Download Music 231 Motive

Music 231
Motive
New Material
• Motive content
• Motive writing
Motive (motif)
A motive (sometimes referred to in the French: motif) is a melodic fragment that is repeated or varied to
form a full melody, theme, or phrase. Motives are established by continued use; a group of notes that is
not repeated is not a motive. The end of a motive is marked by either 1) its immediate repetition, 2) a
rest, or 3) contrasting material. Usually, the repetition of a motive immediately follows its first
appearance. Occasionally, contrasting material may forestall the repetition—but the motive will always be
heard again at a later point in time.
Germ
Sometimes a longer motive can be heard as the summary of two or three smaller ideas. Each of these
would be called a germ.
Good motives have a distinctive profile created by simple, memorable rhythms and a few melodic
intervals.
Motive Examples
Melodic and rhythmic elements tend to be balanced in common practice motives. However, if a motive is
meant to be primarily rhythmic, it may have little melodic curve.
Primarily Rhythmic Motives
If a motive has a particularly interesting interval, the rhythmic profile might be less memorable.
Primarily Melodic Motives
Harmony can play a significant role in emphasizing a particular interval. Note the way the minor-to-major
harmony supports the melodic half step in the following example.
Melodic-Harmonic Motive
Most good motives, though, have an interesting rhythm and a unique melodic feature.
Melodic-Rhythmic Motive
Length and Meter
Examining the length of the motives above will show that motives tend to be a few beats to a few bars.
Most found in the common practice music are two measures, but motives of one measure, four measures,
and one-half measure (in 4/4) are abundant. Motives of irregular lengths -- three measures, five
measures, or odd fractions of measures -- are more common in music of the last 100 years.
Examining the motives above in terms of meter reveals nothing out of the ordinary. This, too, is an
important aspect of motives of the common practice period: most motives emphasize the given meter
rather than work against it.
The two examples below represent exceptions to the above tendencies of length and meter. In the
Beethoven Piano Sonata Op. 31, No. 1, the melody (taken by itself) seems to work against the meter,
making it seem off by one sixteenth-note. But when the left hand is added to the melody, the meter
becomes quite clear. Note, however, that the motive has an unusual length: five measures. The 1924
Gershwin song Facinating Rhythm also presents both an unusual length and unusual association with the
written meter.
Motives of Unusual Length
Please note: the information on this page has been supplied by Dr. Ronald Caltabiano