The Complete Musician Chapter 4 Notes

The Complete Musician Chapter 4 Notes

Controlling Consonance and Dissonance: Introduction to Two-Voice Counterpoint

Harmonies are made of chords.
Chords are made of voices/parts

Voices can be Soprano/Alto/Tenor/Bass
Each one has it's own melody.
They form (mostly) consonances with other notes (dissonances too?)
outer voices = highest and lowest voices. most prominent. music is these two melodies with the bits in the middle filled in. they love to go in opposite directions. When they go the same way, imperfect consonances happen usually. 

Counterpoint = melody against melody
polyphony = multiple sounds
"Contrapuntal relationships depend
on two elements: (1) the behavior of consonant and dissonant intervals, and
(2) the harmonies implied by their interaction"
Man, Fux is great. Western Music is just a long line of people sucking on his dick.
cantus firmi (singular: firmus) = fixed songs
species = steps to move against CF???
note-against-note counterpoint = exactly what it sounds like = first-species counterpoint = 1:1 counterpoint
contrapuntal voice = the voice laid on top of the CF
second-species counterpoint = 2:1 counterpoint = 2 contrapuntal voices with 1 CF
... all the way up to fifth-species counterpoint

"Such harnessing of the horizontal plane in music (i.e.,
the linear, temporal domain) and the vertical plane in music (i.e., the spatial,
harmonic domain) is actually the goal of your entire theory studies."

First-Species Counterpoint

in this chapter there is not only the melodic intervals of the previous chapter, but now there is also harmonic intervals to worry about!! yay
apparently in 1st species you can only use consonant harmonic intervals (sounds a bit fishy)
"The source of successful counterpoint is the contrapuntal
motion that results from the combined play of voices"

Contrapuntal Motions

contrapuntal motion = the contours produced between two more more voices.
contrary motion = the movement of two voices in opposite direction. most independent
similar motion = the movement of two voices in the same direction
parallel motion = the movement of two voices in the same direction while staying at the same distance. very beautiful. not independent at all and takes away a lot of momentum. To reduce losses use inperfect intervals (3+6). Maximum of 3 consecutive uses.
Use all of these and Fux will be very pleased
parallel perfect interval = perfect->perfect of the same size. forbidden (Why?)
similar motion makes the music more dramatic. Best with imperfect consonances.
direct intervals (???)
do not approach perfect consonances with similar motion. use contrary motion EXCEPT if you step the high note to a perfect interval (5ths using this technique are called horn fifths)
smooth lines, leaps in one voice or the other, not both, avoid that shit. But if you do leap, change direction, just like with melody writing
the contrapuntal voice must begin on scale degree one, unless it's above the cf, in which case it can begin on scale degree 5
to end = cadence
counterpoint must end on an octave or unison. the second last interval must be between scale degrees two and seven, moving in contrary motion to the octave. in minor raise scale degree 7 (and 6 if it is before that (and so on?)

Rules and Guidelines for First-Species (1:1) Counterpoint

"What follows is a summary of the rules and guidelines for first-species counterpoint.
Rules are absolute and guidelines are suggestions. Rules create a
structural foundation for your piece; guidelines, when followed, create a more
aesthetically pleasing music surface.
Rule I Harmonic (vertical) intervals must be consonant (the perfect fourth
is a dissonance in two-voice counterpoint).
Rule 2 Parallel perfect intervals (unisons, fifths, and octaves) are forbidden.
Rule 3 Approach perfect consonances using contrary motion; the single
context in which similar motion is permitted occurs when the upper voice
moves by step to the octave or fifth.
Rule 4 Begin and end your counterpoint on i (unless the counterpoint appears
above the CF, when it may begin on S).
Rule 5 In minor, use the lowered form of 6 and 7; raise 7 to create a leading
tone only in the penultimate measure, and raise 6 when it precedes the
leading tone.
Guideline I Use step motion as much as possible in the contrapuntal voice,
with occasional skips (jumps of a third) or leaps (jumps of a fourth or
more) to add interest. Change direction and move by step after a leap.
Guideline 2 Since the goal of counterpoint is voice independence, use contrary
motion as much as possible. Parallel motion is restricted to imperfect
consonances; limit to three consecutive uses.
Guideline 3 Use imperfect consonances as verticalities when possible. Restrict
the use of octaves and fifths to only one or two within the exercise.
Guideline 4 Avoid two perfect consonances in a row since they create a
hollow sound (e.g., a fifth to an octave, or vice versa)."

Second-Species Counterpoint

in second-species counterpoint, there are two voices instead of one. these two voices are each twice as fast as the CF.
oblique motion = one voice moves, the other one doesn't
the downbeat must be a consonant, successive downbeats must not contain parallel fifths or octaves [it appears that the rules of 1:1 counterpoint apply to both the interplay of both voices and each voice individually]. The weak voice can now be consonant or dissonant (I need to revisit this, it appears to be referencing something I have no idea about)

Weak-Beat Consonance

move to it by step or skip
there is only one way of creating consonant step motion: 5-6 technique (moving from scale degree 6 to 5 or vice-versa) (but what about the perfect fourth?). If it keeps on going the second note is a consonant passing tone, or return, then it's a consonant neighbour tone
consonant skips and leaps must be consonant both with the cf and the previous melody note
apparently they occur within notes because when they occur on the accented beat it detracts from the flow of the line

Weak-Beat Dissonance

"the most important new feature" expressive, however it must be controlled
they're all unaccented passing tones
wait a second, can a note be consonant with one tone and dissonant with another?
the goal in second-species counterpoint is to include as many passing notes as possible

Beginning and Ending Second-Species Counterpoint

Second-species counterpoint must begin on 1 or, above the CF, 1, 3, or 5
it can be a half note or a half rest
the penultimate measure may be two half notes or a whole note

Rules and Guidelines for Second-Species Counterpoint

Rule 1 Strong beats must be consonant.
Rule 2 Avoid parallel perfect intervals between:
a. successive strong beats (downbeats).
b. weak beat and strong beat (upbeat and downbeat).
Rule 3 Avoid direct motion to perfect intervals from weak to strong beats.
Rule 4 The only permitted dissonance is the weak-beat passing tone (i.e.,
the dissonance must fill the space of a melodic third by step between two
downbeats).
Rule 5 The added voice must begin on i when it appears below the CF,
but it may begin on i, 3, or 5 when it appears above the CF. You may begin
with a half rest, and the penultimate measure may contain either one or
two pitches. The final measure must contain a whole note.
Rule 6 In minor, use the lowered form of 6 and 7; raise 7 to create a leading
tone only in the penultimate measure, and raise 6 if it precedes the
leading tone.
Guideline 1 Incorporate as many dissonant passing tones as possible.
Guideline 2 Use chordal skips to balance dissonant passing tones.
Guideline 3 Place leaps within, rather than between, measures.
Guideline 4 Label every interval, and mark each dissonant passing tone
with an asterisk.

Hearing Two-Voice Counterpoint

You are now ready to listen to and notate two-voice counterpoint examples. As
you learned when taking single-line dictation, it is important to postpone writing
any pitches until you understand the musical context in which they occur.
For example, if you listen to an eight-measure melody that you feel divides into
two units, and you have memorized the first unit (by being able to sing it), then
you are ready to write it down. Thus, always begin your listening with more general
and global considerations, leaving the details until later hearings.
As always, begin by quietly singing i, followed by the remaining scale
members to situate yourself in the key; then listen to the first playing of the example.
When listening to examples with multiple voices, focus on the following
elements:
1. The opening and closing scale degrees in each of the two lines.
2. The motion of the individual lines and whether they are predominately
by step or by leap.
3. The harmonic intervals formed by the two parts. Listen for consonance
and dissonance and how dissonance is approached and left.
Another strategy you might wish to use (at least in the initial stages of notating
two-voice counterpoint) is to concentrate on individual lines. Of course,
this method somewhat defeats the goal of hearing multiple voices simultaneously.
However, if you can sing an entire line and notate it and then tum to
hearing how lines combine (begin with short units of one or two measures),
you will soon be able to hear these two voices simultaneously.
Before you listen to two-voice lines, keep in mind the following tips and remember
that notation is the last step, not the first.
1. Be prepared. Make sure you understand and anticipate clues, such as
the key, the mode, and the number of measures in the example.
2. Trust yourself It is a common mistake to write down an answer and
then to assume it is wrong. More often than not, your initial impressions
are correct.
3. Play the odds. A great deal of successful hearing is accomplished by
means of informed guessing. For example, if you are trying to determine
the final pitch of a melody but you know only that "it sounded
convincing," you can rely on the odds that it is probably i, since passages
close there more often than on any other scale degree.
4. Listen actively and with a goal. Many times you might want music's dramatic
power and beauty simply to wash over you. But taking dictation
requires thoughtful, concentrated listening and parsing of the music into intelligible units. Tonal music is built on a specific grammar and
syntax that create powerful aural expectations. Thus, it moves forward
in goal-oriented, predictable units. Always listen for the general,
larger musical context, and then listen for the details.