In analyzing music it is best to begin with a clear-cut system. or
plan. This plan must be modified according to the nature of the work being
analyzed, but it should have some features generally applicable to nearly
all kinds of music. This chapter will be devoted to outlining such a system.
Any piece of music can be examined first in very fine detail, then in
somewhat larger dimensions, and finally in terms of the total work. For
descriptive analysis at these levels, let us use the terms (1) microanalysis,
(2) middle-analysis, and (3) macroanalysis. Analysis at these three levels comprises the step of descriptive analysis mentioned in Chapter l the first basic
analytical operation.