The excerpt quoted above is the third and final verse of Schubert’s song, ‘Heidenröslein’ (The Wild Rosebud), 2/4 meter. The 3 verses of 16 measures each are identical, except, of course, for the text. In the autograph, Schubert wrote the music out only once, with the first verse of the poetry under the vocal line, while the text for verses 2 and 3 appears below the music in block form.
By far, the most typical rhythmic grouping for a 16-measure musical unit is (8 + 8), with each 8-measure phrase subdividing into (4 + 4). Perfect balance, proportion and symmetry operate within these parameters. [See the previous post - ‘Rhythmic Grouping: Symmetry’ - April 4, 2008].
The rhythmic grouping of ‘Heidenröslein’ is asymmetrical: [4 + 6 + 6], subdivided as [(2 + 2)] + [(2 + 2) + 2] + [(2 + 2) + 2]. The asymmetry exists on 2 levels: there are 3, not 2 (or 4) phrases, and the second and third phrases are expanded by way of a 2-measure extension. Clearly, the structure of the text has everything to do with the asymmetry of the music.
Other structural features of the song are worth noting: 1] a modulation to the dominant key takes place from measure 5 to 12; 2] there is a beautiful array of nonharmonic tones in the vocal line, including appoggiatura, passing tone, accented passing tone [on 2 different metrical levels], escaped tone, and accented neighboring tone; 3] strong dissonances occur in measure 9 between the vocal part and the top note of the piano part; 4] the highest note, G5, occurs in the vocal line of the following measures: 4 - root of the tonic, 10 - 7th of the dominant 7th of D major, 12 - root of the tonic, and 13 - 5th of the IV chord.
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