Remember, the rules are not to make it frustrating, but to guide us into smooth part writing. Completing these exercises is essentially to build up good habits. It does not mean the rules cannot be broken in the future!
I finished 2.1,2.2 and 3.1 yesterday. The third one sounds a bit boring imo and as the cantus firmus ends with g moving downwards to f the best way to resolve on a perfect consonance is f'1 in my eyes.😕
I also got a question. Since one of my current courses is the MA, Music Assistant, we are being taught basic music theory by a professional teacher and veteran musician. Yesterday he introduced the Class to intervals and he labeled the 4th as a perfect consonance, not a dissonance. I asked him about the behavior of a 4th and it's role in first species counterpoint, but he only got mad at me for confusing others with stuff I don't know about and is way to advanced for where we are at before he noticed I send it to him privately to not confuse others....🤷♂️😂😂
But who is right here? Is the 4th a perfect consonance or a dissonance now? Or why not an imperfect consonance? Or are there different cases that it depends on ?🤔
@Mark Phillip Marphy Horch Are you saying you ended 3.1 on the unison? I did so in some exercises, but not my 3.1: https://trinket.io/music/88250d4969
I'm glad you made your professor mad, it is a sign you are asking the right questions. It is certainly advanced if you explore this topic mathematically but it is important to ask why things are the way they are as early as possible, not just in music but all aspects of life.
There is a good explanation at the bottom of this page. As we move into species 2-5 it will become clearer why the 4th functions as a dissonance, but ultimately the composer is free to let their ears guide them in artistic choices.
Thanks for the article. I read through it. So as far as I understood, the fourth is dissonant when it's not supported by a lower, perfect or imperfect consonant. If the fourth is not the lowest, it's considered a consonance. This explains why on the slides of my teacher he wrote that a fourth is always!!! a perfect consonant. Since we got introduced to intervals, he taught us how they are build and named. Determining the degree so we know whether an Interval should be labeled as an augmented 2 or a diminished 3, we start counting from the lower note. Therefore a fourth will always have a supporting note below it. 😮
Uhm, no I didn't end on the unison for exercise 3.1 I went with the octave like you. But mine sounds less dramatic as yours. It almost reminded me of a kids carol 😅
1.1 and 1.2 look correct to me, though with the latter you would need to start with the unison or octave to properly establish we are using the Dorian scale.
2.2 - The rules of motion are correct here, too, but the same issue as 1.2. Your use of the G# to lead into A creates some nice harmony but it implies a change of mode or key. I am reluctant to call this a mistake since the voice leading is good, but let me explain the context:
The first note in the Cantus Firmus tells us what mode we are in (since we are not using keys). Exercise 1 was in Dorian (D to D without sharps/flats) and exercise 2 is in Phrygian (E to E without sharps/flats). To establish the mode properly, the 1st degree of the mode/scale should be in the bass at the start and end (just as you would use an F major chord at the beginning of a piece in F major). It is still possible to use a perfect 5th when the Cantus Firmus is in the lower part.
3.1 - Also looks correct. I think you resolved it well. In these exercises we should try to keep the flow of harmony as smooth as possible, so consider whether you are achieving this when you use oblique motion.
3.2 - You can apply the previous feedback here also. But all in all it looks like you are confident in your understanding of consonances and the rules of motion. I appreciate your time and effort, it will get more interesting soon!
@Hugo Clarke Thanks for spending the time to check through them🙏 Exercise 1.1 and 1.2 are the solutions that I already shared as you just recently posted these 2 exercises on their own. I put them together in a folder on that tinker website and just included them for completion reasons.
It makes sense that opening with a fifth is not as solidifying or determent as the other two perfect consonances. Actually my intention was to start from a resolved and fixed, yet pushing or accelerated place, as the high energy of the dominant degree feels like a drill Sargent announcing orders as opposed to the other two feeling less commanding or leading but more like introducing/inviting to join them on their travels.
The fact that the Cantus Firmus' dictation of the mode with origin and denouement is overshadowed by the fifth's fundamental as I did in 1.2 is more obvious to me now after you explained how the bass establishes the mode.
I don't fully understand why I apparently must open with an F major chord if a piece is in F major🤔 I can remember many chord progressions from all different places and even many of those that I wrote starting on the 4th degree or sometimes the 3rd or even the 6th sometimes. But we're here, learning about counterpoint and just started, so I guess that my question might be answered along the way😅
@Mark Phillip Marphy Horch I just mean to say that, by starting in the 'home key' we give a point of orientation for the listener.
In this piece Bach starts by building an A minor chord but quickly pivots to E minor. It almost sounds as though the A minor was a deceptive introduction to a piece in E minor.
However, the fact that the piece starts in A minor suggested to us that A minor is the home key. So when we eventually return to A minor at the end of the phrase, we feel a resolution.
Here are all my solutions. I'm finding oblique motion works smoothly when the notes remain part of the same triad. Check out 4.2 and you'll see what I mean.
I forgot which is which but I tried this one...I can only choose the note and the duration but not which octave it is place in. Anyway I am not used to this interface
You can specify the octave by writing a note like either C, c or c'. Duplicating uppercase written notes like CC or CCC will lower, while multiple ' like c'' or c''' raises the octave additionally. The number behind a note dictates the duration with 1 being a full, 2 being a half note, 3 a quarter and 4 an eighth. By adding a . behind that you will get dotted notes respectively. The duration of a note will be the same for every note added until you change the number behind one of them, so for the first species exercises you just need to ad a 1 to the first note only 😉
If you write a - or a # prior to the note you'll get flats and sharps and with dup{c c} or trip{c B c} you can compose in duplets or triplets. You can find more information under cheatsheet when you click the ≡ in the top left corner.
@IAN TANG Trinket is a bit fiddly to get used to, but it offers great control. That would help you choose the octave, since crossing voices is avoided unless there is some necessity or incentive to do so.
Also note that the perfect 4th (in your penultimate bar) is considered a dissonance in counterpoint and would not be legal here. In another species, you could have used it like this as a step-wise dissonance on the off-beat, but first species has no off-beat.
By studying counterpoint, we can better understand the relationship between harmony, melody and rhythmic drive.
This space is for people who:
- Are curious and have questions
- Are interested in forming a study group
- Are interested in composing
- Are interested in helping others
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