General Principles of 4 part writing Flashcards
spacing between upper voices (SAT)
no more than an octave
spacing between T and B
can be up to a 12th
close position
three upper voices are as close together as possible - no chord tone can be inserted between
open position
when upper voices are spaced far apart enough that you can insert a chord tone between them
parallell motion
voices move the same direction and the same amount
contrary motion
voices move opposite directions
similar motion
voices move in the same direction but not by the same intervals
oblique motion
one voice remains the same while the other moves
voice overlap
when parts are not in their correct placement in one chord
voice crossing
when voices cross going from one chord to the next
dissonant melodic intervals (within one voice)
augmented 2nds, tritones, sevenths
tendancy tones
those with a strong pull to resolve in a certain direction (leading tone)
do not double!
scale degree 7 versus chord 7th
scale degree 7 resolves up
chord 7th resolves down
leading tone resolution
in outer voice it MUST resolve up
in the inner voice it can be frustrated - moves down to nearest chord tone
doubling rules
try to have all chord tones
root is most common to double
inverted triads and 7th chords are usually complete
5th is most common tone to omit
roots and thirds must be present (3 root 3)
root position 7ths frequently double root and omit 5th
