Lesson 1 for "Form & Analysis" Page 1 of 3

Contrapuntal Operations
Imagine a melody moving upward a sixth and then downward a second.
Call this motive PRIME. Notice that PRIME has properties of interval size
and direction: two sizes (LARGER & SMALLER) and two directions
Home (ASCENDING & DESCENDING). In the case of PRIME the first interval
Topics by Week is the larger (and it ascends) while the second interval is the smaller (and it
Week 1 descends).
Operations
It is TRUE that the
PRIME form
begins with the
LARGER interval ASCENDING
and concludes with the
SMALLER interval DESCENDING

Three operations can be applied to PRIME that will change either the
interval order or direction or both. The first of these, called
RETROGRADE is a backward reading of PRIME. RETROGRADE can be
produced by flipping the music horizontally. To assist you in visualizing
this relationship, I've prepared a handout which you can print and then flip.
After you've printed the handout, use your browser's BACK button to
return here.

The second operation, called INVERSION, involves reading intervals of

PRIME in the same order but moving them in the opposite direction (or the
same pitches can be produced by moving the INVERSION of the original
interval in the SAME direction). If you've printed the handout, the
INVERSION can be produced by flipping the page vertically. As this type
of inversion operates upon a single melodic line, I like to call it "melodic
inversion" to distinguish it from "contrapuntal inversion" which we shall
study later.

The third operation, called the RETROGRADE-INVERSION, involves

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Lesson 1 for "Form & Analysis" Page 2 of 3

reading PRIME backward AND upside-down. Flip this page horizontally

(retrograde) then vertically (invert) to produce the RETROGRADE-
INVERSION. You will notice that the same effect can be created by
rotating the page 180 degrees.

So let's review. The order and direction of intervals in any

motive can be transformed by contrapuntal operations. The
effect of each operator can be illustrated by flipping the
motive horizontally (RETROGRADE), vertically
(INVERSION), or by rotation (RETROGRADE-
INVERSION). Use your handout now to experiment with
all the various "flippings" and rotations to see how the
PRIME form of the motive can be transformed. You might
need to hold the paper up to the light. After you have done
this for awhile you should be able to predict, without
moving the page, the effect each operation will have upon interval order
and direction.

When you have anticipated the effect an operation would produce, use the
smart table to check your answer. Click on the music to cycle through each
operator. Then click the interval size (or direction) to toggle through
various possibilities until you arrive at the order and direction you would
predict to result. If your prediction is correct, the statement should read as
TRUE. Use the table to check your answers to the questions on the
handout.

Webern "Concerto for Nine Instruments"

In Assignment No. 2 you will be required to identify contrapuntal
operations in the first ten measures of Webern's "Concerto" (Op. 24). The
remaining paragraphs will prepare you to do this. The Concerto employs
the following tone row. The row can be parsed into four trichords bearing a
fundamental relationship to each other. Each row has two intervals (M3 &
m2) and two directions (up & down). Sound familiar? If you think of the
first trichord as PRIME, what contrapuntal operators would generate the
remaining contours? [Answer]

As noted earlier, there are two ways to create the melodic inversion.
Original intervals could moved in the OPPOSITE direction, or
INVERSIONS of the original interval could be moved in the SAME
direction. Consider, for example, the first interval of Webern's row: G
ascending a M3 to B. The inversion could be produced in two ways: (1) G
descending a M3 to Eb, or (2) G ascending a m6 to Eb. Either way, the
same pitch is produced.

Observe that inversions of trichord (a) relocate the smaller interval (which
had been at the top) to the bottom of the texture. Which trichords in the
row place the m2 at the bottom? [Answer] Of the two inverted trichords,
one is the INVERSION (without retrogradation) and the other the

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Lesson 1 for "Form & Analysis" Page 3 of 3

RETROGRADE-INVERSION. You can distinguish between these two by

noting the interval order. In trichord (a), which we called PRIME, the order
was M3-m2. So, any trichord reversing that order would be a
RETROGRADE. Which trichords are retrogrades? [Answer] Notice that
trichord (b) met the criteria for both retrograde and inversion.

One final note on contrapuntal operators. You've probably noticed that

retrogradation is dependent upon time but that inversion is not. Let's
illustrate with inversion. Squish trichord (a) PRIME together and play all
of its pitches simultaneously, that is, as a chord. Now do the same for
trichord (d) its INVERSION. Notice that the structure of these two chords
is quite different. PRIME puts the m2 at the top of the chord, while the
INVERSION puts the m2 at the bottom. Remember this: the distinction
between PRIME and INVERSION does not require pitches to be placed
one after the other. In other words, there is no time element to inversion.

By contrast, any type of RETROGRADE requires pitches to be played over

time. Return to PRIME as a chord and compare it with trichord (c), its
RETROGRADE, as a chord. The quality of these chords is identical! In
other words, PRIME and RETROGRADE cannot be distinguished from
each other by chord structure but only by pitches sounding in time. The
time element need separate only one pitch from the other two, as the
following illustrates.

SUMMARY: the distinction between PRIME and INVERSION can be

made in the absence of time--that is, even if all of the pitches in the motive
were to sound simultaneously as a chord. By contrast, the distinction
between PRIME and RETROGRADE can be made only when pitches
sound one after the other. If all the pitches in the motive were to sound
simultaneously, one could not distinguish between PRIME and its
RETROGRADE.

If you have understood the concepts of this page, you should be prepared to
do Assignment No. 2. I suggest, however that you proceed to the next
paragraph of Week 1 which contains some additional reading and listening.

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1996 Timothy A. Smith
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http://jan.ucc.nau.edu/~tas3/mus303/operations.html 22/7/2008