Formal Functions of Sonata Form A Contribution to Sonata Theory based on a Critique of William E. Caplin's Understanding of Formal Functions

This essay offers a critical view of a frequently adopted understanding of the term >formal function<, which had been established in North America in response to the theories of Erwin Ratz. Applying this critical view to the formal functions >main theme<, >transition<, >subordinate theme<, and >closing section<, an alternative concept for the musical analysis of sonata form is developed and illustrated with compositions from the second half of the eighteenth century and the early nineteenth century.