Navigating Schemata and Hexachords: Case Studies from Solfeggi by Giuseppe Aprile

Abstract

This article is an analytical exploration of two solfeggio exercises by Giuseppe Aprile, which serve as case studies for the interaction between galant schemata (Gjerdingen, 2007) and eighteenth-century hexachordal solmization (Baragwanath, 2020). I draw on my prior work on the subschema level and the pitch-reductive aspect of schemata (esp. Rabinovitch, 2018, 2019, 2020). Taking hexachordal solmization syllables as an entry point highlights local soprano skeletal notes (schema core tones or hexachordal syllable notes) and their surface diminutions. This shifts our focus somewhat from the perspec tive of schema analysis, where complete schemata and their nesting potentials are often the focus of attention.