Beethoven and Elliptical Tonality
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Abstract
This essay deals with a surprising aspect of Beethoven’s use of tonality – what here is called “elliptical” tonality: it is something he largely innovated. The standard view of tonality – with a single “tonic” as the undisputed center of gravity – can be compared to the geometry of a circle. An ellipse functions differently: there are two foci, and each has its independent gravitational pull. While Beethoven mainly used “standard” tonality in his music, there is ample evidence that he also (and frequently) associated keys in their “elliptical” pairs. Among the works illustrating this point, discussed in this essay, are the Scherzo of the Pastoral Symphony; the Bagatelle in F, op. 33 no. 3; the Coriolan Overture; the Seventh Symphony; the Triple Concerto. How Beethoven’s use of this approach to tonality is related to, but distinguished from, the way Mozart boldly uses key relations is also discussed; and the implications of Beethoven’s technique for the later music of Wagner and Mahler is also suggested.
Keywords: paired tonality, elliptical tonality, tonality in music of Mozart, Beethoven, Wagner and Mahler
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