Fonte and Monte in the Symphonies of Joseph Haydn

Abstract

Fonte and Monte were prominent harmonic-contrapuntal schemata frequently encountered in galant and classical compositions. This thesis examines the application and manipulation of these schemata in the symphonies of Joseph Haydn. It considers the historical roots of Fonte and Monte in the partimenti and solfeggi from the Italian pedagogical tradition of the eighteenth century, before proceeding to discuss how these schemata were interpreted and presented in the treatises of the German theorists, Joseph Riepel and Heinrich Christoph Koch. A close examination of schema theory in artificial intelligence and cognitive psychology leads to the construction of an analytical framework for the classification and description of the two galant schemata. This framework is then applied to an empirical study of Haydn’s symphonies, revealing many interesting and significant results. Formal statistical testing is employed to identify salient trends in stylistic change across selected sub-groups of the symphonies. The thesis includes concise musical analyses of several musical passages from these works, and concludes with two extended case studies of Symphonies No.56 and No.104. These analyses reveal schematic manipulation of remarkable skill and sophistication, while also confirming the qualities of wit, humour and irony for which the composer is renowned. The study establishes that Haydn’s employment of Fonte and Monte is far more extensive than previously realised, and moreover his inventive manipulations of them offer important insights into his strategies and methods of communication with his contemporary listeners.

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