A Response: My Contour, Their Contour

Abstract

Although the subject of contour has been relatively neglected by theorists, two systematic articles with differing terminology and somewhat differing underlying concepts have appeared in this journal during the past year and a half.' For readers who wish to grapple with the applicability of the concepts to both analysis and composition, it seems appropriate to summarize and briefly discuss both situations where different names for the same phenomenon are being used and where different, even irreconcilable concepts are involved. To a great extent, analysts may want to piece together different aspects of the two methodologies, depending on the music under discussion, or the type of composition being generated.