La ciclicità nella 'Sonata per violino' di César Franck: una revisione critica del concetto di 'principe cyclique' di Vincent d'Indy

Abstract

Vincent d'Indy was the first to describe César Franck's principe cyclique in detail. However, his analysis, published in the Cours de composition, is sometimes inexact and often one-sided. To underline the cyclic interconnection d'Indy uses metaphors of architecture, literature and biology which are meant to illustrate the identity of themes resumed in different facets. In many respects his often quoted analysis of Franck's violin sonata shows defects which require a correction: contrasting with d'Indy, the motifs x, yand z figured out in his analysis belong to different layers of the setting; the transformations of themes have to be considered concerning their function and degree; furthermore d'Indy omits some themes which are also important for the cyclic construction and must therefore be added. As a corrective, this article develops some categories which are to analyse thematical recapitulations (reminiscences, quotations and transformations of themes) in Franck's violin sonata. These categories show some affinities to techniques of literary connection, they are geared to a psychological logic of remembrance and association and indicate the specific concept of time on which Franck's principe cyclique is based: a concept of stagnation and memory contrasting with a teleological development that cannot be integrated.