Art of Composing

Voice Leading and Counterpoint

May 3, 2012 By Jon Leave a Comment

Voice leading is important. There is no doubt about it. But why? Why should we spend the time to become familiar with this seemingly unconnected side of theory? How many people have come out of college music courses, taking several semesters of elementary harmony and voice leading, but have been unable to use it effectively in composing? A lot, and I think its for several reasons.

Why Voice Leading Doesn’t Stick

Let’s look at why you may not fully internalize voice leading after learning it:

You don’t believe it is applicable to your style of music making. This could be that you don’t compose, and so you don’t think you even need to know this. Or maybe, you like to write rock tunes, and voice leading is something that Bach did, so its not really applicable. Whatever your reason, you have put up a mental barrier towards acceptance.
You think there are too many pointless rules. There are quite a few rules to voice leading. Rules about the direction of voices; what can be doubled and what can’t; incorrect chord progressions. Yeah there are quite a few, but the rules have a purpose and I am going to spell that out in the next section.
You don’t get past the beginner’s stage. Every time you learn something, you must repeat it enough for it to become automatic. When it is a new skill, the amount of brain power it takes to use it is immense… especially something as complicated as voice leading. But if you put in the time, you can internalize it, and use that left over brain power for other activities. This is one of the main reasons some people are not good at musical analysis. Its because your eyes move faster than your brain, and you get behind. Eventually you are just looking at a blob of ink on the page, and wondering where you lost your place, or when is it lunch time.

So what can we do about this? First let’s take a look at why voice leading is important.

The Purpose of Learning Voice Leading

If we take a few steps back in history, we can get a firm grasp on why voice leading is important.

In the dawn of musical time… all we really had were voices and things to bang on. Sticks, stones, basic drums made of hide. Maybe somebody fashioned a flute out of bone, or a primitive trumpet out of an animals horn. Things were simple. Ug didn’t really care about parallel 5ths. In fact, Ug didn’t really know what 5ths were, let alone, Weitzman Regions or parsimonious voice leading (but I digress).

A few years down the line, people started to codify the way sounds came together to make enjoyable music. Most of this music was still sung, and so when we started to write it down, we called it voices.

More and more time goes by, we find out that more than one voice at a time sounds good they are singing different notes, and certain things start to become commonplace. Certain intervals become “consonant,” and others “dissonant.” Diabolus in Musica…

But the thing about the human voice, is that it is not “exact.” If you’ve ever sang in a choir or a group that has to sing harmony, you realize how easy it is to slip out of tune, or even completely off of your note, and boom, your out. You don’t know what to do. You hold your finger to your ear… laa.. la. cough.. laaaaa… there it is! LAAAAAA.

The people writing and singing the music started to notice certain things.

Leaps are harder to sing then steps.
If you have two or more voices, and you want them to sound like two different parts, then contrary motion sounds better because it makes them sound more separate. Parallel motion makes them sound as one, sometimes, if it is in octaves or even 5ths, you cannot tell that two pitches are being sounded.
Crossing of voices makes it difficult to sing and keep track of different parts.

There are many other things that they noticed along the way, but the point is, these are the starting points for how the rules of voice leading were created, but there are other, cognitive and fundamentally useful reasons for understanding voice leading on a deeper level.

The Cognitive Reasons for Voice Leading

The following information comes from a paper by David Huron called Tone and Voice: A Derivation of the Rules of Voice-leading from Perceptual Principles. If you want a very in depth look at the subject, I recommend reading it, as it is very thorough. This is just a summary of the principles.

The rules of voice leading have a certain goal in mind. This is important to remember, as sometimes, the goal of voice leading is not the goal of the composer. So for the naysayers out there, saying that “parallel 5ths sound good, and Debussy used them,” I get it. You want to be your own composer. To me its just a cop out, and you’ll be much better off understanding and being able to use them properly. As my Dad always told me in reference to bad movie music:

You’ve got to know the rules, before you can break them. And this guy clearly doesn’t know the rules… Dad

So what are these goals? To create two or more, concurrent yet perceptually distinct “parts” or “voices.” Good voice leading maximizes auditory streaming.

What is Auditory Streaming

The idea of auditory streaming comes from a psychologist named Albert Bregman. We’ll call him Al. Al figured out that the way we hear things is very specific. You see, we have a problem. This problem is that we have only two ear drums, and all of the sounds we hear hit this one little spot in our ear. So our brain has to do something to separate these sounds out and make them useful. How does this happen?

In comes Al to the rescue. Al figured out that our brains have the ability to separate, or integrate these sounds into what are called “auditory streams.” Several factors go into whether we hear something as integrated or segregated.

Timbre
Interval distance (pitch)
Time span between onset of pitches

This site has a good example of how auditory streaming works.

So with auditory streaming understood, how does voice leading apply?

Maximizing Auditory Streaming

David Huron follows the goal with two corollaries (a corollary is just a statement that follows from another statement).

Effective voice leading requires clear auditory stream integration within each of the individual parts.
Effective voice leading requires clear auditory stream segregation between each of the concurrent parts.

This makes sense from a musical basis, as segregating out the different auditory streams gives your clearly different parts. But how do we get there from a perceptual basis, and how do they apply to the rules of voice leading.

The Summarized Rules of Voice Leading

Below is an exact quote from Huron’s paper. These are the rules that he as put out there for voice leading. I think they sum it up very well, and will give us a great starting point for grouping our own rules that we learn from textbooks and courses. I put these up there first because I want you to realize where he is basing his research from. Later on, each of these rules will be explained using the six perceptual principles he lays out in the paper.

Registral Compass Rule. Harmony texts begin by specifying the pitch range for harmonic writing. Students should write in the region between F2 and G5. Although this region corresponds to the combined pitch range for typical male and female voices, it is noteworthy that students of harmony are encouraged to write in this region, even when writing purely instrumental music.
Textural Density Rule. Harmony should be written using three or more concurrent “parts” or “voices.” The most common harmonic writing employs four voices set in overlapping pitch regions or tessituras: soprano, alto, tenor, and bass.
Chord Spacing Rule. In the spacing of chordal tones, no more than an octave should separate the soprano and alto voices. Similarly, no more than an octave should separate the alto and tenor voices. In the case of the bass and tenor voices, however, no restriction is placed on the distance separating them.
Avoid Unisons Rule. Two voices should not share the same concurrent pitch.
Common Tone Rule. Pitches common to consecutive chords should be retained in the same voice or part.
Nearest Chordal Tone Rule. If a part cannot retain the same pitch in the next sonority, the part should move to the nearest available pitch.
Conjunct Motion Rule. When a part must change pitch, the preferred pitch motion should be by diatonic step. Sometimes this rule is expressed in reverse:
Avoid Leaps Rule. Large melodic intervals should be avoided.
Part-Crossing Rule. Parts should not cross with respect to pitch.
Part Overlap Rule. No part should move to a pitch higher than the immediately preceding pitch in an ostensibly higher part. Similarly, no part should move to a pitch lower than the immediately preceding pitch in an ostensibly lower part.
Parallel Unisons, Fifths and Octaves Rule. No two voices should move in parallel octaves, fifths, or unisons. In the case of many theorists, a more stringent version of this rule is used:
Consecutive Unisons, Fifths and Octaves Rule. No two voices should form consecutive unisons, octaves, fifteenths (or any combination thereof) — whether or not the parts move in parallel. Also, no two voices should form consecutive fifths, twelfths, nineteenths (or any combination thereof).
Exposed (or Hidden or Direct) Octaves (and Fifths) Rule. Unisons, perfect fifths, octaves, twelfths, etc. should not be approached by similar motion between two parts unless at least one of the parts moves by diatonic step. Most theorists restrict this rule to the case of approaching an octave (fifteenth, etc.), whereas some theorists also extend this injunction to approaching perfect fifths (twelfths, etc.). Most theorists restrict this rule to voice-leading involving the bass and soprano voices; in other cases, exposed intervals between any pair of voices are forbidden.

In future posts, I’ll be showing examples of all of these rules, and hopefully, you will get something out of it.

Filed Under: Counterpoint, Harmony, Science of Composing, Theory Tagged With: Albert Bregman, Auditory Scene Analysis, Auditory Streaming, David Huron, Voice Leading

April 2012 Compositions

May 1, 2012 By Jon 4 Comments

I thought I’d post about my own composing activities, which is something that I haven’t done a whole lot. Composing is a funny thing sometimes, because what you plan out, isn’t always what you end up finishing with. I’ll talk a little more about that when I get to my Piano Trio (still in progress at this point, but I have generally finished the first and second movements. Under each

To start off, I am going talk about my two songs without words.

Song Without Words No. 2

Song Without Words No 2 – Full Score

This is my second attempt at writing a “Song Without Words” a la Mendelssohn (not saying I am nearly as good, but he is the inspiration I am working from). This piece is sort of a modified small ternary form, with a main theme, a contrasting middle section, and then a recapitulation.

I enjoy writing these short piano pieces because, for better or worse, they don’t require much in terms of development. This means that you can try something new, and if it works, it works, if it doesn’t… it doesn’t. But thats the end of it. You don’t have to worry about a long development section or how it all ties in. Its great for practicing certain aspects of your composing, like maybe focusing particularly on melody, and not worrying about the figuration of the accompaniment. In a longer piece, using the same type of accompaniment could get pretty monotonous, so you would find yourself with a lot more choices. For sharpening your skills, especially when focusing on only one or two aspects of your composing, then this is the way to go.

Song Without Words No. 3

Song Without Words No 3 – Full Score

I was inspired to write this after reading a book called Audacious Euphony by Richard Cohn. This book is all about 19th century chromatic harmony. There are really neat revelations on how the augmented and diminished chords relates to so many other chords due to their perfect evenness. He also explains the unique properties of major and minor triads because of their near-evenness. Good book, but a little heavy on the music theory. If you are not good with traditional harmony, then it may be a little daunting.

The 5 Steps to Creating the Composing Habit

April 21, 2012 By Jon 2 Comments

Composing shouldn’t just be something you do, it should be a habit. What do I mean by habit? Habits don’t have to be just bad, they can and are good things. You just need to know what makes them work, and how you can affect them.

What is a Habit?

In my last post, I said that two books were really making an impact on me right now. The first, which I talked about in the last post, was The War of Art by Steven Pressfield. This book is all about becoming a professional. The other book was The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg. The premise of this book is that we all have habits that ingrained into us. These can be as simple as getting up to brush our teeth, or as complicated as driving home in traffic at the end of the workday (which when you think about it, has about a million things going on at the same time, but you do it without thinking). The point is, if you know how habits work and what triggers them, you will effectively know how to create or change your existing habits.

Habits are at the root of how we behave as much as logic and reason

The Habit Loop

The book covers what is called “The Habit Loop.”

This is a three stage process:

Cue
Routine
Reward

Cue

For every habit, there is a cue that sets it off. For instance, every McDonalds looks pretty much the same, and is generally located in a similar position to every other McDonald’s. When you are driving home at the end of a long day, and you don’t feel like cooking… lo and behold… (aaahhh.. music from above) there is a McDonald’s. So begins your habit loop.

You habit cues are powerful things that start off your habit loop, and once they do, there is not much you can do to stop them. That is the point of a habit. Your body has the ability to internalize a routine (which I will talk about in a moment) so that you don’t have to think about it.

There is one thing about cues that is very important. Cues are delicate. One change, and the cue doesn’t quite work.

Routine

Routine is basically like a computer program. The way programs work, is you code in certain objects, then you call on those objects. That way you don’t have to code in that sequence of events over and over manually. Once its coded, you just use a simple phrase to call it back. A routine works the same way. Once you learn it, all that is required to call it back is the cue. Think about it. Learning to drive, you had to think about every little aspect. But after a while, driving became automatic. You probably don’t have to think about adjusting your seat, mirrors, checking behind you, starting the car, backing up, putting it into drive, scanning… there is quite a bit that goes into it, without active thought.

Why do we have routines? To save mental energy. This allows us to focus on more important things.

Reward

The reward is basically the feedback that you get, to say, “this habit is working for me.” It doesn’t necessarily mean, you give yourself some ice cream. It may be, in the example of driving, that you end up at home or work. It is just immediate feedback, that your habit is actually accomplishing what you want it to accomplish.

The Golden Rule of Habit Change

If you use the same cue, and provide the same reward, you can shift the routine and change the habit.

The Composing Habit

So lets get to the point. You are a composer, or you want to be a composer. So you need to have a composing habit. Here are the steps you should take:

Identify the habits that get in the way of composing. Regardless of the time you’ve chosen to compose, identify what gets in the way. For instance, email notifications or cell phones. Both of these things can easily change your trajectory. You may have been deep into your new piece, and then all of the sudden a little notice popped up “80% Off All Orchestral Samples, Now! YourFavoriteSampleSite.com” and you think, “Man, I really need that new Brass Sample Set I have been dreaming about.” Stop! This is a cue, and you need to cut it off before it begins.
Remove the cues for the habits that get in the way of composing. Turn off your cell phone. Close your email client. Disconnect the internet. Whatever you have to do. Identify the process that you have for composing. Do you have a composing ritual. Do you get up, make your coffee, sit down at the piano with a pen and paper? Do you start up your favorite DAW or notation program? Whatever it is, you need to identify all aspects, including the cue, the routine, and the reward. I am experimenting with something called QuicKeys for mac (an alternative for windows is AutoHotKey). This is a macro recorder that allows you to automate tasks on the computer. One great way to use it, is to find out all the things on your computer that get in the way of composing, and then assign a hotkey to close those programs. That way you don’t have to worry about them getting in the way, and it isn’t tedious closing them all. I will let you know in the future how it works out.
Experiment with different rewards for composing. The reward that you think you enjoy, maybe listening to your piece at the end, may not actually be the reward that is driving the routine. After you are finished, sit down and write whatever pops into your brain for a few minutes. Accomplishment from having a completed score, or two minutes of music, or tired from expelling your creativity. Whatever it is, its personal. For me, it is the fact that I have actually written down, several minutes of music, that had been somewhere inside my soul, just laying dormant until I wrestled it out.
Isolate the Composing Cue. Your cue will fit into five categories. Location, time, emotional state, other people, immediate preceding action. Find out what makes your composing cue tick, and then set yourself up to replicate that cue at your chosen time. Your cue may not actually be what you think. It may be coincidental that it is the morning, and your cue may be that you make a cup of coffee. This means that you can make that cup of coffee at night, and you’ll get down to business. If you isolate the cue, you have some control over when and where it happens.
Have a composing plan. As a general rule, wherever your workspace is, it should be clean, decluttered and ready for action. As a professional, and yes, anyone can be a professional, you need to be ready to work at a moments notice. But for your composing habit, your plan is basically a road map of the entire habit. Write down your cue, your routine and your reward. That way you understand it and can manipulate it or change it over time.

Creating a Habit Takes Time

Don’t worry about doing this overnight. Just begin the process, and undertand it takes time. Ultimately, it is a huge step towards achieving your composing goals.

Tell about your composing habits. What gets you going, what are your rewards? What gets in the way? Knowing what others go through can help yourself.

Filed Under: Creativity, Work

Becoming a Professional Composer

April 15, 2012 By Jon Leave a Comment

Recently I have been having a change of mindset towards the way I approach life in general. This is really stemming from two books that I am reading. The first book, The War of Art by Steven Pressfield, is making me relook what it means to be truly dedicated to something, and specifically what it takes to become a professional composer. The second book, The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg, is making me rethink about what my autopilot responses are.

Turning Pro

Here is a little thought experiment. Look back in history, and tell me your absolute favorite amateur composers. I am talking about the truly great ones, the household names. Times up! Which ones did you come up with? Thought so.

The main point of The War of Art, is that most people who are amateur, do not make the mental leap to becoming pro.

If you type into google, “Amateur Composer,” you’ll see some funny looking top hits:

[Read more...]

Filed Under: Symphony of Enlightenment, Work Tagged With: Good Books, The War of Art, Turning Pro

Resistance is Stopping You From Achieving Your Goals

April 12, 2012 By Jon 2 Comments

So recently I have not been posting much. Hopefully you have noticed this, as that means you are a regular visitor. None the less, I would like to talk about it because I think there are ways to always be learning in life and this is one of them.

A Hub for Learning Music Composition

Originally I set out to create a website that is a hub of learning music composition. I think so far, I am on track, but there is still a long ways to go. There is a balance between posting about my random thoughts and feelings (like this post), posting my compositions, music theory, and general composing advice.

Several things that I have noticed along the way are:

Setting goals is good, but it can also bog you down.
Action ultimately is what counts, not talking about action.
You can’t get wrapped around what you don’t know.