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FOUR-PART HARMONYWORKING IN KEYBOARD STYLE
TH101 - Seth Monahan
Learning to connect chords smoothly and idiomatically is a
crucial part of your early musical training. In TH101, we will
compose four-part harmony with two complementary methods: chorale
style and key-board style. This handout introduces both and then
focuses on keyboard style, which we will use for most of our
assignments.
In chorale style, each of the four voices (SATB) is
independently notated and stemmed, on a grand staff: S and A are
notated together on the top staff, T and B together on the bottom.
In this format, stem-direction helps to differentiate the voices: S
and T are always stemmed upward, while A and B are always stemmed
downward, as show below in J. S. Bachs setting of the famous hymn
tune Ein feste Burg (A Mighty Fortress):
The biggest limitation of keyboard style is that the four voices
have far less independence than in chorale style. This is because
the inner voices are always stuck to the topmost voice, both
rhythmically and regis-trally. The kinds of four-part settings
found in Bachs chorales, for instance, would be impossible in
keyboard style, as they require the tenor and alto voices to move
entirely independently:
By contrast, keyboard style groups the top three voices on one
staff, leaving the bass by itself on the bottom staff. Stem
direction still matters: the top voice is stemmed upward, while the
inner voices are stemmed downward together, as shown here:
CHORALE VS. KEYBOARD STYLE
PROS and CONS OF KEYBOARD STYLE
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However, keyboard style offers many advantagesespecially to the
novice:
It lets us focus on the most important contrapuntal relations,
those between the outer voices. (In this respect, keyboard style is
like a first-species exercise with inner-voice filler.
By limiting the range of the upper voices, it encourages
efficient, smooth voice leading in manysituations.
It makes illegal parallels between three pairs of voices (SA,
ST, AT) easier to see.
It typically puts the RH in one of only a few standard
configurationsor handshapesallowingyou to target likely errors more
efficiently.
As in species counterpoint, parallel perfect fifths and octaves
are forbidden, between any pair of voices.However, parallel fourths
are fine (!!!); indeed, you will use them often.
PROS and CONS OF KEYBOARD STYLE (contd.)
VOICE-LEADING RULES AND GUIDELINES
PARALLEL PERFECT INTERVALS
When the outer voices move by similar motion, the soprano should
move by step. If the soprano leaps,the result is direct or hidden
octaves, a sound that composers traditionally avoided. Inner
voicesare note bound by this rule.
DIRECT (or HIDDEN) OCTAVES
Whenever possiblewhich is almost always!use complete chords. The
only acceptable way to leavea chord incomplete is to omit its
chordal fifth. Your handouts on resolving V7 to I offer several
scenariosin which incomplete chords are acceptable and even
necessary.
COMPLETE VS. INCOMPLETE CHORDS
Unless there is a compelling reason to do otherwiseusually for
reasons of sculpting a nice melodyitis wise to connect your chords
as smoothly as possible in the right hand, moving voices by step
(or notat all!) whenever possible.
SMOOTH CONNECTIONS
All else being equal, it is wise to move your hands in contrary,
rather than similar motion. This will ensurethat you avoid the most
common opportunities for parallel P5s/P8s. When moving between 5/3
chords astep apart (e.g., Iii, or Vvi), this is especially
important!
CONTRARY MOTION
The other limitation of keyboard style is that it is difficult
to sing from. This is because (1) the inner voices are bound to the
melody, they often range much too high for male voices; and (2) the
inner voices also tend to leap more oftenand fartherthan in chorale
style.
Working in keyboard style can be less overwhelming than chorale
style, since the motion of the inner voices is in large part
dependent on the melody. This means that there are fewer options
and thus fewer opportuni-ties for mistakes. Still, there are a
number of important guidelines and rules to be kept in mind:
Keyboard-Style Harmony, p. 2
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-chords (i.e., root-position triads) 53
TRIAD
HANDSHAPES
When playing triads or seventh chords in keyboard style, the
right hand will tend to fall into one of 13 hand-shapes. These, in
turn, fall into four families:
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-chords (i.e., first-inversion triads) 63
-chords (i.e., first-inversion triads)
a. b. c.
a. b. c.
a. b. c.
a. b. c. d.
63
-chords (i.e., second-inversion triads)
ONE NOTE WILL DOUBLE THE BASS VOICE
ONE NOTE WILL DOUBLE THE BASS VOICE
ONE NOTE WILL DOUBLE THE BASS VOICE
ONE NOTE DOUBLES THE BASS VOICE
NO TONES IN COMMON WITH BASS(chordal root is in LH)
NO TONES IN COMMON WITH BASS(chordal root is in RH)
-chords (i.e., first-inversion seventh chords) 65 NO TONES IN
COMMON WITH BASS(chordal root is in RH)
-chords (i.e., second-inversion seventh chords) 43 NO TONES IN
COMMON WITH BASS(chordal root is in RH)
(chordal root is in both hands!) -chords (i.e., incomplete
seventh chords in root
position)
73
(chordal root is in RH)NO TONES IN COMMON WITH BASS
64
-chords (i.e., root-position seventh chords)753
-chords (i.e., third-inversion seventh chords)
These are used mainly with first-inversion triads. They ensure
that the chordal third (in the bass) is not doubled.They consist of
a fourth and/or a fifth.
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These, the most common handshapes, combine two thirds or a third
and a fourth. They are used for five types of chords:
NEUTRAL
These are used mainly with first-inversion seventh chords.
DISSONANT A
These are used for two types of chords (see below). They are
recognizable by their dissonant seventh or second.
DISSONANT B
Keyboard-Style Harmony, p. 3
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HANDSHAPE DEMONSTRATION
ADDITIONAL COMMENTS
On the next page, youll find a color-coded demonstration of
handshapes used to realize a bassline in keyboard style.
Triad-style handshapes are shown in green; neutrals are shown in
blue; and dissonants are shown in red/orange. A few things to
notice here:
Notice that two of the neutral handshapes use two, rather than
three notes. This is fine. Indeed, if youhave several 6/3 chords in
a row, you may use a string of such handshapes, effectively
reducing froma 4-voice texture to a 3-voice one.
NEUTRAL HANDSHAPES IN 3 VOICES
Most of the neutral and dissonant handshapes have a gap of a
fifth in them. When such handshapesare used properly, the bass note
will always be the missing note that would divide that fifth
intotwo thirds. (On the next page, look at the last chord in m. 1:
see how the fifth FC could be dividedinto thirds by an A? See the
bass? Its A. Thats what I mean.)
RELATION OF RH TO LH
When you realize a 3-note chord in four voices, one note will
appear twice. With 5/3 and 6/4 chords,the doubled note should
always be the same as the BASS voice. (I.e., the bass note will
also appearsomewhere in the RH.) If you use a triad handshape for
such chords, the correct doubling is guaran-teed.
But with 6/3 chords, the correct doubling varies. This
chartwhich applies in many but not all situa-tionswill help you in
the coming weeks:
DOUBLING in TRIADS
CHORD DOUBLE HANDSHAPE
As predicted, triad handshapes are the most common (11 out of 17
chords).
Triad handshapes are used not just for triads, but also for root
position seventh chords (see the ii7 chord in m. 4) and
third-inversion seventh chords: notice how the bass under the vi
chord (m.3)moves down by step, producing a 4/2-chord, while the RH
remains stationary!
The same Dissonant B handshape, on the same notes (!), is used
in the first and last bars to realizea dominant 4/3 chord AND an
incomplete root-position V7. (The difference is that the
missingchordal fifth appears in the bass voice in bar 1, but not in
bar 4.)
Ifl anynote
bass
root orfifth
dont worry; it doesnt exist
dont worry; it doesnt exist
TRIAD orNETURAL
anynote
TRIAD orNETURAL
NETURAL
TRIAD
bass TRIAD
CHORD DOUBLE HANDSHAPE
Vfl
iifl vifl
iiifl viifl
IVfl
Keyboard-Style Harmony, p. 4
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TRIAD
HANDSHAPE DEMONSTRATION
NEUTRAL
DISSONANT ADISSONANT B
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a. b. c.
a. b. c.a. b. c.
a. b. c. d.
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I I I@ I@ Vvi vi vi%iifl V#/V V#/vi iifl IiiIfl V#V$
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63
43
65
73
63 only
onlyand
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42and
Keyboard-Style Harmony, p. 5
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