Show off your theory chops with my weekly challenge! You’ll find a new question here every Monday. Please comment to post your reply.
This week’s challenge:
This is the end of the Rhapsody in G minor, Op. 79, No. 2, by Johannes Brahms. What starts happening to the rhythms halfway through the third measure, and what’s the effect? Listen to the audio too:
Reply to post your answer, and check back on Friday, November 12th to see if you’re right!
ANSWER for 11/8/21
Why simply write “ritardando” when you can build it into the music?! Starting halfway through the third measure, Brahms begins augmenting the rhythms, stretching things out from triplet eighths to normal eighths, then to triplet quarters in measure 5, and and finally to normal quarters in measure 6. This creates the effect of slowing down even though the tempo remains the same. A neat little trick if simple isn’t your cup of tea.
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It is a rhythmic augmentation that makes it feel like a rotary (or like it is slowly slowing down
Like a ritard I guess autocorrect doesn’t like ritardando——-
It goes from a triple feeling to a duple feeling and the bass kind of “walks” down the scale.