Composition is a staggeringly vast and complex field, with so many sub-practices, guidelines, and miscellaneous things to keep track of that it takes immense effort just to keep on top of your craft on a day-to-day basis. But as much as it is to handle, the science of it has never been the hard part for me. Studying harmony, counterpoint, orchestration, and other facets of music was relatively easy because it is all dictated by a firm logic. The difficult part was figuring out the creative part of music - the “art” side of things.
In fact, I’d say most of the work during my years of study was trying to figure out what exactly it is that makes the works I most appreciate as powerful and memorable as they are. Of course the main theme of a work is a major factor, but what is it that separates a truly memorable theme from the crowd and makes it a classic? As much as I appreciate the abstract and unknowable, I felt as if there were some rational explanation for certain works standing out above others.
As it turns out, there is a science to it. Of course, this is something we all may know intuitively, but like so many things in the study of composition, it is rarely addressed pedagogically. One day while musing over J.S. Bach’s Well-Tempered Clavier, it struck me just how rhythmically definitive each of the themes were. Twenty four unique subjects, and almost all are distinctive enough to be summoned to memory at will. Each has its own little “gimmicks” which give it a unique character and separate them from the common themes of other works.
Sometimes those characteristic features are purely rhythmic - interestingly-placed suspensions, repeated notes, disjunct movement, or sudden flurries of sixteenths in the middle of an otherwise calm phrase. Bach does not rely on a single melodic leap or some other dull means of making an impression with his theme. He designs them thoroughly from the head to the tail to be something remarkable. And what choice did he have - it is a requirement of fugue that the utmost thought be placed into each note of a subject, particularly if the composer wishes to deviate at all from standard baroque melodic figures.
Fig.1 Subject from the G# Minor Fugue of WTC Book I
You can see here how Bach incorporated a number of melodic “signatures” that make the G# Minor fugue distinguishable even among the many. Compare this subject to any number of unremarkable compositions and you will certainly notice the absence of such characteristic figures and clever design.
When sitting at the staff paper trying to come up with a new theme, try to think of remarkable and unconventional figures to implement. You might employ constrasting elements, or create an interesting mixture of figures, giving the head, body, and tail of your theme each a distinctive character. There are so many possibilities that you will, with some effort, be able to design something both original and suitable to the intended character of the piece.
Next time I will be looking at non-diatonic themes. That’s where things get complicated!
