Formal structure and unexpected changes in the first movement of Samuel Barber's Opus 6 Cello Sonata

In this study, an analysis was carried out on the first movement of the Opus 6 Cello Sonata by Samuel Barber, one of the most prominent American composers of the 20th century, based on formal structure and unexpected changes. As a result of the literature survey, it is revealed that there are important differences between the sources examining the formal structure of the movement. For this reason, the movement was subjected to a formal analysis covering four sub-dimensions which have multiple stages. Then, the unexpected changes in the movement were examined by following two process steps. The results of the analysis reveal that there are 10 moments of unexpected changes in the movement. 7 (70%) of them have originated from the harmonic structure, 2 (20%) from the rhythmic structure, and 1 (10%) from the nuance level. Starting from this point of view, it is clearly seen that the composer utilized predominantly harmony in creating an unexpected moment of change.