Sonata Theory - Sonata Types

Sonata Types

One fundamental choice that composers had in constructing a sonata form was how many rotations to employ. Sonata Theory recognizes five different Types of sonatas based on their rotational distribution. (The selection of sonata type is independent of the piece's internal rotational layout: a sonata of any type might have either a Continuous or a Two-Part exposition, for example.)

The Type 1 Sonata is a bi-rotational structure: it includes only an expositional rotation, followed immediately (or perhaps after a short link) by a recapitulatory rotation. This type, frequently employed in slow movements, therefore lacks a traditional development section.

The Type 2 Sonata is also bi-rotational, but the design of its second rotation is more complicated. (The first rotation is usually a standard exposition.) Instead of beginning the second rotation with the P-theme in the tonic, setting off a normal recapitulation, Type 2 sonatas replace the beginning of the rotation with material that seems like a traditional development (although, like most developments, this material is often based on P). At some point, this developmental material segues back into the normal rotational sequence, usually at some point during TR, but occasionally as late as the MC itself. Thus it often happens that the restoration of the tonic key in Rotation 2 is accomplished by the arrival of S. This has led other analysts to apply the term "reversed recapitulation" to this sonata type. Sonata Theory, in contrast, reserves the term "recapitulation" for instances in which the beginning of a rotation coincides with the return of the tonic key. Thus, the arrival of S in the middle of a Type 2 second rotation functions as a "tonal resolution" but not as the beginning of a recapitulation, because it does not initiate a new rotation.

The Type 3 Sonata is the traditional textbook design, including full exposition, development, and recapitulation, each of which has its own independent rotational design (although developments are often only half-rotational).

The Type 4 Sonata describes structures that others have referred to as sonata rondos. The key aspects of this sonata type include a retransition (RT) that concludes every rotation (following C space), a second (developmental) rotation that begins with P in the tonic, and an obligatory P-based coda following the recapitulatory rotation.

The Type 5 Sonata is the design employed by the first movement of most eighteenth-century concertos and is the most complicated sonata design. Although great variation exists between individual Type 5 movements, the most characteristic features of the Type 5 are an extra, initial, non-modulatory rotation for the orchestra alone and an alternation between blocks of music for the soloist and for the orchestra.