Invention (musical composition)

The musical form used in the teaching term Invention ( from Latin invenire - discover, invent, or inventio - incidence) is not clearly defined. It is in use since the mid 16th century and may have, among other things one of the following meanings:

• Substitute term for pieces of music, whose generic name is not specified,
• Pieces that are held for particularly imaginative or innovative.

In a narrower sense, the term Invention refers to pieces that are developed from a musical idea ( soggetto or theme ) out. So you are made of the incidence ( inventio ) and its subsequent elaboration ( elaboratio ). The issue is this handled differently, eg on the principle of imitation (imitation of the subject in a different voice ) sequence ( repetition of the theme on a different degree), transposition ( theme appears in a different key ), inversion, augmentation (enlargement of the note values ​​), diminution ( reduction of note values ), cleavage (only a part of the theme is used). Opponent of the topic in a different voice is the so-called counterpoint. The Invention is in two parts in the rule.

In Johann Sebastian Bach Invention is a two -voiced piano piece, in which the musical idea is processed polyphonic, see Inventions and Sinfonias.

• Musical genre