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Music Form and Analysis

Musical form relates to the structure of a given piece, its themes and the relationship between each theme. There are many varieties of form used in music, both popular and classical.

Verses and Choruses

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Most popular music is shaped around verses and choruses. Each verse has different words [and sometimes different melody and harmonies as well] while the chorus [generally] remains constant. Forms include VVCVCVC… [V-verse C-chorus], CVCV… CC, and variations thereof.


Binary

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In binary music, there are just two different themes which appear only once[1], one after the other like this:

AB


Ternary

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Ternary music has two themes, one of which appears twice, like this:

ABA


Rondo

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A rondo [rondeau] works as bit like the Verse Chorus form of popular music today. It is also called Ritornello.[2]

ABACADA


Canon

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A canon has a repeated melody line which starts at the same pitch, where each entry is delayed by a few notes. A canon must work so that the harmonies match.

See Also

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  1. ↑ Needs revising; does not consider simple, rounded, continuous, or sectional binary designs.
  2. ↑ Rewrite; Ritornello is episode-based and typically used for fugue design.
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