Ternary Form

Ternary is a term used to refer to the overall structure of a piece of music. Within a piece of music, sections of the work can be divided into smaller musical phrases to be looked at more carefully. Musical phrases that are alike in composition may be grouped together as a larger chunk and can then be put together to describe a piece of music as a whole. In the instance of ternary form a piece of music is divided into three sections, most commonly named A-B-A.

The individual movements of “Toccata and Fugue in D minor” do not constitute ternary form, but as a whole I believe the movements create a ternary form, albeit unusual. The toccata acts as the first “A” section of the work. Within the toccata the rhythmic structure is four bar phrases that always lead to a long/sustained note chord. The “B” section begins at the end of the toccata, marked by the half note sustain of a D minor chord.

It’s harder to judge where the return to the “A” section starts because “Toccata and Fugue in D minor” doesn’t contain a labeled third section. However, in the fugue movement I believe that the shift back to “A” form occurs at the “Recitativo” tempo mark. A large shift occurs at the “Recitativo” tempo mark where the overall feel of the piece changes after a B_b major chord. The fugue changes from a very dark melancholy timbre to a much more light-hearted feel accompanied by an ascending melodic pattern, similar to the ascending sixteen notes found in the 2^nd and 3^rd lines of the toccata. The ascending pattern is much more dragged out though than at the beginning because the final “A” section acts builds toward the conclusion of the work. Another variation on the original “A” theme that plays in is the removal of voices. One can see that the toccata section starts thinly scored because only the right hand plays the melody. However, the toccata section slowly adds in new voices, building to a sustained chord. The reverse happens in the last lines of the work because voices are actually removed, it adds an element of symmetry to the piece. The large pitch jumps observed in the 32^nd notes mirror the opening motif of the work, but also build toward the final sustained chord.

“Take the A Train” also makes use of ternary form, but its version is more straightforward. Similar to the Bach toccata and fugue, “Take the A Train” is also a modified form, but it’s an example of A-A-B-A. The “B” section of “Take the A Train” is the least distinctive of all the sections due to the improvisation that doesn’t always give the piece a straightforward structure. The main melody is introduced at measure 5 with the syncopated quarter notes. Unlike Bach’s “Toccata and Fugue in D minor”, Duke Ellington’s “A” section builds towards the “B” section, the improvised section. The “B” section is actually known for Ray Nance’s famous trumpet solo, which actually was written into the work because it was played so well. The “B” section builds towards the final “A” section like the Bach, but the final “A” section is clearly identifiable. It starts with the brass choir playing the original melody that starts at 5, only in the last “A” section they play it louder, in a more extreme register, and in a different key. It leads to a thrilling conclusion of a very exciting piece.