Schenkerian analysis for dummies

1. How do you do a Schenkerian analysis?
2. How hard is Schenkerian analysis?
3. Is Schenkerian analysis Good?
4. What is Ursatz in music?

How do you do a Schenkerian analysis?

Background Analysis

1. identify the fundamental structure (descent from or )
2. identify one of the basic prolongations of it as detailed in Prolonging the Fundamental Structure.
3. remember that there may be an initial ascent or arpeggiation.
4. tidy up your notation to make the graph as clear as possible.

How hard is Schenkerian analysis?

Schenkerian analysis is an abstract, complex, and difficult method, not always clearly expressed by Schenker himself and not always clearly understood. It mainly aims to reveal the internal coherence of the work – a coherence that ultimately resides in its being tonal.

Is Schenkerian analysis Good?

over-arching tonality, Schenkerian analysis is a viable analytic tool for that work. The theory was not designed to analyze pre-tonal, non-tonal, or polytonal works, but plenty of authors have expanded the Schenkerian system to try and fit it for these repertoires.

What is Ursatz in music?

In Schenkerian analysis, the fundamental structure (German: Ursatz) describes the structure of a tonal work as it occurs at the most remote (or "background") level and in the most abstract form. A basic elaboration of the tonic triad, it consists of the fundamental line accompanied by the bass arpeggiation.