Investigation on Piano Variations in the 18th Century: Comparison Between Mozart’s Variations “Ah, vous dirai-je maman” K.265 and Beethoven’s c minor variations Wo.O.80

Chiao-Chun Chang(Qilu Institute of Technology Jinan)

Abstract

The variation form is one of the commonly used genres in Western classical piano music. Broadly speaking, in addition to the difficulty of playing technique, the most important thing is the characteristics of its creative composing. Theme & variations is a common variation form. The theme, the main theme, is represented in a different rhythmic pattern in each variation. Using different rhythmic patterns to create a theme requires the player's fundamental practice. This paper focuses on the origin, format, and composition of the variation form, and comparing Mozart’s Variations “Ah, vous dirai-je maman” K.265 with Beethoven’s c minor Variations Wo.O. 80.

 

Keywords

18th century, theme and variations, Beethoven, Mozart, piano

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DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.12345/jetm.v9i4.33806