American Musicological Society

Circular Form in the "Tristan" Prelude Author(s): Robert P. Morgan Source: Journal of the American Musicological Society, Vol. 53, No. 1 (Spring, 2000), pp. 69103 Published by: University of California Press on behalf of the American Musicological Society Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/831870 Accessed: 21/06/2010 16:32
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Circular Form in the Tristan Prelude

ROBERT P. MORGAN

inception,' and the literatureon it shows little sign of abating.Yet few analystshave focused in depth on its formalorganization,parsingthe music into smallersegments and determininghow these combine to createan overreachingpattern.It is not difficultto see why: the Preludeis so continuous in effect and consistent in development that the notion of separatingit into small segments seems counterproductive, if not blasphemous (Coleridge's "to be betrayedinto the wretchednessof division").Formaldiscussion is thus usuallyconfined to a generaldescriptionof the overalldynamicshape or, when more detailed,is apt to force the music into some traditionalformal mold. The formerresponds to the music's processive,nonarchitectoniccharacter but failsto account for its specifics;the latter offers a readyhandle with which to graspthe form but distortsits most originaland distinctivefeatures. What impedes analysisof the form is, above all, the degree to which the Prelude is in constant transformation-always evolving, as if reaching after some unattainable goal, strivingat everymoment to become something other than it is. Conventionalformal analysisappearsto be of little value. Focused upon thematicand tonal correspondences,its aim to articulatemusicalevents into discretesegments, distinguishingthem by content and function (expository, developmental,etc.) and organizingthem into larger,balancedarchitectonic patterns,seems antithetical to the very natureof the score. For this music offers little in the way of confirmation,reconciliation,or balance;rather,it appearsto chart a unique and seemingly waywardcourse.
1. Wagnerdesignatesthe opening instrumentalmusic of Tristanund Isoldeas an introduction in the score to the opera, and consideredin relationto the firstact, it clearlyhas an introductory role. Since my concern here is with the music as a quasi-independent form, however, I follow the virtuallyuniversalpractice(at times even Wagner's)of referringto it as a prelude. I do, however, analyzeit as it appearsin the opera, not with the A-majorending later composed by Wagnerfor concert performances. This means, of course, that I am dealingwith a musicalfragment,but it is a fragment that is unmistakablyset off from what immediatelyfollows, and--as has been recognized by so many--one that has its own fascinatingcoherence.
[JournaloftheAmerican 2000, vol. 53, no. 1] Musicological Society All rightsreserved. Musicological Society. 0003-0139/00/5301-0003$2.00 ? 2000 by the American

The

Prelude to Tristan undIsolde haschallenged musicanalysts sinceits

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Journalof the AmericanMusicologicalSociety

Though its generaldynamicoutline-intensification followed by relaxationresemblesthat of countless other pieces, the more detailedstructuregives the impressionof being suigeneris.Fortunatelythis is not the case, or at least not entirelyso; for if it were, formal analysisalong traditionallines would be impossible. Despite all its novelty,the Prelude,even in its details,does not completely resisttraditionalformalcategories.Attempts to pressit into a standard formaltype, however,are bound to go awry.

Alfred Lorenz's Analysis

This problem is evident in what is justifiablythe most famous study of the Prelude's form, the analysisby Alfred Lorenz in his 1926 book on Tristan und Isolde.2 Lorenz too begins by noting previousfailures: hasalready evokedmanystudies,specifically the manydediThiscomposition catedto explaining the firstchord.Yet not one of thesewriters has takenit to get to the bottomof its actual formal construction. Formal diuponhimself visionsarementioned in In one is with content realthe only passing. general izationof a huge climax, whichcollapses at the high point.But thatdescribes morepoetictendency, commonto all thatis dynamic, someonly a general, thingwithwhichone cannotevenbeginto makemusic.3 The point is well taken:if all one can say is that the Preludeintensifiesto a climax, followed by denouement, one has said very little. Despite manyinsights,
2. Alfred Lorenz, Das Geheimnisder Form bei Richard Wagner,vol. 2, Der musikalische "Tristanund Isolde" Aufbau von Richard Wagners (Berlin:M. Hesses Verlag,1926), 12-28. The analysisof the Prelude was published previously in essentiallyidentical form as "Die formale 5 (1923): Gestaltung des Vorspiels zu Tristan und Isolde,"Zeitschriftfiir Musikwissenschaft 546-57. A complete English translation appears in Robert Bailey, ed., Prelude and Transand Isolde," figurationfrom "Tristan by RichardWagner(New Yorkand London: W. W. Norton, 1985), 204-20. In beginning my studywith a discussionof Lorenz, I reluctantly join a succession of Wagnercommentatorswho use him as a sort of strawman, uncoveringthe weaknessesof his analysesin order to celebratethe strengthsof their own. I find a great deal to admirein Lorenz, and he stands almost alone in undertaking a serious, comprehensive analysisof form in the Prelude,or for that matterin Wagnerin general.Indeed, Lorenz'svery usefulnessas a foil reflects the degree to which his Wagneranalysesraiseessentialquestions. This seems especiallytrue here: what he says about the Prelude frameswith admirableclaritythe issues with which I am concerned. 3. "Dieses Tonstiickhat schon viele literarische Arbeitenhervorgerufen,namentlichbedurfte es zur Entritselung des beriihmten ersten Akkordklanges zahlreicher Aufsitze; jedoch den eigentlichen formalen Bau dieser bezaubernden Bluiteeiner unendlich reichen Phantasiezu ernoch keinerzum Vorwurfgenommen. Nur beiliufig griinden, hat sich von all den Schriftstellern werden Gliederungen erwfihnt;im allgemeinen begniigt man sich mit dem Bewusstsein einer riesigen dynamischen Steigerung, die auf dem H6hepunkt zusammenbreche. Aber damit ist nichts als ein allgemeiner,mehr dichterischer Drang gekennzeichnet,der allem Dynamischenzugrunde liegt, mit dem allein man aber keineswegs Musik machen kann" (Der musikalische see Bailey,ed., Preludeand Transfiguration, 205. Aufbau, 12). For anothertranslation,

Circular Formin the Tristan Prelude 71 however, Lorenz's own analysisoffers no real remedy, remaining much too closely bound to conventionalformalassumptionsto do justiceto the particularsof the score. Lorenz views the Prelude as a complete arch form (vollkommene followed by coda and transition:4 Bogenform), Arch I I Main Section Middle Section Main Section Coda Transition m m no n mm: 1-24 25-36 37-44 45-62 63-84 85-94 95-111 10 17 (17+7) (111/2 + 8 + 181/2) (111/2+11) Despite the seemingly nontraditional symmetry of the five-part arch (m-n-o-n-m), its clearlysegmented three-partstructureremainsfullyconsistent with Classical formalconventions: 1. Main Section (Hauptsatz, m), with principaltheme (mm. 1-17) and secondarytheme (mm. 18-24), the firstin the tonic A, the second beginning in C but returningto A 2. Middle Section (Mittelsatz, n-o-n), encompassing a smaller arch, whose outer parts (mm. 25-36 and 45-62) both begin in E major, while a more developmentaland modulatory centralsection (mm. 3744) moves toward C# minor, E major'ssubmediant 3. Main Section Reprise(Hauptsatz,m), including both principaland secondarythemes (mm. 63-73 and 74-84), againin A The "coda," though more fragmentary,maintainsthe tonic (mm. 85-94), while the "transition"modulates to C minor, the key opening the first act (mm. 95-111). Lorenz notes in addition that both main and contrastingthemes are elaborationsof "ideal"eight-measurephrases(even supplyinga normalized eightmeasureversionof the first).His trump, however,is found in what he takesto be the symmetrical proportions of the arch:a centralsection of 38 measures framed the two m segments of 24 measuresand 22 measures:24 (n-o-n) by + 38 + 22; or, if the middle segment is separated into three parts,a centralsection of 8 measures(o) framedby 36 preceding measures(lengthened by two fermatasand a rallentando)and 40 subsequentmeasures:36 + 8 + 40. In neither case, of course, is symmetryexact, and there are minor discrepancies in the way Lorenz counts measures and allocates them to sections.
4. The following formaldiagram,though not takendirectlyfrom Lorenz, summarizeshis formal divisionsand relatescloselyto his example5. Since Lorenz counts the firsteighth-note upbeat as measure1, makingall of his measurenumberingsinconsistentwith normalpractice,I have substituted standardnumbering.The originalproportionalnumbersfor his formalunits are retained, however, except for the first section (m), which is now 24 measures(17 + 7) instead of his 25 (18 +7).

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More important, however, are inconsistenciesof content in his formal segments. The most pervasiveconcerns the opening four measuresof the "secondary theme" located in both section m (mm. 18-21) and its reprise(mm. 74-76, where the final measureis altered);for these measuresalso appearin two other sections within the arch:at the close of section n (mm. 31-36) and twice at the close of n's reprise(mm. 55-58 and 59-62). The same measures also open Lorenz's "transition"(mm. 95-100), here extended to six bars by an internalsequence, which means that they appearoutside his arch as well. Not only are these returnsinconsistentwith Lorenz's letter designations,they are asymmetrically positioned in his overalldesign: if the three subsectionsof the arch'smiddle section are counted, they appearin all but the third and last of seven sections;if the subsectionsare not counted, they appearin all but the second and last of five. In addition, to achievea more proximatesymmetrical correspondenceand preservethe tonal integrityof his "mainsection," Lorenz interpretsthe reprise of that section as extending to measure 84-that is, beyond the Prelude's most striking articulation,the sudden registralcollapse at measure 83, and thus beyond the point at which the opening barsreturnto initiatethe "coda." Lorenz resolvesthis by acknowledginga two-measureoverlapbetween reprise and coda. But such an overlap(and it actuallyextends well beyond two measures, as discussedbelow) flatlycontradictsthe assumptionof a solidly articulated, symmetrically disposedform. Still more problematicis that Lorenz must interpretthe final27 bars-one-fourth the total (everythingfollowing the climactic moment)-as separatefrom the main body of the Prelude:as "coda" and "transition." Yet the "coda"containsthe firstreturnof the "maintheme" in its originalregister,and with similarrhythmicpacing, texture, and scoring; and the "transition" brings back the "secondarytheme" again, following the "maintheme" much as it did at the opening (cf. mm. 16-18 and 93-95). Perhapsmost discomfortingis the failureof Lorenz's analysisto do justice to what any listener hears (including Lorenz himself, as he willingly admits): that the Preludetracesa continuous, architectonically unbalancedspanof muof its length to a climax,followed by a relasic, developing for three-quarters tively brief collapse and dissolution, all without definitivebreak.His clear-cut sectional form-with its balancedtonal structureand well-articulated,classically derived formal functions (main theme, secondary themes, middle section, reprise,coda, transition)-contradicts the processivenatureof the music. Lorenz, recognizing the dichotomy between his own analyticalsymmetries and the music's dynamiccast, simplyclaimsfor it an interpretivesignificance: "The work's immenselyexciting effect can be explainedonly by this fabulous symmetry, which, juxtaposed against the entirely differently conveyed dynamic process,translates a dramaticconflict into a purelymusicalevent."5
5. "Erst durch diese fabelhafte Symmetrie, welche sich der gdinzlich anders geleiteten Dynamik entgegenstellt und so einen dramatischen Konflikt schon ins rein musikalische Geschehen trigt, ist der ungeheueraufregendeEindruckdieses Kunstwerks zu erkl[ren"(Lorenz,

Circular Formin the Tristan Prelude 73 But surelyit is contrived, at best, to account for the Prelude'stension by viewing it as the resultof frictionbetween an imposed analytical symmetryand an experienced musical dynamism. Nevertheless, the conflict in Lorenz's analysisneatlyframesthe question towardwhich the present study is directed: How can the form of the Preludebe analyzedso as to respond to the dynamic characterof the music, confirming rather than opposing or ignoring it? As Lorenz correctlystates: "Intensification alone doesn't do it!"6 But that is no reasonto abandonhope. To resolve Lorenz's dilemma-to do justice both to the Prelude'sunbroken evolution and to its sectionalorganization-one must give up such traditionally sanctioned formal dualisms as principal and secondary theme, exposition and development, or even repetitionand contrast.The distinctions they rest upon are no longer valid here. The notion of repetition itself, however, perhaps the most basic formal assumption, need not be discarded. Lorenz himself notes, complementing his remark on intensification, that "form results only from repetition."7But he fails to take into consideration how the nature of repetition-or "return" (his word is Wiederkehr)-has been transformedin this music. The concept itself remainsessential,however, and for a simple reason:the degree of formalrepetitionin the Preludeis, for a work of such complexity, astonishing and, given the time of composition, completelyunprecedented.

Unit Structure
There are only three basicformalunits in the Prelude,which provide most of its content. LabeledA, B, and C, they are given in Example1 in piano reduc17.4-21.2 (B), and 25-32.3 (C).8 There are in all twelve statementsof these: unit A appearsthree times complete and a fourth time fragmented,unit B appears six times, and unit C appearstwice. Despite significantvariationwhen

tion as they appearin their initial presentations, measures1-17.4 (A),

the unitsreturn, thevariation affects features of the music, not onlythe surface

Der musikalische Aufbau, 24). Translationfrom Bailey,ed., Prelude and Transfiguration, 214, 216. Lorenz might have confronted this contradictionby drawinga distinction between "outer form" and "innerform," applyinghis arch only to the former.(This distinctionwas much cultivated by Ernst Kurth, who will be discussedlater in connection with tonal structure,though he does not use it with referenceto the TristanPrelude.) But if so, he would need to provide, in addition to the outer form, an analysisof the inner form; and it is preciselythis that he seems to regardas unanalyzable. 6. "'Steigerung' allein machts nicht!" (Der musikalische Aufbau, 24). Translation from 216. Bailey,ed., Preludeand Transfiguration, 7. "Form ergibt sich erst durch Wiederkehr"(Der musikalische Aufbau, 17). Translation from Bailey,ed., Preludeand Transfiguration, 209. 8. Decimals in measurenumbers indicate eighth notes within the 6/8 meter. Thus measure 17.4 refersto the fourth eighth of measure17, 21.3 the thirdeighth of measure21, and so on.

Example la

Preludeto Tristanund Isolde,unit A, mm. 1-17.4 (encompassingthe "Suffering" and "Des

Langsam und schmachtend.

UnitA

I
pp P

Lsf

-- -

pp---=--

f--_

Example lb

unit B, mm. 17.4-21.2 (encompassingthe "Glance"motiv Preludeto Tristanund Isolde,

. -

I- -

Example Ic 25

unit C, mm. 25-32.3 (encompassingthe "Love Philter"m Preludeto Tristanund Isolde,

a tempo

Unit

CB..dim,

Unit C

zart PCmm. dim. m "Lve Pilte" th I PeldetoTisanun 5-323 "x pl Io",uit (ncom-ssig 25 atemp
l

"m~~l

11

iO

"An?,
,L1]

ri

__ _L

76

Journalof the AmericanMusicologicalSociety

the underlying whichremains essenstructure, melodic,tonal,andrhythmic the motivic eachunitrepeats material it hadbefore,adheres tially unchanged: to the sameoverall harmonic-linear and-with a few exceptions progression, to be discussed--contains the samenumber of measures. The principal units thus represent not just motivicsegmentsbut fixedformalentities. Most reall but two of the twelvestatements andthe markable, appear untransposed, two exceptions B-3 beginstransposed (bothB units)areonlypartial: but,due to the transpositional levelchosen,endswhereit previously whileB-6 began; endstransposed. These but,due to aninternal beginsuntransposed sequence, andmoreminormodifications of the threeprincipal unitswillbe discussed in detailasthe analysis proceeds. formal unitswithinthe Prelude as Figure1 givesthe layoutof allseventeen a whole, consisting of the twelveappearances of the threeprincipal largely arefiverelatively brief"independent" units,A, B, andC.9The exceptions segmentsindicated v throughz, lastingrespectively 1 (y), 2 (x), by smallletters, Theseareso closelytied to the units (v), 61/2 (z), and 81/2 31/2 (w) measures. unitC in one), andgrowso continuously out theyfollow(unitB in fourcases, of them,thattheyhavelittleindividuality of theirown.It is nevertheless essentialto distinguish themfromthe strictrepetitions. Thisbecomesevident,for if measures 53-54 (unitx) areconsidered. example, Thoughthisunitis clearly derived fromthe two measures thatprecedeit (mm. 51-52, closingC-2), it has a separate letterdesignation sinceit develops, rather thanmerelyrepeats thosemeasures. Measures 51-52 themselves, dopre(ortransposes), however, servethe essential contentof measures 31-32, the finaltwo barsof C-I, and thusformthe finalmeasures of C-2 rather thana separate unit. The formal unitsin Figure1 arepresented in sequential left order,reading to rightandtop to bottom,andarevertically by typeandhorizontally aligned a singlestatement of allthree groupedinto seven"cycles." Cycle1 contains extension all the units,plusone briefsmall-letter principal (v), encompassing Prelude's basicmaterial. The remaining six cyclespresent of partial retracings the first.Though incomplete, they follow the originalsuccession: principal in original (andthereis atleastone in eachcycle),appear units,whenincluded order(A beforeB andB beforeC) andwithoutgaps(i.e.,C doesnot immedithe circular the circle's comatelyfollowA). Retaining image,cycle1 traces while cycles 2-7 loop back and retracecontinuous plete circumference, notable is the highly self-reflexive natureof the portionsof it. Especially thisis musicthatfeedsupon itself,reusingthe samestructural units process: againandagain.10
9. The pitches in the figure, plus the three larger formal groupings on the left, need not concern us yet. For the sake of legibility,measure numbers are rounded off, with overlapping measuresnumbered twice. 10. Since the cycles are defined solely by the patternand directionof formalrepetitions,they are not necessarily articulatedas separatearchitectonicunits. Thus the matterof their incommensuratelength-that is, their lack of "periodicity" (which would be criticalfor Lorenz)-is largely

CircularForm in the TristanPrelude

A-1
1-17
Cycle

77

B-1
17-21

v
21-24

C-1
25-32
I

B-2 32-36

w 36-44

C-2 45-52

x 53-54

Cycle 21
I

Initial Buildup

B-3
55-58

Cycle

Dl

B-4
58-62 62-63

Cycle [
A-2 63-74 B-5 74-76 z 77-83

Climactic
Plateau

Cycle

A-3 B-6 83-94 94-100

Cycle F
Dissolution

A-4

100-106-1
Cycle

Figure 1 Formaldiagramof unit structure,Preludeto Tristanund Isolde

The character and shapeof the Preludeis not determinedby systematicrehowever. The units' recurrences,while structurally cycling alone, preserved, surface transformations. Unit A, opening with the undergo significant and "Desire"motives, appearsin four differentguises: "Suffering"

besidethe point.Indeed,one of the mostdistinctly articulated of the Prelude's units,the larger central intensification of measures withfivedifferent On theotherhand, 17.4-63, overlaps cycles. the tendency toward four-bar in allthreeof the principal unitsfoundwithin thecycles periodicity is of considerable importance.

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of theAmerican Journal Society Musicological 1. In measures1-17.4, long pauses, relativelysustaineddurationalvalues, and extremelyslow harmonic rhythm allow the opening to build momentum graduallytoward the more continuous, flowing music of B at measure17.4. 2. In measures 63-74.3, initiating the Prelude's main climactic gesture, there is fasterharmonic rhythm (though the first Tristanchord is delayed until measure66.4), motivic compression(the initialupwardleap is missing entirely), fuller orchestration and registration, and added textual layers(especiallythe "Deliveranceby Death" motive in the top voice, which fills in the slow melodic figures and pauses of the first statementwith more activeand continuous surfacemotion). 3. In measures83.4-94.4, surfacerhythm and harmonic motion return to the originalpace, and for the firsttime elements from other formal units are inserted: the melodic opening of B, filling in the original pauses (mm. 84-85 and 87-88), and materialfrom w (mm. 89-92) and v (mm. 93.4-94). These insertionsserve a summarizingfunction, as if recalling materialfrom the past, and from different parts of the Prelude;and they bring a degree of dissolutionto unit A, whose formal and harmonic-linear integrityis neverthelessultimatelyconfirmed:the outer voices return to E-G# and resolve to F-A as before (cf. mm. 93.6-94 and 16-17)." 4. In measures101-106.3, A is truncated,with only the firsttwo sequential phrasesreturning,each phrasecompressedfrom four to three measuresand, though still untransposed,placedover a pedal G.

Unit A thus appearsat four criticalmoments with distinctformalfunctions: as introduction, climactic gesture, denouement, and final attenuation. Each time it sounds quite differentyet is easilyrecognizable,since, except for the final truncation,the originalunderlyingharmonic, melodic, and phrase structure is preserved.Only in the third of the complete A statementsis the basic structureapparently threatened,but even there only afterthe first seven measureshave been heard;and all is set right again by the unit's end. While the A unit is reservedfor moments of formalextremity,the shorter, four-measure B unit, opening with the "Glance"motive, appears in all but the finalcycle. Its initialrole is to carrythe main burden of the intensificationthat begins in measure 17.4 and continues to measure63, extending from B's first afterthe opening A unit until A returnsat the climax. Unit B apappearance pearsfour times within this span, each time with heavierorchestration,and the third and fourth times (which are continuous) with a crescendofrom piano to fortissimo.In B's fifth appearance-again following A, but now as part of the
11. The fragmentary insertionsare not included in Figure 1 since, as fragments,they are not principalunits and, as temporaryinsertions within a principalunit that is ultimatelycompleted, they are not small-letterextensions.The finalA unit (A-4) is the only exception, included despite its truncatednature.

Circular Formin the Tristan Prelude 79 main climacticgesture-the intensificationcontinues. Scoring, dynamics,and registrationare furtherexpanded, and here the final (fourth) measureis structurallyaltered:the climacticupward thrust of the third measureis extended, deflectingthe tonal directionand allowingthe climaxto spin out for seven additionalmeasures,encompassingunit z (mm. 77-83.3). Example2 shows this interruptedB unit plus the firstfour barsof the z extension, to measure 81.1 (the Tristanchord in the last two barsanticipatesthe impending returnof the opening music). Though the development in unit z threatensto breakout of the Prelude'sformalconfines entirely,the music eventuallyturns back, as if at the last possible moment, for the third appearanceof A (m. 83.4). The sixth and final B unit-like the thirdA it follows-has scoring and character similar to its originalstatement. But it undergoes a criticalalteration,an internalsequence that produces a modulation. Even here, however, the unit appearsin its entirety:afterthe firsttwo measuresare repeated,transposedup by perfect fourth (mm. 94.4-96.3, 96.4-98.3), the unit continues as before at the new pitch level (Ex. 3). Unlike the two other principalunits, unit C, which opens with the "Love Philter"motive, appearsonly during the intensification section leadingtoward the climax (mm. 17.4-63). Although, limited to two statements (mm. 2532.3, 45-52), it plays a less central role in that process than B, it too contributes:its second appearance, and orchestrally registrally expanded,does not lead directlyto unit B, as did the first, but partiallyrepeatsthe final melodic gesture (comparemm. 31-32.3 with mm. 51-52) before giving way to a twomeasureextension, unit x (mm. 53-54), that pushes upwardsequentially with a crescendo to the next B unit (which thus must be transposedto a higher pitch level). Of particular interestis the way in which the many,relativelybrief units in Figure 1 are reconciledwith the continuous, ongoing qualityof the Prelude. One might assumethey would breakup the music into discretesegments, disrupting its forwardflow. That this does not happen stems from the nature of the units themselves.First,their motivic and harmoniccontents are so similar, and so interwoven, that they seem to merge into a single process. Equallyimportant is that their boundaries, unlike those in Classicalformal units, are seven are bridged by structural(metrical)overlaps,the closing of one unit being elided with the opening of the next. All three closings of the complete A units, for example, coincide with the openings of the B units that follow; and the openings of A-2 and A-3 coincide with the closings of the y and z units that precede them. Similarly, the third (transposed)B unit overlapswith its own (untransposed)repetition, and the fifth B overlapswith z, its small-letter extension. Of the nine remaining junctures, all but two also overlap harmonically and melodically,though not metrically:that is, the subsequent unit begins where the previousunit ended, with identicalouter-voicepitches, but on the

indistinct. Of the sixteenjunctures the unitsin Figure1, largely separating

Example 2 B-5

Preludeto Tristanund Isolde, mm. 74-81.1

74

molto espress.

76

,---

sempre

2 continued Example z

I"
piirf

Example 3

Preludeto Tristanund Isolde,mm. 94.4-100.3 (sequentialextension of the sixth B unit) B-6

Smm. mm. 1-2
I

mm. 1-2

pcresc.

)*

I-----

log

CircularForm in the TristanPrelude

83

in surface thesejoinsarevirtubeat.Sincethereis no break rhythm, following connection as as the The is seamless others. especially strongwhen the ally extension of the end of the previous newunitbeginswitha sequential one, as bassvoice,andsecwhenv follows the firstB unit,wherethe rhythm, happens ond half of the top voice of B's closing figureare twice sequenced(mm. 20.4-21.3, 21.4-22.3, 22.4-23.3); or wheny followsB-4 (mm.61.4-62.3, to thispervasive is the final 62.4-63.3). The sole exception pitchoverlapping A unit, whose openingrisingsixthstartson Abrather thanB , fragmentary whichendedthe previous unit(m. 100.6). Butevenherethejoinis unusually is retained fromaninner voice(asis F, the upper note of the risclose,sinceAb in the bass; in addition, the firstphrase now closes ing sixth)andG is retained on B?(m. 103.2). ThisfinalA unit is followedby a purelymonophonic unit not strictly bein Figure1), sinceits opening (andthusnot included longingto the Prelude coincides with the raising of the curtain (m. 106.4), an eventmarked by the most radical textural shiftsincethe Prelude stilloccurs, opened.Overlapping butwiththe upper voicesnow gone, it is confined to the bass,whichextends the previous G (compare mm. 105-106.3 with 106.4-110). Andthereis still a motivic connection withthe Prelude: the G is prolonged by an arpeggiated Tristan whichremains at its original chord, transposition. The Prelude's numerous unlike are,moreover, repetitions fundamentally traditional formal In particular, of "reberepeats. theyhavelittleof the quality with Classical returns. Indeed,sincethey emergeseamginning"associated as lesslyfromwhat precedesthem, they sound as much like continuations linksin a chain,allowing the musicto circlebackon itselfwithreturns--like out break in continuity. aremanifest, not hidden, Despitethis,the repetitions andareeasily if one looks,or listens, forthem.Yettheyarealsorerecognized not onlybecause theirboundaries areso weakly defined attenuated, markably andmotivic but because factors, by harmonic, rhythmic, theyareapproached by music that seems to be constantlypressingforward.The form of the Prelude is thusconsistently the driving forcebehindthatevoluevolutionary, tionbeingcyclic renewal.

Tonal Structure
The continuous nature of the Prelude's formanditscyclic construction canbe to its tonal organization. Most analysts, fullygraspedonly in relationship Lorenzincluded, takethe tonicto be A minor(or major/minor).12 Whilethis seemscorrect, thereis nevertheless in A (major), cadence onlyone authentic
12. Of particular interestin this connection is WilliamJ. Mitchell'sSchenkerian linearanalysis in "The TristanPrelude:Techniques and Structure,"MusicForum 1 (1967): 162-203. Part of this analysis is reprintedin Bailey,ed., Preludeand Transfiguration, 242-67.

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and it sounds more like a tonicizationof IV in E majorthan a realtonic arrival (m. 24). Many,also includingLorenz, single out two additionalkeys, C major and E major;yet, while both of these keys appearprominently,neither is confirmed for more than very brief stretches.An additionaldifficultyis that these three keys, taken collectively,provide a traditionalA-major/minor complex: tonic A, mediant C major,and dominant E major(I-III-V). How, then, does one reconcile the widely recognized tonal ambiguity of the music with this seeminglystraightforward configuration? An interestingalternative is offered by Ernst Kurth, another distinguished Wagnercommentator,who, in addition to E major,suggests D minor rather than C major as one of two secondarykeys, controlling measures20.3-22.3 and 30.4-36.3. But whereas the former passage (only two measureslong) is unquestionablyframedaround D, the latteris problematicin that two-thirds of it consists of the second B unit (as it is designatedhere), a segment almost entirely oriented toward C major.Kurth recognizes C's importancein these measures,but he interpretsit as VII of D minor--despite the absence of the leading-tone C# until just before the segment ends (m. 35.4) and despite CO's extended prolongation as root of a tonicized triad(mm. 32.4-35.1). relatively Kurth is neverthelesson the right track. In particular, he recognizes that the Prelude'stonal "digressions alternatemuch more quicklythan in the more regular,balanced Classicalstyle," even remarkingthat here "tonality at first And his sight seems replacedby a construct of chaotic chord progressions."'3 choice of E major and D minor as secondary keys symmetricallydisposed aroundthe tonic A is responsiveto his perceptionof "an unfolding of tonality which spreadsout in undulationsof increasingdistance on both sides of the line of the main tonality";of "an oscillationof entire long passagesbetween dominant and subdominant regions"; and of a "circlingback and forth ... without returnto the main tonalityin between."'4In generaloutline, this anticipates features of the tonal perspective that will be taken here (Kurth's "Hin- und Herkreisen"is especiallysuggestive). But by clinging to standard tonal functions,even in such an innovativemanner,Kurthis unable to resolve a criticalproblem facing any analystof this music:whateversecondarykeys are chosen (and C major,E major,and D minor all have their moments), they will be ephemeral;for all are characterized necessarily by transience,indistinctness, lackof coordinationwith the overallform. and, especially,
13. "..-. diese Abschweifungenviel schnellerwechseln als in ausgeglicheneren,stetigen klassischen Stil"; "Daher scheint auf den ersten Blick ... die Tonalitit dem Bild chaotischer Klangfolgen zu weichen" (Ernst Kurth, Romantische Harmonik und ihre Krise in Wagners "Tristan" [Berlin: Max Hesses Verlag, 1923; reprint, Hildesheim: Georg Olms Verlag, 1985], from Bailey,ed., Preludeand Transfiguration, 325, 326). Translation 201, 203. 14. "Eine Tonartsentfaltung, die in WellenschwingungengesteigerterEntfernungbeiderseits von der Linie der Haupttonart ausschligt"; "Prinzip eines Ausschwingens ganzer breiterer Partienzu dominantischerund subdominantischer Region"; "Schon das Hin- und Herkreisenin die beiden dominantischenRegionen erfolgt jedesmal,ohne dasszwischendurchzur Haupttonart selbst zurtickgekehrt from wiirde" (Kurth, Romantische Harmonik, 325, 324, 325). Translation Bailey,ed., Preludeand Transfiguration, 201, 202.

Formin the Tristan Circular Prelude 85 How can one get around this impasse?Simply to note that keys, whatever they may be, are defined by implicationratherthan overt statement,with half and deceptive cadences substitutingfor full ones, is-while true enough--insufficient,as it provideslittle positive explanation.What is needed is a fundamentally different approachto the question of tonality in the Prelude, and such an approachis suggested by the formalstructurediagrammed in Figure 1. Indeed, if one examinesthe Prelude'stonalityfrom the standpointof the unit structure displayedthere, a new and revealing light is cast upon the whole matter of pitch organization,including the nature of keys-how they are defined, the way they interact,and the role they performwithin the whole. If we begin by examiningthe music's outer voices in relationto Figure l's formal units, we discover a repeating, self-enclosed harmonic-linear progression that spansthe entire Prelude,breakingoff only as it concludes. It consists of a continuous series of parallelthirds defined by the opening and closing pitch configurationsframingeach unit (indicatedbeneath each unit designation in the figure, with the intervalreduced to its closest registralposition). there are only four different thirds, which recur repeatedly,like Remarkably, the formalunits themselves.(A fifth third, introduced as the Prelude closes at measure100, marksthe point at which the music breaksaway,moving toward the key of the first scene of the opera.) These thirds apply only to the outer voices (innervoices vary considerably),and they appearin an "idealized,"diatonic form in Figure 1, whereas in the score one member of each pitch pair may be representedby its chromaticalteration(except the E-G# third, which is never altered):D[ for D in D-F, F# for F in D-F and F-A, Abfor A in F-A, and A# for A in A-C#.15Grantingthese registraland diatonicvariations,all but one of the four thirds (again E-G#) alwaysappearon the musicalsurfaceand are easilylocated and heard.The outer-voiceF-A that closes the firstA section (and overlapswith the opening of the firstB), for example,appearsat measure 17.4; B's closing D-F at measure 21.2; the following C's opening A-C# at measure25.1; its closing F-A at measure32.2; and so forth. The E-G# third is the all-importantexception. It representsa reduction of the outer-voice motion projectedby the famous two-chord successionof the firstthree measures(Ex. 4). E-G# does appearon the surface,however, only laterin the unit: at measure 16.6, immediatelybefore the closing F-A third in measure 17. When the A unit returnsat the climax (m. 63), moreover,E-G# is stated explicitlyat the beginning (so that the first Tristanchord now functions as a neighbor chord to the dominant ratherthan an appoggiatura).The original,prolonged versionreturnsat the beginning of A-3 (mm. 83-84), the surfaceE-G# againdelayed,as in A-1, until the unit's end (mm. 93.6).16
15. In the bassvoice, all alterations are immediatelypreceded by the unalteredpitch. 16. The degree to which third relationsbetween the outer voices, on or just below the surface, control all tonal motion in the Prelude, including much that occurs between the nodal points given in Figure 1, is also notable. These thirds, and the stepwise linearspans they project (many of which are evident in the Mitchell analysiscited in note 12 above), contribute greatlyto the remarkable motion. consistencyof contrapuntal

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Journal of the American Musicological Society Preludeto Tristanund Isolde, harmonicreductionof mm. 1-3

Example 4

d"S
Since, as noted, all but two of the twelve principalformalunits remainuntransposed,each type is framed by the same two pitch-pairs:all complete A units by E-G# and F-A; both C units by A-C# and F-A; and three of the five complete B units by F-A and D-F. Of the exceptions, B-3 is transposedup by major third, a notable transpositionlevel in that it uniquely preservesthe to B the framingintervalsotherwise associsystem of four thirds,transferring ated with C: A-C# (with A# substitutingfor AO) and F-A. It also enables B to linkwith its own untransposedrepetition,allowingfor the two consecutiveB's in cycles 3 and 4. The second exception, the final B (B-6), begins untransends a perfect fourth higher, on G-B instead posed but, sequenced internally, of D-F (m. 100, with B?substitutingfor Bb).This produces the firstthird not in the originalsystemof four, markingthe point at which the music moves out of the Prelude'stonal confines. A special case is presented by the climactic B-5, which begins normally, with F-A, but, due to the alterationof its finalmeasure,is deflectedawayfrom its closing D-F. The z unit that follows also avoidsclosing on D-F, ending instead on B's opening F-A third (mm. 81-83, with Ab substituting for A), from where it leads to E-G# and the returnof unit A (mm. 83-84). As a consequence, the system of four thirds is preserved,even at the Prelude's most centrifugalmoment. It is neverthelesssignificantthat, unlike other units, B-5 has no closing third and the following z no opening third, since this uniquely joins the two, contributingto the uninterrupted,propulsivecharacterof the extended climacticgesture (cycle 5). The five small-letterunits also preservethe system of thirds.Though none traces the same tonal motion within the thirds as one of the principalunits, they neverthelessprovide essentialcomponents of the system. This is particularlyevident in units v and w, both of which move from D-F to A-C#, in both caseslinkinga B unit (ending D-F) to a C unit (beginningA-C#). The overall progression of thirds can be surveyed in Figure 2, which reorders the total pitch content of Figure 1 in continuous succession (left-toright), with each unit indicated by only one third (since each closing third is interest are measures alwaysthe same as the next opening one). Of particular 17-62, which provide the main buildup toward the climacticreturn of unit A at measure 63. This extensive intensifying segment, beginning immediately following the more hesitantmusic of the firstA unit (and set off by barlines in the figure), is confined to a recurringprogressionlimited to only three of the

Unit:
Measure:

A-1
1

B-1
17

v
21

C-1
25

B-2
32

w
36

C-2
45

x
53

B-3
55

B-4
58

y
62

A-

63

Figure 2 Sequentialdiagramof unit structure,Preludeto Tristanund Isolde

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Journal of the American Musicological Society

four thirds:A-C#, F-A, and D-F. These are ordered, moreover, so that the tonal motion keeps circling back to A-C#, where a new cycle begins. This is indicatedin the figure by arrows,with each A-C# third given in two octaves, reflectingits dual function as both beginning and ending of a revolution.The sole exception occurs at measure 53, where unit x reversesdirection, moving from F-A backto A-C#, after which the normal direction resumes. During this extensivespan all points of formaljunctureare thus associatedwith three recurringconfigurations,arrangedin a cyclic pattern that renews itself with every A-C#. Tonallyas well as formally,the Prelude thus turns back on itself, going over what has alreadybeen traversed: tonality and form are inextricably conjoined. The circularpitch system of measures17-62 is of course closely relatedto the circular formalsystem diagrammedin Figure 1, but they are not identical, since the latterincorporatesE-G# as well. This raisesan importantmatter.In so that if one considany trulycircular system,the point of renewalis arbitrary, ers only measures 17-62 (diagrammed between the first two bar lines in Figure 2), the F-A third and D-F third offer equally valid turning points. Indeed, taken independently,measures 17-62 should not be viewed as tonal at all, at least as defined by the standardfunctions of the major-minorkey system: unlike the three main key areasnormallydesignatedfor the Prelude (A, nodes"C, and E), its tonal contents-or what might be calledits "cadential do not collectivelyform a normalfunctionalcomplex.17 The choice of A-C# as the primary tonal node is determined by the A-major/minor tonal orientation of the Prelude as a whole. This brings us back to questions of key and to the role of the E-G# third. Of the three keys making up the A-major/minor complex (A, C, and E), none is strongly defined by the circular third system of this central intensification segment. Though it is no coincidence that the key of A is representedby A-C# in that system, not one of the three A-C# thirdsis linked to a well-definedtonic. The first,which ends unit v and begins unit C-1 (mm. 24.5-25.1), does first appear as an A-majorchord preceded by its dominant (the Prelude'sonly full cadence); but an inner-voiceD# is immediatelyadded when C-1 begins, and the A-C# chord is both approachedand left within a well-defined E-majorcontext. The second A-C#, which closes unit w and begins C-2 (mm. 44.445.1), is also associatedwith an A chord, but it is approacheddeceptively, from V of C# minor, and the A-C# chord is again surrounded by E major, with D# added when C-2 begins. The third A-C# (mm. 54.6-55.1), associ17. It is worthmentioning in thisconnection thatthe segment's circular comes pitchsystem closeto beingstrictly thus emphatically twelve-tone symmetrical-and nontonal--within pitch D (analteration thatdoesoccurin the Prelude), andallothersubstitutions space.If D6replaces are avoided, thereis symmetrical octavedivision feature in by majorthird,a not uncommon the musicof certainnineteenth-century himself(for example, composers, including Wagner the "Magic motivefromthe Ring desNibelungen) andespecially the Sleep" Liszt(forexample, Consolation No. 3).

Formin the Tristan Prelude 89 Circular ated with the end of x and the beginning of the third (transposed)B unit, appears in conjunction with a sequentiallyrising bass line, where the pitch A is treated as a passingmoment within a largersequentialprogression,and where there is no A triadat all. The Prelude's tonic is thus only weakly asserted during this intensifying segment. This means that the establishmentof A must depend primarily upon unit A and its E-G# third, the only unit not in the circular systemof measures 17-62, and the only third never alteredby chromaticsubstitution.In all three of its complete appearances, unit A projects a relativelyclear prolongation of the dominant seventh of A minor, and it is this that largelyaccountsfor A as a functionallydefined tonic.18(Since the E-G# third is alwaysassociatedwith dominant function, it will at times also be referredto as such.) Though part of the key-defining effect of these dominants no doubt depends on their relationship to the three A-C# thirdsin the circularsystem, none resolvesdirectly to one of them; all move deceptivelyto F-A, avoiding a formallysignificant V-I progression. Once the circularsystem starts at measure 17, the only way to return to E-G# and unit A is by breakingout of it-a possibilityafforded by the fact that two of the circularthirds, D-F and F-A, have the potential of becoming dominant preparations to E-G# in the key of A. This is avoideduntil measure where unit 62, however, y sequencesthe D-F third (F raisedto F#) that closes unit B up by whole step, converting it from a circularlink into a functional subdominant(cycle4). Similarly, afterE-G# moves againto F-A (m. 74), B is and extended unit z, which eventuallyreturnsthrough F-A to developed by E-G# (mm. 83-84), converting F-A to a functional submediant-or more to a "deviant"augmented sixth chord (with Absubstitutingfor At) specifically, formed by the respelled Tristanchord at the end of cycle 5. Following the third and finalmove to F-A at measure94, the B unit is altered,breachingthe system entirely(cycle 6). Since A-C# (as tonic) is thus never brought into direct relationship with E-G# (as dominant), the key ofA major/minor remains a potential but never fullyrealizedtonic. Figure 3 offers a summary graphicrepresentationof these tonal relationships. In order to displaythe complex interactionbetween cyclic system and functionaldominant, the three cyclicalthirds associatedwith units B, C, and three of the five small-letterunits are distributed around a circle, with the functional dominant placed in the center where it can move to or from any of the circularcomponents. As indicated by the straight-linearrow pointing awayfrom the center, E-G# moves only to F-A (VI of A), doing so on three occasions:measures17, 74, and 94. The arrowspointing toward it, however,
18. This tonal feature has been much analyzed (see for example Mitchell, "The Tristan Prelude"). It will suffice to say here that the goal tones in the bass of the first three sequential phrases(all of which are roots of dominant seventh chords) outline an E-minor triad (E, G, B), and that the final B dominant returnsto V7 on E, which resolves deceptivelyto VI as the unit closes.

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Journalof the AmericanMusicologicalSociety

B-3 C 6

A-4
V/W

Figure 3

Circular diagramof unit structure,Preludeto Tristanund Isolde

indicatethat E-G# is approachedboth from D-F (IV of A) at measure63 and from F-A (VI of A) at measure 84. The cyclic motion progressesclockwise with a single exception: at measures 53-54, unit x reversesthe direction, returning to A-C# for the third (transposed)B unit. The principalformalunits are not distinguishedby number in Figure 3 except for the two that occupy "abnormal"positions in the system: the transposed B-3, located next to unit C, whose circularmotion (A-C# to F-A) it assumes at measure 55; and A-4, placed outside the circle to the right of B, since it prolongs the nonsystemic G-B to which B-6 has modulated (represented by an arrowleading awayfrom the circle). Finally,units v and w share one of the positions on the circle'scircumference, providingthe D-F to A-C# move that forms part of the regularrotation. Unit x, as noted, is also on the to A-C#; and units y and z are on circle, at location B, but runs "backward" lines pointing toward the center, since both carry the motion back to the dominant, from the v/w and B locations respectively. The Prelude thus contains three extended dominant prolongations, each moving deceptivelyto F-A and unit B, and thus potentiallyinto the circular system. But the systemis exploited fullyonly the firsttime this occurs. On the second (climactic)occasion, unit B, extended by z, failsto progressbeyond its opening F-A (we shall see, however, that it nearlybreaksout of the system's tonal bounds entirely), eventually moving back to the dominant. And the

Circular Formin the Tristan Prelude 91 third time the B unit modulates to the dominant of C minor, leaving the Prelude'sA tonalityunresolved.19 The particularrole of the two secondarykeys, C major and E major, can now be better understood. C majoris linked to unit B, and E majorto unit C (which means that each of the three main keys is associatedwith one of the three principalformalunits). The two secondarykeys arethus primarily in evidence (E exclusivelyso) during the long buildup between the firstand second statementsof A: C majorin measures17.4-20.2, 32.4-35.1, and 58.4-61.1; and E majorin measures22.4-28 and 45-48. There is a sort of paradoxhere, since the circular third systemof measures17-62 is not itself functionally tonal nor do the three thirds of that either C or (as noted), system stronglysupport E. Indeed, from the perspectiveof Figures 1-3, C and E would seem to carry little tonal-formal weight. It is not that they areunimportant.But the Prelude, in this as in so many respects, contradictsClassicalprecedent:these keys, instead of being defined primarily by dominant and tonic motion at the beginand of formal units, are exclusivelyestablishedwithin the outer ning ending boundariesof the units in which they appear,not at the boundaries themselves. This does much to explain the oddly tonal, not-quite-tonal qualityof the centralbuildup (mm. 17-62). One hearsboth C majorand E majoras prominent keys, but the lack of coordination between these areasand the terminal harmoniesof the formalunits gives them a "disembodied"quality:they are always being abandoned-or skirted-in midair,as the music slipspast them on its way to the next formaljuncture.For example,when the deceptivelyintroduced F-majorchord that opens the firstB unit (m. 17) is reinterpreted within a C-major framework,the key holds only until measure 20.3, afterwhich it gives way to D minor as the unit closes (mm. 20.4-21.2). Similarly, C-1 opens with a D# half-diminishedseventh chord (m. 25.1) that settles immediately and comfortablyinto E major, but it then begins working its way toward D minor at measure 29.1, reaching that key with the unit's terminating F-A thirdin measure32. Unlike unit C, unit B occurs twice after measures 17.4-62, in measures 74-76 (B-5) and 94.4-100.3 (B-6). The second of these, the final B, differs from its predecessorsin that, after settling initiallyinto C major, it closes in C as well, with a half cadence on G. (Remarkably, this unit and unit A-4 [i.e., the last two] are the only principalformalunits that end on a dominant.) The final move toward C (now minor) is thus not just anticipatedby that key's of the only prominent role in the Prelude, but resultsfrom a transformation unit with which the key has been associated.It is also notable that the only transpositionof unit B, in measures55.1-58.4, preservesnot only the system
19. Figures 1, 2, and 3, it should be noted, all representthe same tonal/formal structure, only viewed from differentperspectives.In each, moreover, it is possible to "read through" the entire form and tonal progression,beginning with the firstunit and ending with the seventeenth.

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of thirds but also the complex of three keys: unit B's usual C-major focus is here replacedby E major. As for D minor, Ernst Kurth'sother secondarykey, it too has undeniable tonal significance.It is well representedin the system of thirds-by the D-F goal of three of the six B units, and by the F-A goal of both C units (where F-A is treatedas part of a tonicized D-minor triad,not F-majortriad).But D minor, as alreadysuggested, is even more ephemeralthan E majorand C major: in all of its five appearances (mm. 21, 32, 36, 53, and 62), it is no sooner establishedthan abandoned.20

Overall Shape
The ambiguities and conflicts inherent in the relationshipof the A-major/ minor tonality and the circularsystem of thirds help illuminatethe Prelude's larger tonal-formal trajectory.In broadest outlines, the Prelude consists of three extended dominant prolongations associatedwith unit A, each giving way to a B unit appearingin a different tonal-formalsituation:the first initiates the long cyclicintensification; the second continues the climacticthrust, but ultimatelycarriesthe music backto the dominant;and the third leads beyond the Prelude's tonal orbit. (There is no B unit following the truncated fourth A.) With this in mind, the three main formal stages indicated at the left of Figure 1, each of which begins with a complete A unit (and thus also a dominant prolongation), can be more readilygrasped. The first, initial buildup,runs from the opening to the climacticreturn of the A unit in cycle 5. Unit A-1 has something of an introductorycharacter due to its fragmentedphrasing,risingsequences, and dominantprolongation; and it leads to a definite shift at measure17.4, where the rhythmicsurfacebecomes continuous. Yet to call the firstA simplyan "introduction"(as is sometimes done)21 is misleading; for the unit not only produces considerable intensificationitself but establishesthe Prelude's main key, presents its main motivic elements, and forms a recurringpart of the whole. At the same time, the motion beginning at B-1, though it persiststhroughout the rest of cycle 1 and all of cycles 2-4, does not form an undifferentiatedcontinuum. The in20. The transientnatureof D (and to a lesserextent also E) callsinto question Kurth'sremark that one recognizes "a certain regularitywith which simple dominant and subdominantdigressions alternatewith each other" (in Bailey,ed., Preludeand Transfiguration, 199; I have substituted "a certainregularity" for "the definite regularity" in Bailey'stranslation).".. . hierbei kann man bald erkennen,wie mit einer gewissen Regelmhissigkeit einfache dominantischeund subdominantischeAbschweifungenauf kurze Streckenmit einanderabwechseln"(Kurth, Romantische one of the weaknessesof WilliamMitchell's analysis(see note 12 Harmonik, 322-23). Similarly, above) is, in my view, its elevation of D minor to a controlling Stufefor extended prolongational spans. 21. For example by SiegfriedAnheisser in "Das Vorspiel zu Tristan und Isolde und seine 3 (1921): 257-304. Motivik,"Zeitschriftfiir Musikwissenschaft

Formin the Tristan Circular Prelude 93 tensificationis temporarilyinterruptedby the more hesitant and fragmented music of unit w in cycle 2 (especiallymm. 36.4-42.3), and it accelerates with the double statement of unit B in cycles 3-4, which, tightening the circle, seems to shift the music into a higher gear,producing a surge of energy as the climaxapproaches. The second formal stage, climacticplateau, comprises the first return of unit A through the remainderof cycle 5, culminatingthe previous buildup. Here A, now crowned by the dramatic,rhythmically exactive,and registrally tended "Deliveranceby Death" motive, adopts the unbroken rhythmicmotion of the immediately preceding music, maintaining-and increasing-its intensification. It is againfollowed, as in its firstappearance, by B, which is this time extended by z, carryingthe music to its greatestintensity.22 The third stage, dissolution,consists of the return of unit A in cycle 6 through cycle 7 to the end. Here A again has its originaltexture and slower rhythmbut is alteredthrough insertionsof melodic fragmentsfrom B and the more hesitantmusic of w. In the following B unit (B-6), shiftsin registerand orchestrationset off the firsttwo one-measuresubphrases, which, along with the modulating internal sequence, preserve the fragmentedphrase structure heardin the previousA (especiallyin the insertdrawnfrom unit w). This links units A and B together in a new way, lending cycle 6 a previouslyunmatched qualityof rhythmic,motivic, and orchestralliquidation,which persistsin cycle 7 when the truncatedA-4 bringsthe processto an end. Clearlythese three groupings do not representcompletely distinct formal functions, comparableto those in a Classicalsonata movement; nor, as we have seen, are their designations entirely adequate. The initial buildup not only begins with a more introductorysegment (A-1) but contains a segment of relativerelaxation(unit w, plus the firstpart of C-2) that appearsshortlybefore the final surge toward the climacticplateau.The latter,moreover, begins with a "reprise"of unit A (A-2), as does the dissolution that follows (A-3); and the dissolution brings not only liquidation but a renewed effortthwarted,to be sure-to build up intensityagain. Finally,the three segments are not clearlydistinguished by content, since all consist primarilyof repetitions of formal units from the first cycle. Yet when units recur, they assume significantlydifferent formal meanings, as reflected in the surface variations they undergo in their new locations. It is this featurethat the largergroupings in Figure 1 are intended to clarify. The Prelude thus projects a structurethat, reformulatingthe principleof sectionalreturn,produces a profile quite common in nineteenth-centurymusic: an extended intensificationleading to a point of climax,followed by a relatively brief denouement. Of course "intensificationalone doesn't do it," as
22. The climactic return of A is not only transformed andthe by fullertexture, dynamics, "Deliverance chordis now a neighbor to the by Death"motive.The factthatthe firstTristan transformations of the "Suffering" motiverelatedto this dominant, alongwith the extensive alters theflavor of A-2,despite the formal (theopening upward leapis omittedentirely), radically identity.

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Journal of the American Musicological Society

Lorenz says.But Wagnergives the Preludea distinctshape, thankslargelyto a formalarrangement that, farfrom contradictingthe music'sdynamiccontour, contributesto it. significantly In this connection it is helpful to keep in mind that the units in Figure l's formal network are not, taken individually, distinct or self-contained,or even fullycomprehensible.In additionto overlapping,their boundariesarenot well defined; and since each closes at a differenttonal location from its beginning, it must interactwith its neighbors to achieveany measureof stabilityor functional definition. This may explainwhy the unit structureof Figure 1 has not attractednotice.23The units are not at all difficultto recognize, but except for unit A, they are insufficientlymarkedto be considered,under normal analytical assumptions,as separateformalentities, and thus accordedvalue. One briefpassage-from measure80, near the end of cycle 5, to measure 83, beginning cycle 6-warrants specialconsiderationin relationto the overall form, as it is a moment of such unique consequence that it seems to split the music almost in two: on one side the initialbuildup and climacticplateau, on the other the subsequentdissolution.The passage,which forms the closing measuresof unit z, is preceded by B-5 and the development and extension of B's materialin the initial measuresof z-that is, by a segment that opens up the previouslyconstrictedtonal-formalframe and drivesthe music toward its point of maximum intensity. The moment is in all respects extraordinary. Though it precedes the second returnof unit A, it alreadyrecallsthe opening measuresof A. First the Tristanchord reappears, initiallyat measure 80 and then repeatedon the three following downbeats (only the repeatsplace ALrespelled G#-in its original top-voice position). This is the chord's only appearanceoutside unit A, and it assumesa new functionalmeaning here: as ii07 of E6 minor. Twice it moves to the dominant of E6 (mm. 81.4 and 82.4), threatening a continuation that, if carried through, would sunder the Prelude'stonal bonds entirely,underminingboth the A tonalityand the complex of thirds. This produces enormous tension, beyond anything else in the Prelude. When the Tristanchord eventuallyresolvesbackto V of A at the beginning of cycle 6, returningto the Prelude'snormalframe,its reassimilation gives rise to a gesture of unparalleledboldness: an instantaneouscollapse in intensity, textural density, and instrumental force (m. 83). After the long, steady sudden. buildup,the effect seems catastrophically The climacticanticipations of the Tristanchord are combined with returns of the Prelude'stwo opening melodic gestures:the rising-sixthmotive, with A6 substitutingfor A?, plus the subsequent chromatic descent to D; and the rising chromatic third G# to B, with G# respelled as Aband B raised to C.
23. Roland froma thematic a graphic Jackson, working perspective, provides layoutof leitmotifappearances in the Prelude thatin somerespects--though not in manyothers-resembles andFormin the Tristan TheMusic Review 36 (1975): Figure1. See his "Leitmotive Prelude," in Bailey, and Transfiguration, 267-81. 42-53; reprinted ed., Prelude

Circular Formin the Tristan Prelude 95 (These alterationsare the minimum necessaryto accommodatethe new tonal context.) Coordinatedwith the three chord repetitions, the motivic gestures appearthree times in stretto (beginning mm. 80.3, 81.3, and 82.3), as if franticallysearchingfor release.Only with the registralcollapseaccompanyingthe resolution of the Tristanchord to V, coinciding with the risingline's "correction" to G#-B, is it evident that unit A has returned. The Tristanchord and its associatedmelodic material,retainedacrossthis cataclysm,provide an extended overlap between cycle 5 and cycle 6, linking the high point with the nadir and bridging the Prelude's sole formalexpressive schism. Though overlaps occur throughout the Prelude, none other begins to compete with this one in length or complexity.It rankswith the most genial expressionsof Wagner's"artof transition."

Motivic Features
An additionalfactor contributing to the interdependenceof formal units in Figure 1 is their extremelyclose thematic and motivic interconnections.Since motivic mattershave been widely examined,24 discussionwill be limited to a few instances that contribute especiallyto larger continuity. First, two wellknown relationships can be mentioned: (1) the complete A unit develops out of sequentialextensions (and eventualfragmentation)of materialpresentedin the firstthree measures;and (2) the risingchromaticoboe line that accompanies the Tristanchord and its resolution in measures2-3, filling in g#' to b', transposesand invertsthe descendingcello line that fillsin f' to d' in measures 1-3. A relatedfactoris that each new phrasetakesup the same notes outlined in the top voice of the previous one, so that each seems to emerge from the preceding one, not just by sequencing it but by carryingon its top-voice configuration(Ex. 5). Also of interestis that this top-voice configurationprovidesa direct link to unit B. As often noted, and as outlined in Example6, the principalmotive of B is a free inversionof A, with its two main components-the leap of a sixth or seventh (labeledhere as a) and a filled-inminor third (labeled b)--in reversed order. This connection is rendered more immediate by the omission, beginning alreadyin the A unit with the fragmentationin measure 12, of the opening leap (a). This allows the rising stepwisefigure to initiatesubphrasesat the end of A, anticipatingB, which thus sounds much like a continuation,despite the dramaticdrop in register(providingspacefor the long expansionto come) and the more diatonic tonal context. The use of such transformationsof in one section to providelinksto the next is promiform/motive relationships nent throughout the Prelude.
24. A remarkably detailed motivic analysisappearedas earlyas the first decade of the twentieth century: Karl Grunsky, "Vorspielund der erste Akt von 'Tristan und Isolde,"' Richard 2 (1907): 207-84. Wagner-Jabrbuch

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Example 5 Preludeto Tristanund Isolde,pitch retentionslinkingthe firsttwo phrases

mm mm. 1-3 ram. 4-7 ram. 8-10

Example 6

Preludeto Tristanund Isolde,relationof the principalmotives of units A and B

Ab I a

IB
v

b ["

a'

Just as the main motive of unit B is a transformationof A-material,the main motive of C is a transformation of B-material(see Ex. 7a). Here the difference is primarilya matter of rearrangement: the falling leap precedes the stepwise third in measure25 (alreadyanticipatedin invertedform in measure 20). Finally,when B-5, followed by its extension and development in unit z, returnsto A at measure63, its rhythmis carriedover (with slight modification at the end) into the "Deliveranceby Death" motive in the upper strings,superimposed upon its falling thirds. Though these thirds are not directlymotivic, the fallingseventh they outline is found in both B and C, and there are also close pitch-classcorrespondences with B (Ex. 7b). A more subtle and extended motivic connection linking unit C to the music immediately preceding it stems from the fact that its first two melodic pitches, c#"-d#' (m. 25) are outlined in the previoustwo bars (mm. 23-24). As sketchedin Example8, the top voice in measures23-24 ascendsfrom d#', supported by viiO of E major (m. 23.4) through b', the fifth of E's resolving tonic (converted to V of IV, m. 24.3) to c#"as the third of IV (m. 24.5). But the tonal motion from I to IV is immediatelynegated when the top line falls back in a single leap, c#"-d#', again supported by viiO of E major (m. 25). Despite the dramaticrallentandoand crescendoto forte as the harmonymoves to A major,the C unit is thus connected seamlessly with what preceded, going back in quasi-retrograde manner over the melodic pitches that led up to it, and back into E major.This explainswhy the interpretation of the A chord in

Circular Form in the Tristan Prelude Example 7a Preludeto Tristanund Isolde,relationof the principalmotives of units B and C

97

Example 7b Prelude to Tristan und Isolde,relation of the principalmotive of unit B to the "Deliveranceby Death" motive in unit A-2

B(E2T

)A-2

(T
a

J)

..J

Example 8 Preludeto Tristanund Isolde,relationshipbetween the end of unit v and the beginning of unit C (mm. 23-25)

I
23 poco rail.

riten.

_ I a tempo

k, V I L A-1i7
cresc.

""
z art

E: V

vii'4 I

16

IV

vii'4 I

measure 24 as a significanttonic is, despite the poco rallentando,so unconvincing.25 Turning to more encompassingmelodic connections, the previouslymentioned relationshipbetween the motivic materialof units A and B is enhanced
25. In that they support the interpretationof the A cadence as part of a largerE-majorcontext, these connections help explainwhy-contradicting Lorenz's analysis--themusic encompassing the firstB unit and the v extension (mm. 17.4-24) failsto cohere stronglyinto a single formal unit, beginning on VI (substitutingfor the tonic) and ending on I (the tonic A). Other reasons are found in the rhythmiclayout:the fact that the extension (unit v) of the main unit (B) contains a more compressedversion of the same sentence-likestructureweakensthe final cadentialarrival. In addition,since the opening subunit of unit v (mm. 21.4-22.3) reflectsthe close of the previous B unit (mm. 20.4-21.3) in a quasi-sequential manner, the former sounds more like a continuation than a balancingphrase.(Such formalmattersaretreatedat more length in the next section.)

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Preludeto Tristanund Isolde,sketch of rising-third progressions,mm. 1-32
B-1 v C

Example 9
A-1

m. 2

10

11

16

17

18

19

20

21

22 25 26 27

when viewed in light of the first A and B units as a whole. This can be followed in the firstpart of Example9, which shows the rising line in measures 2-3 carriedupward through repetitions in an unbroken succession of chromaticallyfilled rising thirds:g# '-b', b'-d", d"-f#", and f#"-a".The last pitch, attainedat measure17.4, is simultaneously transferred down two octavesto a, unit B. This it since also with a B, opening begins risingthird (now diatonic), continues the successionof thirds(a-c', c'-e', e'-g', g'-bb' ), thus carryingon the processinitiatedin unit A. The rising-thirdprogressionseems to breaknear the end of unit B, at bW' (m. 20.3), where the thirdsfall through g' and e' to c#'; but in fact it continues, since unit v subsequentlytransfers c#' up an octave to c#" (m. 24.5), supthe next third above the abandoned plying bb'. Indeed, this upward-third motion continues, with only intermittent breaks, throughout most of the Prelude. Example9 tracesit through the first C unit, revealingthat the three principalformalunits are not only bound together by these thirdsbut also distinguished by the manner of their projection. In unit A the thirds rise slowly yet emphatically, joined with full-scalesequentialprogressionsin all voices; in unit B they rise more quickly,but also less monolithically. Finally,the motion a in unit as the line undergoes holding process C, drops a third, from c#" to a' where it remains through b' (mm. 25-28), suspendedfor four measures until unit B returns(m. 32.4), pickingup the rising-third motion again. On the one hand, then, these pervasiverising thirds help account for the Prelude'sseemingly obsessive single-mindedness;but on the other, they lend the music a variedformalrhythmthat, despite its unbroken quality,is remarkably differentiatedin detail. Finally,the drop to a' in unit C, the first "structural"drop (that is, the firstto initiatea new successionof rising thirds) and a pitch retainedover severalmeasures(mm. 28-32), is notable: it positions the line an octave higher than a, the pitch that initiatedB's previous(first)appearance, forming a relationshipthat contributes significantlyto the simultaneof the music duringthis stretch.26 ously repeatingyet intensifyingcharacter
26. Theoretically oriented readers willnoticethatthesethirds arenot allprojected at a consistent structural levelandthusdo not represent linear in a strict(Schenkerian) sense.Since spans thisis not theplaceto discuss thiscomplex issue,I willsimply pointout thatthethird progressions areeasily heardandcontribute to the music's significantly extraordinary consistency. Theyeven

Circular Formin the Tristan Prelude 99

Traditional Forms in the Prelude

Although the focus here is on innovative formal features,traditionalformal types are still much in evidence in the Prelude. Otherwise the music would sound even more radicalthan it does. Of course, the repetitionof formalunits in itself is nothing new. What is new (paradoxically) is the extentof repetition. Considered individually, all of the units have markedtradiformal however, tional features. The internal organization of unit A, for example, conforms closelyto a traditional"sentence,"and viewed from that perspectiveits grouping does not even seem especiallyunusual (except perhapsfor length): a basic four-measure phrase, its four-measure sequential repetition, and an eightmeasurecontinuation beginning with a more developed sequentialversion of the initialidea that is then extended by fragmentationand liquidation,plus a one-measurecadence.Unit B (mm. 17.4-21.3) offersa compressedversionof the same form: a one-measurephraseplus its one-measuresequence, followed by a two-measureliquidatingextension. Unit w (mm. 36.4-44) differsonly in that the two opening one-measuresequentialphrasesare each repeated,as is the opening measure of the continuation, so that the continuation itself (mm. 40.4-44) takes on the form of an internal(embedded) sentence. Unit C (mm. 25-32.3) similarly begins with a two-measureunit and its sequential repetition,but here this is followed by a contrastingtwo-measureunit that undergoes varied,nonsequentialrepetition.The resulting4 + 4 pattern (the last measureinterruptedby the returnof unit B) is metrically balancedlike a traditional period, but it is differentin that the melodic and tonal contents of the four-measure units arenot complementary,and the ending is left open. It would be easy to parsethe entire Preludein terms of groupings of these kinds, based on Classicalmodels, since almost all subsequent formal units, as repetitions, retain the patterns just described. What sets the Prelude apart, however,is the extent to which these models are reworkedin responseto new formal assumptions.The opening seventeen-measureunit, for example, dewith the Classical intensispite evident correspondences sentence, significantly fies the latter's alreadypronounced developmental character.The balanced, complementarytonal relationshipstraditionallyfound between the opening two subphrases(e.g., the I-V relationshipbetween measures1-2 and 3-4 in the firstmovement of Beethoven's Piano Sonata in F minor, Op. 2, no. 1) is replaced by a "real"-strictly transposed-second subphrasethat spins out vertiginouslyfrom the alreadyweak tonal foundation establishedby the first.

span its one majorbreach:the collapseat the high point. For a wide-rangingdiscussionof the issue of hierarchical consistency,see RichardCohn and Douglas Dempster, "Hierarchical Unity, Plural Unities: Toward a Reconciliation,"in Disciplining Music:Musicology and Its Canons,ed. KatherineBergeron and PhilipV. Bohlman (Chicago and London: Universityof Chicago Press, 1992), 156-81.

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Unlike traditionalsentences,where a stabletonal framework is establishedbefore the third (continuation)section begins, Wagner'ssentence must thus rely on the continuation to determine the form's tonal goal, as well as its overall tonal meaning.We do not know where we are until the finalcadence is heard, at least with anythinglike the specificityassociatedwith Classicalmodels: the whole unit, from its very beginning, is both motivicallyand tonally developmental. (That the sentence's final cadence is deceptive is unexceptional, though notably absent here is any partial repeat bringing full closureClassical music'subiquitous "one-more-time"effect.)27 Equally revealing are unit B and its initial continuation, unit v (mm. on D minor is weak, 17.4-24). We have alreadyseen that B's closing arrival having been achievedaftersuddenlyabandoningthe previouslyestablishedCmajor tonal framework.Moreover, the cadentialgesture associatedwith it is immediatelysequenced, the G-F suspensionof measure21 echoed by D-C# in measure 22. And this new gesture is also freely sequenced (mm. 22.3that gives riseto its own 23.3), forming a new pairof one-measuresubphrases continuation (mm. 23.4-24), cadencing on A major.The cadentialfigure of B is thereby appropriatedto open a new sentence (unit v), so that ending becomes beginning,joining the two sentencesin seamlesscontinuity.28 The Prelude is also distinguished by the untraditionallarger formal purderived smallerunits are summoned, makposes to which these traditionally ing unequivalent assignment of traditional large-scale formal functions impossible. For example, the notion that the opening A unit is (following Lorenz) an "exposition"is supported by the fact that it projectsthe Prelude's motivic principalmotivic materialsand key.But the segment's tonal instability, fragmentation,and intenselysequentiallayout renderit as much developmental as expository. (It also has, as noted, a partly introductory character.) the first recapitulationof this material,opening cycle 5, is as much Similarly, development (and thus continuation) as reprise,and its subsequent return at cycle 6 as much repriseas dissolution. In closing his discussionof the Prelude,Lorenz, comparinghis own analysis with those of his predecessors,criticizesHugo Leichtentrittin this connection (though generally praising his reading for resembling his own), since
27. Perhaps the closest Classical analogues to Wagner's opening phrase are those rare sentence-likeforms that begin with strictsequences,such as the opening of the firstmovement of Haydn's Piano Sonatain E6 Major,Hob. XVI:52, and the Allegro con brio of the firstmovement of Beethoven's Symphony No. 1 in C Major,Op. 21. But in these the sequences are tonal, not real(in both, an initialtonic majorphraseis transposedto the minor second degree); and the continuation begins firmly and unambiguouslyon the dominant and ends with a confirming tonic close. Whatevertonal doubt is raisedby the sudden shift to ii is thus immediatelyand conclusively expelledby the continuation. 28. The line of thought developed in this and the previousparagraph was stimulatedby discussion in a recent seminarat Yale Universityon a dissertationproposalon sentence structurein Tristanund Isolde, presentedby Matthew Shea. ProfessorsMichaelFriedmann,JamesHepokoski, and PatrickMcCrelesscontributedto this discussion.

Circular Formin the Tristan Prelude 101 Leichtentritt chooses as the opening's "true" reprise the second return at measure 84 (which for Lorenz is a "coda"), ratherthan the first at measure 63. But how can one decide who is correct?Neither section is more, or less, like a reprisethan the other accordingto traditionaldefinitions;the firstreturn is climactic in effect and the second liquidating, especiallywhen the subsequent B sections are taken into consideration.The firstreturnpreservesmore of the basictonal and phrasestructureof measures1-21 (essentially that of all but the final measure), yet totally transformsthe texture and character. The second retainsmore of such "secondary"qualitiesas register,dynamics,texture, and orchestration(and are these still secondaryin this music?),yet deflects the harmony significantlyat measure 90.4 and introduces a fifll-scale modulation at measure 96.4. In both, then, the opening materialreappears but is significantly transformed,makingthe argumentlargelypointless.

Conclusion
Lorenz cites Wagner'swell-known programmaticdescriptionof the Prelude (originallyincluded in an 1859 letter to MathildeWesendonk) to support his reading of the second returnof A as a coda ratherthan a reprise.In particular, he calls attention to Wagner's characterization of the closing segment: "Exhaustedthe heart sinks back, languishingin desire."29 Lorenz comments: "There is no trace in Wagner'sidea of any kind of psychologicalconnection between this segment and the beginning of the piece."30But there is much more than a trace:the atmosphereafterthe climax, as Wagner'swords unambiguously assert, still remains immersed in desire (his schmachtend-or "languishing"-explicitly evokes the expressiveindication at the opening).31 Only whereas at the beginning desire intensifies,building toward hoped-for consummation, at the end it is exhausted, trappedin hopelessness.Not surprisingly,then, Wagnerdrawsupon the same musicalmaterialat the end as at the beginning, but adjustsit in responseto the differentexpressive/programmatic context. (This is no differentin principlefrom what he does throughout
29. "Ohnmichtig sinkt das Herz zuriick, um in Sehnsucht zu verschmachten" (Lorenz, Der see Bailey,ed., Preludeand Tranrfiguration, musikalische Aufbau, 26). For a differenttranslation, 48. The complete program appearsin Julius Kapp, ed., Richard Wagners Gesammelte Schriften in Bailey,ed., Preludeand Trans(Leipzig:Hesse und BeckerVerlag,1914), 9:61-62; translation figuration, 47-48. 30. "Von irgendeiner psychologischen Beziehung dieses Abschnittes zum Anfang des Tonstfickesfindet sich in WagnersGedankenkeine Spur"(Lorenz, Der musikalische Aufbau, 27). For a differenttranslation, see Bailey,ed., Preludeand Tranrfiguration, 219. 31. Significantly, when he repeatsWagner'ssentence to make this point, Lorenz omits the closing phrase "languishingin desire" ("in Sehnsucht zu verschmachten").He also omits, even when first quoting this text, the sentence's telling continuation: "in desire without fulfillment, since every fulfillmentis only again renewed longing" ("in Sehnsucht ohne Erreichen,da jedes Erreichennur wieder neues Sehnen ist") (Lorenz, Der musikalische Aufbau, 27).

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the Prelude.)At the beginning, as desiremounts, his treatmentof the material is expansive;at the end, when the same desire (and same music) is without hope, it is fragmented and tonally deflected. But the connection between could hardlybe more eviopening and close, both musicaland programmatic, dent. And it persiststo the end, beyond Lorenz's coda into his "transition." Indeed, the final return in the latter of the Prelude's opening two phrases (m. 101), which, even as the music expires,cling-remarkably-to their original form and pitch level, despite the preceding tonal deflection and the new pedal G, providesthe Prelude'smost poignant and most encompassingcircularfeature. A final comment on the relationbetween Wagner'sview of the Preludeas an expressionof unfulfilleddesire and the music's form may bring these considerationsto a close. Wagner'sprogramaccordswell with standardnotions of the music's tonal ambiguity,encapsulatedin its deceptive progressions;but it is even more illuminatingwhen consideredin relationto the circular tonal and formaldesign presentedhere. It would be difficult,for example,to summon a more pointed musicalimage of unrequitedpassionthan the cyclicintensification projected in measures 17-62, which, following the firstA unit, links all the remainingunits together. Here, as the music gains in volume, density,orchestralmass, registration,and general expressiveforce, it fails to breakaway from a small number of melodic and tonal configurations,circling back over them again and again until ultimatelyconfined to a double statementof a sinunit (B). When the circlefinallybreaksat measure63, moregle four-measure over, there is no relief, since the "resolution"is itself cyclic, returningto the dominant and unit A, allowing the climacticpush to continue. Even afterthe collapseand final return to the dominant at measure 84, unit A simply starts up again, once more strivingtoward consummation-though now with even less success. The Prelude'swell-known tensions thus stem as much from form as from tonality. Or rather,form and tonality, both circular,are inseparablylinked. And therein lies the key to the Prelude's dramaticcore: the idea of a limited frame-of yet constantlyevolving content trappedin a staticand self-reflexive enormous energy spent in the serviceof so meager a return-lies at the heart of its troubled expressivetemper. Works Cited Anheisser,Siegfried."Das Vorspielzu Tristanund Isolde und seine Motivik." and Transfiguration and Isolde," Robert,ed. Prelude Bailey, from "Tristan by Richard New York andLondon: W.W.Norton,1985. Wagner. andDouglasDempster. "Hierarchical Toward a Cohn,Richard, Unities: Unity,Plural Reconciliation." In DiscipliningMusic:Musicology and Its Canons,edited by
3 (1921): 257-304. Musikwissenschaft Zeitschriftfiir

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KatherineBergeron and Philip V. Bohlman, 156-81. Chicago and London: The Universityof Chicago Press, 1992. Grunsky, Karl. "Vorspiel und der erste Akt von 'Tristan und Isolde.' " Richard 2 (1907): 207-84. Wagner-Jahrbuch and Form in the TristanPrelude." TheMusicReview 36 Jackson,Roland. "Leitmotive (1975): 42-53. Vol. 9. Leipzig: Hesse und Kapp, Julius, ed. Richard WagnersGesammelte Schriften. BeckerVerlag,1914. Kurth, Ernst. RomantischeHarmonik und ihre Krise in Wagners"Tristan."Berlin: Max Hesses Verlag,1923. Reprint,Hildesheim:Georg Olms Verlag,1985. der Form bei Richard Wagner. Vol. 2, Der musikalische Lorenz, Alfred. Das Geheimnis Berlin:M. Hesses Verlag,1926. "Tristanund Isolde." Aufbau vonRichard Wagners Mitchell, WilliamJ. "The TristanPrelude:Techniquesand Structure."MusicForum 1 (1967): 162-203.

Abstract The music of the Prelude to Tristanund Isoldeis in constant transformation, projecting a seemingly unbroken arc of intensificationfollowed by release. It thus seems to defy traditionalformal analysis,which aims to articulatemusic into discrete units with clearlydifferentiatedfunctions. Yet the Prelude, despite its continuouslydevelopmentalnature,is characterized by constantrepetition of only three formal units, which are subjected to significantsurface variationbut retain their underlyingmelodic, harmonic, and linearidentities. The articleanalyzeshow this process,which would seem to be overlysegmental, is reconciled with the ongoing qualityof the music. It examines first the circulararrangementof the three repeatingunits, along with their relationto five briefpassagesthat occur but once; it then analyzesthe circularly repeating harmonic-linear pattern they project. It also considershow the Prelude'sformal units differfrom traditionalones in that they are designed to emerge out of those preceding them and flow into those that follow, avoiding strong segmentation. The music is thus revealedto have a unique, yet easilycomprehensible, overalltonal and formaldesign that supports,ratherthan contradicts,its evolutionarynature.