The “alte Weise” melody for solo cor anglais from the beginning of Act III of Tristan und Isolde is submitted to a double analysis. First, it is treated by the techniques of Jackendoff's and my A Generative Theory of Tonal Music, yielding a prolongational structure that resembles a Schenkerian analysis even though it is based on contrasting principles. In the course of this analysis connections are made to other passages in Tristan. Second, the melody is treated according to schematic phrasal norms, yielding surface and underlying phrasal forms. Nattiez's paradigmatic approach is then adapted to demonstrate the underlying phrasal-prolongational coherence of the melody as a whole.
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