Bartók, For Children, “Sad Tale”

 Bartók, “Sad Tale” (For Children, vol. 2, no. 30). From Guide 2.

Here is another example of the analysis procedure. The form analysis at the right is repeated from §1. Next analyze the harmony—see the harmonic reduction and the formal bass-line sketch on the next page.

Harmonic reduction and bass-line sketch:

To begin working on the upper parts, isolate a formal unit (phrase or period), then locate and circle the initial tone, final tone, and highest tone [this last is boxed]. If the first tone is an anacrusis or pick-up note, the first accented tone may be taken instead; if the highest tone is a simple embellishing tone, the next lower or prominently placed tone may be taken instead. [That’s the case here, where F5 is a non-chord tone, neighbor to E5, so the “official” highest note is E5.] Make decisions based on what seems most workable or musically convincing at the time—remember that this procedure is informal. For the initial and final tones, always favor elements of the tonic triad.

For the second phrase, the high note F5 is again a non-chord tone. Because it is repeated and because it recalls the first phrase, I will take D5 as the high note (not marked as such).

The formal sketch in score form beams the middleground line for the theme (ending in bar 13) and slurs the same line as foreground ending in bar 6. In the repetition of the theme, the middleground line becomes the background line. The Bb4 of the second phrase (bar 7) is now an inner voice below D5.

If we choose the E5 instead—it is a chord tone after all—then we have a sixth-line, where “a” is a prefix (D5 to E5), “b” is a double neighbor figure, and “c” trades roles as D5 is the primary note and E5 is now a neighbor.

A third possibility is a registral or interval frame, shown as a triad beamed in the score (D5-Bb4-G4) but as an unfolded third (D5-Bb4) with a short line from the Bb down to G4. This forms a nice link to Bb4 in the second phrase.

I find any of these three versions easy to hear. One could argue for one or acknowledge the ambiguities.