Harmony

5 Comments to “Harmony”

1. 

   OllieOctober 24, 2011 at 12:22 pm

   This website is fantastic, please finish the chromatic harmony section, I’d love to learn more so I can use these techniques in my own compositions. Thanks!
2. 

   BobOctober 24, 2011 at 2:02 pm

   Hi Ollie,

   Thanks for your encouraging comment. I’m glad you find the lessons helpful. I’m sorry I haven’t finished the chromatic lessons yet. I’ve been delayed with other teaching and composing responsibilities. I hope to get back to these lessons soon. Thanks for your patience!
3. 

   TarzanNovember 7, 2011 at 10:27 pm

   I love your website,and i admire your generous behavior so much!
   Besides,I heve a few questions after reading the chord-progressions.pdf:
   1.Why is the first ‘I’ diffrent from the last one in the sequence ‘I-ii-V-I’ ?
   2.Why is the third in ‘vi’ doubled in the sequence ‘I-IV-V-vi’ ？
   3.Why is the progression ‘ii-V’ diffrent from the progression ‘I-IV’ in the sequence ‘I-vi-IV-ii-V-I’ ? And the both ‘I’ are the same here, not like the question 1 ?
   Although you said that there is no rules,but i still need some explanation.
   Thanks a lot! ^_^
4. 

   BobNovember 11, 2011 at 12:13 pm

   Hi Tarzan,

   I’m glad you like the website. Sorry it has take so long to get back to you, but I’ve had some physical issues that have kept me away for a while. These are all great questions, but a full explanation of the “why’s” is a bit beyond the scope of the online lessons. For a full explanation, I would refer you to a music theory textbook. I go into these aspects in the Materials of Music. However, let me see if I can address them for you here:

   1.Why is the first ‘I’ diffrent from the last one in the sequence ‘I-ii-V-I’ ?

   When moving from ii-V, we could keep the common tone (scale degree 2 [SD2]) and end up with the same voicing on the I chord, but this would result in an +2 from SD6 to SD7 in minor keys. Therefore, it is common, even in the literature, to use contrary motion with the bass when moving from a ii to a V, even in a major key.

   2.Why is the third in ‘vi’ doubled in the sequence ‘I-IV-V-vi’ ？

   In a deceptive cadence (V-vi) the third of the vi chord is doubled for two reasons: 1) The proper resolution of the leading tone (SD7) of the V chord, and 2) the 5th of the V chord (SD2) must move in contrary motion with the bass to avoid parallel 5ths. This procedure is very common in music literature. Notice also that the doubled third is actually SD1, the tonic scale degree, thus reinforcing the tonic-class character of the vi chord.

   3.Why is the progression ‘ii-V’ diffrent from the progression ‘I-IV’ in the sequence ‘I-vi-IV-ii-V-I’ ? And the both ‘I’ are the same here, not like the question 1 ?

   I’m not sure I understand the first part of your question. There is no “I-IV” in the “I-vi-IV-ii-V-I” progression.

   When moving from a I-ii in root position, such as the “I-ii-V-I” progression (your question one), the upper voices must move in contrary motion with the bass to avoid parallel fifths and octaves. In the “I-vi-IV-ii-V-I” progression, the first and last I chords end up in the same place because the first I does not go directly to a ii chord (requiring contrary motion with the bass).
5. 

   samuel ongeraNovember 12, 2011 at 5:22 am

   Am glad the lessons are so helpful to me.Thank you