The Schenkerian analysis is now considered an important basic source for music theory, because his work started to be more discussed and people like Allen Forte started to write about his analysis methods. Allen Forte is discussing in this article Schenkerian ideas of a particular piece called Der Freie Satz and explains Schenker’s structural music levels . The first one is the Foreground which is the sketch of the piece but doesn’t include the note values, if he includes them they must be the ones that represent the value of the piece.
The middle ground which is followed by the forground is the procedure that reduces or gradually eliminates larger patterns. The last structural level is called background and controls the entire work, each of these levels expands from each other. Schenker also uses the background to explain the direct form of this fundamental structure which he uses with a three interval succession of the piece; the fundamental line and the bass arpeggiation , showing that there is a prolongation including diminutions in different parts of the piece.
Schenker’s analysis article also talks about form and combines prolongation with the normal linear progression of a sonata in a major mode, he says if the linear progression is interrupted it normally gives rises to a prolongation in the development which goes directly to V. Each of these musical levels can relate to the way that we normally study music, exposition, development and
