Variation 6

Allegro 
6/8 time

In Variation 6 the clamour and  excitement begun by Variation 5 becomes a swirling rush of arpeggios. The 6/8 time set up a fast pace which is emphasized by triplets for each beat, resulting in eighteen notes per bar.

In the opening section descending arpeggios in the right hand are punctuated by pairs of low bass staccato notes, each pair hopping upward. The top treble note of each triple spells out a melody.

The middle section steadily builds toward a climax, the left hand now joining the right in counterbalancing triplets, the right hand in falling triplets, the left in rising. The melody moves upward to the climax, marked fortissimo, for which the bass holds a dotted-half-note octave at G.

The final section begins with a repeat of the opening two bars, again the bass punctuating the arpeggios with staccato pairs. For three bars the arpeggios move upward into new harmonies, then for three bars they fall into a quiet murmuring around F and G. The final three bars build to another climax, which ends with the arpeggios descending again.

The extreme excitement of Variations 5 and 6 demand respite and seem to bring to a close one part of the overall structure of the work.