An old piece with variations on a bass theme. Variation form

The term “variations” in music refers to such changes in the melody during the unfolding of the composition, in which its recognition is preserved. The root word is “option”. That is, something similar, but still a little different. It’s the same in music.

Constant update

A variation of the melody can be compared to We easily recognize our friends and relatives, no matter what emotional experiences they experience. Their faces change, expressing anger, joy or resentment. But individual traits are preserved.

What are variations? In music, this term refers to a specific form of a work. The play begins with the sound of a melody. As a rule, it is simple and easy to remember. This melody is called the theme of variations. She is very bright, beautiful and expressive. Often the theme is a popular folk song.

Variations in music reveal the composer's skill. A simple and popular theme is followed by a chain of changes. They usually maintain the tonality and harmony of the main melody. They are called variations. The composer's task is to decorate and diversify the theme using a number of special methods, sometimes quite sophisticated. A piece consisting of a simple melody and its changes following each other is called variations. How did this structure originate?

A little history: the origins of the form

Often musicians and art lovers wonder what variations are. The origins of this form lie in ancient dances. Townspeople and peasants, nobles and kings - everyone loved to move in sync with the sound of musical instruments. While dancing, they performed the same actions to a constantly repeating chant. However, a simple and unpretentious song, sounding without the slightest changes, quickly became boring. Therefore, musicians began to add a variety of colors and shades to the melody.

Let's find out what variations are. To do this, we should turn to the history of art. Variations first entered professional music in the 18th century. Composers began to write plays in this form not for the purpose of accompanying dances, but for listening. Variations were part of sonatas or symphonies. In the 18th century, this structure of a musical piece was very popular. The variations from this period are quite simple. The rhythm of the theme and its texture changed (for example, new echoes were added). Most often, variations sounded in major. But there was always one minor one. Her gentle and sad character made her the most striking fragment of the cycle.

New variation options

People, worldviews, and eras changed. The turbulent 19th century came - a time of revolutions and romantic heroes. The variations in music turned out to be different too. The theme and its changes became strikingly different. Composers achieved this with the help of so-called genre modifications. For example, in the first variation the theme sounded like a cheerful polka, and in the second - like a solemn march. The composer could give the melody the features of a bravura waltz or a rapid tarantella. In the 19th century, variations on two themes appeared. First, one melody sounds with a chain of changes. Then it is replaced by a new theme and options. Thus, composers introduced original features into this ancient structure.

Musicians of the 20th century offered their answer to the question of what variations are. They used this form to show complex tragic situations. For example, in Dmitri Shostakovich's eighth symphony, variations serve to reveal the image of universal evil. The composer changes the initial theme so much that it turns into a seething, unbridled element. This process is associated with the filigree work of modifying all musical parameters.

Types and varieties

Often composers write variations on a theme belonging to another author. This happens quite often. An example is the work of Sergei Rachmaninoff “Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini”. This play is written in variation form. The theme here is the melody of the famous violin caprice by Paganini.

A special variation of this popular musical form is the so-called basso ostinato variations. In this case, the theme is heard in the lower voice. A constantly repeating melody in the bass is difficult to remember. Often the listener does not isolate it from the general flow at all. Therefore, such a theme at the beginning of the composition usually sounds in one voice or is duplicated in an octave.

Variations on the sustained bass are often found in the organ works of Johann Sebastian Bach. The single-voice theme is played on a foot keyboard. Over time, variations on the basso ostinato became a symbol of the sublime art of the Baroque. It is with this semantic context that the use of this form in the music of subsequent eras is associated. The finale of Johannes Brahms' fourth symphony was solved in the form of variations on a sustained bass. This work is a masterpiece of world culture.

Imaginative potential and nuances of meaning

Examples of variation can also be found in Russian music. One of the most famous examples of this form is the chorus of Persian girls from Mikhail Glinka’s opera “Ruslan and Lyudmila”. These are variations on a constant melody. The theme is an authentic oriental folk song. The composer wrote it down with his own notes while listening to the singing of a bearer of the folklore tradition. In each new variation, Glinka uses an increasingly diverse texture, which colors the unchanging melody with new colors. The character of the music is gentle and languid.

Variations were created for each musical instrument. The piano is one of the composer's main assistants. The famous classic Beethoven especially loved this instrument. He often wrote variations on simple and even banal themes by unknown authors. This gave the genius the opportunity to show all his skills. Beethoven transformed primitive melodies into musical masterpieces. His first composition in this form was nine variations on Dressler's march. After this, the composer wrote a lot of piano works, including sonatas and concertos. One of the master's last works is thirty-three variations on the theme of Diabelli's waltz.

Modern innovations

The music of the 20th century demonstrates a new type of this popular form. Works created in accordance with it are called variations with a theme. In such plays, the main melody sounds not at the beginning, but at the end. The theme seems to be assembled from distant echoes, fragments and fragments scattered throughout the musical fabric. The artistic meaning of such a structure can be the search for eternal values ​​among the surrounding bustle. Finding a higher purpose is symbolized by the theme at the end. An example is the third piano concerto. The 20th century knows many cult works written in variation form. One of them is “Bolero” by Maurice Ravel. These are variations on a constant melody. Each repetition it is performed by a new musical instrument.

VARIATIONS(Latin variatio, “change”) , one of the methods of compositional technique, as well as a genre of instrumental music.

Variation is one of the fundamental principles of musical composition. In variations, the main musical idea is subject to development and changes: it is presented again with changes in texture, mode, tonality, harmony, the ratio of counterpointing voices, timbre (instrumentation), etc.

In each variation, not only one component can undergo a change (for example, texture, harmony, etc.), but also a number of components together. Following each other, the variations form a variation cycle, but in a broader form they can be interspersed with some other thematic material, then the so-called dispersed variation cycle. Variations can also be an independent instrumental form, which can be easily represented in the form of the following diagram: A (theme)–A1–A2–A3–A4–A5, etc. For example, independent piano variations on the theme of Diabelli's waltz, op. 120 by Beethoven, and as part of a larger form or cycle - for example, the slow movement from the quartet, op. 76, No. 3 J. Haydn.

Works in this genre are often called “theme and variations” or “variations on a theme.” The theme can be original, author's (for example, symphonic variations Enigma Elgar) or borrowed (for example, J. Brahms's piano variations on a theme by Haydn).

The means of varying the theme are varied, among them - melodic variation, harmonic variation, rhythmic variation, changes in tempo, changes in tonality or modal mood, variation in texture (polyphony, homophony).

The form of variations is of folk origin. Its origins go back to those examples of folk song and instrumental music, where the main melody was modified during verse repetitions. Particularly conducive to the formation of variations is a choral song, in which, despite the similarity of the main melody, there are constant changes in the other voices of the choral texture. Such forms of variation are characteristic of polyphonic cultures.

In Western European music, variation technique began to develop among composers who wrote in a strict contrapuntal style (cantus firmus). The theme, with variations in the modern understanding of this form, arose around the 16th century, when passacaglia and chaconne appeared. G. Frescobaldi, G. Purcell, A. Vivaldi, J. S. Bach, G. F. Handel, F. Couperin widely used this form.

The main milestones in the history of variations are variations on a given melodic line, the so-called. cantus firmus in vocal sacred music of the Middle Ages and the Renaissance; variations for lute and keyboard instruments in Spanish and English music of the late Renaissance; keyboard works by the Italian composer G. Frescobaldi and the Dutchman J. Sweelink in the late 16th – early 17th centuries; suite of variations - one of the earliest forms of dance suite; English ground form - variations on a short melody repeated in a bass voice; Chaconne and passacaglia are forms similar to ground, with the difference that the repeating voice in them is not necessarily bass (chaconne and passacaglia are widely represented in the works of Bach and Handel). Among the most famous variation cycles of the early 18th century. – variations by A. Corelli on the theme of La Folia and Goldberg Variations J.S.Bach. Probably the most brilliant period in the history of variations is the era of mature classics, i.e. late 18th century (works by Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven); as a method, variation remains an important component of instrumental music today.

You've probably ever come across such philosophical concepts as form and content. These words are universal enough to denote similar aspects of a wide variety of phenomena. And music is no exception. In this article you will find an overview of the most popular forms of musical works.

Before naming the common forms of musical works, let’s define what is a form in music? Form is something that relates to the design of a work, to the principles of its structure, to the sequence of musical material in it.

Musicians understand form in two ways. On the one hand, the form is diagram arrangement of all parts of a musical composition in order. On the other hand, form is not only a diagram, but also process the formation and development in a work of those expressive means by which the artistic image of this work is created. What kind of expressive means are these? Melody, harmony, rhythm, timbre, register and so on. The substantiation of such a double understanding of the essence of musical form is the merit of the Russian scientist, academician and composer Boris Asafiev.

Forms of musical works

The smallest structural units of almost any musical work are motive, phrase and sentence. Now let’s try to name the main forms of musical works and give them brief characteristics.

Period– this is one of the simple forms that represents the presentation of a complete musical thought. It occurs frequently in both instrumental and vocal music.

The standard duration for a period is two musical sentences that occupy 8 or 16 bars (square periods), in practice there are periods both longer and shorter. The period has several varieties, among which a special place is occupied by the so-called “deployment type period” and “difficult period”.

Simple two- and three-part forms - these are forms in which the first part, as a rule, is written in the form of a period, and the rest do not outgrow it (that is, for them the norm is either also a period or a sentence).

The middle (middle part) of a three-part form can be contrasting in relation to the outer parts (showing a contrasting image is already a very serious artistic technique), or it can develop, develop what was said in the first part. In the third part of a three-part form, it is possible to repeat the musical material of the first part - this form is called reprise (reprise is repetition).

Verse and chorus forms - these are forms that are directly related to vocal music and their structure is often associated with the characteristics of poetic music.

The verse form is based on the repetition of the same music (for example, period), but with new lyrics each time. In the lead-chorus form there are two elements: the first is the lead (both the melody and the text can change), the second is the chorus (as a rule, both the melody and the text are preserved in it).

Complex two-part and complex three-part forms – these are forms that are composed of two or three simple forms (for example, a simple 3-part + period + a simple 3-part). Complex two-part forms are more common in vocal music (for example, some opera arias are written in such forms), while complex three-part forms, on the contrary, are more typical for instrumental music (this is a favorite form for the minuet and other dances).

A complex three-part form, like a simple one, can contain a reprise, and in the middle part - new material (most often this is what happens), and the middle part in this form is of two types: "like a trio"(if it is some kind of slender simple shape) or "type of episode"(if in the middle part there are free constructions that do not obey either the periodic or any of the simple forms).

Variation form - this is a form built on the repetition of the original theme with its transformation, and there must be at least two of these repetitions in order for the resulting form of a musical work to be classified as variational. The variation form is found in many instrumental works, and no less often in the compositions of modern authors.

There are different variations. For example, there is such a type of variation as variations on an ostinato (that is, unchangeable, held) theme in melody or bass (the so-called soprano-ostinato and basso-ostinato). There are variations figurative, in which, with each new implementation, the theme is colored with various decorations and progressively fragmented, showing its hidden sides.

There is another type of variation - characteristic variations, in which each new theme takes place in a new genre. Sometimes these transitions to new genres greatly transform the theme - just imagine, the theme can sound in the same work as a funeral march, a lyrical nocturne, and an enthusiastic hymn. By the way, you can read something about genres in the article.

As a musical example of variations, we invite you to get acquainted with a very famous work by the great Beethoven.

L. van Beethoven, 32 variations in C minor

Rondo– another widespread form of musical works. You probably know that translated into Russian from French the word "rondo" means "circle". This is no coincidence. Once upon a time, the rondo was a group round dance, in which general fun alternated with dances of individual soloists - at such moments they went into the middle of the circle and showed their skills.

So, musically speaking, a rondo is made up of parts that are constantly repeated (general ones - they are called refrains) and individualized episodes that sound between refrains. For the rondo form to take place, the refrain must be repeated at least three times.

Sonata form , so we got to you! The sonata form, or, as it is sometimes called, the sonata allegro form, is one of the most perfect and complex forms of musical works.

The sonata form is based on two main themes - one of them is called "main"(the one that sounds first), the second - "side". These names mean that one of the themes is in the main key, and the second in a secondary key (dominant, for example, or parallel). Together, these themes go through various tests in development, and then in the reprise, usually both are sounded in the same key.

The sonata form consists of three main sections:

• exposition (presentation of the first, second and other topics to the public);
• development (the stage at which intensive development occurs);
• reprise (here the themes presented in the exhibition are repeated, and at the same time their convergence occurs).

Composers loved the sonata form so much that on its basis they created a whole series of forms that differed from the main model in various parameters. For example, we can name such varieties of sonata form as rondo sonata(mixing sonata form with rondo), sonata without development, sonata with an episode instead of development(remember what they said about an episode in a three-part complex form? Here any form can become an episode - often these are variations), concert form(with double exposure - for the soloist and for the orchestra, with a virtuoso cadenza of the soloist at the end of the development before the start of the reprise), sonatina(little sonata), symphonic poem(huge canvas).

Fugue- this is the form that was once the queen of all forms. At one time, fugue was considered the most perfect musical form, and musicians still have a special attitude towards fugues.

A fugue is built on one theme, which is then repeated many times in an unchanged form in different voices (with different instruments). The fugue begins, as a rule, in one voice and immediately with the theme. Another voice immediately responds to this theme, and what sounds during this response from the first instrument is called counter-addition.

While the theme circulates through different voices, the expositional section of the fugue continues, but as soon as the theme has passed through each voice, development begins in which the theme may not be fully pursued, compressed, or, conversely, expanded. Yes, a lot of things happen in development... At the end of the fugue, the main tonality is restored - this section is called the reprise of the fugue.

We can stop there now. We have named almost all the main forms of musical works. It should be borne in mind that more complex forms may contain several simpler ones - learn to detect them. And also often both simple and complex forms are combined into different cycles– for example, they form together suite or sonata-symphonic cycle.

Variations, or more precisely, a theme with variations, is a musical form that is formed as a result of the use of variation technique. Such a work consists of a theme and several repetitions of it, in each of which the theme appears in a modified form. Changes can concern different aspects of music - harmony, melody, voice guidance (polyphony), rhythm, timbre and orchestration (if we are talking about variations for an orchestra). Variations created spontaneously right at a concert by a virtuoso performer, if he has the gift of an improviser, have a special effect and impact on listeners...

Alexander Maikapar

Musical genres. Variations

Shape Features

A characteristic feature of the variation form is a certain static nature (especially in comparison with the sonata form Allegro, which we examined in one of the previous essays and which, on the contrary, is characterized by extraordinary dynamism). Staticity is by no means a disadvantage of this form, but rather a characteristic feature. And in the most significant examples of variation cycles, staticity was what the composer wanted and achieved. It followed from the very fact of repeated repetition of the same formal structure (theme).

The melody in its recognizable moments, the bass line, which is the basis of the harmonic sequence, the tonality common to all variations (in classical variations the mode may change - in a major cycle there will be a minor variation and vice versa, but the tonic always remains the same) - all this creates feeling of static.

The form of variations and this musical genre itself are very popular among composers. As for listeners, wittily composed variations usually arouse keen interest, since they very clearly demonstrate the skill and ingenuity of the composer. This clarity is ensured by the fact that in variations, as a rule, the structure of the theme and its form are preserved, while the instrumental texture is subject to variation.

Characterizing variations and the technique of variation itself in this way, we mean, at least at the beginning of our story about this musical form, the classical type of variations that developed in the work primarily of composers of the Baroque era, then among the so-called Viennese classics (, Mozart, and their environment) and, finally, among the romantics - R. Schumann,. Generally speaking, there is hardly a composer who does not have in his creative baggage works written in the form of variations.

Improvisation by Jean Guillou

Variations created spontaneously right at a concert by a virtuoso performer, if he has the gift of an improviser, have a special effect and impact on listeners. And in our time such musicians are known, mainly among organists, who dare to undertake such artistic experiments.

The author of these lines witnessed such improvisations performed by the outstanding modern French organist Jean Guillou. They made such a strong impression that they encourage us to talk about them in more detail. Let us first note that any improvisation on a given theme contains elements of variation, but in this case these were not just elements of such a technique, but the entire improvisation was structured as variations.

This happened on the stage of one of the best concert halls in Europe - Tonhalle in Zurich. Here, for almost forty years, J. Guillou held a summer master class for young organists from different countries. At the end of one of the classes, the young organists who participated in it decided to make a gift to the maestro. The gift was an elegantly wrapped and tied box. The maestro was pleasantly surprised, unwrapped the gift and discovered... a musical snuff box. You had to press a button, and characteristic mechanical music began to sound from the opened snuffbox. Guillou had never heard the melody of the gifted snuffbox.

But then there was a surprise for everyone present. The maestro sat down at the organ, turned on the quietest register on the upper keyboard of the instrument and absolutely accurately repeated the piece from the snuff box, reproducing both the melody and harmony. Then, immediately after this, he began to improvise in the form of variations, that is, while maintaining the structure of this piece each time, he began to carry out the theme over and over again, changing the texture, gradually including more and more new registers, moving from manual to manual.

The piece “grew” before the eyes of the listeners, the passages intertwining the constant harmonic backbone of the theme became more and more virtuosic, and now the organ is already sounding in all its power, all registers are already involved, and depending on the nature of certain combinations of registers, the nature of the variations also changes . Finally the theme sounds powerfully solo on the pedal keyboard (in the feet) - the climax has been reached!

Now everything smoothly winds down: without interrupting the variation, the maestro gradually comes to the original sound - the theme, as if saying goodbye, again sounds in its original form on the upper manual of the organ at its quietest register (as in a snuffbox).

Everyone - and among the listeners there were very talented and technically equipped organists - was shocked by the skill of J. Guillou. It was an unusually bright way to show off your musical imagination and demonstrate the enormous capabilities of a magnificent instrument.

Subject

This story allowed us, although very briefly, to outline the artistic goals that every composer pursues when undertaking the creation of a cycle of variations. And, apparently, the first goal is to demonstrate the possibilities hidden in the theme for the development of the images contained in it. Therefore, first of all, it is worth taking a close look at the musical material that composers choose as the theme for future variations.

Usually the theme is a fairly simple melody (for example, in the finale of the fourth piano trio Op. 11 in B-flat major by Beethoven, the theme of the variations is, according to the composer’s explanation, a “street song”). Familiarity with the well-known themes taken as the basis for the variations convinces us that they are usually no less than eight and no more than thirty-two bars (this is due to the song structure of most themes, and the song structure is characterized by the squareness of musical periods, for example a period of two sentences, each of which is eight bars).

As a small musical form, a theme is a complete musical structure - a small independent piece. As a rule, for a theme, variations are chosen from those already known or a melody is composed that contains typical, at least for a given era, features. Too characteristic or overly individualized melodic turns are avoided, since they are more difficult to vary.

There are usually no sharp contrasts in the theme: identifying and sharpening possible contrasts is reserved for the variations themselves. As a rule, the theme sounds at a moderate tempo - this allows, during the variations, to interpret it as more lively, and, conversely, as calmer. From a harmonic point of view, the theme sounds simple and natural, if not deliberately ordinary; again, all harmonic aggravations and “piquantities” are reserved for variations. As for the form of the topic, it is usually two-part. It can be represented as a - b.

Variation techniques

The earliest type of variations are variations on a certain move in the bass, the sounds of which form the foundation of the harmonic structure of the variation cycle. In variations of this kind, both this move itself and the harmonies that are formed remain unchanged throughout the entire cycle. This is usually a sequence of four or eight bars.

Often the rhythmic structure of such a theme, and therefore the entire variation cycle, uses the rhythm of some solemn ancient dance - chaconne, passacaglia, folia. Ingenious examples of this kind of variations were given. This is the organ Passacaglia in C minor and the violin Chaconne from the second Partita in D minor. These works are so exciting that various performers and even large orchestras have strived to have them in their repertoire.

The Chaconne, in addition to being one of the key works of every concert violinist, entered the repertoire of pianists in the transcription of the outstanding Italian pianist and composer Ferruccio Busoni (this kind of transcription in concert practice is called by the double name of the authors: “Bach-Busoni. Chaconne”). As for the Passacaglia, orchestras perform its transcription made by the American conductor Leopold Stokowski.

Variations written on the model of passacaglia or chaconne (let us add here the English form of such variations, known as ground), give a clear idea of ​​the so-called variations on basso ostinato (italian. - sustained, that is, constantly repeated bass). “How unusually she responded to the insistent bass motif repeated ad infinitum (lat. - endlessly), the fantasy of great musicians, - exclaims the famous harpsichordist Wanda Landowska. - With all their passion they devoted themselves to the invention of thousands of melodies - each with its own twists, enlivened by bold harmonies and complicated by the finest counterpoint. But that's not all. W. Bird, C. Monteverdi, D’Anglebert, D. Buxtehude, A. Corelli and F. Couperin - each not only a musician, but also a poet - realized the hidden power of expressiveness in the deceptively insignificant bass.”

He continued to use the type of variations on the bass voice, but by the mid-70s of the 18th century the type of so-called melodic variations, that is, variations on a melody placed in the theme in the upper voice, began to dominate. Haydn has few separate variation cycles, but
variations as parts of his larger works - sonatas, symphonies - are found very often in his work.

Mozart made extensive use of variations to demonstrate his musical inventiveness. It is noteworthy that, although he used the form of variations in his sonatas, divertissements and concertos, he, unlike Haydn, never used it in his symphonies.

In contrast to Mozart, he willingly resorted to the form of variations in his major works, namely in symphonies (III, V, VII, IX symphonies).

Romantic composers (Mendelssohn, Schubert, Schumann) created a type of so-called characteristic variations, which clearly reflected the new figurative structure of romanticism. Paganini, Chopin and Liszt brought the highest instrumental virtuosity to the characteristic variations.

Famous themes and variation cycles

Johann Sebastian Bach. Goldberg Variations

There are few works that have the word “variations” in the title or are built on the principle of a theme with variations. In addition to those already mentioned above, one can recall “Aria, Varied in the Italian Style”, organ partitas. However, the very method of varying a given theme was not only familiar to Bach, but is the cornerstone of his compositional technique. His last great creation - “The Art of Fugue” - is essentially a cycle of variations in the form of fugues on the same theme (which itself is subject to variation). All Bach's chorale preludes for organ are also variations on famous church hymns. Bach's suites, composed of dances, upon deeper analysis reveal within each cycle a certain melodic and harmonic grain, varying from dance to dance. It is this feature of the composer's technique that gives each cycle amazing integrity and completeness.

In all this enormous heritage, the pinnacle achievement of Bach’s genius is the “Goldberg Variations”. A master so skillful in embodying a wide variety of constructive ideas, Bach in this cycle implemented a completely original artistic plan. Bach made the theme an aria, which is sarabande in form. Its melody is so richly ornamented that it gives reason to consider the aria itself as a kind of variant of the intended simpler theme. And if so, then the actual theme is not the melody of the aria, but its lower voice.

This statement is supported by a relatively recent discovery - fourteen previously unknown Bach canons for the eight notes of the bass voice of this aria. In other words, Bach interprets the bass as an independent musical theme. But the most striking thing is that exactly these notes, and precisely in the lower voice, were already the basis of a variation cycle... by the English composer Henry Purcell (1659–1695), Bach’s senior contemporary; he wrote “Ground” with variations on this theme. However, there is no evidence that Bach knew Purcell's play. What is this - a coincidence? Or did this theme exist as a kind of common “musical property” like hymns or Gregorian chants?

The aria in the cycle sounds twice - at the beginning and at the end of the work (J. Guillou built his improvised variations on this principle). Inside this frame there are 30 variations - 10 groups of 3 variations, each third representing a so-called canon (a musical form in which one voice exactly repeats the other with a shift in the time of entry). And in each subsequent canon, the interval of entry of the voice conducting the canon increases by a step: the canon in unison, then in a second, then in a third, etc. - to canon to nonu.

Instead of a canon in decima (such a canon would be a repetition of a canon in thirds), Bach writes the so-called quodlibet (lat. - who knows what) - a play that combines two seemingly incompatible themes. At the same time, the bass line of the theme remains.

I. Forkel, the first biographer of Bach, exclaimed: “ Quodlibet… this alone could make the author’s name immortal, although here he does not play a primary role.”

So new topics for this quodlibet- two German folk songs:

I. I haven't been with you for so long,
Come closer, closer, closer.

II. Cabbage and beets have gotten me this far.
If only my mother would cook some meat,
I would have stayed longer.

So Bach, with his unique talent, skill and humor, combines “high” and “low”, inspiration and the greatest skill in this brilliant cycle.

Ludwig van Beethoven. Variations on a Theme of Diabelli's Waltz. op. 120

Thirty-three variations on a waltz theme by Anton Diabelli (known as the Diabelli Variations) were composed between 1817 and 1827. This is one of the masterpieces of piano literature; it shares the glory of the greatest variation cycle with Bach's Goldberg Variations.

The history of the creation of this work is as follows: in 1819, Anton Diabelli, a talented composer and successful music publisher, sent his waltz to all the then famous Austrian (or living in Austria) composers and asked everyone to write one variation on its theme. Among the composers were F. Schubert, Carl Czerny, Archduke Rudolf (Beethoven's patron, who took piano lessons from him), Mozart's son and even the eight-year-old child prodigy Franz Liszt. In total there were fifty composers who sent one variation each. Beethoven, naturally, was also invited to participate in this project.

Diabelli's plan was to publish all these variations as one overall work and use the proceeds to help widows and orphans who had lost their breadwinners in the Napoleonic wars. This is how an extensive work was compiled. However, the publication of this collective creation did not arouse much interest.

Beethoven's Variations are a different matter. His cycle of variations on this theme received worldwide recognition and gave rise to a number of outstanding interpretations. Beethoven, long before this proposal, was already associated with Diabelli, who published his works. At first, Beethoven refused to take part in the creation of a collective work. Subsequently, he was captivated by the idea of ​​writing a large variation cycle on this theme himself.

It is quite remarkable that Beethoven called his cycle not variations, but the German word Veranderungen, which translates as “change”, “changes”, but essentially means transformation and can even be understood as “rethinking”.

Nicolo Paganini. Caprice No. 24 (theme and variations) for violin

The history of music knows several melodies that have proven extremely popular as themes, on which many composers have created many variations. These topics themselves are worthy of careful consideration as such a source. One of these melodies is the theme of Caprice No. 24 for Paganini violin.

This Caprice is considered one of the most technically complex works written for solo violin (that is, without accompaniment). It requires the violinist to master all performing means, such as playing in octaves, incredible fluency in playing scales (including minor ones, with double notes in thirds and decimals and arpeggios), jumps at all kinds of intervals, virtuoso playing in high positions, and so on. Not every concert violinist will dare to take this Caprice to public performance.

Paganini wrote his cycle of 24 caprices under the impression of the art of the Italian violinist and composer Antonio Locatelli (1695–1764), who in 1733 published the collection “The Art of New Modulation (Mysterious Caprices).” There were 24 of these caprices! Paganini composed his caprices in 1801–1807, and published them in Milan in 1818. As a sign of respect for his great predecessor, Paganini quotes one of Locatelli’s caprices in his first caprice. Caprices were the only work of Paganini published during his lifetime. He refused to publish other works, wanting to keep his method of work secret.

The theme of Caprice No. 24 attracted the attention of many composers with its bright character, strong-willed impulse, nobility of spirit, clarity and indestructible logic of its harmony. It has only twelve bars, and its two-part structure already contains an element of variation: the second half is a variant of a motif already present in the first part. In general, it is an ideal model for constructing variation cycles. And the entire caprice is a theme with eleven variations and a coda, replacing the twelfth variation traditional for such a cycle.

Paganini's contemporaries considered these caprices impossible to perform until they heard them performed by him. Even then, romantic composers - R. Schumann, F. Liszt, and later J. Brahms - tried to use the technical techniques invented by Paganini in their piano works. It turned out that the best and most impressive way to do this was to do as Paganini himself did, that is, write the variations in such a way that each of the variations demonstrated a particular technique.

There are at least two dozen variation cycles on this theme. Among their authors, in addition to those already mentioned, are S. Rachmaninov, F. Busoni, I. Friedman, K. Szymanowski, A. Casella, V. Lutoslavsky... There is a name that at first glance seems unexpected in this series - Andrew Lloyd Weber, author the famous rock opera “Jesus Christ Superstar”. On the theme of Caprice No. 24, he wrote 23 variations for cello and rock ensemble.

Based on materials from the magazine “Art” No. 10/2010

On the poster: Organ in the Frauenkirche church. Dresden, Germany. The author of the photo is unknown

Today there are many definitions of the concept of variational form. Various authors offer their own options:

A variational form, or variations, a theme with variations, a variation cycle, is a musical form consisting of a theme and its several (at least two) modified reproductions (variations). This is one of the oldest musical forms (known since the 13th century).

A variational form is a form based on modified repetitions of a theme (also two or more themes).

A variation form or variation cycle is a form consisting of an initial presentation of a theme and a number of its modified repetitions (called variations).

The variation form, in addition, is called “variations”, “variation cycle”, “theme with variations”, “aria with variations”, partita (another meaning of partita is a suite of dances), etc. The variations themselves had many historical names: Variatio, Veranderungen (“changes”), double, versus (“verse”), gloss, floretti (literally “flowers”), lesargements (“decorations”), evolutio, parte (“part”), etc. Variations were also composed by the greatest composers, and concert virtuoso performers, their musical content ranges from unpretentious variations of the simplest theme (such as Beethoven's D-dur variations for mandolin) to the heights of intellectual complexity in music (Arietta from Beethoven's 32 sonatas).

It is necessary to distinguish between variational form and variation as a principle. The latter has an unlimited range of applications (a motive, a phrase, a sentence in a period, etc., can vary, up to a varied reprise in sonata form). However, a single application of the principle of variation does not create a form on its basis. A variation form arises only with the systematic application of this principle, therefore at least two variations are necessary to create it.

The theme of the variations can be original (written by the composer himself) or borrowed. Variations can be filled with completely different content: from very simple to deep and philosophical. In terms of genres, the themes of the variations were chorales, traditional bass passesacaglia and chaconnes, sarabande, minuet, gavotte, siciliana, aria in two meanings of the word (a melodious melody, as if for wind instruments, from the French “air” _ “air”, and aria from the opera), folk songs from different countries, themes for variations by other authors, and many others. etc.

Variations are usually classified according to four parameters:

depending on whether the process of variation affects the theme or only the accompanying voices, they distinguish: direct variations, indirect variations;

by degree of change: strict (the variations retain the tonality, harmonic plan and form of the theme), free (a wide range of changes, including harmony, form, genre appearance, etc.; connections with the theme are sometimes conditional: each variation can achieve independence as a play with individual content);

according to which method of variation predominates: polyphonic, harmonic, textured, timbre, figurative, genre-characteristic;

by the number of themes in variations: single-theme, double (two-theme), triple (three-theme).

V.N. Kholopova in her book “Forms of Musical Works” presented the following classification option:

Variations on basso ostinato (or sustained bass, “polyphonic variations”).

Variations are figurative (ornamental, “classical”).

Variations on a sustained melody (or on soprano ostinato, the so-called “Glinka variations”).

The variations are characteristic and free.

Variant form.

In addition, double and multi-theme variations are distinguished, in which all the named types of variation are found, and variations with a theme at the end. It is not lost sight of the fact that there may be mixed types of variations.

However, in the process of historical development, the predominant types of variations with more or less stable combinations of the named characteristics became established. The main types of variations have become established: variations on a sustained melody, variations on basso ostinato, figurative variations and genre-characteristic variations.

These types existed in parallel (at least since the 17th century), but in different eras some of them were more in demand. Thus, composers of the Baroque era more often turned to variations on basso ostinato, Viennese classics to figurative ones, and romantic composers to genre-characteristic ones. In the music of the 20th century, all these types are combined, new ones appear, when a separate chord, interval, or even a separate sound can act as a theme.

In addition, there are several specific types of variations that are less common: the variation cantata of the Baroque era and variations with a theme at the end (appearing at the end of the 19th century). The verse-variation and verse-variant forms have a certain relationship with the variation form. The 18th century chorale arrangement is also close to the variations.

It is important to note that many works use different types of variation. For example, the initial group of variations may be variations on a sustained melody, followed by a chain of figurative variations.

Any variation cycle is an open form (that is, new variations can, in principle, be added endlessly). Therefore, the composer is faced with the task of creating a second-order form. This can be a “wave” with a build-up and culmination, or any standard form: most often it is a three-part form or rondo. Tripartiteness arises as a result of the introduction of a contrasting variation (or group of variations) in the middle of the form. Ronda-like appearance occurs due to repeated return of contrast material.

Often variations are combined into groups, creating local build-ups and local culminations. This is achieved due to a single texture or due to a rhythmic increase (diminution). In order to give the form relief and to somehow break up the continuous flow of similar variations, already in the classical era, in extended cycles, one or more variations were carried out in a different mode. In the 19th century variations this phenomenon intensified. Now individual variations can be carried out in other keys (for example, “Symphonic Etudes” by R. Schumann _ with the initial cis-moll, there are variations in E-dur and gis-moll, the final variation _ Des-dur).

Various endings of the variation cycle are possible. The ending can be similar to the beginning or, conversely, as contrasting as possible. In the first case, at the end of the work, the theme is carried out in a version close to the original (for example, S. Prokofiev. Piano Concerto No. 3, 2nd movement). In the second, the ending represents the maximum progress in a given direction (for example, the smallest in the entire duration cycle). For the sake of contrast in the final variation, the meter and genre may change (a frequent occurrence in Mozart). The greatest contrast to the homophonic theme at the end of the cycle can be a fugue (in the classical and post-classical era).

The variational method of development finds wide and highly artistic application among Russian classics and is associated with variation as one of the characteristic features of Russian folk art. In the compositional structure, a theme with variations is a way of developing, enriching and ever deeper revealing the original image.

In its meaning and expressive capabilities, the form of variations is designed to show the main theme in a versatile and varied way. This topic is usually simple and at the same time contains opportunities for enrichment and disclosure of its full content. Also, the transformation of the main theme from variation to variation should follow a line of gradual increase leading to the final result.

In the 19th century, along with many examples of the variational form, which clearly reflected the continuity of the basic methods of variation, a new type of this form appeared, the so-called free variations.

Free variations are those that deviate from the theme in terms of form (structure), usually also from tonality. The name “free” is applied mainly to variations of the 19th and then 20th centuries, when structural changes become the principle of organization of variation forms. Individual free variations are found among the Viennese classics in the series of strict variations.

Subsequently, the direction outlined in these variations received significant development. Its main features:

• 1) The theme or its elements are changed in such a way that each variation is given an individual, very independent character. This approach to the treatment of the topic can be defined as more subjective compared to the one manifested by the classics. Variations begin to be given programmatic meaning.
• 2) Thanks to the independent nature of the variations, the entire cycle turns into something similar to a suite. Sometimes connections appear between variations.
• 3) The possibility of changing tonalities within a cycle, outlined by Beethoven, turned out to be very appropriate for emphasizing the independence of variations through differences in tonal color.
• 4) Variations of the cycle, in a number of respects, are constructed quite independently of the structure of the theme:
  • a) tonal relationships change within the variation;
  • b) new harmonies are introduced, often completely changing the color of the theme;
  • c) the topic is given a different form;
  • d) the variations are so far removed from the melodic-rhythmic pattern of the theme that they represent plays only built on individual motives of the theme, developed in a completely different way.

All of the listed features, of course, are manifested to varying degrees in different works of the 19th-20th centuries.

Free variations are a type of variation connected by the method of variation. Such variations are characteristic of the post-classical era. The appearance of the theme was then extremely changeable, and if you look from the middle of the work to its beginning, you might not recognize the main theme. Such variations represent a whole series of variations, contrasting in genre and meaning, close to the main theme. Here the difference prevails over the similarity.

Although the variation formula remains A, Al, A2, A3, etc., the main theme no longer bears the original image. The tonality and form of the theme can vary, and can even go as far as polyphonic presentation techniques. The composer can even isolate some fragment of the theme and vary only that.

The principles of variation can be: rhythmic, harmonic, dynamic, timbre, texture, line, melodic, etc. Based on this, many variations can stand apart and resemble more a suite than variations. The number of variations in this form is not limited (as, for example, in classical variations, where 3-4 variations are like an exposition, the middle two are development, the last 3-4 are a powerful statement of the main theme, i.e. thematic framing) .

Variations of folk melodies are usually free variations. An example of free variations, some of which retain significant closeness to the theme, and some, on the contrary, move away from it, is the work “Prophetic Dream”, the adaptation of which was written by Vyacheslav Anatolyevich Semyonov.

Thus, the centuries-old musical practice of peoples of different nationalities served as the source of the emergence of the variation form. Here we find examples of both harmonic and polyphonic styles, listing historical types of variation and types of variation. The variational principle of development originates in folk music, primarily songwriting. Variation forms have received a very wide and varied application in music. They occur both as the form of a separate work, and as part of a cycle (suite, sonata, symphony), and as the form of a section of some complex form (for example, the middle part of a complex three-part form). In vocal music - as a form of songs, arias, choirs. A very common form of variations is in instrumental genres - solo and orchestral (a variety - orchestral variations).