How the Great Composers Used Cadences | How Composers Use Series | The Soundtrack of History

This video provides a comprehensive exploration of various cadences in music, showcasing their roles in shaping musical structure and narrative. It begins by defining cadences as musical punctuation marks that signify the completion of musical phrases or sections, akin to full stops or commas in written language. The first type of cadence discussed, the Half Cadence, exemplified through Beethoven's Piano Concerto No. 4 and Mozart's Fantasia in C minor. Moving on, the video delves into different types of cadences, starting with the Plagal Cadence, which eschews the dominant chord for the subdominant chord to achieve a softer conclusion. Examples from Handel's "The Messiah," Brahms' Capriccio in B minor, and Debussy's "The Girl with the Flaxen Hair" are analyzed to illustrate this cadential form. Next, the video examines the Imperfect Authentic Cadence, demonstrated through Debussy's "Clair de Lune," and the Perfect Authentic Cadence, exemplified by Chopin's Nocturne in E flat and Beethoven's "Pathetique" Sonata. These cadences provide varying degrees of closure and resolution, with the Perfect Authentic Cadence offering a definitive sense of finality. The concept of the Deceptive Cadence is then elucidated, with examples from Beethoven's "Pathetique" Sonata and Chopin's Prelude No. 4 in E minor showcasing how composers delay resolution to heighten tension and drama. 0:00 Intro 0:10 What are Cadences? 0:50 What is a Half Cadence? 1:13 Where does the Half Cadence Originate from? 1:38 How Beethoven Uses the Half Cadence in Piano Concerto No. 4 2:41 How Mozart Uses the Half Cadence in Fantasia in Cm 4:13 Concluding Cadences (PAC, IAC, Plagal) 4:42 What is a Plagal Cadence? 5:06 Where the Plagal Cadence Originates from 5:32 How Handel Uses the Plagal Cadence in The Messiah 6:25 How Brahms Uses the Plagal Cadence in Capriccio in Bm 7:31 How Debussy Uses the Plagal Cadence in Th Girl with the Flaxen Hair 8:41 What is a Imperfect Authentic Cadence? 9:27 How Debussy Uses the Imperfect Authentic Cadence in Clair de Lune 10:39 What is a Perfect Authentic Cadence? 11:13 How Chopin Uses the Perfect Authentic Cadence in Nocturne in Eb 12:26 How Beethoven Uses the Perfect Authentic Cadence in the “Pathetique” Sonata 13:56 What is a Deceptive Cadence? 15:05 How Beethoven Uses the Deceptive Cadence in the “Pathetique” Sonata 16:19 How Chopin Uses the Deceptive Cadence in Prelude No. 4 in Em 17:28 Outro