(Ger. Kopfmotiv).
A musical idea which by virtue of appearing at the beginning of each of a series of pieces or movements establishes a relationship between them. As a unifying feature of cyclic masses of the 15th to 17th centuries, it can be melodic, harmonic or rhythmic and is often a combination of these; it can be as short as a few notes or several bars long. Another term for it is ‘motto’, which Bukofzer preferred in his Studies in Medieval and Renaissance Music (New York, 1950).
DAVID FALLOWS