Menuet Vs G Major Essay

The Menuets from Bach’s Cello Suite No. 1 in G Major explores the tonality of G Major and what can be done to make it sound engaging, dance-like, and captivating. Both Menuet I and Menuet II function as individual movements, yet they contribute to and complement one another. Both explore different rhythmic patterns and tonal aspects, all the while staying and maintaining in the same realm of G Major. I will be talking about rhythm and how it drives the melody forward, shift of tonality and tonicization and how it materializes the movements, and cadences and pauses and how it balances characters from both Menuets. The first point I like to discuss is rhythm. The rhythm helps make the line light and dance-like. In the first Menuet, Bach explores …show more content…
Although cadences and pauses are not the same as rhythm and tonality, they connect and correlate to one another. The notes presented have been discussed earlier in the paper; however, I want to discuss more about cadences as it should stand on its own thought process. Cadences indicate closure. Generally, they are present at the end of a movement, a repeat, or a phrase. In Bach’s case with both Menuets, cadences occur in all three situations, which is typical. There are some instances, nonetheless, that feel like a cadence, but it is not quite there. Sometimes, the phrase keeps going. Sometimes, the notes of the movement take a break, only for a brief while. Whatever the case, they do not qualify as a cadence because it lacks complete closure, yet there exists a pause, some sort of breath mark, to suggest a “pit stop.” These “pit stops” give time for the performer to not necessarily stop (as this insinuates a total break) but rather a yield, surrendering just a little bit of time. Additionally, the “pit stops” provide the listener a mental break by cleaning the auditory palate. In both Menuet I and Menuet II, cadences are the complete stop, while the pauses are the “cruising stop” that keeps