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AS Music
A student guide to Unit 3: Developing Musical Ideas
Section C: Understanding Chords & Lines
IntroductionPart 1
Name:
3Introduction to SATB
4The primary triads
5The dominant chord
6The subdominant
7Melody & harmony: primary triads
7Passing notes
9The secondary triads
10Melody & harmony: primary & secondary triads
11Chord substitution
11Voicing a chord
12Spacing
13Part movement
13Parallel movement
14Awkward leaps
14Leading notes
15Exercises
16Answers
17Inverting chords
17Vocal ranges
18Cadences
18The perfect cadence
18II7b V(7) I
18Ic V(7) I
19Harmonising cadences II7b V(7) - I
20Harmonising cadences Ic V(7) - I
21Inversions
24Harmony exercises
26Harmonic analysis
Introduction to SATB
The primary triadsEach degree of scale can be identified either as a number or a name. Here is C major:
On each degree of scale it is possible to build a triad, or chord. Chords built on the tonic, subdominant and dominant are known as primary triads and are the most common triads in Western music. Chords are generally numbered using Roman numerals:
Each of the primary triads in a major key is a major triad, a major triad comprising a major third (four semitones) and a minor third (three semitones)It is possible to harmonise any melody in a diatonic major key using the primary triads. Identify which degrees of scale are present in the primary triads of C Major:
So all degrees of scale are represented in the primary triads.
The dominant chord
The dominant chord has a very strong pull towards the tonic triad:
The leading note leads upwards to the tonic by the smallest interval, a semitone The supertonic has a leaning downwards to the tonic but by the weaker interval of a tone. The supertonic also has a leaning upwards to the mediant
The dominant note is a component of the tonic triad
A chord progression of V I at the end of a phrase is known as a perfect cadence. In a V I progression the essential direction of the chord is upwards.The subdominant
The subdominant, as its name suggests, lies directly under the tonic and also has a strong pull to the tonic triad.
The supertonic note has a strong downwards pull to the mediant
The submediant falls to the dominant
The tonic is present in the subdominant triad
A chord progression of IV I at the end of a phrase is known as a plagal cadence. In a IV I progression the essential direction of the chord is downwards and is not as strong as the V I progression.Melody & harmony: primary triads
Using chords I, IV and V harmonise the following melodies by writing I, IV or V under each note. Begin and end with chord I.
Write out chords I, IV and VHarmonise the following by labelling the chords:1.
Passing notes
A passing note is a non harmonic note so do not harmonise. A passing note is where a note is placed between two melodic notes which are a third apart to cause a more fluent, conjunct movement. Here are two melodies; the first is a straight version, the second with passing notes. Add chord symbols to the second.
2.Write out chords I, IV and V
3.
Write out chords I, IV and V
The secondary triads
The secondary triads add colour and contrast to a harmonisation. In a major key the primary triads are major triads, whereas the secondary triads, II, III and VI are minor. A minor chord comprises a minor third (three semitones) plus a major third (four semitones).
Chord VII is a diminished chord (a minor third plus a minor third) which you are not required to use at this stage.
Here are the secondary triads in C major:
At this stage you will not be required to use chord III, so the secondary triads available to you are chords II, VI and VII Chord VII is a useful substitution for V.Melody & harmony: primary & secondary triads
Using chords I, IV, V, II and VI harmonise the following melodies by writing the chord symbol under each note. Begin and end with chord I.
1.
Write out all chords
2.
Write out all chords
Chord substitution
It should now be clear that a note can be harmonised by a number of chords within the key. Here is a chart that details how each chord relates to others within the scale.
Voicing a chord
The triad by definition if a chord consisting of three individual notes. You are being asked to complete a harmonisation for SATB choir which requires four notes so one will have to be doubled or used twice. At this stage you will be asked to double the root or name of the chord. Here is a C major chord.
By doubling the root of the chord you are ensuring that the chord is balanced and stable. Doubling the third in a major chord will fundamentally alter the balance of the voices within the chord and may disrupt the contrapuntal flow of your setting. However there are a few exceptions:
You may double the third of a minor chord
You must double the bass note in a cadencial Ic chord (more of this later)
You can double the fifth of a chord You must always have the root and third in a chord but it is possible to omit the fifth In a diminished chord you must double the third
It is possible to have a momentary doubling of a third in a major chord to justify part movement and will happen quite naturally if you have a walking bass. The following example has a descending soprano with the bass in contrary motion.
Spacing
The tenor and bass sound good when in close proximity at the upper part of the bass range The tenor and bass sound murky when in close proximity at the lower part of the bass range
Do not have a large gap between the soprano and alto (crossing parts) Do not let the alto part rise above the soprano Do not let the tenor part rise above the alto
Do not let the bass part rise above tenorPart movement
Ac fair percentage of your assessment will be concerned with style and good part movement is an essential feature of idiomatic setting. Bear in mind that you are writing for voices and that voices move with greater ease when in conjunct or scalic motion. If you allow your inner voices to move to the nearest available note you will not only be writing in a more stylistically correct manner but you will also avoid consecutive octaves and fifths.
Part movement in SATB settings is governed by the roles assigned to each part. The soprano carries the melody, which for the purpose of the unit, is fixed and cannot be changed
The alto should be very rudimentary and is for harmonic use
The tenor should be very rudimentary but works well moving with the bass in its upper register
The bass is a dynamic part and should be the most interesting partParallel movement
Parallel motion between parts is unavoidable but you must avoid:
Parallel motion where two voices are at an interval of a perfect fifth
Parallel motion where two voices are at an interval of a perfect octave
Parallel fifths between the bass and tenor:
Parallel octaves between the soprano and tenor:Awkward leaps
As states earlier, let your inner parts move in a conjunct motion as the aesthetic of good SATB setting is to be seamless and balanced so movement by strong intervals such as tritones, sevenths and ninths should be avoided. Your inner parts need not leap more than a perfect fourth. Large intervals within an octave are good in the bass: 8ve, 6th, 5th and 4th.Leading notes
Ascending towards a leading note will require the leading note to resolve onto the tonic. This resolution is what the ear expects and the effect of an unresolved leading note can be exasperating and lead to imbalance in your harmonisation. However, when a melody descends from the supertonic to the tonic and the bass moves from the dominant to the tonic your leading note will have to fall to the dominant:
If the leading note were to rise your canal chord will have three tonic notes and will not be balanced. The soprano falling to the tonic will create the aural illusion of resolution to the tonic. Exercises
How to check for parallel motion.
1. Chord 1: identify the octaves/fifths within the chord
2. Chord 2: identify the octaves/fifths within the chord
3. If the octave/fifth is in the same voices as chord 1 there are parallel intervals
Answers overleaf.
Find parallel fifths and octaves in the following harmonisations. There are two errors in each exercise.1.
2.
3.Answers
1.
2.
3.Inverting chords
A chord in root position is a chord which has the name of the chord in the bass:
b denotes a chord is in first inversion, with the third in the bass
c denotes a chord is in second inversion, with the fifth in the bassVocal ranges
You will be writing for a standard choir of sopranos, altos, tenors and basses. The ranges you will be using will be idiomatic and practicable and the following is a useful guide.Soprano
Alto
Tenor
BassHowever, in an SATB setting for examination purposes the soprano line is set and the inner parts, the also and tenor, should be restricted to a narrow band at the top of their ranges. The bass should be the most active and musically interesting.Cadences
The perfect cadence
A cadence is a chord progression which is used at the end of a phrase which brings the melody and harmony to a close or resolution. The first cadence we will be studying is the perfect cadence or a cadence based on the chords V I. This is the most striking of cadences and brings with it a definite sense of finality. Common examples of the perfect cadence are:II7b V(7) I
Ic V(7) I
Note how the use of a seventh in chord V is optional.
II7b V(7) I
Ic V(7) I
Note how the bass note is doubled in chord Ic, not the root. The octave leap in the bass is a stylistic requirement for this cadence.
Harmonising cadences II7b V(7) - IWrite out chords II7b, V7 and I
1.
2.
Harmonising cadences Ic V(7) - I
Write out chords Ic, V7 and I. Remember that the bass is to be doubled in chord Ic.
The Ic V7 I is also known as the 6/4 cadence where the notes which are a sixth and a fourth above the bass fall to the 5th and third of the following chord:
1.Add the bass part first.
Add the bass part first.
InversionsSinse rhe early Baroque period Western art music has been preoccupied with the conceiving music vertically (harmonically) from the bass upwards. The basic tools for this are the seven degrees of the scale and the harmonised which can be built from these degrees. With each chord comes colour, but using chords in root position that is with the root note of the chord in the bass has its disadvantages: The ear may tire of a limited harmonic range
Some parallel motion, such as the progression IV V, will be difficult to avoid
The bass may become heavy handed or repetitive
The choral melodies harmonised by Bach were often old liturgical chants and were often dull, such as chorale number 208
To make the music more spiritually and aesthetically interesting, Bach found it necessary to liberate the bass by treating the bass as a countermelody and so making chordal inversions unavoidable.Here is a transcription of chorale setting no. 190.
Chords and inversions you will be using:I IbIc
IIIIb
IVIVb
VVb
VIVIbVIIbHarmony exercisesComplete the following. Add the bass part first.
1.
2.
3.
4.
Harmonic analysisLabel the following chords.
1.
Sketches
6th
4th
5th
3rd
PAGE 20 Nick Redfern 2008
www.nickredfern.co.uk
education@nickredfern.co.uk
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