Interpolation (music)
Encyclopedia
Interpolation in music refers to an abrupt change in musical elements from the main theme.

In classical music

In music
Music
Music is an art form whose medium is sound and silence. Its common elements are pitch , rhythm , dynamics, and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture...

 and musical composition
Musical composition
Musical composition can refer to an original piece of music, the structure of a musical piece, or the process of creating a new piece of music. People who practice composition are called composers.- Musical compositions :...

, especially 20th century and later, interpolation is an abrupt change of elements
Aspect of music
An aspect of music is any characteristic, dimension, or element taken as a part or component of music.-European music:The traditional musicological or European-influenced aspects of music often listed are those elements given primacy in European-influenced classical music, so 7 basic elements of...

, with (almost immediate) continuation of the first idea. Pieces which are cited as featuring interpolation, among other techniques
Musical technique
Musical technique is the ability of instrumental and vocal musicians to exert optimal control of the their instrument or vocal cords in order to produce the precise musical effects they desire. Improving one's technique generally entails practicing exercises that improve one's muscular sensitivity...

, are Music for Brass Quintet by Gunther Schuller
Gunther Schuller
Gunther Schuller is an American composer, conductor, horn player, author, historian, and jazz musician.- Biography and works :...

 and Threnody: To the Victims of Hiroshima by Krzysztof Penderecki
Krzysztof Penderecki
Krzysztof Penderecki , born November 23, 1933 in Dębica) is a Polish composer and conductor. His 1960 avant-garde Threnody to the Victims of Hiroshima for string orchestra brought him to international attention, and this success was followed by acclaim for his choral St. Luke Passion. Both these...

, both (1960–61).

For music of the Classical period
Classical period (music)
The dates of the Classical Period in Western music are generally accepted as being between about 1750 and 1830. However, the term classical music is used colloquially to describe a variety of Western musical styles from the ninth century to the present, and especially from the sixteenth or...

, interpolation is defined in the context of a musical sentence
Sentence (music)
In western musical theory, the term sentence is used in connection with musical spans towards the lower end of the durational scale; i.e. melodic or thematic entities well below the level of 'movement' or 'section', but above the level of 'motif' or 'phrase'...

 or period
Period (music)
In music, a period is a group of phrases consisting usually of at least one antecedent phrase and one consequent phrase totaling about 8 measures in length . Generally, the antecedent ends in a weaker and the consequent in a stronger cadence; often, the antecedent ends in a half cadence while the...

 as, "unrelated material inserted between two logically succeeding functions
Diatonic function
In tonal music theory, a diatonic function is the specific, recognized role of each of the 7 notes and their chords in relation to the diatonic key...

."

This device is commonly used to extend what would normally be a regular phrase
Phrase (music)
In music and music theory, phrase and phrasing are concepts and practices related to grouping consecutive melodic notes, both in their composition and performance...

 into an irregular and extended phrase. Such expansion by interpolation is achieved by the addition of extra music in the middle of a phrase (commonly through the use of sequence
Sequence (music)
In music, a sequence is the immediate restatement of a motif or longer melodic passage at a higher or lower pitch in the same voice. It is one of the most common and simple methods of elaborating a melody in eighteenth and nineteenth century classical music...

). A clear example exists in the second movement of Mozart's Piano Sonata No. 10, K.330
Piano Sonata No. 10 (Mozart)
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's Piano Sonata No. 10 in C major, K 330 is among one of the three works in the cycle of piano sonatas K.330-332. The sonata was composed in 1783, when Mozart was twenty-seven years old...

.

Formerly, in the sung portions of the Mass
Mass (liturgy)
"Mass" is one of the names by which the sacrament of the Eucharist is called in the Roman Catholic Church: others are "Eucharist", the "Lord's Supper", the "Breaking of Bread", the "Eucharistic assembly ", the "memorial of the Lord's Passion and Resurrection", the "Holy Sacrifice", the "Holy and...

, such as the introit or kyrie, it was permissible, especially during the medieval period, to amplify a liturgical formula by interpolating a farse (from Medieval Latin farsa, forcemeat), also called trope
Trope (music)
A trope or tropus may be a variety of different things in medieval and modern music.The term trope derives from the Greek τρόπος , "a turn, a change" , related to the root of the verb τρέπειν , "to turn, to direct, to alter, to change"...

. This might consist of an explanatory phrase or verse, usually in the form of an addition or paraphrase, often in the vulgar language.

In the classical suite
Suite
In music, a suite is an ordered set of instrumental or orchestral pieces normally performed in a concert setting rather than as accompaniment; they may be extracts from an opera, ballet , or incidental music to a play or film , or they may be entirely original movements .In the...

, consisting strictly of the allemande, courante, saraband and gigue, composers often interpolated a gavotte, bourrée, minuet, musette or passepied.

In popular music

Interpolation has been used by one artist to refer to the addition of new material in a performance or recording of a previously existing piece of music.

In rap music


In rap music, interpolation refers to using a melody – or portions of a melody (often with modified lyrics) – from a previously recorded song, but re-recording the melody instead of sampling
Sampling (music)
In music, sampling is the act of taking a portion, or sample, of one sound recording and reusing it as an instrument or a different sound recording of a song or piece. Sampling was originally developed by experimental musicians working with musique concrète and electroacoustic music, who physically...

it.

External links

  • WhoSampled - a user-generated database of interpolations and samples in all types of music.
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