Music Theory Comprehensive Complete: Parts 13, 14, & 15

Differentiate modulation from tonicization by noting that tonicization is a temporary shift to another key, while modulation is a true key change that may be permanent, especially in classical music.

Explore the rules for modulation, including a predominant dominant tonic progression, firm cadences, and extended progressions in the new key to distinguish modulation from tonicization.

Identify pivot chords by locating common chords between closely related keys, like C major and G major, using the circle of fifths to modulate smoothly.

Explore Mozart's piano sonata in d major as the lecturer exposes a sneaky modulation to a major, using suspensions, cadences, and a pivot out of key.

Identify pivot chords between D and A: A major, B minor, and D major; G sharp diminished not in both keys. Cadential six four to five seven to one.

Explore pivot chords in modulation, focusing on the 6-2 pivot as a smooth path from one key to its dominant and cadence to the new home, with minor-to-relative-major cases.

Explore modulating from a minor key to its relative major using pivot chords, emphasizing predominant-function progressions like four and two and six and four, and noting raised leading tones.

Pivot from I to IV by using D minor as a pivot chord in C major, then settle in F major with predominant-function motion and a dominant cadence.

Learn how to pivot from i to v in minor keys by using common chords between a minor and e minor, assessing predominant and dominant functions to establish a key.

Use a common pivot chord to transition between keys, leveraging a predominant function to steer the modulation. Apply a strong V-I cadence to establish the new key.

Explore direct, abrupt, and phrase modulations beyond pivot chords, including secondary dominants and autonomization, as we analyze a Bach piece to identify a modulation.

Study a Bach chorale excerpt, identify a modulation from f to d minor using rising leading tones, and analyze chords such as six, ii7, and a five-one cadence.

Analyze abrupt and direct modulations in Bach, tracing pivot chords and cadential six-four progressions, and show how a shift from F to D reveals the cadential six-four resolution.

Discuss Bach's counterpoint and a vivid voice crossing, noting how he sometimes breaks rules with mastery, as seen in references to the Riemenschneider book.

Explore modulation by secondary dominants, using a leading tone diminished chord to pivot from C major to G and establish the new key with a cadential six four.

Modulate a popular melody by harmonizing it to imply a new key, using Mary had a little lamb as the example, and examine whether the modulation sounds good.

Explore modulating from C major to F major by planning measures, using direct modulation and a secondary dominant (V7/IV) to establish the new key, with four-voice harmony.

Work through bar-by-bar voicings on g–b–d and c–e–g, exploring six four and bass-line choices while examining voice leading and potential modulation.

Explore crafting five-one cadences and five-sevenths to create a home feel, using arpeggiation, voice leading, and careful chord choices to avoid parallel octaves and strengthen the cadence.

Explore how form, sections and periods shape large-scale music by examining modulations and key centers, using Mozart's sonata in D major as a guiding example.

Hear the sonata in D major with a focus on the third movement, then listen to the full piece for contrast, following along with the score in the next segment.

Learn to recognize rounded binary by tracing the A, B, and A sections, their modulations in D major to A, and recurring 1–5 harmonic motion.

Explore rounded binary recap versus binary form, with harmonic progressions from tonic to five and five to one, and note the added A section in rounded binary, plus minor-key context.

Examine binary form in a minor key, moving from tonic to relative major, then ending in the minor, with occasional use of a major five and raised leading tone.

In binary and rounded binary, phrase lengths are usually similar due to dance origins, but A and B sections may differ in length in concert music, with B often longer.

Balanced binary introduces a recurring musical material that appears in both A and B sections, transposed to the one from the five, creating balanced binary and rounded binary forms.

Explore simple ternary form, where the structure follows A B A with A in the tonic and the B section often modulating to the dominant, before returning to A.

Explore composite ternary form, a ternary form within a ternary form. Each main aba section contains its own aba patterns, with the B section labeled cdc to reflect distinct material.

Explore how form shapes perception and harmony in music theory, guided by the composer's intent, with A around one and B around five, and Mozart-era music.

Explore the fugue and other counterpoint techniques, focusing on writing and analyzing fugues in the Baroque tradition, with challenging yet engaging practice.

Explore the apex of counterpoint by studying the fugue, with Bach as the standard, including fugue elements, inventions, tricks, and techniques like counter subject and Strelow.

Gather essential music theory tools, including staff paper and the free MuseScore desktop, then choose a notation program that fits your needs, whether Noteflight, Finale, Sibelius, or Dorico.

Review counterpoint and form for music theory 14, focusing on third and fourth species and Bach-style counterpoint as preparation for fugues, with attention to exposition, development, and recap.

Develop the master MuseScore file to help students follow along, offered as a MuseScore file and PDF for the sixth lecture, then move on to baroque era contrapuntal devices.

Explore baroque counterpoint techniques like inventions, fugues, and canons, and see how two- and three-part inventions intertwine melodies through imitation.

Identify the subject as the melodic idea used in fugue, canon, and invention. Explore Bach’s techniques—fort sponging, compound melody, and step progression—for crafting a subject with examples in c minor.

Explore fortspinnung, the technique of spinning out the melody in a fugue, as it continuously unfolds with 16th and 8th notes, the subject and its variations, sequences, and elided phrases.

Explore compound melody, a single-line passage that implies two melodies at once through stems and rhythmic layers. Keep the 16th-note pulse while the implied eighth-note line sounds.

Explore how step progressions create a stepwise motion of an implied melody between downbeats, with a time signature and examples like g f e d c sharp in the fugue.