FUGUE IN NEOCLASSICISM: THEMATIC PROCESSES IN THE SECOND MOVEMENT OF IGOR STRAVINSKY’S SYMPHONY OF PSALMS

Abstract

In 20th-century music, the fugue became a relatively frequent subject of interest for many composers. Neoclassicism, as a broad artistic movement in the first half of the 20th century within the framework of post-tonal music, contributed to the transcendence of the fugue genre, which is often characterized as “unconventional.” The second movement of Igor Stravinsky’s Symphony of Psalms serves as a representative example of a neoclassical fugue.
This study relies on the hypothesis that thematic processes serve as a means of achieving intensification in the selected example of a neoclassical fugue. The methods of achieving intensification within the layered thematic texture can be summarized as follows: a gradual departure from the basic form of the theme to the point of its most intensive transformation; changes in the temporal spacing between statements of the theme, i.e., changes and convergence in the imitation interval. The wide spectrum of diverse thematic modifications, spanning between two extremes, can be classified into four categories that are part of the same process: the basic form of the theme, variation of the theme, division of the theme, and transformation of the theme. By relying on Sposobin’s general system of thematic development, it is possible to conclude that these modifications establish a hierarchical relationship directed toward increasing the dynamism of the musical flow. In addition to these theme modifications, changes in the temporal interval between the theme and its answer are also present in the musical example, which can lead to a change in the type of imitation according to a classification characteristic of Serbian music theory (Perićić, Živković), and consequently to a rise in tension in the musical flow.