatura sometimes consist in repetition of the preceding note
a sometimes not aa , and that the note following the appoggia-
tura may be an ascending one or a note making a skip.
E
'-U-
- 9 -
^ I
i:
:aE ;#
1 f 'r n L
-1 ^ ^ 4
r
i__j (
r
L I
3 g 'i *
±
I (
L
1 1 1
Vorschlage or appoggiatura commonly occur in square time both
on tne down beat a and on the up beat b ; in triple time on the
down beat only c .
r
A
44
TT
r 1
f 1 n
3
f’ -*
1 — 1 — 1 — 1
+■
* w
a
&
£
I 1
J 1
4-rJ-
I I '
©
ft *
-&r
it
i,i 1
f
4h
•
.
.
■
i
47
The common rule as regards the duration of the appoggiature
is that they take half the value of a plain note, as at aa in one
of the aoove examples; and two-thirds the value of a dotted note as
at b .
Vorschlage (appoggiatura) which do not come under the common
rule should be written out in full and fitted into the time of the
bar.
Appoggiatura are to be played snort when they fill up skips of
thirds. In an Adagio, however, the effect will be mere agreeable
£= *
thus -
i
&
£
i
g 0
±=t
i=t
tne appoggiature are better
taken as triplets rather
than as semi-quavers.
Occasionally there are reasons for interrupting the flow of a melody
■
48
and in such case the appoggiatura ought to be short.
Appoggiatura before triplets are also played short, so that tne trip-
lets may not be obscured or the phrase mistaken for another phrase.
Both long and short Vorschlage may sometimes in addition be placed
before such ether Vorschlage as have been written out in full and in-
corporated in the bar. 1 When the main note is repeated and a
Vorschlag precedes the repetition.
4-4-
f^=
P-
|V
— r —
fc= t
l
4^
^
1
w —
V
W J
i T i i ffftT a
s
0*0 * ^
At times two little notes from below the main note are appended;
they are called the Nachschlag (closing notes) ana add much to the
liveliness of the shake.
i P FTf m
/ vh }
vw
m
'9 *
y
V
.
50
Dotted notes, succeeded by a snort note ascending, may have a snake
with tne closing notes.
Shakes without closing notes are most serviceable in descend'
ing passages.
0 ww
\A/W
VAJ aa>\/ wa/0
/ W i-5T
1 * A
/ ~ +
M *
\ i i .
f m
A*
11 | 1 J # A
1 *
11 \ UJ \ . " +
Ut
In very quick time it is sometimes expedient to replace a shake
by appoggiatura.
If shakes occur in a succession of skips tne ordinary snake (without
closing notes) is advisable, and it would be a mistake in such cases
to introduce either a shake from below or from above.
t>
vw
A A/vd
Aa /^\J
AaaV
22
The shake from above is marked thus-
'
.
51
The imperfect shake, transient snake, or Prall-tr iller , which
differs from both shakes by its sharpness and brevity follows.
_a_J
1
i )
4 —
— I
-4-
- ' " ~ i,
—
— tr
1
— <2.
. tur a r
—
" - i
The turn (Dcppelschlag) is a single grace which serves to ren-
der a melodious phrase pleasant and effective. Its sign and exe-
cution are as follows.
&
c\s>
m #
C 7
I
J
This grace occurs upon moving notes
-) f\D
^ „ !
#
== 1 — =
■ f (X) M ^ *
#
W 9 A
#■ ^ 1
-111,. y 2 i
I *
i 1
u l 1 1 (
|
upon skipping notes
— A .
*£S
: y p .
1 1
^ 1 1
1
L =
at a break in the phrase
i=b
1
rl Rl ! r
Urs & T »
i f i
1 *1 ^ ^ ^ g *
l
-1
■H
at cadences
upon Fermat os
at
the beginning cf a phrase
after an appoggiatura at the end
j „ -■■■ 'i - i i rrpMi
1 »
to M-L . T- W A W. ^ * !’ 1 1 1 r
■ -d. , — — ft — { r. ~ M _
M fl
f Lii m ' f » ^
_ + w
over a repeated note.
C\9
(f\—
f * Z
t rn .
1 1 |
1 / 1
^ y i
1 V
L r
v7 \ — 1
The mordent is an indispensable grace; it connects the notes
one with another, adds fulness to the sound. The sign for a long
mordent and the proper execution is as follows.
-A ' ^
-L-\ j & —
. ^ ----- Jf . ■ ^ ■■ ■■ ' ■ ' : “ “ '
-V-U —
w * v w
)
r=z±_. :
The sign for tne snort mordent and its effect is
55
The mordent serves to connect legato notes when they move dia-
tonically or skip, also when they are furnished with an appoggiatura.
I ■w
m
3 - *
5
Z2Z
id
^ 3 * *
P *«* -*-
The mordent serves to fill up sustained notes; it is found over tied
notes.
V
/ ‘f/V
- 0 — - 0 -
» * *
m
^
over dotted notes
'jvv " ) 'f/'J
mm
~ 9 ‘ * — *
t — l u
and groups, consisting of repetitions of tne same note
- ^ * —
*
* |l
h- ' ■ ==fl
^ 17
—
—
J
t «
or of changing intervals,
0
A --» —
VX* i
1
-0 —
1 —
V
1 —
A mordent applied to skips ana staccato notes has a brilliant effect
For this purpose it is generally played short. It is found over
notes which determine the harmony and which require special stress,
JL
u
±
i r
'
■
, S
.
'
55
The other kind of anscnlag often contains a dot between the twc
tiny notes; whereas the kind first mentioned dees not admit of such
a change.
•A- ’ V. 1
.
Pi
t
rv —
— i —
rf- —
h-
—
—
3t=
=±==;
i
s —
‘ * b * — 0
— A--—.-
...0.
#
&
kJ -
-0 T~*
V * *
£
1
The Schleii'er or slide occurs betn with and without a dot. The
slide witnout a dot consists of two or of three little notes, which
are played before the main note.
The slide of two notes are indicated by two little demisemi-
quavers
m
4
h-
-0-
- 0 -
\
£
In g time semiquavers will suffice.
M
Avx L
■ r . \\
P 0
h — * — u
A slide of two small notes differs from one of three tiny notes in
two ways - first, the former always occurs before a skip, while the
latter may occur otherwise; secondly, the former are always played
rapidly whereas the latter need not be so played.
The execution of a slide of three tiny notes follows.
r-
3 £
U
* f 0 # - - h-0
All dissonances are more fit to express emotion than consonance
.
56
this grace is more often applied tc the former than to the latter -
it is thus frequently placed over a dissonant and prolonged note
which it partially fills up. Under such circumstances it is also
used in an Allegro movement, particularly when a passage is changed
from major to minor. The Schleifer or slide of three little notes
will readily convey an impression of sadness whereas the slide of twc
notes with an intervening dot will as readily arouse a sense of pleas-
ant satisfaction.
The slide of two notes with a dot may be thus shown
Ornamentation of the Fermata or Pause
Pauses are often introduced with good effect; they arrest at-
tention, They are indicated by a small slur with a dot under it
demand. A Pause is sometimes introduced for the saxe of expression,
though it may not be specially indicated. Apart from this, Fermatas
occur in three ways: a stop is made either upon the next tc the last
note, or upon the last note of the bass, or upon a rest after the
bass note. The sign for a pause should be placed over the note where
the interruption of the time begins, and perhaps also at the end of
such interruption. An example follows with ornamentation
fr*=r| —
Pi
*
Ovw
* ^
u i g * & n
r
< 5 ?
i.
1
1 .
»v A
Leopold Mozart 1719-1787
Mozart occasionally calls things by different names, but in
substance his directions and examples are in accord with those of his
thus
and are dwelt upon as long as' the character of the piece may
57
North German contemporaries - Quantz, Marpurg, C. Ph. E. Each. He
inclines somewhat towards the lax ways of Italian violinists and
vocalists, and fails to distinguish with sufficient clearness betweer
improvised divisions and graces proper. He has three sorts of "Mor-
dant", and lumps together both long and short mordents, the auschlag
and the turn.
According to Mozart
(a) , short appoggiature indicated by small semiquavers are to
be played as quickly as possible.
(b) . All shakes, even the shortest transient shakes, start witl
the upper accessory.
(c) . Passing appoggiature follow one main note and precede an-
other, thus connecting the two - they belong to the time of the
f ormer.
Long appcggiatura
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4
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&
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pf 1 | i
.)
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3
333j
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z=fc± (-
-H/
Short Appoggiature. The grace notes as quick as possible;
stress on the main note.
58
Passing appoggiature can be applied to ascending or descending
scale passages.
Combination of appoggiatura and turn.
Hi
zr
£
* * *
^ * 0
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7
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-ku
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jit * 6 *t> ^ #
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After beats
a
(From below)
FI
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— & ° *
Nan/ ri u ii m
35-
Shakes with the major second.
Shakes with tne minor second.
.
.
59
L 9 + -r^r
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— j 1 — 1
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A simple shake, beginning with the upper accessory.
I
Nicolo Pasquali, born in Italy, settled in Edinburgh, 1743,
Johann Christoph Friedrich Bach, 1753-1795
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1. The trill
2. Trill with after-beats
3. Trill from below
4. Trill from above
5. Half or Prall-triller
6,7,8,9,10. The turn
11. Turn
12. Turn from below
13. Long mordent
14. Short mordent
_
61
Daniel Gottlob Turk
Turk's scnool marks tne transition from the treatment of tne
clavichord, and harpsichord to tnat of tne piano-forte. With regard
to ornaments, tne examples and explanations cannot be strictly ap-
plied to compositions anterior to those of C. Ph. v. Bach.
Appoggiatura, Long
Appoggiatura, short.
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Appcggiatura, before dotted notes.
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Mordent, long.
Acciaccatura ana Arpeggio combined.
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64
4
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73
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Gluck 1714-1787
Gluck’s ornaments are of the simplest: appcggiature long, or
short, the duration determined by the tempo and the prevailing senti-
ment, ordinary turns and shakes, slides, and the combination cf
snort appoggiatura from above or below with shakes.
Hayden (1762-1809) has again and again acknowledged his obli-
gations to C. Ph. E. Bach. In the matter of ornaments especially,
he faithfully followed Bach’s way. Any puzzle as to Hayden's inten-
tions when ne marks a grace by a sign may oe solved by reference to
C. Ph. E. Bacn's directions stated above.
The following turns have been misinterpreted in some editions
of Hayden's sonatas
^ m -#• *
#
m
-V-T-
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* W + *
i 0
F * 9 * *— -1
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1 ' . .
.
66
Short appoggiature Sonata in C.
pj
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— j, ■ i i
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L
f * 9 & -> o i 1 —
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^ - T*
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Turn, over a note
Sonata in A.
Shakes. Concerto in A, No. 10.
Allegretto Written
The "Nachschlag" occurs in Mozart's Concerto in D minor
67
that is
Towards the middle of Beethoven’s career, about 1800, the pi-
ano forte had everywhere superseded the clavichord and harpsichord.
Beethoven was the greatest pianoforte player of his time. no one so
much as he saw the capabilities of the instrument for rendering em-
phasis - all that is now included under the rather awkward term,
phrasing - as well as for the infinite intermingling of sounds, whici
can be produced by means of the pedals. The traditional ways of Nor 11
German clavier players had been firmly impressed upon Beethoven in hi
youth at Bonn, when his master, Neefe, brought him up on C. Ph. E.
Bach's "Versuch" and J.S. Bach's Preludes and Fugues; ana that his
touch cannot have been what is new understood by a "pianist's touch"
but ratner the touch of a clavier player, that is, a finger more than
a wrist touch; so much so that his notation often implies legatissimo
where a virtuoso of today might hardly suspect the need of ordinary
legato.
The question may be asked. Did the novel use he made of the
resources of the pianoforte in any affect the rendering of ornaments?
88
Far less than modern editors appear to believe. Up till about tne
date of the Pianoforte Concerto in C minor. Op. 57, which was written
in 1880, ornaments in Beethoven are to be rendered exactly as di-
rected by C. Ph. E. Bach, Turk, and Clement i - from about that date
onwards a change in two respects only is required: (a) shakes of
some duration are to be started with the main note, since on the
pianoforte the harmonic significance of the main note, especially
when it is struck firmly in forte passages, is thus more readily undei
stood. (b) The effect of the "Bebung" is to be produced in a new
way by the reiteration of a note with a regular change of fingers,
increase and decrease of speed and of sound, together with the use
of the pedals. Examples of Beethoven's ornaments fellow
Sonaia in F minor Op. 2, No.l
0
K.
r.
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0 + * + •
am m u
g
gonata in F for pianoforte and violin. Op. 24 - Adagio, bar 35
Iff — StH
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! f\_
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Sonata in A, Op. 2, No. 2
Bar 70. Allegro Vivace
69
Sonata in C, Op. 2, No. 3
First movement - bar 3?
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Sonata patetica Op 13
Allegro de rnolto e con brio
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Sonata in F, Op. 10, Mo. 3.
Allegro
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44
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Presto
Sonata in D, Op. 10, Wo. 3.
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Sonata in E, Op. 14, No.l
Allegro - Bar 8
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Sonata in B flat Op. 22
First mover) ent , Bar 10.
121
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Sonata in £ flat. Op. 27, Wo. 1
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71
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Sonata in C sharp minor, Op. 27, No. 2.
Presto agitato
Sonata in D minor. Op. hi. No. 2
First movement
Second movement
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72
Weber 178b~1826
Sonata in C, Op. 24.
ft l nn p
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X
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Op. 3, Rondo
f » ^
The Schneller above is meant to precede the main note. In the
Andante paco moto and in the final Rondo the sign occurs with its
usual significance as follows
. . * m )-"?
t* 'ri
7 —
s
t
in
zn
& ■
fft?
£
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Deutsche Tanze,
Op. 33, No. 10.
Moments Musical, Op. 94
Andantino, Bar 3 No. 2
74
Viotti (1753-1824) came to Paris in 1782, and. from him sprang
the great scnocl or violinists which flourished, in France during the
Empire and tne Restoration, and whose influence is still felt. The
most important names of tnis violin school were Viotti, Baillot,
Kreutzer, Rode, Fionllo, Paganini, Spchr. The snake was tneir main
grace; and they were careful to indicate the upper accessory as the
usual starting note, after the manner of Leopold Mozart.
Rudolphe Kreutzer, 1766-1851
I4tn Concerto, First Solo
„ & * tr ft
in & i
» * ““ "
I " .
* fi
• $ £
£
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1 — -
—
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—
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+
Etude No. 17
Paganini 1784-1840
The Sarabande, in C, Caprices, No. 11, in wnicn Paganini clever-
ly follows J.S. Bach and tne early Germans in tne attempt to show
new a solo violin can be made to play a skeleton harmonic accompani-
ment together with a complete tune, conxains several good cases.
where, for technical reasons, ornaments must be played in an unusual
■ -
75
way, tnat is, snakes, with the prefix from below, to start before the
accompaniment.
No. 10 of Paganini’s Caprices contains an arpeggio with a slide,
which is to be taken on the beat, as usual.
is
- — *
J lr
Spcnr 1784-1659
Frank Eck (1774- ), Spohr's “Master" - insofar as a clever
player, but an inferior musician can be called anybody's master -
misapplies the signs for the mordent , where ne intends to shew a
Prall-triller or a Schneller
5th Concerto in A, Rondo Espagnole
k\ K t
m. £ 1 - J sjr j J
i..n
U
should be
iA/
;
Spcnr unfortunately repeats this blunder, and following
Hummel, commits others. It is a matter of regret that Spohr did not
p I
'
.
1
76
acquaint nimself more thoroughly with the instruction books ot tne
school of J.S. Bach, when compiling the material for the chapters on
graces in his own "Viclinschule" , wmcn is still tne standard pro-
fessional school in Germany, Spohr therein records his views of whal
a noble style of violin playing should be. Spohr ras a great execut-
ant and composer for his instrument, but it is not unfair to say thal
he is not a good guide to the interpretation of music other than his
own. His technical directions for the study of the shake are admir-
able.
(Spohr 1 s autobiography contains evidence of the little knowl-
edge he had of the best music before Mozart, such as that of J.S.
Bach, as well as of his rather lukewarm attitude towards Beethoven
and v/eber. )
Short shakes and schneller
For the sake of completeness it is necessary to mention some
of the ornamentation sanctioned by the composers of Italian opera in
the first half of the nineteenth century. Rossini and Belleni are
the most important representatives, the vocalists of their work be-
ing Pasta, Grisi, Alboni, Rub ini, Tamburini, Lablache, Mario, and
Tamberlik.
Rossini 1792-1368
77
t- i '7 ' 1 t
^ # ' f+ * *
-#■
t=*^
■Vh
Cadenza from ”11 Rimpr over o”
Famous quartet in Bellini’s (1802-1835) "I Puritani”
2 =^
2frg-
*£-i nrv .
Rossini 1798-1848
Stab at Mater
JU* : 1 E > ./
n ^
f
ft to
y >■ V- * *
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f] * ;
- —
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f. i
1 it 1 r
L > Ki /
7
7 j :
j-j. fc
K If ' * Y
+ 2 . * . i _ ^ 1 r
■v ■ a ■ ' + * ~ — z—m
w u * *
53? 3?
4/f^p i — -—t
^9 ^ h j • ^
-M j — i — . — 4 —
^ — r~i —
AA
/IJ i n
Hummel (1778-1837) was one of the chief professional musicians
in Germany, the principal virtuoso on the pianoforte and the most ap-
proved composer for that instrument. In the main his teaching agrees
78
with that of C. Ph. E. Bach, Turk and Leopold Mozart. But in certair
particulars he chooses to diverge and to use the conventional names
and signs in a peculiar and arbitrary manner. Hummel believed that
every shake snould begin with the note itself, over which it stands,
and not with the subsidiary note above, first because the note
shaken, after which a close generally follows, ought to be more
strongly impressed upon the ear than the subsidiary note, and the
stress should naturally fall upon the accented of the two sounds,
namely, on the note to be shaken, second, because on tne pianoforte,
the succession of notes differs in some respects from that usual on
other instruments; and on account of the position of the hands, and
the consequent arrangement of the fingers, it generally is more con-
venient for the player to begin with the principal note itself than
with the subsidiary note; for to commence the shake from above it is
often necessary to lift up the hand or to substitute another finger
on the same key.
For the Shake with closing notes, which Hummel calls the per-
fect shake, he uses the usual indication tr, while the sign with
him stands for the imperfect shake, i. e. . shake without clcsins* notes
+ * ys yr —
#r, .a
, * f-
TT
/
-» ^ fc-v?
11
pF
—
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-*f ~. r » " ' ‘ ‘ ' ^ —
**-*.', i±:
4 — u
ttummel says the turn is represenrea ana piayea in three airrerent
ways:
1. Beginning with the principal note itself.
79
2. Beginning with the subsidiary note above, generally called
the direct turn
3. Beginning with the subsidiary note below, generally called
the inverted turn
The slide, according to Hummel, belongs to the time of the note
before which it stands.
.
m
.
80
Czerny 1791-185?
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^ * . „ — „ « L , — !— =
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^ — *-
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^ ^
t
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When two dots are placed after a note, the turn must conclude
on the first dot, and the last note is merely held down so much the
longer.
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b-
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Mendelssohn (1809-1847)
Mendelssohn's signs for graces, again like Domenico Scarlatti,
are few and simple. The notation is always clear and there i 3 noth-
ing different in his work from the examples already given of other
composers. Many characteristic effects in Mendels 3 ohh's pianoforte
pieces, obtained by means of rapid succession of notes without pedal;
are true harpsichord effects resembling Scarlatti.
In Schumann 1810-1856, however, the state of things is hardly
.
81
so simple, for his pianoforte music has little in common with music
for the harpsichord, and can not be played without very free use of
the pedal.
Albumblatt er. Op. 99, No.l
^ Dii O a
1 ' 'T k Arf ^ 'V
. K 5
v a .j
j, h , r * r & **
f K) p It z f\ +
1 A P J t -f W *3-
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r y k 5
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5 fa. 1
Occasionally appcggiature, both on the beat and before it, oc-
cur side by side as in the Intermezzo Scherzo of the Sonata in F
sharp minor, Op. 11
Sonata in F minor, Var.l
82
Turn, closing a phrase, always to be taken on the beat - occurs
often at the end of a movement in the oass.
Liederkreis, Op. 34, No. 2
Edward Grieg is careful to distinguish between cases where the
stress falls on the initial note and cases where the grace is antici
patory. In the most characteristic of his early works, "Twenty five
Norwegian Folk Songs and Dances", he strongly emphasizes the first
note of the Schneller
— — 1 *** * —
r
or
') 1
A
a
J 1
^ i r r j
_| f *
V i
LJ 1 il
w — /> ^
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J
J. q i — 1 — ' 1
Grieg's Suite, Op. 40, Sarabanda, contains many ornaments written outj
all on the beat. Similar cases occur frequently in the works of
Brahms, ana Dvorak.
83
Chcpin 1809-1849
Chopin was brought up in the traditions of the old classical
school. He played J.S. Bach’s Preludes and Fugues all his life. He
was strictly conservative as regards the rendering of ornaments. He
was in full sympathy with C. Ph. E. Bach’s delicate distinctions be-
tween one grace and another, and looked askance at Hummel's and
Czerny’s rather crude percepts in such matters. Any doubt which may
arise as to the rendering of an ornament expressed by signs in
Chopin, - the diatonic or chromatic notes required for it, its rhyth-
mical position, the details of its arrangement in the time of the bai
can be readily solved by a reference to C. Ph. E. Bach. The direc-
tions concerning shakes given under J.S. Bach above apply to Cnopin.
Shakes, prolonged shakes more than short ones, generally start with
the upper accessory. They do sc particularly when the main note has
been toucned upon just before tne snake, as in Bach. The exceptions
occur wnen a shake starts abruptly after a rest or wnere tne melodic
outline would be blurred. For example, where the preceding note is
one or more degrees higher than the note bearing tne shake. Chopin's
inclination towards chromatic closing notes to shakes goes with his
fondness for chromatic sequences generally.
Shakes may start with the main note as well as with the acces-
sory.
Fantasia, Op. 13
Bolero, Op. 19
84
7
t, p
rj r ~ . L i - 4
TT
that is.
- * ■ # . .#■ „ # « ^ > *-
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m n, i; , i rra
In the same piece, when the shake is tc be begun with the main
note it is specially marked by means of a small note.
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v
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35
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The long Vorschlag occurs in Chopin.
Prelude, Op. 38, No. 8, F" J Sharp minor
85
Short Vorschlag
Mazurka in F sharp minor. Op. 6, No.l
i r — r-7
x ±; z=.
m
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mm
+ *
3£
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Several cases of anticipation occur in the Fourtn Scherzo, E
maior, Op. 54.
3a
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— 1 *sr
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A chromatic turn occurs in the Prelude m E minor, Op. 28, No. 4
that is.
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