3-79

N/Y Rl
W,r3WVy

INTERPRETING THE RHYTHMIC STRUCTURES OF PAUL CRESTON

AS APPLIED IN THE SIX PRELUDES FOR PIANO, OP. 38

AND THE SONATA FOR SAXOPHONE AND PIANO, OP. 19

DISSERTATION

Presented to the Graduate Council of the

University of North Texas in Partial

Fulfillment of the Requirements

For the Degree of

DOCTOR OF MUSICAL ARTS

By

Carol Leone, B.M., M.M.

Denton, Texas

August, 1991
 Leone, Carol, Interpreting the Rhythmic Structures of

Paul Creston as Applied in the Six Preludes for Piano,

Op. 38 and the Sonata for Saxophone and Piano, Op. 19.

Doctor of Musical Arts (Piano), August, 1991, 82 pp., 62

illustrations, bibliography, 34 titles.

The need to understand rhythmic and metric complexities

has always been present for the performer, especially in the

music of the twentieth century. Historically, many rhythmic

theorists have not made their studies readily accessible and

practically applicable for the performer.

The rhythmic theories of Paul Creston, principally

laid out in his Principles of Rhythm and Rational Metric

Notation: The Mathematical Basis of Meters, Symbols and Note

Values are especially interesting to the interpreter because

they are from a composer's viewpoint. In particular, his

theories are pertinent because he sought to further

illuminate them by composing works for piano which exemplify

them, such as the Six Preludes, Opus 38.

The general purpose of this paper is the discussion of

the interpretation and performance of rhythm within the

context of Creston's five rhythmic structures. Specific

objectives are to bring to light Creston's unique rhythmic

terminology, theories, and structures; and to interpret

rhythm at the piano with an emphasis on accent, pedaling,

articulation, balance of textures, and pace.

Important findings such as the insignificance of the

barline as regards accentuation and the recognition of

meters which are implied but not notated, enable one to

develop tools for the interpretation of rhythm in music of

other composers and music of earlier centuries as well.

 TABLE OF CONTENTS

LIST OF MUSICAL EXAMPLES ............... ......... iv

Chapter

I. INTRODUCTION............. . .......... 1

Biographical information
Philosophies
Studies in Rhythm
Creston's Rhythmic Terminology

II. ACCENT................. . ................ 12

III. THE FIVE RHYTHMIC STRUCTURES ............. 22

Regular Subdivision
Irregular Subdivision
Overlapping
Regular Subdivision
Irregular Subdivision

IV. A CLOSER LOOK AT THE THIRD STRUCTURE:

MULTIMETER AND THE OVERLAPPING
PRINCIPLE..............................33

V. INTERPRETING CRESTON'S RHYTHMIC STRUCTURES

AT THE PIANO........... ............... 43

Accent
Pedaling
Articulation
Balance of Textures
Pace
Chapter Summary

VI. CONCLUSIONS............................... 73

APPENDIX ..................... a............ ...... 75

BIBLIOGRAPHY ....................................... 80

iii
 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

Example

1-1. Rhythm in 6/8 time with unequal

pulses and beats . . .. 8
2-1. Saxophone Sonata, 3rd movement,
Measures 91-92..-........... . . .. . 13

.
2-2. Saxophone Sonata, 3rd movement,
Measure 9 . . 1...
... .*.* . 14

*
2-3. Saxophone Sonata, 2nd movement,
Measures 10-12 of the saxophone part 15
2-4. Prelude No. 3, Measures 43-45...-...... . 15

.
2-5. Prelude No. 3, Measures 51-56.........*.. . 16

.
2-6. Prelude No. 3, Measures 48-50 . . . . ... . 17

.
2-7. Prelude No. 6, Measures 1-2...... ... . 17

.
2-8. Saxophone Sonata, 3rd movement,
Measures 270-272..............a.. 18
2-9. Prelude No. 3, Measures 1-3.-.-.-........ 18
2-10. Saxophone Sonata, 3rd movement,
Measures1-2. . .0.*
.. . . . . . . . 19
.

3-1. Prelude No. 2, Measures 1-2............... . 23

.

3-2. Prelude No. 1, Measures 1-2.......... . 23

.

3-3. Prelude No. 4, Measures 1-2.....-.......... 25

3-4. Prelude No. 5, Measures 3-5............. 26
3-5. Prelude No. 1, Measures 28-31....-..... 27
3-6. Saxophone Sonata, 1st movement,
Measures 92-93 - . . . - - . . 27

iv
 3-7. Saxophone Sonata, 3rd movement,
Measures 1-6....-...... 2
28

3-8. Prelude No. 3, Measures 1-3 . 30

.
3-9. Prelude No. 1, Measures 5-6 . 30

.
3-10. Prelude No. 6, Measures 1-2 . 32

.
3-11. Saxophone Sonata, 1st movement,
Measures 7-8....-... 32
4-la. The Use of Changing Meters 36

.
4-lb. No Overall Metric System . . 36

.
4-1c. A Monometric System....-... 36
4-2. Prelude No. 5, Measures 6-7-. 37
4-3. Prelude No. 5, Measures 1-2-. 37
4-4. Prelude No. 1, Measures 11-12 38
5-1. Prelude No. 1, Measures 1-6-. 45
5-2. Saxophone Sonata, 3rd movement,
Measures 36-39 . . 47
.

5-3. Saxophone Sonata, 3rd movement,

Measures 36-39...-... 48
5-4a. Prelude No. 4, Measures 1-2 49
.

5-4b. Prelude No. 4, Measures 34-35 - - - - . . . 50

.

5-5. Prelude No. 6, Measures 1-2 - - . . . . . 50

-

5-6. Prelude No. 6,

Measures 1-4 of the left hand part . . 51
.

5-7. Saxophone Sonata, 2nd movement,

Measures1-6....... 53
5-8. Saxophone Sonata, 2nd movement,
Measures 45-47- -. . . -t . . . . 54
.

.
.

5-9. Prelude No. 1, Measures 28-31

55
-

V
 5-10. Saxophone Sonata, 1st movement,
Measures 47-50....-... - .0 .0 .0 .0 .0 . 0 56
5-11. Prelude No. 5, Measures 1-5 .-. 57
5-12. Saxophone Sonata, 3rd movement,
Measures 21-23........ 58
5-13. Saxophone Sonata, 1st movement, - . . . . .

.
Measures 7-8..-....... 58
...
5-14. Prelude No. 1, Measures 8-9 .

.
59 .

.
5-15. Prelude No. 3, Measures 30-32 59

.
5-16. Prelude No. 3, Measures 1-3 60
5-17. Prelude No. 5, Measures 8-11 61
5-18. Prelude No. 3, Measures 48-49 62
-
5-19. Prelude No. 3, Measures 51-53 . . . . . . . 63
.

.
5-20. Prelude No. 4, Measures 1-2-. - - . . . . 63
-

.
5-21a. Prelude No. 5, Measures 1-2 - - - . . . 63
.

.
5-21b. Prelude No. 5, Measures 3-4-. . . . . . . 64
5-22. Saxophone Sonata, 1st movement, .
. . . . 64 Measures 86-87....-... . . .
5-23. Saxophone Sonata, 3rd movement,
. . . . 65 Measures 95-100 . -. - - .
.

. . . . 66 5-24. Prelude No. 1, Measures 28-31 - . .

*

. . . . 67 5-25. Prelude No. 1, Measures 8-9-- - . .

5-26. Saxophone Sonata, 3rd movement,
. . . Measures - . 0. 0.
1-3-. - 0 , .0 68
.

5-27. Saxophone Sonata, 3rd movement,

Measures 270-272 . -. - ~ ~ 0 68
.

5-28. Saxophone Sonata, 1st movement,

Measures 112-113 . -. --0- -0 . . a 69
.

vi
5-29. Saxophone Sonata, 1st movement,
Measures 7-8.-.-...-.-................. 69
5-30. Prelude No. 1, Measure 1.................... 70
5-31. Prelude No. 3, Measures 1-3............... 71

vii
 CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTION

The term "rhythm" defies a single definition. As is

the case with most multifaceted entities, those who observe

it are able to view only parts at one time. And so, with
rhythm, one perceives it according to one's vantage point.

The truth is that rhythm is a very complex thing; in

fact, some have called it baffling and bewildering, and yet

the youngest child and the simplest mind can feel rhythm

and experience it on the same level as the greatest

intellectual.

Those brave enough to elucidate the term have, by their

writings, collectively illustrated several aspects of

rhythm. Performers recognize their emotional reaction to

rhythm, calling it infectious and intoxicating. They talk

about "feeling" the rhythm, and see it as the "inner life"

of music--that which gives music spirit and humanity.

Etymologically, the Greek word rhythmos is derived from

the root "ry" or "to pull."1 One often hears performers and
teachers refer to the "swing" of the rhythm, and "movement"

1. Walther Durr and Walter Gerstenberg, "Rhythm," The New

Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, 20 vols., ed.
Stanley Sadie (London: MacMillan, 1980), XV, 804-824.

1
 2

is also frequently referred to in a description of rhythm,

as in "musical motion" or "flow" or "movement in time."

Certainly time is an integral part of rhythm, and many

theoretical views of rhythm debate what rhythm does to time.

Time is organized, ordered, regulated, grouped, subdivided,

partitioned and proportioned.2

Unfortunately, when a subject is too broad to

comprehend completely, we often look away and neglect the

study of it altogether, in favor of more satisfying

subjects. While music theorists have not neglected the

study of rhythm, performers and pedagogues have been

derelict in discussing this rich and integral part of our

musical language. As William S. Newman writes, "Rhythm

seems to underlie all musical problems. Everybody complains

but nobody does anything about it. "3

Paul Creston was a man with a unique mission where

rhythm is concerned. More a composer and less a theorist or

performer, he spearheaded his own campaign to explain rhythm

from the composer's viewpoint. He worked consistently,

composing dozens of pieces tailored to educate the performer

2. Actually, the thought that man can actually do anything

to time seems rather arrogant. Charles Smith's
definition "the organization of musical things in time"
seems more appropriate in this sense. See Charles J.
Smith, "Rhythm Restratified, " Perspectives of New Music,
16/1 (1977), 50.

3. William S. Newman, The Pianist's Problems (New York:

Harper & Row, 1974), 105.
 3

and in particular, the pianist, on the intricacies of

rhythmic structure. Besides composing, he wrote books and

articles and gave lectures on the subject throughout his

life.

This paper intends to bring Paul Creston's rhythmic

theories to the surface again and interpret them in light of

two of his compositions.

Biographical Information

Paul Creston was born Giuseppe Guttoveggio in New York

City in 1906, the son of Sicilian immigrants. Although he

was given formal lessons in piano and organ, he was

completely self taught in harmony, composition, and

orchestration. In 1938, six years after deciding to become

a composer, he was awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship.

Subsequent honors over the next few years brought Creston

national acclaim. His compositions were generally

conservative for his time. A typical description of his

piano works was the following: "pianistic, with gorgeous

timbres. It combined brilliant virtuoso effects amidst

patches of shimmering impressionistic colors." 4 Early in

his career, his works were extremely popular. During the

4. Claudette Sorel speaking specifically of the Narrative

No. 2, (obituary). Claudette Sorel, "Paul Creston (1906-
1985)," Clavier., 24 (November 1985)., 33.
 4

late 1950's Creston and Copland received equal attention

from American symphony orchestras with regard to the number

of compositions performed.5

Throughout his career, he maintained an interest in

literary activities, publishing articles about music and two

books on rhythm and meter. He was active also as a teacher

at several universities, most notably as Distinguished

Visiting Professor of Music at Central Washington State

College from 1967 until his retirement in 1975. He died in

California in 1985.

Philosophy

Creston looked upon composition as a spiritual practice

that should be pursued by everyone. 6 Like the nineteenth

century romantics, he believed that the purpose of music was

to express emotion7 and looked upon music as the most

effective and indispensable language of man.8 He was

preoccupied with matters of melodic design, harmonic

5. Monica Justine Slomski, Paul Creston: The Man and His

Music With an Annoted Bibliography of His Works (Ph.D.
dissertation, University of Missouri, Kansas City, 1987;
Ann Arbor, Mich.: University Microfilms), 29.

6. Paul Creston, record jacket notes for Creston's Sonata

for Saxophone and Piano, Op.19 (Columbia Masterworks, ML
4989, 1955).

7. Linda Maxey, "A Remembrance of Paul Creston," Percussive

Notes (Spring 1987), 24.

8. Creston; record jacket notes.

 5

coloring, rhythmic pulse, and formal progression and he

maintained that a composition's intrinsic worth depended

upon the integration of these musical elements into a

unified whole.9

Studies in Rhythm

The lack of attention given to the element of rhythm in

the study of composition and theory held particular interest

for Creston. Frustrated with the lack of a lucid

terminology for rhythm and rhythmic devices, and with what

he considered to be irrational notational practices, Creston

became a champion for consistency of approach to these

areas.

Observing in his analysis of rhythm five different

rhythmic structures, he attempted to codify them by

composing the Six Preludes, Op. 38 for piano in 1945. These

rhythmic studies were followed by the publication of two

later books, Principles of Rhythm in 196410 and Rational

Metric Notation in 1978. Further, he composed the

Rhythmicon, ten sets of rhythmic studies for the piano

published in 1977.

9. Ibid

10. The book was rejected by four different publishers.

Creston states:
 6

Creston's Rhythmic Terminology and Basic Theoriesil

The terminology that Paul Creston used in describing

rhythm was in some ways untraditional, for he sought clarity

in his definitions and often discarded terms that were

ambiguous or coined his own terms to suit his theories.

Frequently he re-defined old terms.

One important clarification that he made was that meter

is not synonymous with rhythm.1 2 This is one of the basic

tenets of Creston's theory of rhythm. Rhythm was defined by

Creston to be "the organization of duration in ordered

movement." 1 3 Meter, he claimed, is only one of the elements

"since it was neither tradition-bound nor

completely revolutionary there was no
measuring rod that could be applied. Finally
after ten years, Franco Columbo had the faith and
courage to publish the book."

Paul Creston, "The Structure Of Rhythm," Clavier

(November 1971), 16.

11. For a complete terminology of Creston's rhythmic

theories, refer to the Appendix.

12. Paul Creston, Principles of Rhythm (New York: Belwin

Mills, 1964), 2. Views on this subject tend to fall
into three camps: 1) rhythm and meter are similar,
2) rhythm is a sub-category of meter, and 3)meter is a
type of organized rhythm. The third view, espoused by
Creston has gained favor in recent decades. See Durr and
Gerstenberg, on.cit. ,806-807.

13. Paul Creston, op. cit., 1.

 7

which comprise rhythm.1 4 The other three elements of rhythm

are accent, pace, and pattern.

The term "meter" was given two definitions by Creston.

The second definition is the more basic one: "Meter is the

measurement of duration by pulses or units." 1 5 (A unit is

the subdivision of a pulse or beat into smaller fractions of

duration.) While rhythm is the organization of duration,

meter measures this duration by pulses and units. To

further understand this, a distinction must now be made

between pulses and beats.1 6

From an interpreter's point of view, pulse has been

called that aspect of music that makes the notes on the page

"come alive,,"1 7 or defined as the stepping stones of

music.1 8 Many maintain that pulse is specifically

14. Maury Yeston attempts to relate rhythm and meter through

a middle-ground (pitch-related) approach. See Maury
Yeston, The Stratification of Musical Rhythm (New Haven:
Yale Univ. Press, 1976), 152.

15. Paul Creston, Rational Metric Notation, (Hicksville,

N.Y., Exposition Press, 1979), 3.

16. The two terms are usually used interchangeably.

Reference to these terms as synonymous can be found in
Cooper and Meyer, The Rhythmic Structure of Music,
(Chicago: Univ. of Chicago Press, 1960), 4, and Bryan
Simms, The Music of the Twentieth Century, (New York:
Schirmer-MacMillan, 1982), 92.
17. Max Camp, "Rhythmic Control and Musical Understanding,"
The Piano Quarterly No.142 (1988), 42.

18. Abby Whiteside, Indispensables of Piano Playing (New

York: Coleman-Ross Co., 1955), 25.
 8

associated with our heartbeat.1 9 A more theoretical

definition is given by Wallace Berry: "The pulsation series

makes palpable the referential flow of time, as an

experiental field in which rhythms are grasped."20

Creston used the term "pulse" to designate what is

traditionally called beat.2 1 In Creston's terminology,

pulse is concerned with meter and refers to the metric

signature. For example, a piece in 3/4 time would have

three pulses.

Beat, on the other hand, measures rhythm, which may or

may not be organized to conform to a given metric signature.

For instance, a rhythm in 6/8 time might be measured in

three equal beats, whereas there are only two pulses in this
meter.

Example 1-1.

2 pulses, 3 beats

19. Seymour Bernstein, With Your Own Two Hands (New York:
Schirmer Books, 1981), 80.

20. Wallace Berry, "Metric and Rhythmic Articulation in

Music," Music Theory Spectrum 7 (1985), 30-31.

21. Creston, Principles of Rhythm, 3.

 9

The term "beat" refers to the actual sounded note or

chord in a rhythm.2 2 In metric music, beats and pulses are

regular and coincide. In a given rhythm, however, it is

possible for beats not to conform in any way to a recurring

and steady pulse.

Creston, therefore, observed several ways in which

rhythm is structured, because it is not dependent upon

metric structures. These rhythmic structures will be

discussed in detail in chapter three.

The other definition of meter given by Creston is:

"the grouping of pulses or units within a single measure or

a frame of two or more measures." 2 3 The qualification

tagged onto the end of this definition concerning measures

has as its purpose the inclusion of dimeters and trimeters

where the grouping involves two or more measures at a

time.2 4

ACCENT

Creston takes issue with Cooper and Meyer's definition

of meter because it states that "meter is the measurement of

22. Smither refers to beats as "points within the rhythmic

flow, that are supported by the facts of rhythm.," See
Howard E. Smither, "The Rhythmic Analsis of 20th Century
Music," The Journal of Music Theory 8/1 (1964),, 72.

23. Creston, Principles of Rhythm, 3.

24. Creston, Rational Metric Notation, 32

the number of pulses between more or less recurring

accents." 2 5 Accent, the second element of rhythm, is not an

element of meter, Creston asserts. Wallace Berry supports

this view by making a distinction between regular metric

accent and other types of groupings:

Metric accent is but one potent factor by which events

are grouped, and if we are to begin to understand the
complexities of rhythmic experience we must regard
accentual grouping as distinct2 6 , observing that where
different groupings are in alignment, they are of two
streams concurring, and not a single thing.2 7

Accent is defined by Creston as "that element of rhythm

which makes prominent or emphasizes a pulse or a beat." 2 8

PACE

The third element of rhythm is pace, which Creston

defined as "the rate at which the pulses or units of a meter

25. Cooper and Meyer, op. cit., 4.

26. Pierce and Perkins both distinguish between metric and

rhythmic (or structural) accentuation. See Anne
Alexandra Pierce, The Analysis of Rhythm in Tonal Music
(Ph.D. dissertation, Brandeis University, 1968), 25,
and Marion Louise Perkins, Changing Concepts of Music
in the Romantic Era (Ph.D. dissertation, Univ. of
Southern California, 1961), 206.

27. Wallace Berry, p. cit., 30. Joel Lester goes so far as

to refer to meter as only one aspect of the larger
element: accent. Joel Lester, The Rhythm of Tonal Music
(Carbondale: Southern Illinois Univ. Press, 1986), 11.

28. Creston, Principles of Rhythm, 28.

 11

occur, " 2 9 the unit being a subdivision of pulse. The term

"pace" is preferred over the more common term "tempo" by

Creston, since "tempo" in Italian has a number of

meanings. 3 0

PATTERN

The fourth element of rhythm is pattern, the

"subdivision of a pulse or beat into smaller units." 3 1

These units are grouped and shaped to form pattern.

29. Ibid.s, 27.

30. Ibid.

31. Ibi~d., 34.

 CHAPTER II

ACCENT

Accent, Creston believed, is the very life of rhythm.3 2

Without accent, meter is a monotonous series of pulse

groups, pace has no real sense of motion, and pattern can

become a nebulous elaboration.3 3 An essential point in

which Creston differed with many theorists is the

relationship of accent to meter. Preferring to untie accent

from the boundaries of meter, he limited the elements of

meter to three: pulses, beats and, units. Primary accents

are not metrically but rhythmically conceived.3 4

Creston observed eight types of accent, which may be

employed singly but are more often used in combination.3 5 ,3 6

32. Ibid., 28.

33. Ibid.

34. Ibid., 96.

35. For other listings of types of accents, see Smither,

2p. cit., Lester, op. cit., and Wallace Berry,
Structural Functions in Music Englewood Cliffs, N.J.:
Prentice-Hall Inc., 1976).

36. Cooper and Meyer did not attempt a listing of types for
this reason:

"since accent appears to be a product of a number of

variables whose interaction is not precisely known,
it must for our purposes remain a basic, axiomatic
concept which is understandable as an experience
but undefined in terms of causes."

12
 13

Only one of these types is not meant to be inherent but is

solely dependent upon the performer: the dynamic accent.3 7

This is an accent created by tone intensity3 8 and may or may

not be indicated by the composer in the score. The accents

in the following example would be present mostly by the

pianist himself using a means to increase the volume of each

accented tone.

Example 2-1. Creston Saxophone Sonata, 3rd movement,

measures 91-92.

A second type of accent is the agogic accent, in which

the emphasis is achieved by means of duration.3 9 Devices
which seem to give a tone a longer duration will produce the

Cooper and Meyer, op. cit. ,7.

37. Called a notational accent by Yeston

38. Herbert Woodrow's experiments in the early part of this

century indicate that a subject interprets an accent of
intensity as the beginning of a group. Smither, gp_,.
g ., 59. This correlates with Lester's definition of
accent as "points of initiation." Lester, op.cit .,16.
39. The Woodrow study indicates that a subject interprets an
accent of duration as the end. Smither, op.cit., 59.
 14

same result, such as repetition of the accented tone or a

staccato preceding the accented tone. 4 0

In example 2-2, the first inversion triad on the second

beat has more accentuation because it has a longer duration

than the one placed on the first beat. The staccato on the

first triad further emphasizes the difference in duration.

Example 2-2. Creston Saxophone Sonata, 3rd movement,

measure 9.

The dotted quarter notes in example 2-3 are agogic

accents. Their duration is three times longer than any of

the notes which surround them, clearly making them points of

emphasis.

40. Creston, Principles of Rhythm, 29.

 15

Example 2-3. Creston Saxophone Sonata, 2nd movement,

measures 10-12 of the saxophone part.

nf V P

-v Ak
'1

Creston acknowledges the effect of meter on accent by

citing the metric accent as a third type of accent.

Employed only in a metrical rhythm, the metric accent agrees

with traditional accentuation of primary pulses in a

meter.4 1 In the following example, the metric accents on

the first beats of each measure are not obscured in any way

and are further enforced by the figuration in the left hand.

Example 2-4. Creston Prelude No. 3,

measures 43-45.

I II
MMI mm mw

Ida
1 ~ I I
-

02
13
"e -,Mow MU

'000 ___ An As _F I - A.
I I Ty W
K I I TT
-lid P" - 1,
f I-
1 did
I
___ I-
1 110
_. 4 0- -09 _

41. ef,30
.
 16

The harmonic accent is evident from the composer's use

of dissonance on that pulse or beat. It usually calls for a

dynamic accent as well, 42 and is found most often in

combination with one or more types of accents. In example

2-5, the dissonance on the first beat of measure 51 is

resolved in measure 54. It is placed in the score in

combination with dynamic accent as well as metric accent.

Example 2-5. Creston Prelude No. 3,

measures 51-56.

When the volume of sound is increased exclusively by

means of the use of a thicker texture, a weight accent is

produced. The thicker texture is usually sufficient without

assistance from tone intensity.

In examples 2-6 and 2-7, the weight of the hand on the

chords is meant to accent them automatically. Creston

frequently used the practicality of a chord at every

accentual point to avoid the need for mental or vocal

42. Ibid.
 17

counting by the performer. "Complex or unusual rhythms

should not be written in such a way that the performer has

to count vocally or mentally; the fingers can count

automatically more rapidly than the voice or mind." 4 3

Example 2-6. Creston Prelude No. 3,

measures 48-50.

woo
I t IV
-,. I " a
I Ivi
Fk down
7w
AOL

crese.

ji lz a
4k
ULM

Example 2-7. Creston Prelude No. 6,

measures 1-2.

Moderately Fast ::iz6

The highest tone or lowest in a series of tones may

produce a pitch accent. A changing meter in Creston's music

may frequently be observed by the pitch accents that act as

downbeats of each new meter. In the following example, pitch

accents are present on all three staves. Creston has

further marked them with dynamic accents.

43. Creston, "The Structure of Rhythm," 18.

 18

Example 2-8. Creston Saxophone Sonata, 3rd movement,

measures 270-272.

* *Tmj

I 0'-O11 I A -dP-A
**ow

I -or r IAL AWOL Adk-- ddft

V -I I I-

ME
1

'Ped.

A pattern accent is one caused by a repeated figure of

characteristic contour. In this case, Creston claims that no

dynamic accent is required.4 4 In example 2-9, the pattern

accent is employed along with the pitch and agogic accents,

making a dynamic accent even more unnecessary.

Example 2-9. Creston Prelude No. 3,

measures 1-3.

A dwL

MOIL=
now
expressively
1,01.0 A p2

AwlL* ON
r

ik

Ornaments added to the melody cause embellished

accents.

44. Creston, Principles of Rhythm, 32.

 19

Example 2-10. Creston Saxophone Sonata, 3rd movement,

measures 1-2.

-M
Mown
E!!
k .- I

IpF _ _ _
cFrIT

The ornaments in the above example are used in

combination with dynamic and agogic accents.

A ninth type of accent is not included in the original

list because he believed it belonged only in the realm of

orchestration. This is recognized by Creston as the tone-

color accent. 4 5 most musicians will agree, however, that

tone-color changes can also be achieved on their instruments

in more ways than just simple tone intensity. Most notably

for the pianist, a change in tone color may be achieved by

pedal effects. In a subtler way, the way in which the

finger makes contact with the key may produce some noise

which will affect tone color. The manner in which the key

is released also produces sounds from the mechanism which

can be quite noticeable.

45. Yeston discerns a change of timbre as an event-defining

class. Yeston, op. cit., 43.
 20

Another type of accent not recognized by Creston is the

performer's agogic accent. A tone will be perceived as more

prominent if it is preceded by a stretching of the duration

46 Mack
of the tone or rest immediately preceding it.

Henderson's measurements of intensity and durational values

on artistic piano performance with the aid of the Iowa

piano camera suggest that "measure accents are only

infrequently emphasized by means of intensity, whereas

delayed entrances and the temporal extension of those beats

47 These
requiring metrical stress operate as a substitute."

delayed entrances can be thought of as a type of rubato,

however they involve only a small portion of the phrase,

whereas rubato usually implies the involvement of the entire

phrase.

A thorough examination of the examples given above will

reveal that, in fact, accents have a relation to meter. In

this case I am referring to multimeter, not the given meter

in the metric signature. For example, if one were to

acknowledge an implied change of meters as indicated by the

broken bar lines in example 3, then the agogic accents

occur on the downbeats of the new meters. This is also true

46. Robert Donington recognizes three types of accents, one

of which he calls "a minute preceding silence of
articulation." Lester, op.:it., 13.

47. Perkins, gp. cit.,, 197.

 23

while maintaining the four pulses per measure, plays six

beats. The pulses have been extrametrically subdivided and

grouped into two eighth-notes per beat.

Example 3-1. Creston Prelude No. 2,

measures 1-2.

In example 3-2, measure one, the metrical structure is

emphasized in the left hand (three pulses, three beats)

.
The right hand part contains three pulses but four beats.
In measure two of the same example, the right hand is now
metric, while the left hand plays only two beats against the
four pulses.

Example 3-2. Creston Prelude No. 1,

measures 1-2.

I dO

IPI
 21

of the dynamic accents in example 2-8. The fact that

Creston refers to these "changing meters" as structures of

rhythm and not meter allows him to refute the relationship

between meter and accent.

 CHAPTER III

THE FIVE RHYTHMIC STRUCTURES

Creston recognized five rhythmic structures, which

ultimately accomplish the organization of duration in

ordered movement. 4 8 The first of these is called Regular

Subdivision.

Regular Subdivision is "the organization of a measure

into equal beats, i.e., beats of equal duration." 4 9

Although Creston estimates that perhaps 90% of music is in

regular subdivision in which the beats and pulses coincide,

he is more concerned with a discussion of the type of

Regular Subdivision in which beats and pulses do not agree.

In these cases, metrical alteration has occurred, requiring

the use of extrametrical subdivision into beats against the

pulses. Although the following examples use metrical

alteration, they would be termed Regular Subdivision because

each measure is subdivided into equal beats.

In example 3-1, the right hand part is metric, having

four pulses and four beats per measure. The left hand,

48. Comparable to Smithers' four classes of rhythmic styles.

Smithers, opcit., 73.
49. Creston, Principles of Rhythra, 53.

22
 24

Extrametrical Regular Subdivision is applicable to all

meters. However, Creston stresses that it is not practical

if it can't be performed.

THE SECOND STRUCTURE

Irregular Subdivision, the second structure, is defined

as "the organization of a measure into unequal beats, i.e.,

beats of differing duration." 5 0 Irregular Subdivision is

inherent in meters like 5/4 and 7/4, but Creston is more

concerned with the discussion of the organization of unequal

beats through units, or extrametrical subdivision.

For example, a popular grouping of eight eighth notes

in 4/4 time is the pattern 3+3+2. This is the rhythmic

structure of the Cuban Rumba.5 1 In this case, three unequal

beats would be played against the four pulses. A repeated

pattern is involved in Irregular Subdivision.

Example 3-3 exhibits an extension of the 3+3+2 pattern.

Having five pulses per measure, there is a pattern of four

unequal beats grouped into units of 3+3+2+2.

50. Ibid., 76.

51. Called a dochmiac rhythm by Curt Sachs, Rhythm and

Tempp: naStudy in Music History (New York: W.W. Norton,
1953), 367-368.
 25
Example 3-3. Creston Prelude No. 4,
measures 1-2.

witA passion
Moderateely Fast J 120

Irregular Subdivision can also occur within a Regular

Subdivision. An example of this occurrence, termed mixed
rhythm, would be one in which there are two half-note beats,

but each is divided into a 3+5 pattern.

Creston maintains that for Irregular Subdivision to be
effective, the beats and pulses should not occur at the same

time except on the first beat.5 2

THE THIRD STRUCTURE

The term that Creston coined for the third structure

is Overlapping, for it is defined as the extension of a

phrase rhythm beyond the bar line. Because of the

parallelism of musical and poetic rhythms, it was a common

device in sixteenth century music but neglected during the

classic and romantic periods, he explains.5 3 Rediscovered

in the twentieth-century, it most often appears as

multimeter or changing meters.

52. Creston, Principles of Rhyth, 89.

53. Ibid., 96.

 26

A study of Overlapping involves a discussion of what is

at the heart of Creston's rhythmic theories, his disdain for

the so-called "tyranny of the bar line". 5 4 It was Creston's

desire to avoid the "monotonous, mechanical sing-song"5 5 of

meters which have a regularly occurring strong pulse

following each bar line. He believed that a pedantic

insistence on the relative strength of pulses in a meter is

more a theory than a practice. 5 6 "The greater tendency has

been to conceal or disguise the prominence of primary
pulses." 5 7 "The masters intuitively felt meter as a grouping

of pulses and allowed strong pulses to occur wherever the

musical idea demanded.#"5 8

Example 3-4. Creston Prelude No. 5,

measures 3-5.

JIM ~ JJ~~LrT J AN

54. Ibid., 9.

55. Ibid., 96.

56. Ibid., 9.

57. Ibid., 8.

58. Ibid., 10.

 27

In the following examples, broken bar lines have been

added to show how the excerpts in Overlapping structure

could have been notated with changing meters.

Example 3-5. Creston Prelude No. 1,

measures 28-31.

I I "11
pp- A& U- M ,ft. ik Am LY W I-
V- PW TIL M I PW m AM IL Am Alu po-'A
I- n I I I At Pmw' U W Pw-- I
I - I I- I " I I I WaiI - ,a
7
INV
A- Ad I JANIL m w - - 1w

4L V3/-0

J
L&
TI I 'I -I- k- -- - -, .- -- . d
#F
1. h Am 641 6-f.- r
L.- - U "
TT-MW-TT-
I - I

Zm- ATY An id PE L-s ma TI Aff I

Tr
I T14- .- I I I i
'I
-

Example 3-6. Creston Saxophone Sonata, 1st movement,

measures 92-93.

tjinceam 9Rroh-avy
,

Ar --- L:
WAL ak 44
 28
Example 3-7. Creston Saxophone Sonata, 3rd movement,
measures 1-6

With giety [ - 160]

A rll1i LI

pcrijp .s

In example 3-7, although all three staves show the

overlapping principle, the saxophone part and the left hand

piano part follow the same sequence of meter changes, while

the right hand part contains a different sequence.

The purpose of overlapping is to "obtain a freely

flowing but varied rhythm, unshackled by a mechanically

conceived and executed meter." 5 9 The fundamental idea of

overlapping, then is the non-importance of the bar line as

regards accentuation.

Primary accents are present in an overlapping

structure. The accents, however, are rhythmically rather
than metrically conceived. The most natural of accents, the
agogic accent, is invariably employed. (See the saxophone

part in example 3-7). When using the overlapping principle,

59. Ibid.o, 100.

 29

60
Creston tried to balance phrases by varying their length,

and avoiding repeated patterns.6 1

The final result, then, is a multimetric rhythm within

a single metric system. The overlapping structure will be

discussed further in chapter four.

THE FOURTH STRUCTURE

Regular Subdivision Overlapping is defined as "the

organization of a group of measures into equal beats

overlapping the bar line." 62 It is distinguished from

simple Regular Subdivision in that the beats are contained

within a frame of two or more measures instead of a single

measure.6 3 Therefore, the pulses and beats may also be

considered as units, whereas in Regular Subdivision the

64
metric alteration is obtained through primary units.

In example 3-8, each phrase rhythm is extended over

three measures. The downbeat of each of these measures acts

as one of three pulses in each phrase rhythm. Four beats

are extrametrically implied in the right hand against the

three pulses.

60. Ibid., 110.

61. Ibid., 100.

62. Ibid., 111.

63. Ibid.

64. Ibid., 114.

 30

Example 3-8. Creston Prelude No. 3,

measures 1-3.

expresstvely

& p*OR
I

In example 3-9, the phrase rhythm in the right hand

part extends over two measures and each beat is equal to a

half note. The left hand part also has a disagreement of

pulses and beats, each beat being equal to a dotted quarter

note. It is in Regular Subdivision, while the right hand is

in the Regular Subdivision Overlapping structure.

Example 3-9. Creston Prelude No. 1,

measures 5-6.

The result in the fourth structure is an enlargement of

meter, simplifying the employment of unusually large meters.

The number of measures possible is at least partially

dependent on pace.
 31

THE FIFTH STRUCTURE

Irregular Subdivision Overlapping is defined as the

organization of a group of measures into unequal beats

overlapping the bar line. According to Creston, this is a

rhythmic phenomenon associated primarily with the twentieth

century. 6 5 As Erickson wrote: "Contemporary music would be

impoverished if it limited itself to the regularities and

ratios bequeathed to us from the 18th century and earlier,

and transmitted largely through notational conventions which

reflect attitudes about life far different from ours." 6 6

What distinguishes the fifth structure from simple

overlapping is the presence of a repeated scheme. 6 7

Rhythmic beats as well as pulses may be considered units in

this structure. Like simple Irregular Subdivision, this

fifth structure is frequently molded in the 3+3+2 pattern.

Creston defines the character of this structure as

angular or spasmodic.6 8 Therefore, small beats are more in

keeping with its nature.

65 . Ibid. , 129
.

66. Robert Erickson, "Time Relations," The Journal of Music

Theory 7/2 (1963), 179.

67. In fact, all of the other structures except for the

third, Overlapping, follow a repeated scheme.

68. Creston, Principles of Rhythm, 132-33.

 32

In example 3-10, the phrase rhythm extends over two

measures, creating six pulses of dotted quarter note

duration. There are also six beats but they are of unequal

length and are set in a pattern of units grouped as follows:

4+3+3+2+4+2.

Example 3-10. Creston Prelude No. 6,

measures 1-2.

A Ii r-ri Irri ------

TI Irm ofrttmf
I %I-al-

marked

.
(L~l~PLO

In example 3-11, the phrase rhythm is two bars in

length, divided into three unequal beats in a 2+3+3 pattern.

The piano and saxophone parts are set off by one beat,
creating an even greater spasmodic quality.

Example 3-11. Creston Saxophone Sonata, 1st movement,

measures 7-8.

I>.
( Jt
-'LLAW -imp-

E7 i 9AE. Zt 3i --- I

1 -1-11-
I
T-
I EFRET
I
-

--U
IOL.Ald I
T-

000

tiowI
WWI long
V

#1 m
 CHAPTER IV

A CLOSER LOOK AT THE THIRD STRUCTURE: MULTIMETER

AND THE OVERLAPPING PRINCIPLE

The third structure, Overlapping, was the favored

rhythmic plan of Creston, as can be observed in the

following comments:

(Overlapping) perhaps best illustrates that greatest

art conceals art, for its possibilities are of the most
subtle and varied, creating emotional effects without
70
necessitating conscious analysis.6 9 '

Apparently Creston was referring to the obscured (or

concealed) periodic factor in the rhythm of this structure.

The following questions arise when reviewing Creston's

Overlapping principle: Why didn't Creston notate these

69. Ibid.

70. Elliott Carter apparently had similar goals, but used a

different approach. He explains his purposes for using
metric modulation:

"In considering constant change-process-evolution as

music's prime factor, I found myself in direct
opposition to the static repetitiveness of much early
twentieth-century music, the squared-off articulation
of the neoclassics, and indeed much of what is
written today in which "first you do this for a
while, then you do that." I wanted to mix up the
"this" and the "that" and make them interact in other
ways than by linear succession."

Simms, op. cit., 105.

33
 34

multimeters as changing meters, like so many other twentieth

century composers have chosen to do?7 1 Instead he favored

the use of a single metric signature (or monometer), similar

to 16th century practice.7 2 Did that render the bar lines

meaningless? If his criterion, found in overlapping, of a
"freely flowing but varied rhythm"7 3 is still met when using

a changing meter notation, what other criteria was he trying

to meet?
We know that he believed that a single metrical system

should regulate and control multimetric rhythms, 7 4 for he

stated: "Casting varied rhythms within a single meter

assures a sense of order, a sort of central force from which

all the rhythms emanate." 7 5 There seems to be a

contradiction between this statement and his intention to

create an independence of rhythm from meter.

One must question whether this central force is truly

sensed or whether it is purely theoretical. Creston himself

stressed the importance of the "intention and the result

71. Stravinsky and Bartok in particular

72. For information regarding Overlapping from 1450-1750,
see Michael Collins, The Performance of Coloration,
Sesquialtera, and Hemiola. (Ph.D. dissertation, Stanford
University, 1963).

73. as referred to in Chapter III

74. Creston, Principles of Rhythm, 100.

75. Ibid.
 35

being one and the same sound. "7 6 "A rhythmic sense... is

much more necessary than rhythmic knowledge." 7 7

If one supposes that the central force of the single

metric system is not otherwise audible apart from the use of

traditional primary and secondary metric accents, it is

difficult to discover his purposes for using it. Is one to

conclude that Creston's goal was to somehow influence the

performer's perception of the relationship between rhythm

and meter, thereby affecting the overall rhythmic execution

of the composition? Or is the performer an unknowing

participant in the execution of a truly inherent rhythmic

order?7 8

76. Ibid., 83.

77. Ibid., 88.

78. Smith suggests that the notation of rhythmic structures

may be relative concerning each processor:

"Since a score is merely one musician's

representation of the structural information
considered determinant of a piece, features of that
score cannot be uncritically accepted as
sufficiently piece-characterizing, or even
piece-inherent . . . Although many event-features
indicated by score-notations may have been
indispensable to a composer's conceptualization of a
piece and may suggest interesting piece-
internalizations to score-readers, the fact that
they are score-notated is not in itself an
indication of significance; any such features .
.

may prove to be piece-irrelevant to some

processors, even though invaluable to others."

Smith, op. cit., 146.

 36

To attempt to answer these questions, one must look at

the differing options Creston had in notating his

multimeter. The obvious choices of notation were three:

1. The use of changing meters, thereby coordinating rhythm

and meter.

Example 4-la

2. No overall metric system, in other words, an absence of

bar lines or metric signatures altogether, producing a
notation which simply presents varying rhythmic
patterns.

Example 4-lb

3. The imposition of a monometric system on the varying

rhythmic patterns.

Example 4-Ic
 37

Before further discussing these options, other

variables must be mentioned. One can observe that Creston

made use of several devices to indicate rhythmic structures

which overlap bar lines. These devices directly influence

the effectiveness of each of the options mentioned above.

1. Balkens, or beams which connect notes such as eight or

sixteenth notes, are frequently written over the bar

lines.

Example 4-2. Creston Prelude No. 5,

measures 6-7.

2. Phrase marks or slurs often indicate the beginning and

end of a rhythmic pattern.

Example 4-3. Creston Prelude No. 5,

measures 1-2.
 38

3. Dynamic accents are placed in the score to delineate the

initiations of rhythmic structures.

Example 4-4. Creston Prelude No. 1,

measures 11-12.

These act as visual aids for the performer's

discernment of the multimetric patterns and allow Creston's

imposed bar lines to not have the same obscuring effect on

rhythmic intention as they might have otherwise.

With these devices in mind, let us look at the three

options for notation again. If Creston had chosen to use

the first option, changing meters, he would have bowed to

the concept of the bar- line as a governor of accentuation.

However, the mechanical sing-song that he was trying to

avoid in this tyranny of the bar line would not have even

been present in the case of multimeter. The use of varying

amounts of pulses within each meter would have succeeded in

preventing that undesired effect.

 39

Aside from the obvious reason that notating changing

meters is a bit more cumbersome for the composer,7 9 the

primary incentive he used for avoiding it was that it was

simply too confusing for the performer:

The foregoing discussion of proper notation may seem

unnecessary to some musicians, and as far as it relates
to solo music, there may be some reason in not being
overly concerned. But when the music involves two or
more performers, monometric notation greatly lessens
the difficulties of rhythmic execution, and a little
concentration on practicality will repay the composer
with a more reliable performance.8 0 Let there be as
many rhythmic complexities as desired, but the burden
of solving complexity must rest with the composer and
not with the performer.8 1

Herein lies a real key to Creston's approach to

composition: the performer should be able to easily discern

79. Jay Rahn believes that the "barring of a piece .

.
often represents a mere expedient to keep track of
durations rather than an attempt to convey the work's
structure."
Jay Rahn, "Evaluating Metrical Interpretations,"
Perspectives of New Music 16/2 (1978), 35.

80. Arnold Elston believed that the reason Bartok failed to

use changing meter in a particular composition was that:

"he considered it hazardous for the conductor to beat

a rapid succession of constantly changing meters
. . . Hence, the regular . . . meter facilitates the
conductor's task by permitting him to beat uniform
strokes, thus insuring the precision of the
ensemble."
Arnold Elston, "Some Rhythmic Practices in Contemporary
Music," The Musical Quarterly XLII, No.3 (1956), 319.

81. Creston, Principles of Rhythm, 146.

 40

the proper execution of rhythm simply by its clear notation.

In fact, as was mentioned previously, he felt that it should

be unnecessary for the performer even to count.

The second option would have been for him to throw out

metric signature altogether. A reliance solely upon other

devices of delineation of rhythmic patterns such as grouping

by balkens would simplify the notation, thereby satisfying

his desire to reduce the burden of complexity for the

performer. Visually, it would seem to serve as a model for

the "free flowing but varied rhythm" that he states is the

purpose for overlapping. Other 20th century composers such

as George Crumb have certainly exercised this option with a
very free and even improvisatory result. Possibly, Creston
was not willing to make this break with convention, or was
too strongly convicted by his definition of rhythm as

"ordered movement", for he alludes to a higher order in the

before-mentioned quote: "a sort of central force from which

all rhythms emanate." 8 2

The third option of using a monometric notation, which

Creston chose, does not, according to Arnold Elston,

82. Somewhat suggests a concept similar to Yeston's

"middle-ground" approach. "The time signature
represents nothing more than a graphic technology that
helps to indicate which particular middleground is
meant (by the composer) to shape the foreground."
Yeston, op. cit., 70.
 41

"produce a proper scansion of the rhythms." 8 3 ,8 4 He

believes that:

it obscures the motif and phrase structure

misrepresenting downbeats as syncopations, feminine
endings as masculine, etc. . . . risking loss of
clarity and plasticity of the rhythmic structure. 8 6

These problems create a dilemma for the inquisitive

performer. On first viewing of the score, one wonders if

the bar lines and their traditional effect on accent should

be completely ignored. It is not immediately clear in which

cases the traditional accents are valid. In the case of

polymeter, is it necessary to analyze each part in order to

understand the rhythmic interplay?8 7

83. Elston, op. cit., 319.

84. It certainly does not concur with Bryan Simms definition

of a time signature: "a practical notational device
assisting the performer to read note lengths and to
visualize (by virtue of bar lines) the metric group."
Simms, op. cit.,, 94.

85. In fact, Grosvenor Cooper follows the line of reasoning

that a syncopation truly occurs in these cases. Cooper,
"Rhythm," The Harvard Dictionary of Music, 2nd ed.,, ed.
Willi Apel (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard Univ. Press,
1969), 729-730.

86. Elston go.cit. , 319.

87. Rahn writes:

"Both where to put the bar lines and what

time signatures to use are subjects of great
controversy . . . In such cases (as when the
metrical organization is not clear from the
notation) the transcriber must analyse the work
'from scratch', and infer an appropriate metrical
framework." Rahn, op.cit., 35.
 42

It is apparent, that given Creston's choice of

notation, that in order for a pianist to make intelligent

decisions on subtle variations of accent, articulation,

pace, pedaling and balance of textures, not to mention

technical aspects such as fingering and weight placement, it

is imperative that he have a distinct understanding of the

rhythmic structures and their notation. The chapter on

interpretation will address these issues further.

 CHAPTER V

INTERPRETING PAUL CRESTON'S RHYTHMIC STRUCTURES AT THE PIANO

A thorough understanding of all the factors involved in

rhythmic structure will allow the pianist to make the best

decisions regarding the use of dynamic accents,

articulation, pedaling, balance of textures and pace. 8 8 The

consequence can be what pianist and pedagogue Abby Whiteside

referred to as a "masterful rhythm". 8 9 Creston himself

stated that "a knowledge and understanding of the rhythmic

structures and their proper notation is of inestimable value

to the pianist concerned with contemporary music." He went

88. This is a point stressed repeatedly by theorists.

Wallace Berry has written:

"Whatever conceptual images it seeks to represent,

truly illuminating musical performance is richly
informed by analysis, the indispensable, pragmatic
basis for resolving problematic decisions of
interpretation."
Wallace Berry, Musical Structure and Performance (New
Haven & London: Yale University Press, 1989), 217.

89. Whiteside, op. cit., 12, 15. "A masterful rhythm," she
claimed, "can produce color and dynamics of simplicity
and rare beauty." She maintained that subtlety and
nuance at the piano were only possible through a basic
rhythm which can channel the ideas and emotions.

43
 44

on to explain that performance problems are solved when the

rhythm is clarified. 9 0

The examples in this chapter illustrate specific

interpretive choices made, based on Creston's use of the

five rhythmic structures.

THE USE OF ACCENT

Accenting in Regular Subdivision and

Regular Subdivision Overlapping

We have already seen that traditional metric accents do

not always apply in the music of Creston. Besides the

obvious use of dynamic accent when indicated in the score,

the dynamic accent may be employed on the first beat of each

new rhythmic structure. The degree to which it is needed is

dependent on the use of other accents. For example, if a
weight, pitch, and harmonic accent are already being

employed on a beat, a dynamic accent could be excessive.

The first six measures of the first Prelude employ

Regular Subdivision and Irregular Subdivision, as well as

metrical structures.

90. Creston, "The Structure of Rhythm," 20.

 45

Example 5-1. Creston Prelude No. 1,

measures 1-6.

r RL&IL4K SV9VIV 5IV

A- r - it -R v ->

f sempre tittAt

1
piviSI OVER L*A J^ \

The metrical structures should receive normal metric

accents. In this case, since there are three pulses per
measure, the first pulse of each of these measures should be
emphasized. This applies to the left hand part in measures
1, 3, and 4, and the right hand part in measure 2.
Metrical subdivision of the beats against the pulses
occurs in Regular Subdivision in the right hand part of
measures 1, 3, and 4. In these instances, there are four
beats of a dotted quarter note duration against the three
pulses. The traditional pattern of accentuation strong-
weak-strong-weak would apply here, with the third beat being
less emphasized than the first. This approach to dynamic
 46

accent will allow for cross accents to occur between the two

hands, making the differing structures more clearly

audible. 9 1

In measures 5 and 6, Regular Subdivision takes place in

the left hand part simultaneously with Regular Subdivision

Overlapping. The overlapping structure in the right hand is

dimetric, extending over two measures. The beats have a

half note duration. On each of the beats Creston has

utilized a combination of pitch, pattern and dynamic accents

to emphasize the structure. The two dotted quarter beats in

the left hand use pitch, pattern, and agogic accents. No
dynamic accent is indicated or needed on the two beats if

the execution of the part is played as written without

misplaced accents to obscure the structure.

A much more complex incidence of the fourth structure,

Regular Subdivision Overlapping, can be seen in example 5-2.

91. Creston maintained that "the clarity of rhythm is of

utmost impotance. " Ginger Anne Jensen, The Performance
Interpretation of Paul Creston's Six Preludes , Opus 38
Qr Pian (M.A. Thesis, Central Washington State
College, 1971), 15.
 47

Example 5-2. Creston Saxophone Sonata, 3rd movement,

measures 36-39.

0.0+
L FIMMU
4i Ab- W-- -11L I L- I- r- --I& AJL 9 ffl MAMML

A-J For

MMEN

Irnm+

AM jk I
i. An And AN in lb

At first glance, the saxophone part and the left hand

of the piano part would appear to be metric, particularly

because the devices discussed in chapter four such as

balkens, phrase markings and dynamic accents do not indicate

the presence of different structures. A close look at the

pattern of 24 sixteenth notes in the saxophone part reveals

eight groups of three, overlapping in a trimetric structure.

The resultant meter is 24/16. There being four traditional

accents in this meter, a slight dynamic accent on every

other group of three sixteenths would reinforce the pattern

accents.

After grouping the saxophone part in this manner, the

right hand part of the piano part is clearly seen as being

in the same meter, having eight equal dotted quarter note

beats overlapping three bars. It is suggested that every

other beat have a slight dynamic emphasis to conform to the

saxophone part.
 48

The left hand part is also in Regular Subdivision

Overlapping; however, unlike the other parts, the sixteenth

is not used as the unit. Here the unit used is the eighth

note. Through the pattern of pitches one can see a

trimetric structure of four dotted-quarter note beats (four

groups of three). Therefore a 12/8 meter is implied. A

slight dynamic accent on each of these four beats allows the

accentuation to occur in the same location in all three

parts. The result is actually hemiola, or a metrical

alteration in a ratio of 3:2.

Example 5-3. Creston Saxophone Sonata, 3rd movement,

measures 36-39.

LL-

#Saw%%
IRW I"- F- R
O"T-.m
49

IL

;L

PM
)

TT I
law
dwdoff -T
Rl i,
 49

Accenting in Irregular Subdivision

and Irregular Subdivision overlapping

Prelude no. 4 uses the second rhythmic structure,

Irregular Subdivision, throughout the left hand part.

Example 5-4a. Creston Prelude, No. 4,

measures 1-2.

,itA passion

of this passage Creston has remarked: "the pianist need not

count to know where the accent occurs; the hand must skip to
2
the accented chord and automatically accents it." 9

Therefore Creston has planned a sort of unintentional

dynamic accent but felt compelled to place dynamic accents

in the score just the same. The pianist must be careful to

reproduce the same accentuation in the closing measures of

the piece where the skipping of the hand no longer produces

accents in the proper place. A conscious decision to

intensify the tone at each point marked with an accent is

essential for the Irregular Subdivision to be audible.

92. Creston, "The Structure of Rhythm," 18.

 50

Example 5-4b. Creston Prelude No. 4,

measures 34-35.

:~ >~
-_ -~
- 1000,

UVT
I I TI

I TI L-
T

44
1 Py Ad
A m""- LL-
I OILu I It
t

-
W

As discussed in examples 2-7, and 3-12, the following

excerpt from the sixth prelude is in Irregular Subdivision

Overlapping. The structure is dimetric and has a pattern of

4+3+3+2+4+2. Creston placed the weight accents at the

beginning of each pattern to automatically be accented by

the weight of the hand.9 3

Example 5-5. Creston Prelude, No. 6,

measures 1-2-.

4z N
I I I 1 1-- 1 f I I
I
I I r I I I f I I
-1 11. 1f L.
u I 40I
A 1

goo
40

marked

lie It m
&

93. Jensen, op. cit., 38.

 51

Creston has stated that "practicality of execution is a

problem in this structure more so than the others." 94

95
"There is a greater conflict between pulses and beats, "
9 6 and there occurs
"the periodic quality is more obscured, "
7
"angularity and disjunction." 9
The true difficulty lies in projecting a metric left

hand melody while playing the irregular right hand. While

the first beat in each measure could be accented in this 3/4

meter, it is preferable to place an accent on the first beat

of every other measure to concur with the dimetric right

hand part.

Example 5-6. Creston Prelude No. 6,

measures 1-4 of the left hand part.

marked

94. Creston, Principles of Rhythm, 138.

95. Ibid., 174.

96. Ibid.

97. Ibid.
 52

Accenting in Overlapping

A study of the pitch, agogic and harmonic accents9 8

in the second movement of the Saxophone Sonata reveals the

overlapping structures, and the multimeter implied by them.

Although Creston has placed a metric signature of 5/4 at the

beginning of the movement, this meter is not adhered to

until the closing four measures.

Realizing that the implied meter in the opening of the

movement is really eight measures of 3/4 beginning with two

upbeats makes an otherwise ambiguous rhythmic structure seem

quite natural, and immediately indicates the points of

special emphasis.

98. Reference is being made to points of changes in harmony

rather than points of dissonance.
 53
Example 5-7. Creston Saxophone Sonata, 2nd movement,
measures 1-6.

13b Alto Saxophone _______________

II4 o ha 3oj ic- f dynan's C,

Piano 3~ 4'1tiwt

-
harmoniL4

-a
~~!:4 F=/1

The implied downbeat in measure one of example 5-7 is

apparent through the pitch accent on C1. In measure two,.
the downbeats are found through 1) the agogic accent on the
first F# which coincides with the harmony change in the left
hand part, and 2) the dynamic accent on the second F#.
 54

The downbeats in measure three are shown by the

1) pitch and agogic accent on the D# which agrees with the

harmony change in the left hand part, and 2) the pitch

accent on the E which agrees with another harmonic change.

The triple meter was not indicated by Creston because

after the opening measures, other meters come into play such
as 2/4 and 4/4.
It is important to recognize that in the final

measures, although both the saxophone and piano are in 5/4,

the pattern of each part differs.

Example 5-8. Creston Saxophone Sonata, 2nd movement,

measures 45-47.

1JAJS V-$(PSkd93

,iwbr-d.

r01,r6
L_1
\,
 55

In measure 45, the saxophone part is in a 3+2 pattern,

while the piano part is in 2+3 pattern. The reverse is true

in the measure which follows. In the closing measure they

are in accordance (2+3). A small dynamic accent at the

point of the pitch accent in the piano part in measure 45

will help to clarify this, as well as a small emphasis on

the G# in the saxophone part in measure 46 (which already

has an agogic accent). The pianist should not accent at the

same point in measure 46 but place an emphasis on the Bb

major triads instead.

A more subtle case of overlapping can be found in the

first Prelude.

Example 5-9. Creston Prelude No. 1,

measures 28-31.

VWW

Creston indicated that the Overlapping principle was

used in the patterns indicated above (8/16, 10/16,7/16,3/16,

and 8/16).99 The only indication is a pitch accent in some

99. Creston, "The Structure of Rhythm," 20-.

 56

of the places where the thumb plays. A pianist would

normally make an effort to negate these thumb accents, but

in this case they might be appropriate if not overplayed.

An interesting use of the Overlapping structure is used

in the following example.

Example 5-10. Creston Saxophone Sonata, 1st movement,

measures 47-50.

woo--
%

of
IP lop
-4 F= 4 75
sow 711 r I
i
IT

It I IIL
]kF-I.& A- I
1 4 ---M 1&0% . v 4w
V 40'

rz AIML-
I AW

4w

ro 9F--

FA
I k ti I
7 -1 AL. - j
'%W"l - -- I -- - - A.

16
ho-

7/4
....
.....

,tip
w

The implied meter changes are obvious here because of

pitch, agogic, weight, and dynamic accents. The metrical

sequence is additive (2/4, 3/4, 4/4, 5/4) but the saxophone
part and the piano part are "off" by one beat. This excerpt
might also be considered as an example of Irregular
Subdivision Overlapping because there seem to be a sequence,
 57

although it is not repeated. The performers need only to

follow the indicated dynamic markings and to avoid

superfluous accents for a proper execution of these

measures.100

In example 5-11, the multimeter is clearly seen

through the balkens and phrase markings. Creston himself

stated that the beginning of each new meter should be

accented slightly.1 0 1

Example 5-11. Creston Prelude No. 5,

measures 1-5.

-n ~ J VL

lay IUrm

r~mjrT~l.

100. Berry has stressed this very point:

What is imperative is that the performer, aware of

fluctuant meters, do nothing to violate them,
imposing a gratuitous regularity where mobility is
intended.

Berry, Musgical Structure and Performance, 36.

101. Jensen, op. cit., 35.
 58

PEDALING

The sustaining pedal can highlight rhythm in two

primary ways. The first is to give a type of accent which

can be categorized as a tone-color accent. Rather than

having the function of connecting tones, this type of

pedaling simply assists in the emphasis of a prominent beat

by changing its tonal quality and possibly lengthening it.

Example 5-12. Creston Saxophone Sonata, 3rd movement,

measures 21-23.

IMF
4 r aLiS

Example 5-13. Creston Saxophone Sonata, 1st movement,

measures 7-8.

4t AN lop.a

21

"Mom"

Man
r% I

I
I -. AMWTII-.aL Ar
dw 1--doL LL--L I

foam

The second type of pedaling emphasizes rhythmic

structure by slurring patterns together. In example 5-14,
 59

the pedaling underlines the 2+2+2 pattern in the left hand

part. Examples 5-15 accomplishes the same effect.

Example 5-14. Creston Prelude No. 1,

measures 8-9.

LY ___

pp I I

Example 5-15. Creston Prelude No. 3,

measures 30-32.

pp

-da 4-

A A A A
---- ----- __,-_

Pedaling in coordination with the rhythmic structure is

not correct if it will distort the melody. In the next
example, the pedal must be molded to the left hand melody

and not concerned with emphasizing the right hand rhythmic

structure.
 60

Example 5-16. Creston Prelude No. 3,

measures 1-3.

expressively

Correct pedaling is most often accomplished when it

conforms to harmonic changes. In the case of Creston's

piano compositions one will find that harmonic and rhythmic

structures will often change coincidentally. In Creston's

list of axioms he stated: "When rhythm is the principle

element of a composition, melody and harmony should support

it and not vitiate it." 1 0 2 These cases illustrate Creston's

axiom and the desire to achieve practicality of execution.

102. Creston, Principles of Rhythm, 180.

 61

Example 5-17. Creston Prelude No. 5,

measures 8-11.

1 1

~66,9-*
Ti- 1 3111 ri.

0.11,

ARTICULATION

Articulation refers to the subdivision of a phrase into

smaller units1 0 3 which are separated by the type of attack

and release and the use of legato and staccato. Because of

its relationship to duration, it is an element of rhythm and

can highly affect accent. Wallace Berry has stated:

103. Willi Apel, "Phrasing and Articulation," The Harvard

Dictionary of Music, 2nd ed., ed. Willi Apel
(Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard Univ. Press, 1969), 668.
 62
We apprehend rhythms as to individual streams of
articulation. . . Punctuations, changes and projections
of events of a particular class, as rhythmic
articulations, group such events, partitioning time and
thus expressing rhythm in identifiable durations: that
is what rhythm is about. 1 0 4

Furthermore, pedaling has a distinct effect on articulation,

and must be considered in conjunction with it.

Creston was acutely aware of the importance of clearly

marking the correct articulation in the score to underline

his rhythmic structures. He made use of figuration and

intervallic relationships that would force the pianist's

hands to jump and land with an accent (caused by weight) at

locations that would articulate his rhythmic structures.

The following examples illustrate this practice.

Example 5-18. Creston Prelude No.3,

measures 48-49.

crese.

104. Berry, "Metric and Rhythmic Articulation in Music," 30.

 63

Example 5-19. Creston Prelude No. 3,

measures 51-53.

Example 5-20. Creston Prelude No. 4,

measures 1-2.

witA passion
Moderately Fast J:120

It is important for the pianist to allow the hand to

make an obvious break at the end of the slurs, and to avoid

obscuring the breaks with pedal when possible. In example

5-21a, it would be easy to play legato right through the
slurs, concealing the multimeter.

Example 5-21a. Creston Preldde No. 5,

measures 1-2.

! ~ I~TF~.

I--- N AdIAd Ir

ol
i I T r i
 64

Lengthening the duration of these "breaks" is another

method of enhancing articulation and consequently clarifying

the beginnings and endings of rhythmic structures. In the

next example, a stretching of time between the phrases

produces this effect.

Example 5-21b. Creston Prelude No. 5,

measures 3-4.

A 1 1 1 --

qw

We have already shown how a long duration can produce

an accent in the discussion of agogic accents in chapter

two. The saxophone part in the following excerpt is a good

example of this:

Example 5-22. Creston Saxophone Sonata, 1st movement,

measures 86-87.

IMF,-
 65

A very short duration, or staccato, can also

accentuate, however. In the same example, the left hand of

the piano part produces an accent in the same location by

opposite means. Here, the staccato enhances the accent of

the beat on which it is placed rather than the beat which

follows it.

A close look at the articulation markings placed in

Creston's music will very often identify where changes of

meter occur in an overlapping structure. In the following

example, slurs, as well as accents and ornaments define the

structure.

Example 5-23. Creston Saxophone Sonata, 3rd movement,

measures 95-100.

T I -- I I t
dW I
-i i i !!d 0
Itv
........... JIM do
%w

-719
X A@ [-[ M AW

T---------- T
--------- ILN
F
*

y
LL F I F

tv 2$ Amnow

arm I MA El Am
big, 4w

64-..7 - Fot-..7 m 1

Although Creston was very conscientious about the

placement of articulation marks, one may find several

opportunities to articulate a structure where it is not

indicated in the score. In example 5-24, phrase marks have

been added to show that a very small break, or "breath," can

 66

be inserted between the implied meter changes instead of the

thumb accent previously suggested.

Example 5-24. Creston Prelude No. 1,

measures 28-31.

BALANCE OF TEXTURES IN A POLYRHYTHM

Whenever there is more than one voice in a texture, and

particularly if there is polyrhythm present, there is the

danger of a rhythm being unclear simply because another

voice is obscuring it. Therefore it is important to discern

which voices need to be played either softer or with less

accentuation to allow all the rhythmic structures to be

audible. As Creston stated in his list of axioms:

"Any rhythmic entity . . . must be audible and not merely

exist on paper . . . The intention and the result in sound
must be one and the same." 105 Abby Whiteside made the

105. Creston, Principles of Rhythm, 180.

 67

point crystal clear by stating, "Unless the audience can

listen easily without confusion, they simply do not

listen.,106

The next example illustrates an instance in a four-

voiced texture where playing the metric soprano line softer

will allow the Regular Subdivision in the alto, and the

Regular Subdivision Overlapping in the tenor and bass to be

heard.

Example 5-25. Creston Prelude No. 1,

measures 8-9.

In some instances of polyrhythm, two voices or parts

have the same rhythmic structure, while the third voice or

part has a differing one. In these cases, the rhythmic

structure in minority should be emphasized to the degree

that it has also has clarity.

In example 5-26, the 3/8 meter in the middle voice

should work against the 5/8 in the other two voices through

dynamic accents on the downbeats of each new implied meter.

106. Whiteside, op. cit., 12.

 68

The combination of pitch accents in the bass and the agogic

and embellished accents in the saxophone (plus the added

dynamic accents in both parts) could be enough to overpower

the rhythmic structure in the middle voice unless it too has

its structure emphasized.

Example 5-26. Creston Saxophone Sonata, 3rd movement,

measures 1-3.

A ~ t<Pa~:lJ Ff AL

Another example of polyrhythm in which the structure in

minority (12/16 in this case) should be emphasized follows:

Example 5-27. Creston Saxophone Sonata, 3rd movement,

measures 270-272.

I
I
I ~ I

1 1
- 11 1 1 ULTI fILr

_____________

3j(?

~'ect. 8' 3/g

 69

Superfluous accents in a polyrhythm can also conceal

the intended rhythm. This points up a disadvantage of

Creston's overlapping notation, for that which occurs

immediately after the bar line could easily be mistaken for

an accented beat by performers. Below are two examples of

polyrhythm in which the circles indicate where an accent

must not be placed.

Example 5-28. Creston Saxophone Sonata, 1st movement,

measures 112-113.

n
I -4/11-
/

0~1 w

If

Itu
I
I
T
I
I
-
I kc

9 19 EL ..r.0

Example 5-29. Creston Saxophone Sonata, 1st movement,

measures 7-8.

APO

tm TT I ff I Awpppr rff
+ M

Ll tJ6 I

ZIN.

I ===woo"

: F -L 4w -q -M M LA M
 70

PACE

Pace is defined by Creston as the rate at which the

pulses or units occur.1 0 7 It is usually determined by

weighing the tempo indication, if given, with the metric

signature and the note value used for the pulse and unit.

The way in which balkens group notes is also a helpful clue.

This is normally an easy process in strictly metric music.

However, in music where different structures are present and

pulses and beats do not always concur, the rate of the beats

themselves can also be taken into consideration, particulary

if the melody is found in that structure.

In the opening measure of the first Prelude, there are

three pulses but what Creston would call four beats in the
highest voice.

Example 5-30. Creston Prelude, No.1,

measure 1.

sempre legato

107. Creston, Principles of Rhythm, 27.

 71

Each beat has a dotted eight note value, but the balken

joining the beats implies a grouping of 2+2 . From this we

might assume that there is a feeling of two beats per

measure rather than four. The pace must be quick enough to

achieve the 2+2 grouping rather than 1+1+1+1.

In example 5-31, the beats in the overlapping structure

have a dotted quarter note value. Each phrase rhythm

contains four of these beats; therefore, a sense of

the rate at which this grouping of four beats might occur

in the specified fast tempo should be taken into account.

Example 5-31. Creston Prelude No. 3,

measures 1-3.

lm L.001 A&-I- --Will

-4 L I
tj
expressively 47

tip

CHAPTER SUMMARY

The suggestions above can do no more than give general

guidelines in approaching the interpretation of rhythm. The

fact remains that any two pianists attempting to accomplish

the same effect, given the same comprehension of rhythmic

structure, will produce two entirely different performances.
Furthermore, an intellectual comprehension and a seemingly
 72

lucid execution of structure may not actually dispel

rhythmic ambiguity. As Wallace Berry conclusively stated:

rhythmic structure is only rarely . . . unambiguously

expressed. Significant ambiguity in metric structure,
apart from conditions of gross accentuation and obvious
impulse function, is unavoidable, given the extreme
range and complexity of relations among the parameters
of musical accent. For accentual values are of a scope
potentially involving every element of musical
structure; and the evaluation of relative accentual
values is not just a matter of discerning and listing
those factors, it is a matter of making- difficult
judgments respecting their relations of effect. 1 0 8

In fact, a performer relies heavily upon instinct and

intuition at the very moment of execution, so that

regardless of the extent of preliminary planning, no two

performances by the same performer are alike. Tobias

Matthay, famed piano pedagogue, stressed this point:

"rhythm must be a NEW THING every time a piece is played.

It must be done--made--at that very instant, and must not

occur automatically.1"1 0 9

108. Berry, Musical Structure and Performance, 417-418.

109. Tobias Matthay, The Visib1e and the Invisible in Piano

TechnigUe (London: Oxford Univ. Press, 1932), 174.
 CHAPTER VI

CONCLUSIONS

The rhythmic structures created by composers of the

latter part of the twentieth century have become

increasingly complex, with the result that rhythmic notation

of earlier centuries has become more and more confining for

the composer. 1 1 0 Electronic equipment has offered the

composer an immediacy and a control over intricacies on a

111
level that he has never before experienced.

Paul Creston's rhythmic theories, first formulated

approximately fifty years ago, do not consider music whose

110. Two trends may be observed in how composers are dealing

with the difficulties in executing their rhythms. One
is a movement toward a more human,improvisatory
approach. Gardner Read suggests that:

"hypercomplex rhythms that are virtually impossible

to notate simply and lucidly may be best achieved
by discarding all pretense at mathematical accuracy
and by allowing controlled freedom to produce the
intricacies desired."

Gardner Read, Modern Rhythmic Notation (Bloomington:

Indiana Univ. Press, 1978), 176.

111. The other approach is a reliance upon technology for a

more mechanistic solution. "Technology has changed
the essence of music," writes Jonathan Kramer. "It has
created a fundamentally new aesthetic of musical time,
an aesthetic that has begun to produce beautiful and
exciting music." Jonathan Kramer,, The Time of Music
(New York: Schirmer Books, 1988), 79.

The traditional triangle of composer-performer-

listener is altered by the exclusion of the performer
in music technologically created.

73
 74

nor do they take into

rhythms are produced technologically,
account twentieth century devices such as serialized rhythm,
rhythms.
metric modulation, or Messaien's "ametrical"
Neither was Creston able to revolutionize notational

practices or rhythmic theory. His unique contribution,

a
however, was a compositional approach rather than

theoretical approach to the discussion of rhythmic

to the
structure, making the study of rhythm more accessible

performer.
It is hoped that through the understanding of a system

fo recognizing and interpreting rhythmic structures, the

over
reader will have acquired tools to carry this knowledge

to music of other composers and music of earlier centuries

as well, with the ultimate goal of true and effective

interpretation.
APPENDIX

75
 76

TERMINOLOGY

Agccet that element of rhythm which makes

prominent or emphasizes a pulse or beat

beams that connect note values such as

eight notes and sixteenth notes

Segt Rhythmic beat. The actual sounded note

or chord in all extrametrical rhythms,

that is rhythms based on any of the

rhythmic structures.

Binary Meter primary units of each pulse are two

(traditionally called simple meter)

Compositional Rubato a seeming alteration of pace through

pattern

C-ompoun dpa tterg r a pattern that changes

 77

Dimeter metrical structure is a frame of two

measures

Extrametrical not metrically implied or not indicated

in the metric signature

when pulses are not always of equal

value

the grouping of pulses or units within a

single measure or a frame of two or more

measures

(Second Definition) - the measurement of

duration by pulses or units

Metrical Sequence when a multimeter follows a regular

pattern of change

Metrical Rhythm when pulses are always of equal value

Honometer metrical structure (grouping of pulses)

is within a frame of one measure.

a rhythm which changes meter every

measure or every few measures

 78

Multirhythm the use of two or more rhythmic

structures or configurations of
structures in one piece

Irregular Pattern non-metrical subdivision of a pulse

the rate at which the pulses or units of

a meter occur

any subdivision of a pulse or beat into

smaller units

Phrase Rhythm the rhythm of a phrase regardless of bar

lines

a rhythm which employs two or more

meters simultaneously

Polyrhythm simultaneous use of two or more

structures or configurations of

structures

The metrical beat

Regular Pattern normal metrical subdivision of a pulse

 79

Rhythm the organization of duration

in ordered movement

Simple Pattern a pattern that is repeated

TyncapaMter the shifting of traditional accents in a

measure which may be expressed by any

means of accentuation in any meter

Tegrn ry Meter primary units of each pulse are three

(traditionally called compound meter)

metrical structure is a frame of three

measures

Unit The subdivision of a pulse or beat into

smaller fractions of duration than the

pulse or beat. The fractions of a pulse

are termed metrical units. The
fractions of a beat are termed rhythmic

units.
 REFERENCE WORKS

Bernstein, Seymour. With Your Own Two Hands. New York:

Schirmer Books, 1981.

Berry, Wallace. "Metric and Rhythmic Articulation in

Music," Music Theory Spectrum, 7 (1985)., 7-33.
. Musical Structure and Performance. New Haven

&
London: Yale University Press, 1989.
. Structural Functions in Music. Englewood
Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall Inc., 1976.

Camp, Max W. "Rhythmic Control and Musical Understanding,,"

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Sesguialtera, and Hemiola (1450-1750). Ph.D.
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. Rational Metric Notation: The Mathematical

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._ "The Structure of Rhythm," Clavier, Nov. 1971, 15-

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80
 81

Jensen, Ginger Anne. The Performance Interpretation of Paul

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Smith, Charles J. "Rhythm Restratified, " Perspectives of

New Music, 16/1 (1977), 144-176.

Smither, Howard E. "The Rhythmic Analysis of 20th Century

Music," The Journal of Music Theory, 8/1 (1964), 54-88.
 82

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(November, 1985), 32-33.

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Yeston, Maury. The Stratification of Musical Rhythm. New

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