Chromatic third relations and symmetrical octave division into three or four equal parts consisting of major or minor thirds, as well as symmetrically constructed chords, were important structural elements of the music written in the second half of the 19th century. Theoretical research on these issues has been active since the end of the 19th century (mainly in the Riemannian functional harmonic theory tradition), but it has recently been invigorated by newer theories of harmonic structure and/or formal function (e.g. Imig, Lewin, Cohn, Hyer, Lerdahl, Kopp). The significance of symmetrical harmonic structures in Liszt’s mature works has also been explored in theoretical/analytical research by Todd, Skoumal, Cinnamon, Forte, et al. These papers examine the works’ deeper harmonic structures and identify the importance of chromatic thirds relations and the weakening of the dominant-to-tonic diatonic fifth relations, while they project their conclusions mainly through schenkerian reductional diagrams or chord charts and references to dualistic harmonic theories of the 19th century.
The present paper attempts the application of a combination of older and recent theories and analytical methodologies (focusing on Riemannian functional harmony, schenkerian/reductional theory, neo-Riemannian transformational theory and Tonal Pitch Space theory) to the analysis of Franz Liszt’s piano piece Il Penseroso from the collection Années de Pèlerinage – Deuxième Année: Italie. The analysis reveals that chromatic thirds and symmetrical harmony are core elements in the piece’s harmonic language, influencing both the surface linear chord progressions and the background tonal region relationships, as well as the work’s overall structural and morphological design. The piece’s deeper harmonic structure denotes the use of both the diatonic and the hyper-hexatonic systems, in reference to which the paths in tonal space are drawn schematically and calculated mathematically according to the Tonal Pitch Space theory. The clarification of the piece’s harmonic nature renders a holistic functional, structural and prolongational analysis of the work.