Yale University Department of Music

The Role of Sonata Form in A. B. Marx's Theory of Form Author(s): Scott Burnham Reviewed work(s): Source: Journal of Music Theory, Vol. 33, No. 2 (Autumn, 1989), pp. 247-271 Published by: Duke University Press on behalf of the Yale University Department of Music Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/843794 . Accessed: 17/05/2012 02:23
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THE ROLE OF SONATA FORM IN A. B. MARX'S THEORY OF FORM

ScottBurnham

Generalassessmentsof the historyof 19th-century music theoryoften associatethe definitionof sonataform with the GermantheoristAdolph Bernhard Marx. It has been the businessof moredetailedinvestigations to showthattherewas a historical tradition notion definitive leadingto Marx's of the form.'Several recentGerman writershaveassociated Marx's conception of sonataform,andformin general,withimportant aestheticandphilWhile all these studies have osophicaltrendsof the early 19th century.2 establishedthe prominenceof Marx'swork in the history of theories of to his form, none of them has attempted understand conceptionof sonata formstrictlyin termsof the theorist's instruction, systemof compositional the systemwithin which Marx originallydevelopedhis theory of form. FormenInstead,criticshavereadeithertoo muchor too little into Marx's lehre: some writerssee it as a flawedderivative Hegel, othersas a colof lection of rigidly schematicand prescriptive recipes for a fixed canon of forms. At least the formerhave takennote of the derivational path along which Marx'sformsevolve;the latterinterpretation completelymisrepresents Marx'stheoryof form, lettinga representational standfor transcript what is in fact a highly ramified complexpoint of view. and of By a carefulexamination the contextin which Marxpresentssonata to form, this paperwill undertake show that what many now regardas a 247

formulaic a of recipewas, in its originalstatement, dynamicunderstanding sonataform, basedon a recognition the form'spotentialfor the type of of of organiccoherencethen felt to be the benchmark art in its highestmanifestations.In a sadly typicalhistoricalmetamorphosis, schemaMarx the consideredas an underlyingconstructlater becamea textbookrecipe for a is constructing form:the prototypical mistakenfor the literal. The fact that few works, if any, actuallyconformto the receivedtextbookschema shouldthus come as no surprise,for Marx'smodel was not intendedas a mold but ratheras a dynamicpattern. Wecan only arriveat suchan understanding Marx's of conceptof sonata formby considering conceptas an inseparable this elementof a systemof thought?It is fairly well knownthat Marx postulatessonataform as the which startsfroma simpleSatzand step in a chainof derivation, crowning worksthrougha varietyof ever more complex forms. Each intermediate an stagein the derivation represents integralform, but one which is problematicin some wayandthus requires yet higherform. The formsthema selves are portrayed willing their own modifications. as Why does Marx need this regulative, if" conceptof teleologicaldevelopment "as when he The of presentsmusicalformsto the student? similarity this type of teleology to thatexpounded Hegel has been duly noted, and, as we shall see, by some critics regardthis similarityas an explanation Marx'sintent:the of wish to transferHegel's strikingintellectualmodel to musical creation. Such an interpretation neglectsthe contextof Marx'sderivation.In order to elucidatethat context, it will be necessaryfor us to work throughthe as pathof derivation Marxoriginallychartedit. Marxdevelopshis derivation musicalforms in greatestdetail in his of As in no other compositiontreatiseof the time, Marx'sLehreintroduces musicalformimmediately, the stagesof his pathof instruction regand are ulatednot by the acquisition an increasing of harmonicvocabulary by but the internalization an ever more complex set of forms. In accordance of withthe organicist tenorandburgeoning hermeneutic awareness the aesof thetic thoughtof his age, Marx is primarilyconcernedwith wholeness.? Art is conceivedof as the creation integral of totalities an artistengaging by the totalityof his being.6Regarding first half of this conceit, Marx the refrainsfrom the artificialseparation musical elements in his Lehre, of since such separation does not occur in actualartworks.And becausethe successful creative artist engages his entire being, Marx associates the of study of compositionwith the Erziehung,or total upbringing, the student. The Kompositionslehre to be construednot as a trainingmethod, is but as a developmental process.7 Marxclaimsthatthe Kompositionslehre, it is to be effective a develif as from simple formsto more opmentalprocess, shouldproceedorganically forms and complex ones. He thus posits a small numberof prototypical 248
treatise on composition, Die Lehre von der musikalischen Komposition.4

then derives the more complex forms from these. At every stage of the to Lehre,the studentis alternately encouraged examinea new formalpossibility and then to try his own hand at emulatingit. After successfully a to mastering specificform, the studentis introduced an expandedrealm of harmonicand/or contrapuntal possibilities which he then attemptsto of apply to the form already mastered.There is no introduction new materialwithouta corresponding applicationof such materialwithin an actualmusicalstructure. This emphasison form as the guidingparameter in compositional instruction invitesan analogywith languageacquisition: a developing like a child acquiring composer, language,startswith simple utterances insteadof tablesof musical/grammatical elements.9 Marx's insistence on startinghis compositionalmethod with actual musicalutterances necessitatesthe immediateinclusionof melody in the student's work. Marxwouldnot considera musicalstructure basedon harbe monyaloneto be a musicalform. Nor will harmony the definingfactor in Marx'ssubsequent illustration more involvedforms.Thejustification of for this heightenedpriorityof melody is again developmental. One has only to observechildren,Marx claims, to realizethat melody is the first musicalformation man makeshis own; harmony that comes muchlater.10 The origin of musicalform is to be foundat a level even priorto melody, however.Marxlocatesthis origin in a fundamental dynamicimpulse. He expressesthis underlyingprincipleas a primaryoppositionbetween the state of rest and that of motion. The tonic note represents initial the instanceof rest (Ruhe);the remaining membersof the scale represent the initial instanceof motion (Bewegung).This somewhatabstractdynamic It oppositionneeds to be given a form so as to becomecomprehensible. is at this point in his treatise that Marx introducesrhythmand melody, row definingmelodyas a rhythmicized of tones. A formalproblemis profashionedso that posed wherebyan ascendingscale on C is rhythmically it will both startand end on a strongbeat in 2/4 time. Marx'ssolution, in illustrated Example1, introduces eighth notes into the penultimate two bar,enablingthe tonic to arriveon the downbeat.Marxcalls the resultant structure Satz, definedas a melodybothorderedandclosed satisfactorily a with regard pitchcontentandrhythm.'" Satzis the fundamental to The musical structure formal structures built. are (Grundform), whichall further upon Marxtreatsthe Satz of Example1 as a model of well-formed musical structure.He observes that this Satz has a securely rounded-off rhythm on (accented bothinitialandclosingtones),as well as a purposeful rhythmic and melodic successionwhich progressivelyintensifiesin its drive to the end. The use of such a simpleutterance illustrate to desirableformalproperties is highly characteristic Marx'spedagogicalmethod. Implicitin of suchan approach the belief thateven elementary is musicalstructures have aestheticworthand, more importantly, beginningstudentswho deal that withsuchstructures doingso in themanner a creative are of artist. effectively 249

11

Example1

-I I

Iw

Example2

I10

Example3

250

The Satzof ExampleI is ultimatelyseen as incomplete,however. Both it and its complement,a descendingscalar Satz of the same rhythmic a can configuration, only warrant one-sidedsatisfaction.Marx combines them into a largercomposite structurewhich he describes as a process involvingthe followingcategoriesof motion:rising, intensification, highis structure labeleda period, point, returnand rest. The resultant two-part made up of Satz and Gegensatz(also referred as Vordersatz Nachto and as in Example 2.12 satz), The musicalentityof a melodystrivesforclosure;once closed it strives for balance,by attracting complement.This process of establishinga its musical structure which then demandssome sort of additionin orderto attaincompletionis an essentialaspectof Marx'snotionof musicalnecesof sity.Whatis in evidencehereis a conception formbasednot on an externally determined, pre-setschemato be filled in but on a self-determining and evolvingcontent.We shall haveoccasionto returnto this point. Marxopposesa secondGrundform the Satz. A successionof pitches to to the lackingthe closurewhich characterizes Satz is referred as a Gang. Any fragmentof the previouslyconstructedmelodic Sdtze, without the closing tonic note, can qualifyas a Gang." We now havetwo basic types of melodic configuration, closed Satz and the open-endedGang. As the Marxsays in a muchlatertreatment these two fundamental of formations, "like everything else, the Gangtoo must come to an end at some pointbut it assumesan endingonly for externalreasons;it does not close. The Satz closes for internalreasons."'4 After elucidatingthese two melodic configurations, Marx introduces the concept of motive into his compositionalmethod. The analysisof a Satz showsthat it consists of motives (see Example3). Marx claims that such motives containthe "germand motivation" (Keimund Trieb)of the workwhich growsout of them." He also uses the motiveto completehis definitionof a Gang: any continuation a motive will theoretically of produce a Gang.'6

of Despite Marx'scharacterization the motiveas seed, the motivedoes not represent starting the method.He introduces pointof his compositional it only afterthe presentation his Grundformen, there is no motivic of and undertaken the studentwithout such a structural framedevelopment by work in mind from the outset. This is importantnot only in terms of Marx'spedagogical systembut also in termsof his aestheticconceptionof musicalform. Musicalcontentis not seen as the oppositeof form but as the "form-bound," intelligibleonly through agencyof form.17 introducBy an actualformalstructure beforeintroducing initialelementsof the the ing developmentof thematiccontent, Marx attemptsto avoid the standard form. Form is not a condichotomyof free contentversus constraining straint,but a condition,of content. Marx introducesharmonyinto his compositionalmethod only after 251

establishingthe above formal categoriesof Satz, Gang and period. He returnsto the periodic constructionand proposesthe skeletalharmonic exercise.The periodshownin Example4 as the basis for a compositional studentis encouraged finddifferent to waysto fill out this periodwhile preMarxconsidersthis type of periodto servingits harmonicunderpinning. be the simplesttwo-part form, insofaras the two partsformwholes themselves and are sufficientlydistinctfrom each other.18 additionof the The in harmonic dimensionbringsabouta modification the periodof Example 4 whencompared thatof Example2. Bothpartsof the earlier,one-voice to construction on the tonic; at thatpoint in the treatise,endingthe first end fourbarson the secondscale degreewouldhavebeen an anomaly, doing as so impliesharmonic Fromthe thinkingwhichhadnot yet been introduced. vantagepoint of Example4 we can now see that Example2 involves a introduced the sake of illustrating dynamics for the degreeof artificiality, of periodicconstruction within the constraintof one-voice composition. Or, as Marx puts it, periodicform is "perfected" throughthe additionof tonic and dominantharmoniesand their respectivecadences.19 claimBy of form, ing thatExample4 is representative the simplesttype of two-part Marx clearly places the harmonically conceivedperiodicconstruction at the base of his derivationof forms. The treatise has pursueda spiral backat the simpleperiodwiththe addeddimension harof course,arriving of conmony.This dimensionis a necessarycomponent Marx's subsequent structionof largerforms. Marx claims that each half of this periodicform wills its own expansion; each wantsto becomea largerwhole. Thatis to say,boththe Vordersatz andthe Nachsatzwantto becomeperiodsin theirown right. In order for the originalVordersatz becomea periodit wouldneedits own Vorderto and Nachsatz.But since this new periodis partof a greaterwhole (a new doubleperiod), it can not close with a perfectcadencebut must admitof continuation. therefore It ends like a Vordersatz, a half cadence.This with in turnmeansthatits own Vordersatz not end in a half cadence,as that can wouldbe too repetitious. Instead,its firstfourbarsshouldend in an imperfect tonic cadence.The second partof this new doubleperiodmustclose on a perfectcadence.20We can diagramthis almostbiologicalprocessof periodicexpansionin the six steps shownin Example5. The simple 8-barperiod expandsto 16 bars, retainingits main structural articulationon the dominant. Smaller Vorderand Nachsatze are embedded withineach half of the 16-bar structure. resultis a two-part The Liedform, consistingof two periods.Marxexplainsthe optionaldivisionin the secondpartby claimingthat"atthe outset,the contentshouldbe determinedandclearlyput down-fixed [gesetzt],if you will. In progressing to the end, however, motionmustbe intensified, the in continuing a less interand inirupted morecohesivefashion."21This notionof clearlyarticulated tial contentgiving way to uninterrupted, motion is a microgoal-directed 252

g4

41

I'

IoI

Example4

1) I

Vordersatz

--

Nachsatz8-bar

period

2) 3)
4)

VordersatNahmore urge to grow to eight bars

differentiation urge to grow to eight bars

Fourbars YFourbarsV
Vordersatz I I(imperfect) V

6)ak)
I I(weak)

V d
V

V)
V)

I
I

(division

Example5. PeriodicExpansion

253

cosm of Marx'sidea of large-scalemusical content.22 Of greaterimporthat tancefor our presentpurposeis the realization the abovederivation of froma single periodis modeledmoreon the processof Liedform two-part cellulardivision than on an additiveprocess. Marx explicitlyattributes a to will to grow and to reproduce the simpleperiod. Somewhatlater in the treatise, Marx generatesthree-partLiedform fromtwo-part Beforedoing so, he asks the readerto remember Liedform. the basic impulsewhich underliesthe simplestmusical structure: RuheBewegung-Ruhe. In the earliest Scitze constructed in the Kompositions-

into lehre,this basicimpulsewas translated Tonic-Scale-Tonic in Exam(as both ple 1). It can also be saidto underliethe initialperiodicconstructions, one-voice and two-voice, as shown in Example 6.23 Within an overall motionfromrestthrough motionbackto rest, the one-voiceperiodreaches an intermediate stateof rest on the tonic (an octavehigherthan its initial and final restingpoints),while the two-voiceperiodattainsthe same with a half cadence.This intermediate momentof rest serves to articulate the construction. two-part the Example7 illustrates now familiarexpansionof these periodsinto largertwo-partforms. Fromthis, Marx claims, we can see thatthere are This situation (rest, motion and actually three Haupt-Momente rest).24 invites the expansionshown in Example8. Marx calls this new form a
three-part Liedform.

The move to this stage of the derivationis characterized only by not the of growthbutby a processof regrouping: innermembers a dividedtwoto are part structure attracted each other so as to form an individualsection. The centraldivisionof the two-part formis weakenedin favorof the internaldivisions within each part. Specifically,the initial Vordersatz to expands 8 barsandtakesa full cadence;the secondpartends with a half cadence;andthe thirdpartis eithera completeor an abridged repeatof the firstpart. Marxdenigrates full cadenceof the firstpartas premature, the makingthe form imperfect(which implies that this specific form will closerto the ideaof perfection we ascendthe ladas developintosomething der of musicalforms).Thejustification the regrouping for of operation this stage lies with Marx'sassumptionof an underlyingternarypattern,the of In with this pattern, dynamicconfiguration rest-motion-rest. accordance a contrasting section takes shapebetweentwo similarsections; a clearly definedmiddle is isolatedbetweena beginningand an end. This form is moresectionalized termsof stabilityandcontrast: conin the consequently functionswithinboth partsof the binaryformhavebeen consolitrasting datedin this new middlesection. Likewise,the firstandthirdsectionsboth assumethe functionof stability. A combinational processaccountsfor the next level of form. A two- or can which three-part Liedform be combinedwith a contrasting Liedform will then requirea returnto the initialLiedform. The formalconstruction
254

Ruhe Ruhe, Tonic

Bewegung Bewegung,Ruhe,Bewegung, Scale Tonicin 8va Scale

Ruhe Ruhe Tonic(1-voice) Full cadence (2-voice) Ruhe

Tonic harmony Bewegung Half cadence Bewegung Ruhe Bewegung Example6

1st8 bars 4 +4 Ruhe

2nd 8 bars 4 +4 Ruhe (Continuation)

Bewegung Example7

V-satz 4 1stpart 8

N-satz 4 2nd Part 8 or 16 Example8

V-satz 4

N-satz 4 3rd Part 8

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of the three-part is to Liedform thustransferred the nexthigherlevel. Marx (HS-SS-HS). diagramsthis possibilityas Hauptsatz-Seitensatz-Hauptsatz Notice thatthe preThe minuetandtrio formis this kindof construction. for vious forms are now referredto as "Siitze."Presumably Marx, any can level of structure be called a Satz, as the termdenotesa closed structure and is not necessarilylimitedto a simple structure. Each form is, in fact, a type of Satz, and Marx tends to use these terms interchangeably. Thusthe termHaupsatz refersto the initialthematic section,whethera sinLiedform. gle Satz or a three-part Otherdanceformsmaybe built usingthis principleof the combination of Liedsatze.The originaltwo- and three-part Liedform,the minuetand trio formandthe otherdanceformsareall partof a familyof forms,which we mayconveniently as designate the Liedsatzfamily.Its formsarecharacterizedby very well-definedsections, each of which is a form in itself. Thesecompound formsdo not represent highestkindof musicalstructhe are weakened,in termsof organicunity,by their secture,however. They tional natures; they therefore lack the kind of inner necessity that characterizes highestartforms.Art musiccan not remainsatisfied the with these forms, and thus anotherfamilyof formsis developed.25 This higherfamilyof formsis the rondofamily,and its primary characteristicis motion (Bewegung).For Marx, the contentof the rondoHS is such as to inspire a certainneed for continuedmotion (Triebdes Fortof schritts).26 vagueaboutwhatspecificproperty this type of theAlthough matic material gives rise to such a need, Marx's descriptionof the mechanicsof the rondoHS providessome clue. Generallyspeaking,the structure a rondoHS is not as regular periodicas thatof the Liedsatz of or It oftentakesthe formof a simple Satz, or an extendedand somefamily. what open-endedSatz. Thus it needs to be followed not by some selfenclosed periodicstructure by anotherSatz or by some other sort of but motion-oriented passage. Whereasthe contentof a LiedsatzHS can be realizedby a regular Marxseems to implythatthe conperiodicstructure, tent of the rondoHS has a greaterpotentialto develop.For whatever reason, this lattercontentwill not be realizedby imminentclosureand must continueon to informa greaterspanof the piece. The further motionengendered the rondoHS requires suitable a vehiby cle. Marx reintroduces Gang at this point, one of his two Grundforthe men. The Gang is the very embodimentof musical motion; unlike the will to closureand could conceivablycontinueforSatz, it has no internal ever.A Gang, appended the HS, can fulfillthe latter's to need for forward motion but cannotprovidea satisfactory conclusion-it must lead somewhere.In the firstRondoForm,the Gangleads backto a repetition the of HS, thus invigorating return:27 it?
HS - G - HS

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Whatif the HS, in its urgeto continue,seeks a musicalstructure more specificthana Gang?It could then lead to anotherSatz, of any type. This new Satz standsto the side of the HS and is therefore Neben-or Seitena satz (SS). As such it can hardlyprovidea satisfactory closing for the entire form. We mustreturn the HS in orderto roundoff the form in a unified to form is the way. This returncan be effectedby a Gang, and the resultant second RondoForm:28
HS - SS - (G) - HS

In both the first and second rondo forms, the Gang leads back to the HS, usually by attaininga point from which the HS can be re-initiated pedalpoint). The SS takesplace in a relatedkey. (e.g., a dominant in of Operative Marx'sderivation formsof the rondofamilyup to this point is the need for both varietyand unity.For example,the moveto the SS in the secondRondoFormis madefor the sake of variety.This in turn causes an imbalance the unityof the form, which mustthenbe rectified in of the by a repetition the HS. Similarly, next rondoformMarxderives(the thirdRondoForm)is characterized furthervarietyin that it boaststwo by SS's in the followinglayout:29
HS - SS1 - G - HS - SS2 - G - HS

In a later article on form, Marx describes the first SS as an initial attemptto come awayfrom the HS and the second SS as a second, more of while conclusive,attempt.The first SS is therefore a lightercharacter, the second SS is more consequential,more developedand more firmly off. rounded Marxclaimsthatthe firstSS in this formis at a disadvantage in thatit can be moreeasily forgotten the wakeof subsequent in sections.30 This disadvantage provides the motivationfor the fourth Rondo Form, which repeatsthe first SS:31
HS - SS1 - G - HS - SS2 - G - HS - SS1

In orderto close the form satisfactorily, secondappearance the first the of SS muststayin the key of the HS. Some sortof Anhangwill also be needed to actuallyclose a piece in this form,as the light nature the SS1does not of serve well as a conclusion. This Anhangcan be fashionedwith material fromthe HS. The fourthRondoForm is thus made necessaryby a consideration of a unity, the need to strengthen weak thematicsection by repeatingit. A more cohesive connectionbetweenthe HS and the SSI has been created with this form, as now they both appearin the same key at the end of the movement.32 characterization the SSI as the leastconsequential of of Marx's 257

the two contrasting sectionsalso allowsfor a morecoherentbondwith the HS. As was the case with the move from two-part three-part to Liedform, here the role of definitivecontrastis consolidated into a single section. But now a new problemarises-do we really want to repeatthe HS threetimes (or possibly four,countingthe Anhang)?How can we tighten up this form?One possibility is to omit the middle HS. But this would causethe firstSS to lead directlyintothe secondSS, withoutany intervening pause.Some measureof closureis neededbeforethe secondSS, which the Gang cannot provide. This closure can be effectedby a new Satz (Sz). Instead designedspecificallyfor such a task, a so-calledSchlusssatz
of HS - SS1 - G - SS2, the whole first section is closed as follows: HS SS1 - G - Sz. The entire form would then look like this:33 HS - SS1 - G - Sz.- SS2 - G - HS - SS1 - G - Sz

This new form, the fifth RondoForm, clearly falls into a largethree-part sectionsbeforethe SS2 havecoalescedinto a larger design. The individual section which is repeated(keepingthe SS1 and Sz in the home key) after the SS2. The resultis a higherdegreeof unity.Marxdescribesthe consequencesof this processof coalescenceas follows:"Thatwhich is individual (the individual Sdtze)is no longervalid in a stateof isolation;instead, the intimate unionof individualities (individual Sdtze)into a whole, i.e. the whole in its innerunity,becomesthe mainconcern."34 The intimateunion Marx refersto in the abovepassageis laterexplicatedas the complementary betweenthe HS and its SS.35 Both relationship the fourthand fifthRondoFormscontribute this growingsense of inner to unityby joining the HS and SS1 into a largerunit. But now the SS2 is not only in dangerof becomingisolated it may well disturbthe increasing coherenceof the overallform. One solutionwouldbe simplyto excise it. The resultant form is thatof the sonatina:36 1stPart HS - SS -G-Sz 2nd Part HS - SS-G-Sz

For Marx, the sonatinaform represents attemptto achievea more the cohesiveunity,but it can only do so through unfortunate an of diminishing content. He notes that this form, as if in realization the weight of the of omittedsecondsection,oftenintroduces its steada shorttransitional in pasThis latterinsertiondoes not serveas an adequate howsage. replacement, formis therefore ever,andthe sonatina only suitablefor "flighty" (flachtig) conceptions.37 Impliedhere is the need notjust for cohesivethematicunity but for a moredevelopedunitythanthatwhich obtainsmerelythrough the use of repetition. The large-scale structure the fourthandfifth of three-part rondoforms, with the firstand thirdsectionsexhibitingthematicunity,is
258

seen as a preferred formal strategy. By omitting the foreign second section, the sonatina form has taken a step towards tighter unity but has produced the less significant two-part formal design. Indeed, Marx regards the sonatina form as a mediating formation (Mittelgestaltung), in which a specific idea of form has not yet reached maturity.38 The idea of form Marx has in mind is one in which the superior structural weight of a three-part form, the structure that has been evolving throughout the stages of the rondo family, would be matched with the complete attainment of the type of unity exhibited by the first section of the fourth and fifth rondo forms. He finds the full maturity of this idea in the crowning form of the Rondo family-sonata form:39 HS - SS1 - G - Sz I - V 2nd Part (developmental) HS - SS1 - G - Sz I

The great breakthrough of the sonata form is of course the developmental second section. Now the same material can inform an entire threepart structure, without risking the stasis of repetition. The presence of this new section also permits Marx to extend his basic formula of Rest-MotionRest to an entire movement. The second section thereby becomes the "seat of motion and variety."40 This motion is developmental, and the sonata form as a whole is seen by Marx as evincing a more energetic and integrated process of development and change than the rondo forms: Here, too [in the second section], the HS enters for a second time, as in the third and fourthRondo forms, and will appearagain, perhapsunaltered,in the thirdpart [recapitulation].Yet it has become somethingelse, not merely by dint of incidental changes in its accompanimentbut through essential changes (even including mode) . . .41 Through the agency of this new section, and through that of the tonal adjustments in the third, or recapitulating, section, the same content is utilized with an invigorating variety that transcends mere repetition. [This form] is no longer satisfied to return to the Satz to which it must adhereas if this Satz were some lifeless piece of property;rather,it enlivens the Satz, lets it change, repeat- it makes this Satz into another,which is nevertheless recognized as the offspringof the first Satz and which prevails in its stead.42 In the above quotations, Marx recognizes that the content of the exposition, after being subjected to developmental variation, is no longer the same material when it returns in the recapitulation. This procedure of thematic development, of thematic "destiny," is contrasted to the more stable procedure of literally recurring repetition in rondo form. Marx notes that

259

the middlesection of sonataform is characterized the avoidance the of by HS in its originalkey: Thefactthatthe HS nowhadto avoidits original as diligently it had as key maintained in the Rondoformswas alreadydecisive;the principleof it was overthe subordinate elevated of motion,of progress, thereby principle manifested the Rondoforms.43 in stability No longerdoes thematiccontentact as the recurring anchorof musical sectionsby its insistentlyunaltered form, balancingcontrasting presence; now this contentitself is propelledthroughout entireform, and formthe is not sectionsof articulating changeandcontrast performed by intervening of differingcontentbut by the development the initialmaterialitself. The result is a trajectory forward of motion, whereeach subsequent step proceeds from that which has precededit. Sonataform thus providesMarx with the supreme of exemplar musicalorganicism insteadof the mechantheme interspersed with contrastically additiveprocessof one recurring ing content,as in the Liedsatzforms,or the incipientlydynamicprocessof fromand returning a stablethematicsection, as in the Rondo to departing forms,a theme (or themegroup)can now grow and develop. For Marx, sonataformrepresents culmination musicalformand, the of as such, can alone standequalto the highestaestheticdemands the age. of How was Marx led to formulate these demandsin the realmof music?In an important sense, Marx's philosophyof formcan be seen as the resultof his attempt understand explicatethe music of Beethoven.By wayof to and this assertion, we need to take a brief look at some of demonstrating Marx'saestheticnotionsaboutmusicalmeaning. his Throughout critical oeuvre, Marx developsthe notion of a workof The specificIdee as the guarantor unityin a piece of music.44 Idee is formulatedas the single conceptwithinwhich the whole workcan be understood. Marx'sIdee is subjectto an often programmatic realization whose Marx formedhis conhighest form is that of a dramatic confrontation.45 music. He perceiveda deepcept of Idee in directresponseto Beethoven's seatedcoherencein this music, a coherenceoften belied by the surfaceof the music. In additionto his intuitionconcerningthe music'sunity,Marx felt thatBeethoven's music represented transcendent "soulstates" well as as concreteexternal events.Marxdeemedthis type of programmatic representationto be a property whathe called "idealmusic."He decriedthe less of of of specificrepresentations earliercomposersas exemplars a preliminary Idee subjectto a stage of musical history.The concept of an overriding realization furnished Marxwith an aestheticmodel for the representational "idealmusic"he felt Beethovenwas composing. A high valuation "characteristic is in evidencehere.46 Marx, of art" For the radicallyindividuated music is antithetical expressivityof Beethoven's to musicalconvention.Marx understood sonataform as a vehicle which 260

a could accommodate rulingandunifyingIdee whose program wouldmost fashion. In highly characteristic likely be realizedin an unconventional, other words, Marx developeda concept of formaltype which could be shownto maintain highestlevel of global coherencewhile supporting the This kindof understanding a wide rangeof variety. accordswith one of the aestheticconceits of the age: a unity which synthesizesa greater leading degreeof varietyis a higherunity thanone which relies on the conformance of its constituent parts.47 the of Although sonataformcrownsMarx's presentation musicalforms, thereis a furtherformalcategorywhich he discussesin the Kompositionslehre. This is the Fantasia,and it is accordeda ratherspecialstatus.After the composerhas thoroughly mastered the previousforms,he maynow all workin completefreedom,utilizing,combiningand alteringthe formsas he sees fit. The Fantasiais envisionedby Marxas an open-endedformal entireFormlehre to brought its goal, and [only here]havewe become-in, with and through[the Formlehre]-free."48 Fantasiathus bringsboth The the student the musicalformshe has mastered the brinkof freedom. and to In doing so, this final formbuildsa bridgeof sortsto futuredevelopment in musical form, a developmentthat would have otherwise reachedits zenith with the sonataform. Lotte ThalerdescribesMarx'sconceptionof the Fantasia a formin whichformsthemselvesbecome"themes."49 as This woulddistinguish Fantasiaas a kindof metaform, formaboutforms. the a In reviewing entirederivation formsas expounded Marx,one the of by notices an overalltrendtoward freehighercomplexityand compositional dom. Marx himself makesthis claim in the early pages of the Kompositionslehre: " .
.

category, one characterized above all by freedom: " ...

only here is the

. the entire development of art and art education [is]

nothingother than a continuallyprogressingliberationfrom the narrow bonds and confines of the beginning."50 characterizes process of He the derivation more specificallyin the followingpassage: we froma funda[the Throughout Formenlehre] havefound,in departing mental formwhichservesas thekernel 'anentire of of family forms,a series of configurations of and which,for a variety reasons,soughtto disengage to themselves an ever greaterdegreefrom that fundamental emancipate the of form,evenup to andbeyond boundary another form.5' In the language Marxemploysto describethis derivation, seemsclear it that some kind of developmental process is undertaken musical form by itself. This has led some German criticsto labelMarx's derivation forms of as historical/teleological or (Hegelian) as genetic/biological in Goethe's (as plant metamorphosis).52 Either of these characterizations may well be alone. He wouldseem to be claiming plausiblein lightof Marx's langauage that the spirit of musicalform has progressedin the stages he details, in orderto attaintotalfreedom.I wouldlike to address Goethean the interpre261

tationof Marx'sworkfirst, a view whichhas been espousedby CarlDahlhaus and developedby LotteThaler.53 Thaler claims that Marx'snotion of formalevolutionis derivativeof Goethe'sproposedprocess of plant metamorphosis.54This view is supportedby the types of motivatingfactorsinvolvedbetweenthe stages of Marx'sderivation.As we have seen above, stages which incorporate a largeramountof variety(usuallyby addinga new section)are oftencounteredby stageswhich attempt tightenup the therebydisturbed to balance of unity.An immediate similarityto the Goetheanprocessof the developmentof a plantpresentsitself here, for Goethe's proposedstagesof development are also characterizedby an outward, progressive growth with an inward,regressivephase. These two tendenciesform alternating Goethe'sfamousconceptof polarityin plantgrowth.Marx'sinitialexammelodicascentanddescent(see Example of a periodwithcomplementary of by ple 2) is also construed Thaleras exemplary a conceptof polarity.A (which viewpointwhichequatesGoethe's theorywith Marx'sFormenlehre Thaler'sdoes in a step by step fashion)must assumethat Marxthinksof musical form as a single, metamorphosing entity.Goethe'sterse formula 'Alles ist Blatt"would become, for Marx, 'Alles ist Satz." Like Goethe with his conceptof the leaf as the basic biologicalstructure the plant, of a structure whichis transformed the growthprocessintothe various during sexualorgansand, finally,into the fruititself, Marxwouldappearto posin tulate that the simple Satz undergoesa series of transformations, the alternate and the cyclesof progression regression,toward fruitof all musical formaldevelopment, Fantasia. the But Goethe was talkingabout stages in the growthprocess of plants; a Marx, on the other hand, is presenting whole gamutof forms, each of whichrepresents viableorganism. the evolutionary a In seriesof formsproform. This is clearlynot the posed by Marx, each stageis an autonomous case in the biologicalmodelof Goethe-each stageis not autonomous, but is partof the growthprocessof an individual organism.Thalerbases her betweenMarxandGoetheon a single aspectof Goethe's morcomparison (the biological).This aspectis but one facetof Goethe's phology morphological thinking,one subjectto the constraints peculiarto biology.5 We shall soon have occasion to invoke a more general aspect of Goethe's thoughtin connectionwith Marx. The notionof artisticreason(kanstlerische whichMarxadumVernunft) bratesin his compositiontreatiseclosely resemblesthe role of reasonin Hegel'sview of historical progress,as Thalerandothershavenoted.Artistic reasonis behindthe evolutionof musicalforms,accordingnot only to the Lehrebut to manyotherof Marx'swritings,especiallyfromthe period of his earlycriticism.In the Lehre,he states:"Forus, then,everyformwill be but one of the ways in which artistically creativereasonaccomplishes its work."''56 the different All thatreasoncan embodyitself in musical ways 262

form are availablesimultaneously, althoughMarx seems to prescribean order in which these forms become necessaryfor the properprogressof artisticreason in its quest for freedom.In other words, all of the forms Marx presentsto the developingstudentare valid for compositional use; together theycomprisea synchronic groupof possibilities.Thathe equates his orderingof this groupof formswith a temporal process involvingthe of emancipation artisticreason(as an analogyto the Idealistview of reason in historical criticslike CarlDahlhaus charto progress)is whatmotivates acterizehis Formenlehre "geschichtsphilosophisch.""7 as ForThaler,Marx'sworksuffersfromthe contradictions inherentin his mixtureof Goetheanand Hegelianconceptsof evolution.Goethe,according to Thaler,wouldneverassign a finiteendpointto his processof metamorphosis (there are any number of possible metamorphoses),while Hegel and Marxpointthe whole evolutionary processtowards suchan just is that endpoint.The resultfor Marx'sFormenlehre presumably it assumes deterministic aspects,makingmusicalforma closed systembeyondwhich can only lie degeneracy." By leading the studentthroughprogressivelymore complex forms to the form representative the higheststageof musicalart, that embodied of in Beethoven,andby describing resultant the as progression thatof artistic reason,Marxseems to claim thatmusicalformhas, in some sense, historically evolved in the mannerproposedby his derivation.By ascribinga will to evolve to the individualstages of the derivation,Marx seems to claimthatthe simpleSatzhas undergone series of metamorphoses. a What is the logic behindMarx'sdeductionof the worldof forms from a single basic construction? goes withoutsayingthat the historicalevolutionof It musicalformdid not startwith a periodandslowlygrowto the proportions of sonataform. Nor can an individual workbe saidto evolvein sucha way. Marx'sphilosophyof form is not wholly explicableeither in termsof musicalhistoryor of compositional as genesis. Although presented an evoserieswith an endpoint to lutionary corresponding an actualhistorical phenomenon(the music of Beethoven),Marx'sFormenlehre primarilyan is derivation existingmusicalformsarranged such of in ahistoric,synchronic a wayas to expeditethe assimilation these formsin the developing of mind of the composition student.It is not musicalform,or the Satz,whichnecessitatesits own metamorphoses througheach stage; it is ratherthe artistic capabilityof the studentwhich growsand requiresnew formalpossibilities. The artisticspiritpositedby Marxas the motivation behindthe various stages in the Formenlehre the burgeoning is artisticconsciousnessof the developingstudent.Each new level impliesthe use of materialwhich will not fit into the older stage;at each level a new formalstrategy interis nalizedby the student.Preservedat every stageof this progression the is emphasison artisticand structural wholeness,the centralaspectof-Marx's aestheticview of the musicalartwork. arereminded the notionof linWe of 263

to definedas the internalized capability producegramguisticcompetence, Eachof Marx'sstagesrepresents increased an maticallycorrectutterances. of level of competence-the internalization more, and more complex, underlying possibilities. The languageused by Marx in his presentation these forms can be of views of musiOn highlymisleading. the surface,it is a melangeof current cal organicism,superficially appliedGermanIdealistnotionsof historical critics have foundmuch necessity,and questionable logic. Consequently, to write about in tracingthe variousthreadsof philosophicalsystemsin Marx'swritings.9These effortshaveoftenunderemphasized, even overor looked,the role of pedagogyin Marx'sconceptionof musictheory.A misof understanding Marx'snotion of form has encouragedmany of these critics to attemptprematurelyto locate Marx's system within one or another school. ForMarx,a genericmusicalformis an interphilosophical nalized compositionalpossibility availableto the experiencedcomposer. Once this is realized,and the centralimportance the pedagogicalproof cess in attainingthis internalization correspondingly is ascertained,all to or to attempts attribute teleologicaldeterminism biologicaldevelopment Marx'snotionof formmerelyon accountof his languagebecome superficial. Onemustbe prepared to takeMarxliterallybutto base one'sinvesnot tigationsof his thoughton what he actuallydoes withinthe course of his
Lehre.

the Quite simply, what Marx does is arrange entiregamutof musical formsin a continuous from simpleto complex.60 so doing, In progression he noticesimportant similarites betweenthe rondoformsand sonataform, as well as certain hierarchicalnesting patternsin two- and three-part forms.Thusthe logic employedby Marxin motivating derivation his from one stageto the next, apartfromaccommodating needsof the developthe of ing student,succeedsin revealingsome interesting aspectsof the nature these forms.By adoptinga teleologybased on formalcoherence,Marxis freedfromconsidering musicalformshe presents the accepted the in historical manner.He can insteadconcentrate theirunderlying on dynamicsimilaritesand differences. As an example,let us summarize distinctionsMarxdrawsbetween the the sectionalized Liedsatzformsandthe formsof the rondofamily.The latter class of forms, includingsonataform, are differentially characterized by an increasedsense of thematicdevelopment motion), a motivated (or returnto the HS, and a tendencyfor formalsectionsto lose their individuality and coalesce into larger sections. Marx distinguishesthe higher rondoformsandsonataformfromthose formsthatdo not exhibitthis coalescence in almost biological terms: smaller sections are undermined as individual organismsand begin to serve an even largerorganism. The emphasisin these distinctionsis on the type of formalcoherence which each formaltype offers.But in additionto this use of coherenceas 264

a criterionfor a comparison betweenforms,Marx'sparticular derivational result.By presenting series of forms the teleologyyields a moreprofound as a series of solutionsto formalproblems,Marxis able to developa concept of form as a responseto the underlyingneeds of musical style. His of definitions the variousformsare notjust schemesof taxonomic classifiof cationbut serve as explanations the use of the forms.In workingup to sonataform as the ideal form which solves all the perceivedproblemsof coherence,Marx providesnot only a descriptionof sonataform but the inherent motivation it. Whenhe showswhysonataformwas neededand for definesthe formin termsof those needs, Marxmakesit clear subsequently thathis conceptof formis thatof an underlying to prototype be realizedin a potentiallyinfinitenumberof ways. He does not define formas a taxonomic instance, a recipe for a specific manifestation.Form is defined ratherin termsof what Marxperceivesto be the underlying needs of the Classicalstyle. This conceptof form,as an underlying dynamicprotoand typical constructwhich can be given countless realizations,goes much further toward understanding style thantaxonomy an of can. A style is not definedby the sum total of its actualmanifestations; is ratherthe result it of a limited networkof underlyingpossibilitieswhich can be realizedad
infinitum.61

It is no coincidencethat Marx chooses to demonstrate conceptof his sonataformby examining multitude exemplary a of of realizations the form In to by Beethoven. each case, Marxattempts showthe underlying logic of whatmightappearto be capriciousstylisticmannerisms the partof the on the of composerby invoking dynamicinterrelationships formalcategories. For example,in his detaileddiscussionof possible varietiesof the sonata form exposition Marx repeatedlyillustratesBeethoven'scompositional demonstration howthe Hauptsatz of logic in a left-to-right (HS) determines the further courseof the exposition(and, ultimately, entiremovement). the If the HS is of a certaintype, it will require corresponding of Seitena type manner transition the SS. Justas of satz (SS) as well as a corresponding to the simpleSatzwas consideredincomplete withoutits Gegensatz,here the HS is inherently withoutits SS. Underlying each realization of incomplete the formis this dynamicrelationship betweenHS and SS. Each formmay manifest relationship a different this in on conway,depending the thematic tent of the HS. Forthis reason,Marxis nevertroubledby an examplethat does not fit the mold. The very point, and strength,of his formalmodel is thatthereis no pre-setmoldto fit. The type of thematic contentdetermines both the type of form used and the mannerin which it is used. The generalizableaspectof the formalprocess,as describedby Marx, is the set of and manifestation. underlying dynamicprinciplesrealizedby each relevant It is here, if anywhere,thatwe may drawa comparison the workof to Goethe. Marx and Goethe both subscribeto the same conceptionof the betweenthe generaland the particular. After abandoning his relationship
265

notionof the concreterealityof the Urpflanz, Goetheclaims thatthere is no such thingas a concreteexemplar a genericclass.62Instead,individof ual plantsare seen as instancesof a prototypical growthprocess;no single instancecan serve as a model for the generalclass. Alexander Gode characterizesGoethe'sunderlyingprototypeas "the interindividual type-form which manifestsitself only in a multiplicity individualmodulations."63 of to Returning Thaler'sview that Marx denies the infinitepotentialof Goethe's plantmetamorphosis imposingan allegedlyHegeliandeterminby ism on his derivationof forms, we can now see that it is preciselythis that of potential Marxindeedembraces.Hereinlies the danger a premature assessmentof the intellectual influenceson any given thinker.By attempting to link Marx and Goethe on the basis of superficialresemblances before coming to an understanding Marx'ssystem on its own terms, of Thaler defines Marx's work in terms of its alleged influences and-of course-finds contradictions. We have not yet dealt conclusivelywith the aspect of determinism in Marx'sphilosophyof form. As we have seen, not a few critics haveassociated Marx'steleology with that of Hegel. This sort of claim has been based on the nature of Marx's derivation:a progressionof forms is explainedin light of a perceivedhistoricalgoal, andthis goal is associated with spiritualfreedom.The comparison seems reasonable enough, for the of Marx'sderivation the Fantasiaand its promiseof composiis endpoint tional freedom. But the analogy betweenHegel's concept of freedomas telos and Marx'scompositional freedomis superficial misleading,for and it is sonataform, and not the Fantasia, which crowns Marx'sderivation and leavesno further problemsto be solved. The Fantasia,thoughcoming as it does at the end of the derivation,is an open-endedcategorywhich morethe freedomof the accomplished represents composerthanthe most satisfyingsolutionto a set of formalproblems.The teleologicalprogression of Marx'sFormenlehre clearly delimitedby the sonataform, for it is is this form which is equal to the perceivedaestheticdemandsof what Marxthoughtto be the culminating of musichistory.By leadinga priage derivation musicalformsto a culmination of embodied marilyahistorical in the actualhistoryof music, Marxassumesan Hegeliantelos withoutthe historical the corresponding process.Butit wasn't studyof Hegelianphilosophy which led him to adoptsuch a conspicuousfeatureof Idealistteleology. The decisive influenceof Marx'sphilosophyof form was not Hegel but Beethoven. Beethoven's musicinstilledin Marxthe convictionthatsonataformwas the highestpossible formto which a studentmightaspire,the last step to not compositionalfreedom.The course of Marx'sformalderivation only a represents new chapterin compositionpedagogy,it also enableshim to defineformin a wayusefulto his criticalintuitions aboutthe type of coherence in Beethoven's music. Marx could best demonstrate reasonwhy the 266

sonataformwas the highestformby assuminga teleologicalderivation of musicalformsbasedon formalcoherence.ThusBeethoven definedthe endpointof Marx'ssystemof instruction, as he was to definethe endpoint just of the theorist's conceptof musicalhistory.Ironically,insteadof being the cripplingflaw in Marx'stheoryof form, as some critics wouldhave it, it is preciselythis delimitingof formaltypes thatlends powerto Marx'stheas formalpossibiliory when interpreted an assessmentof the synchronic ties of Classicalstyle. I havetriedto show how Marx'sphilosophyof formtakesshapewithin a pedagogical context.This begs yet anotherquestion,one whose answer involves ramifications which quite exceed the boundariesof this study. Whatis the special statusof pedagogywhich leads Marxto his particular notion of musical form; in other words, why is Marx'stheory of form presentedin a pedagogicalcontext? The answer would seem to lie in Marx'sview of artisticknowledgeas a matterof Konnenratherthan Wissen. Marx claimed repeatedly that his compositionalmethodformedthe sine qua non of musical Wissenschaft.64 must be able to write music One in order to know what music is. The relationshipin Marx's treatise betweenpedagogical of necessityandthe definition formand style in terms of underlying can dynamicproperties hardlybe accidental.In a contextof thanknowing,the emphasisis shiftedfromthe createdobject doing rather onto the creativeprocess.65 only way to understand music of BeeThe the thovenis to learnto make music which respondsto the same underlying needs, which manifeststhe same internalized syntax. his Throughout careeras bothcritic andtheorist,A. B. Marxregarded Beethovenas the supremepractitioner ideal music and sonataform as of the supremevehicle for the type of coherencedemandedby ideal music. His pedagogical of presentation musicalform worksto definesonataform in termsof suchcoherence.The descriptive schemafor sonataformwhich we have associatedwith Marx, and which continuesto informour textto the books, is butthe visible traceof a profound attempt understand motivationof musicalstyle in the age of Beethoven.

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NOTES
The authorwould like to thankAllan Keiler, whose suggestivecriticism provedan indispensable condition of this study. 1. See BirgitteMoyer,"Conceptsof Musical Form in the NineteenthCenturywith Special Referenceto A. B. Marx and Sonata Form"(Ph.D. diss., StanfordUniversity, im der 1969), as well as Fred Ritzel, Die Entwicklung "Sonatenform" musiktheoretischen Schrifttumdes 18. und 19. Jahrhunderts,2nd ed., Neue Musikgeschichtliche vol. 1 (Wiesbaden: Breitkopf und Forschungen, ed. Lothar Hoffmann-Erbrecht, Hirtel, 1969). und Gattungstheorie 2. These include several studies by Carl Dahlhaus:"Formenlehre bei A. B. Marx," in Heinrich Sieverszum 70. Geburtstag,ed. GiinterKatzenberger (Tutzing: Hans Schneider, 1978), 29-35; "Geschichteals Problem der Musikthein des 19. Jahrhunderts," Studien zur orie: Uber einige Berliner Musiktheoretiker Berlins imfrahen 19 Jahrhundert,ed. Carl Dahlhaus, Studienzur Musikgeschichte vol. 56 (Regensburg:Gustav Bosse Verlag, Musikgeschichtedes 19. Jahrhunderts, 1980), 405-413; "Asthetische Praimissender 'Sonatenform'bei Adolf Bernhard 41 Marx," Archivfar Musikwissenschaft (1984), 73-85. See also Kurt-ErichEicke, Finkum die KomDer StreitzwischenAdolphBernhardMarxund GottfriedWilhelm positionslehre, K61nerBeitriigezur Musikforschung,ed. Karl GustavFellerer, vol. 42 (Regensburg:GustavBosse Verlag, 1966) and Lotte Thaler, OrganischeFormin der Musiktheoriedes 19 und beginnenden20. Jahrhunderts(Munich: Musikverlag E. Katzbichler,1984). 3. Music theorists are rarely favoredby a disinterestedunderstanding their theories of on the partof their successors. Instead,aspects of those systemsare appropriated out of context, in the service of yet anothersystem of thought, destined to be ransacked in turn. Even self-proclaimeddisseminatorswill often indulge in this practice-one thinks of what Rameau'sfundamental bass became in the hands of D'Alembert of or Marpurg.The historianof theory, on the other hand, ought to be free of any such as rather self-serving interpretations, the point of his investigationis understanding than application. 4. A. B. Marx, Die Lehre von der musikalischenKomposition,praktisch-theoretisch, 4 vols., 2nd ed. (Leipzig: Breitkopfund Hirtel, 1841). Unless otherwise indicated, the citationsused in this paperare from this edition'of Marx'streatise. Readersinterested in the publishinghistoryof this work should consult the articleon Marx in Die Musik in Geschichteund Gegenwart. 5. For an interpretation Marx'searly criticism which stresses the hermeneuticeleof ment of the same, see Arno Forchert,"AdolfBernhardMarx und seine BerlinerAllgemeine MusikalischeZeitung," in Studien zur MusikgeschichteBerlins im friihen 19 Jahrhundert,ed. Carl Dahlhaus, Studienzur Musikgeschichtedes 19. Jahrhunderts, vol. 56 (Regensburg:Gustav Bosse Verlag, 1980), 381-404. 6. Marx presentsthis thesis most pointedly in OberMalerei in der Tonkunst. MaiEin gruss an die Kunstphilosophen (Berlin: Finke, 1828), 45. 7. Eicke, op. cit., traces the pedagogicalimpulse of Marx'sLehreto the work of Heinrich Pestalozzi, the Swiss pedagoguefamous for his work in progressiveeducation. 8. Marx, Die Lehre, 1841,vol. 1, 8. 9. Marx'spedagogicalsystemthus comes to bear a strikingresemblanceto the structur-

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alist methods of language pedagogy employed in our own time, methods which attemptto teach the elements of morphology(declensions, conjugations,etc.) within the context of grammaticalutterances. 10. Marx, Die alte Musiklehreim Streitmit unsererZeit (Leipzig: Breitkopfund Hirtel, 1841),29. 11. Marx, Die Lehre, 1841,vol. 1, 27. 12. Ibid., 28. 13. Ibid., 29. 14. Marx, "Die Form in der Musik," in Die Wissenschaften neunzehnten im Jahrhundert, ed. Dr. J. A. Romberg,vol. 2 (Leipzig: Romberg'sVerlag, 1856), 31. Translation mine, as are all that follow. 15. Marx, Die Lehre, 1841,vol. 1, 31. 16. Ibid., 33. 17. Marx, "Die Form in der Musik," 25. 18. Marx, Die Lehre, 1841,vol. 1, 55. 19. Ibid., 59. 20. Ibid., 55-56. 21. Ibid., 56. 22. For a discussion of Marx'sconcept of motion as applied to multi-movement works see my dissertation,"Aesthetics,Theory and History in the Worksof A. B. Marx" (BrandeisUniversity, 1988), 179-180. 23. Marx, Die Lehre, 1841,Vol. 1, 59. 24. Ibid., 60. 25. Marx makes these observationsin the more concise treatmentof his theory of form which appearsas an appendixto the 2nd edition of his biographyof Beethoven. See Marx, Ludwig van Beethoven:Leben und Schaffen, 2 vols., 2nd ed. (Berlin: Otto Janke, 1863), vol. 2, 366. 26. Marx, "Die Form in der Musik," 39. 27. Marx, Die Lehre, 1841,vol. 3, 92. 28. Ibid., 101. 29. Ibid., 134. 30. Marx, "Die Form in der Musik," 40-41. 31. Marx, Die Lehre, 1841,vol. 3, 169. 32. Marx, Die Lehre von der musikalischenKomposition, 4 praktisch-theoretisch, vols., 4th ed. (Leipzig: Breitkopfund Hirtel,1852), vol. 3, 176. 33. Marx, "Die Form in der Musik," 41. 34. Marx, Die Lehre, 1841,vol. 3, 194. 35. For a more complete treatmentof the natureof this complementaryrelationship,see my "Aesthetics, Theory and History," 151-54. Carl Dahlhaus, in "Asthetische (see footnote 2), compares Marx'sformulationof the relationshipof HS Priimissen" and SS with the idea of complementary equilibriumdevelopedby Wilhelmvon Humboldt in his famous essay "Uber die minnliche und weibliche Form." 36. Marx, Die Lehre, 1841,vol. 3, 206. 37. Ibid., 213. 38. Ibid., 212. 39. Ibid., 213. 40. Ibid., 217. 41. Ibid., 220.

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42. Ibid., 214. 43. Ibid., 220. 44. Marx'sfirst expression of this concept may be found in the essay "Uber die Anforderung unserer Zeit an musikalische Kritik"(1824). Marx wrote this essay for the first numberof the Berliner Allgemeine MusikalischeZeitung, a weekly periodical which Marx edited for seven years. 45. For a more amplediscussion of Marx'sIdee and its dramaticrealization,see my 'Aesthetics, Theory and History,"especially Chapters1, 2 and 5. 46. I employ this notion in the sense developed by Goethe in such essays as "VonDeutscher Baukunst" and "Der Sammler und die Seinigen." 47. Cf. Ruth Solie, "The Living Work: Organicismand Musical Analysis," 19th Century Music 4,2 (Fall 1980), 147-156.The type of criticism which Marx was attempting to practice is similar, in motivation at least, to some of the more prominent Germanliterarycriticismof the late 18thand early 19thcentury.I am thinkingin particular of such essays as Friedrich Schlegel's "Uber Goethe's Meister"and August Romeo and Juliet. Schlegel's study of Shakespeare's 48. Marx, Die Lehre, 1841,vol. 3, 326. 49. Thaler, 54. 50. Marx, Die Lehre, 1841,vol. 1, 14. 51. Marx, Die Lehre, 1841,vol. 3, 325. 52. Thaler,op. cit., interpretsMarx'sFormenlehre a somewhatmisguidedattemptto as combine aspects of both Hegel and Goethe. Carl Dahlhausrefersto Marx as Hegelian (with reservations)in many places; he also claims that Marx'sFormenlehre has its theoretical/historical basis both in Hegel and in Goethe'sMorphologie. See Carl Dahlhaus, "Formenlehreund Gattungstheoriebei A.B. Marx" and "Asthetische bei Priimissender 'Sonatenform' Adolf BernhardMarx." In an earlier study, Dahlhaus is more specific aboutthe natureof the relationshipbetween Marxand Goethe; see "Gefiihlsisthetikund musikalische Formenlehre," Deutsche Vierteljahrsschrift und Literaturwissenschaft Geistesgeschichte41 (1967), 505-516. Many other crifiAr tics have associated Marx with Hegel on differentgrounds; to list them here would entail an unwieldybibliographical excursus.Interestedreadersmay consult my "Aesthetics, Theory and History,"especially Chapters 1, 3 and 6. 53. Thaler, op. cit. See above footnote for Dahlhaus. 54. Thaler, 66ff. In drawing a connection between the Formenlehreof Marx and Goethe'splant theory, Thaler deviates from the view of Carl Dahlhausas expressed in "Gefiihlsisthetikund musikalische Formenlehre."Dahlhaus does not link Marx specifically to Goethe'stheory of plant metamorphosisbut to a more general aspect of the latter'smorphologicalthinking.He thus avoidsthe problemsthatThaler'sinterpretationcan be seen to entail. Unfortunately,Dahlhaus does not develop his view to the extent that Thaler does; it is thereforemore difficultto address critically. 55. Cf. Allan Keiler's"Goethe-Schenker-Chomsky: From Organicismto Generativism," Chapter3 of his forthcomingbook Schenkerand Tonal Theory(Cambridge: HarvardUniversity Press). 56. Marx, Die Lehre, 1841,vol. 3, 8. 57. In an article on early 19th-century theory in Germany,Dahlhaus states that Marx's musical formsare not substantially historicbut thathistory,for Marx, acts as the Entof deckungsgeschichte a canon of forms that was already prescribed in the law of musical reason. See Dahlhaus, "Geschichteals Problem der Musiktheorie: Ueber

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409. des einige Berliner Musiktheoretiker 19. Jahrhunderts," 58. Several writers criticize Marx for this closed aspect of his Formenlehre.See KurtErich Eicke, "Das Problemdes Historismusim Streitzwischen Marx und Fink," in Die Ausbreitungdes Historismusiiber die Musik, ed. Walter Wiora, Studien zur vol. 14 (Regensburg:Gustav Bosse Verlag, Musikgeschichtedes 19. Jahrhunderts, 82 1969), 221-232. See also Dahlhaus, "Asthetische Prdimissen," ff. 59. For example, Arnfried Edler, "Zur Musikanschauung von Adolf BernhardMarx," im Beitrage zur Geschichteder Musikanschauung 19. Jahrhundert,ed. WalterSalvol. 1 (Regensburg:Gustav men, Studienzur Musikgeschichtedes 19. Jahrhunderts, Bosse, 1965), 103-112;Edler locates aspectsof Marx'smusicalthoughtin the philosophies of Schelling and of Hegel. See also Thaler, op. cit. and Dahlhaus,"Formenlehre und Gattungstheorie." Eicke, in Der Streit, sees Marx as influencedprimarily by Hegel and Pestalozzi. In "Das Problem des Historismus,"231, Eicke makes it clear that Marx'sapproachis basically pedagogicaland that his Hegelian language is more a prop than a vital support. 60. It is this aspect of Marx'sFormenlehrewhich Carl Dahlhauscompares to Goethe's morphological thinking. See "Gefiihlsisthetik und musikalische Formenlehre," 511ff. For Dahlhaus, Marx's progressive arrangementof musical forms leads to a richer view of the differentiating featuresof those forms. 61. On the dangersof taxonomicassessment of style see Allan Keiler, "The Empiricist Illusion: Narmour'sBeyond Schenkerism," Perspectives of New Music 17 (FallWinter 1978), 193. 62. For an informativeexaminationof Goethe'splant theory which emphasizesthe relationship of general to particulardeveloped therein see Ernst Cassirer, Freiheit und Form: Studien zur deutschen Geistesgeschichte (Berlin: Bruno Cassirer, 1922), 321-356. 63. AlexanderGode-von Aesch, Natural Science in GermanRomanticism(New York: Columbia University Press, 1941), 147. 64. Marx, Die alte Musiklehre,xii. 65. For a philosophical treatmentof the relationshipbetween rational knowledge and practicalaction, see John Dewey's The Questfor Certainty:A Studyof the Relation of Knowledgeand Action (New York:Perigee, 1980). This work was originallypublished in 1929.

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