Sonata Forms
Matthew Santa · 2021
This chapter focuses on sonata form. A sonata form has three large sections: the exposition , the development , and the recapit- ulation . While many would argue that it is unmusical to ignore the repeats in a rounded binary, just as many would argue that it’s justifiable in some sonata form movements simply because the sheer length of a performance with the repeats taken would be taxing on any audience. The arrival of the new secondary key in the exposition is always accompanied by the presentation of important thematic material. Expositions in sonata forms can be understood as having four parts, presented in the following order: a primary theme , a transition , a secondary theme , and a closing . In major-mode sonata forms, the secondary theme is in the key of the dominant; in minor-mode sonata forms, it is either in the key of the dominant or in the key of the relative major.