Fragmentation
Breaking a motive into smaller cells and repeating them to build tension
Related
Fragmentation cuts a motive into ever smaller pieces: first its head, then two of its notes, finally a single interval or rhythmic cell. There is less material and more repetition, and the weight shifts from melody to drive. It is common in development sections.
Fragmentation often joins sequence, imitation and stretto: the shards pass through keys and voices, and at their smallest they usually reach a dominant preparation that pushes into the recapitulation. Beethoven's Fifth Symphony, first movement, is a classic case, hammering the four-note motive in ever smaller units.
Fragmentation is not diminution. Diminution shortens the note values while the motive's full outline remains; fragmentation shortens the unit itself and keeps only part of the motive. Ask whether the material has become faster or smaller; the two often coincide but are different ideas.
Sources
- 动机分裂的手段、与减值的区别及展开部用法，参 The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, "Fragmentation"；本文为原创表述
Used for fact-checking only; all prose is original.