Howzit all,
i have a question about four part voicings
was just wondering what the deal is/was with the whole parallel movement of ocataves and fifths. Is it something you have to hear?
why is it FORBIDDEN?!!!!?
is contrary movement by fifths and octaves ok, if so then why
cheers for your time
Mark
el_warko
In strict 4-part harmony, it is essential to maintain the independence of each of the 4 voices. Parallel octaves and fifths tend to sound like ONE voice, hence destroying the integrity of the 4 parts.
It's easier to understand this if you study counterpoint in the normal sequence--first 2-voice counterpoint, then 3, and then 4. When you only have 2 voices, the effect of parallel octaves and fifths is extremely obvious, since it sounds as though one of the voices has dropped out. In three-voice counterpoint, the use of those parallels reduces the texture to that of two voices, and in 4-part writing the result is a 3-voice texture.
It's not so much a strict rule in usage, but more of a pedagogical rule (that is, one you adhere to in order to learn and understand the principles). In actual practice, this 'rule' gets broken left and right.
When working on 4-voice music for the guitar, technical limitations often force you to compromise that rule. However, if you were dealing with a SATB choir, there would be fewer reasons that would justify breaking the rule (although even JS Bach broke it at times!).
Contrary motion ALWAYS guarantees the independence of voices--they're moving in different directions!--which is why it's permitted. :)
cheers for that
el_warko
Ok, this might be slightly off topic for this thread and for that I apologize but this concept got me thinking about some "stuff".
Can anyone comment on the concept of taking a 4 part chord (4 distinct voices) and applying counterpoint / parallel movements to the individual notes to come up with "chord progressions"? Does this work this way or am I'm completely confusing this? Not even sure if "chord progression" would the correct term for this or is it something else?
Regards,
Pat
yeah you can if i remember musi101 correctly
it can get hardcore pretty quickly. if for arguments sake, all parts are written exclusively in 16th notes, you could have up to 16 chord changes in one bar.
admittedly thats not too likely but . . . . . . .
el_warko
Ok, this might be slightly off topic for this thread and for that I apologize but this concept got me thinking about some "stuff".
Can anyone comment on the concept of taking a 4 part chord (4 distinct voices) and applying counterpoint / parallel movements to the individual notes to come up with "chord progressions"? Does this work this way or am I'm completely confusing this? Not even sure if "chord progression" would the correct term for this or is it something else?
Regards,
Pat
I could be reading your post incorrectly, but it sounds to me like you're talking about "voice leading" (also called 'part-writing' in some places), which is the process of applying contrapuntal writing principles to melody/harmony lines.
If that's what you mean, it's a topic that's intertwined with studies of harmony and counterpoint (which are typically taught separately), as it falls somewhere in between the two. Many large books have been written on the subject, as it's a large topic. (In one of my books, I dedicated a single chapter to it...obviously it was introductory in nature, not comprehensive! :lol: )
If you're talking about something entirely different, then you've lost me. :shock:
he may be talking about using 4 melody lines in harmony with each other in order to create what would be known on a multi-voiced instrument (such as guitar) as a chord progression.
Yes, what I was thinking about what PsYcHoNIK describes, in my never ending quest to come up with more interesting progressions? I've played with this a bit over the past couple days and nothing magical has come out of it yet....
the beauty of having four voicings is that you can harmonize at any speed you'd like... you can have one voice playing the root note for the entire bar... the second playing octaves and fifths, and the third playing thirds, sevenths, and their octaves, and the fourth playing bass notes for any of the voices at random.. and stuff like that... think rythm and lead guitar.. one doing the chords and the other doing the solos... that's two layers... now add the bassline.. thats three.. and the vocal melody.. thats four... think of multiple voicings as having more than 1 layer to play with...
