To sum up, I have learnt that a fugue is a very prominent type of work that is often seen in the baroque period. A fugue uses a type of musical technique called counterpoint where multiple melodic lines can be followed independently but together form harmony. It is a type of polyphonic texture used in music and can be classified into many different types.In a fugue there is usually one main melody that is used over and over, also called a theme. But sometimes in specific forms like a fugue, there is a certain name for it, a subject. Composers begin to pass the subject from one melodic line to another often in different keys. When another voice consistently accompanies the subject, it is called a countersubject. When the subject is presented in a different key, it is called an Answer.
The second time a subject appears it will be in a different key, hence called an answer. Composers use different keys to add variety and set up harmonic relationships between sections. Once all the parts have entered, that ends the section and is called an exposition. The exposition is usually a section where either the subject or a new, contrasting material is developed using counterpoint and other techniques. The development sections usually features episodes that use the subject or other ideas in new and interesting ways.
Sometimes composers feature the subject in interesting ways, such as backwards (inversion) to squeeze out more musical possibly from the subject. I can connect this new knowledge with what I already know about the Baroque period and also Fugue Pieces. Actually I have only ever played one fugue during IS lesson, and this has helped me understand the structure of a fugue and the composer’s intentions, such as to pass the subject from one melodic line to another in different keys, to add variety and set up harmonic relationships between sections. One particular feature that stood out to me was the independent melodic lines. It is very interesting, as the sections have a part of their own.
I would like to employ this to my future compositions.
