The Concept of Ausweichung in Music Theory, ca. 1770-1832

Abstract

In this essay I should like to address a misconception among some present­ day writers who equate the late eighteenth- and early nineteenth-century German concept of Ausweichungwith the modern notion of modulation. One typical twentieth-century definition of modulation, from Arnold Schoenberg's the Structural Functions of Harmony, states that, "One should not speak of modulation unless a tonality has been abandoned definitely and for a considerable time, and another tonality has been established harmonically as well as thematically" (1968:19). Chromatic pitches intro­ duced in a less definite manner are treated as embellishments to diatonic members of the prevailing key. Thus, the designation "V of V" indicates a harmony that, while not strictly diatonic, may be considered within the pitch constellation of a key. Applying the modern notion of modulation retroactively to the work of theorists from the late eighteenth and the early nineteenth centuries can produce negative assessments like the following entry on Gottfried Weber in Damschroder and Williams' bibliography, Music Theoryfrom Zarlino to Schenker.