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Haley Cox

Form and Analysis M/W/F 9-9:50

Final Essay

Dr. Gosden

Beethoven String Quartet in F Major, Op. 18, no. 1

Beethoven’s string quartet in F Major is a strong example of sonata form. Despite

some chromatic and sometimes deformational moments that are signature to Beethoven,

it is very clearly in traditional sonata form. The exposition is comprised of mm. 1-114,

the development mm. 115-178, and the recapitulation 179-313 with a coda at the end

(mm. 282-313).

The exposition’s primary theme is mm. 1-29, ending on a PAC in the home key

on the downbeat of m. 29. The transition is mm. 30-55, ending on a HC in C Major

preceded by a dominant lock in C Major. The medial caesura is in m. 56. The S theme is

mm. 57-72, ending on an elided PAC in C Major. The closing space is mm. 72-114

ending on a PAC.

There are two ways the primary theme can be analyzed. The first is that it is an

asymmetrical, parallel period with a cadential extension in mm. 21-29 ending with a PAC

in m. 29. The antecedent phrase would be mm. 1-8 ending on a HC in the home key, and

the consequent phrase 9-20 ending on a PAC in the home key. The cadential extension

repeats the material from the beginning of the antecedent and consequent phrase in order
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to draw out and extend the PAC, likely to build up greater tension and anticipation for

when the transition begins.

Though the structural components are there for it to be a period, it sounds more

like the second way the P theme could be analyzed, which a sentence. The basic idea is

mm. 1-8, the basic idea prime mm. 9-20, and the continuation mm. 21-29. The reason it

sounds more like a sentence than a period is because of the “ready, set, go” feeling

(“ready” being the BI, “set” being the BI’, and “go” being the continuation”). Within the

basic idea, there is another complete sentence. Mm. 1-2 are the basic idea, mm. 3-4 the

basic idea prime, and mm. 5-8 the continuation, the sentence ending with a HC in the

home key.

The transition starts with an asymmetrical, modulating sentence in mm. 30-49

ending with an elided HC in the home key that leads into a dominant lock that spans m.

49- the downbeat of m. 55. The basic idea is m. 30- the downbeat of m. 33, the basic idea

prime is mm. 33-34, ending on an IAC in the new key of C Major (the global dominant)

on beat 4 of m. 34, and the continuation is m. 35-49. Right before the cadence and

dominant lock in m. 49, there is a moment of ‘lights out’ into C Minor lasting mm. 47-48.

The chord progression in C Minor is: viio 6/5 - i6 - iio 6 - viio/V - V (HC in m. 49). The

dominant lock lasts mm. 49-55 and ends on another HC in C Major.

The medial caesura occurs right after the HC in the dominant lock, in m. 56 with a

bit of caesurial fill in the first violin voice. It is the medial caesura because even though

there is still sound, the fill decreases into a piano dynamic.

The secondary theme begins in m. 57, continuing in C Major, the global dominant

key, keeping with sonata form standards. It is a parallel, symmetrical period, the
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antecedent phrase is mm. 57-64 ending on a HC in C Major, and the consequent phrase is

mm. 65-72, ending with an PAC on beat 1 of m. 72 in C Major. It is a PAC, rather than

an IAC, because although the initial lowest note is a G in the bass, the cello plays the C

below it on the second half of the downbeat and makes the root the lowest note, therefore

making the cadence perfect. The PAC in m. 72 is also an elided PAC, the cadence

serving as both the end of the secondary theme’s period and the EEC.

The closing space is in m. 72-114, and has characteristics of A Minor

(submediant), mm. 97-101 modulating to C Minor (the relative minor of the current key,

C Major) the harmonic progression being: i - VI - viio7/V (this is the chord which makes

it possible to modulate to A Minor, the same chord being a viio7/V in A Minor when

enharmonically respelled) then Ger +6 - i6/4 (m. 100) in A Minor. Continuing in A Minor,

iv follows (which could still also be ii in C Minor/Major); Beethoven returns back to C

Major with that chord, and we end on a V7-I in C Major. There is a codetta mm. 101-114,

which function as a cadential extension, and the codetta ends with a V chord in C Major

on beat 1 of m. 114.

The development in mm. 115-178 utilizes material from both the primary and

secondary theme, varying them for listener intrigue. It goes in A minor (median of global

tonic) until m. 118 where the key promptly ends with a PAC in A Minor. mm. 119-124

restate the P theme in B-flat Major (subdominant of global tonic) until the ‘lights out’

change to G minor in m. 125, then it finally settles back into the global tonic of F Major

in order to begin the recapitulation.

The recapitulation begins in m. 179 with a restatement of mm. 1-8 of the P theme,

mm. 179-186 mirroring mm. 1-8 complete with a HC in the home key in m. 187. The
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point of divergence is m. 187 and the section becomes deformational, beginning to

modulate through several different keys, before finally settling on G-flat Major (the

supertonic) with a PAC on beat 1 of m. 198.

The transition space in the recapitulation begins in m. 199, which mirrors m. 30,

however it is in a different key, and m. 206 mirrors m. 34, including the IAC. We return

back to the home key in m. 216 with a HC, mirroring the HC in m. 55, and the medial

caesura follows immediately after in m. 217 (m. 56 in the exposition).

The restatement of the secondary theme begins in m. 218, and mm. 218-233 are

an exact restatement of mm. 57-72, including the HC in m. 225 (m. 64) and the PAC in

m. 233 (m. 72). The PAC at the beginning of m. 72 is elided and serves as both the end of

the recap’s secondary theme and the ESC, just as the one at the beginning of m. 72 was

both the end of the exposition’s secondary theme and the EEC.

The closing space of the recapitulation is a fairly straight forward restatement of

the closing space in the exposition. Mm. 233-273 are nearly identical to m. 72-112, save

for a few minute differences. M. 274 diverges and creates an evaded cadence, based on

the lead up and expectation of a cadence due to the PAC in m. 113. Mm. 274-280 travel

upwards by step and reach a HC in the home key in m. 280 before going into a coda

comprised of variations from the exposition’s P theme and finally ending on a PAC in m.

313.