That said, the comparison can be even more profund when we consider musical structure in relation to speech structure.
When we return to the baroque period, we see two basic forms of simple voice and dance structures, Binary (two part) and Ternary (three part).
Binary structure is a piece of music in two sections, A and B. It is usually a dance movement and so the mood and feeling of the music remains the same throughout. In relation to speech structure in can be seen in terms of one theme, introduced, explored and then coming back to the opening theme once more.
For instance a speech on 'my mother's cooking' may start with memories of the family dinner, then explore all the exotic foods I have eaten from around the world, and then conclude that nothing quite beats mother's cooking.
In musical binary terms, Section A takes the listener from mother's cooking out into the wide world of other food experience; Section B takes us from those experiences back to mother's cooking.
As a speech structure it is very simple and very satisfying; it is not very profound, as all it does is 'inform' the audience about one theme or subject. This structure is not meant to challenge or confront. Like the Baroque dance movement it is there to please and entertain the listener.
Ternary structure is a piece of music in three sections, A, B and then A again (notice - not C). Although basic speech structure is seen in terms of 'Beginning, Middle and End', often the most satisfying speeches end where they started, back at the beginning. The difference between this and the binary structure is that in the 'middle section' we may go further afield in our exploring. In musical terms section B was used to contrast the two section A's (a typical traditional musical form would be a Minuet and Trio, where the Trio section contrasts with the opening minuet, which is then repeated after the Trio). So a simple speech about fishing could explore all the joys of peace and tranquillity experienced by the solitary, patient fisher of one's youth; section B would take you into another phase of the speakers life, - maybe when he moved to the big city and got involved in team sports like rugby or football and how they influenced his life; section A would then return to the tranquillity and love of fishing.
It's a useful opportunity for contrasting and comparing these two themes; dogs and cats - having explored both, you could then come to the conclusion (for instance) that cats are best.
Similarly to the A,B Binary structure, there is not necessarily a great sense of development in the material of the speech; the introduction of the first theme followed by a second theme and then a return to the introduction as a conclusion.
For more dramatic development we need to look at Sonata Form as the model. I would not attempt to go into great depth here, but classical sonata form is broadly a fusion of both Binary and Ternary forms and is defined in 3 sections; exposition; development and recapitulation. This allows us to deal with more complex and challenging issues, where the middle section allows us to really examine a challenging or controversial set of ideas and return to them at the end with new knowledge or perspective.
For instance; the speaker introduces the two apparently unrelated themes of politics and picking up his young son from nursery in section A; section B 'develops these ideas, compares and contrasts them, dissects them and re-evaluates (for instance comparing Prime Ministers Question Time to a playground fight; comparing childhood school drama to more profound political struggles). Therefore when we come back to the two themes again, we view them in a new and enlightened way.
Another example would be to start with the rhetorical question:
'Who believes lawyers are self interested and money-grabbing?'
If the audience agrees, then the development would explore the great personal sacrifice and dangerous work many lawyers do around the world defending peoples rights.
The speaker then returns to the question at the end:
'Who believes lawyers are self interested and money-grabbing?' The question is the same, but our understanding of it has changed.
The parallel between musical structure and speech structure is not intended to be taken too literally. An impressionist painting can not be compared point for point to impressionist music, however the comparisons are useful and stimulating if we are looking for better ways to express our ideas.
Author Resource:
The College of Public Speaking working with Edexcel have produced a unique BTEC Level 4 Professional Award in 'Training the Trainer'. Courses run regularly in London and the South-East and we welcome enquiries from around the country and abroad. For further details please contact us on the following links Train the Trainer Training Qualifications London
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