Welcome to the website of the book The Music of Leoš Janáček: Motive, Rhythm, Structure (University of Rochester Press).  The book is a chronologically arranged theoretical exploration of Janáček's musical structures, identifying elements and processes that give the music coherence, character, and interest.
        The musical analyses are motivically centered and employ various analytical approaches, including ones that involve reduction, structural levels, basic set theory, and rhythmic theory. Discussions of Janáček's works with a libretto or other type of text consider relationships between word and music, revealing their connection to deeper structural issues.

​

There are ten chapters:

​

1.     Janáček’s Motives

2.     Musical Elements

3.     Nineteenth-Century Foundation

4.     Folk Studies

5.     Jenůfa

6.     Middle-Period Works

7.     The Cunning Little Vixen

8.     The Wandering Madman

9.     First String Quartet

10.   Three Rhythmic Studies

​

The site features audio versions of selected musical examples from the book, as well as another chapter and one autograph image.  Audio examples are presented via YouTube videos, CD extracts, or as MIDI versions.  The captions show the starting time of the excerpt in italics if the excerpt is not from the beginning of the video.  Please note that the site may not work well with a mobile device.

​