Network-theoretic analysis and the exploration of stylistic development in Haydn's string quartets

Abstract

Mathematical methods, specifically Network Theory, are used here to investigate musical complexity as a marker of stylistic development. Proceeding from the premise that an 18th century classical composer's musical language becomes more complex over time, we suggest that this method, insofar as it quantifies and graphically represents complexity, could be a useful tool for exploring musical style, compositional maturity, and also issues of authorship or chronology. As a preliminary study of this concept, we chose a sample of six minuet movements (and one scherzo) from Haydn's string quartets from throughout his career, and analysed the melodic content of the first violin part. This intentional limitation to a small sample of works in a single genre whose authorship and chronology are beyond question allows us to focus on fundamental issues of musical content, and how that might develop and change during the period in which the works were composed.