This article addresses the issue of parametric non‐congruence as it affects the articulation of closure in the first movement of Schubert's String Quartet in C major, D. 46. This movement displays two formal irregularities which render it problematic in relation to sonata theory: first, the presentation of new thematic material in the exposition does not correspond with a modulation to the dominant key, and second, the recapitulation of the primary theme commences over an active bass progression. As such, D. 46/i provides an apt setting for an appraisal of how effective sonata theory is in the treatment and understanding of closure when the very elements which ought to express it are ostensibly incompatible. The distinction I draw between tonal (syntactic) and rhetorical (semantic) closure in this article (founded in the work of Kofi Agawu, among others) aims at demonstrating that the adherence to a hierarchical perspective of form in which tonality dominates is of little service when examining a work in which local cadential closure is persistently evaded. Ultimately, my analysis shall illustrate the through‐composed design of this movement and, in so doing, question the unrelenting reliance on cadence and contrapuntal closure as delineators of sonata space.
Franz Schubert's music has long been celebrated for its lyrical melodies, 'heavenly length' and daring harmonic language. In this new study of Schubert's complete string quartets, Anne Hyland challenges the influential but under-explored claim that Schubert could not successfully incorporate the lyric style into his sonatas, and offers a novel perspective on lyric form that embraces historical musicology, philosophy and music theory and analysis. Her exploration of the quartets reveals Schubert's development of a lyrically conceived teleology, bringing musical form, expression and temporality together in the service of fresh intellectual engagement. Her formal analyses grant special focus to the quartets of 1810–16, isolating the questions they pose for existing music theory and employing these as a means of scrutinising the relationship between the concepts of lyricism, development, closure and teleology thereby opening up space for these works to challenge some of the discourses that have historically beset them.
The audio quality is more than satisfactory, particularly considering that this was a live recording, with body microphones for the singers. Noise from the stage or audience is minimal, and never loud enough to disturb. The most obvious reminder that the CD originated in performances is the extended applause at the work's conclusion, which seems unnecessarily self-gratifying. Otherwise, the only lapse I noticed was a slight flagging of energy in the tonnerre at the end of Act 5. For my taste there is a little too much reverberation in the mix, and this tends to muddy the clarity of the singers' diction; meanwhile, the viola da gamba used as the sustained continuo instrument is under-represented. Readers may be interested in the company's website, , which offers some audio and video excerpts from the production, including the ingenious stage design featuring a geodesic dome alluding to the opera's celestial theme.
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