Scarlatti: Sonata in C Major K. 159 (banjo, Bela Fleck)

This fast paced Scarlatti Sonata, which sounds as if it is in a compound time signature, may be charactuerized by a number of repeating phrases and similar themes. The beginning measures display a repeated phrase, ending with a half cadence, followed by another repeated phrase with a cadential sort of extension ending with an expected authentic cadence. This first section oftthe song, A, could be called a double period, but it could also be repeated phrases or phrase groups. The melody in the first phrase of section A is mi-re-do-do-ti-la-la-ti-do(with a trill)-ti-ti. The accompanying harmony is only one other note during all of the A section of the piece. Section A is repeated before the piece directly modulates to c minor. In this section, B, the same rhythms are used as in Section A which creates a nice paralleling effect. During this section, as in section A the melody may be heard ver clearly. Most of the non-chord tones are passing or appoggiaturas that flow very smoothly in the fast paced melody. The left hand or in this case the accompanying banjoe strings may be heard playing blacked chords, unlike section A with the two harmonizing notes. Also, many V and I chords could be heard in Section A along with other classical sounding chord progressions, but section B definitly uses more varied chords. Section B seems shorter than A and the end of B uses a cadenza-ish run down the scale to return to the original major key. At this point section A comes back in, giving the piece a nice A-B-A form. Because B and A repeat, we could actually say the song is A-A-B-A-B-A. I enjoy this piece because of its upbeat tempo, modulation to the minor which isn't overly shocking, and it's overall happy/encouraging feel. The song is very nice on piano but is even better when performed by Bela Fleck on the banjoe. The plucked notes give the song even more bounce. In fact, it is a very short piece, and a listener should hear it a few times to gain full listening enjoyment! It helps that parts of the song are repeated, but they can still be missed. I like the rhythmic theme that is used throughout the song.