Now that I am re reading my post, I realized that I probably just missed then entire point and probably confused you :)!

Good Luck!
:))
Sean Beeson

Wow- this could be a huge topic.

Short answer: There are all sorts of rules about writing harmony.

Long answer:
The good news, in this time in music- its okay to break many of those rules. That is not to say it isn't worthwhile to know the rules! For example, what if a project wanted to you write a piece in the style of Bach (castlevania is a perfect example).

My assumption is, because you are asking about harmonic rules and such- you haven't taken any music theory classes. My advice is to get your hands on a college freshman music theory text book. I took five music theory classes in undergrad and two in my graduate study- and they have proven to be invaluable to me.

The more you know about music, music theory and the different styles throughout the course of history, the more resources you have to pull from- the more variety there is in your music and the more mature your music will sound.

These text books can range from 50-70 dollars. Many have worksheets that go along- this can help you test your knowledge and see how well you are learning the material.

Hope this helps!

Very basic rule that applies to both harmonic voicing and counterpoint; avoid parallel fifths and parallel octaves. So lets say you have two voices, a melody and a counterpoint... they should never move together as fifths or as octaves, or the counterpoint will sound empty.

So for instance, lets say your melody went C D E, and your counerpoint went G A G, you would have a parallel fifth between the first two notes, and your professor would probably write something like "very sloppy; see me after class" on your paper. But, if your counterpoint instead went G F G, you would avoid that parallel 5th and thus sound a bit more flowing.

I can explain why that is, if anyone is interested. :P

"Lonely, usually harmonies are there to compliment the melody...so I don't quite see where you're going with this. Why would you come up with the harmony first? =P

Edit: That is, unless you're talking about polyphony...(multiple melodies or instances of the melody at once)"

I disagree with some of the ideas in this post simply b/c some of my best pieces started with me playing around with a cool chord progression or rhythm. Then, over time, this grows into something more. I agree with Sean, melody is very important-but having a great melody over a crappy harmonic base still makes things sound immature.

If you do one kind of progression- later try changing something about it. Go to a new, different chord. This could be unexpected and help add a new flavor to the sound. Also employ chordal extensions and/or suspensions. If you don't know what these are- look them up in a music theory book or dictionary. The New Harvard Dictionary of Music is another good resource.

In some of my work- I've been able to stretch out melodies and passages longer b/c of these techniques and others. Take time to listen to your music and hear it over and over- esp. when composing for a video game. If it starts to get stale and maybe annoying- then change something up. Put in a rest or new note in an unexpected spot. Also, try changing the texture (i.e. the melody doesn't always have to be on the top with the chords below- flip em!) You can even imbed the melody within the chords-but be careful to pick a sound that will come through enough to be heard.

I've found the more tricks you have up your sleeve- the more you music has spark and variety.

Just my thoughts!

I'll also be happy to assist you in anyway.

A good example of how harmonic progression has been used in a great manner is the N6 chord (Neopolitain). When you hear the recapitulation of a theme, but instead of a dominat tonic relationship, a composers cleverly places an N chord in the progression. You should see how even musically uneducated listeners know that something different just occured. If you asked them, they might not know what, but the expression on their face sometimes shows that they are aware.


I am not here to start a fight, I just wish to share my experiences with harmony :), especially seeing as how in my younger years, I was a harmonically driven composer.

Sean Beeson

Quote:

Original post by Sean R Beeson A good example of how harmonic progression has been used in a great manner is the N6 chord (Neopolitain).

For those who don't have a classical music theory background, a Neapolitan Sixth chord is basically a major chord built on the flatted second step of a major or minor scale (Db in key of C). It's called a "Sixth" chord because it usually appears in first inversion with the third of the chord in the bass (Db/F in key of C). The N6 is typically used just before a V (dominant) chord.

Jazz musicians often refer to the chord simply as a "Flat Two Chord" (bII) and will frequently use it in root position. Jazz musicians, especially pianists and guitarists, more commonly put this chord just before the I (tonic) chord. It's a nice color when all the voices slide down a half-step to resolve to the tonic chord.

Off the top of my head, I can't remember why classical theorists call it a "Neapolitan" chord. They seem to enjoy names with geographic or temporal references that tell you little about the actual function or structure of a chord, like the "French", "German", and "Italian", Augmented Sixth chords.

It's a fun chord to experiment with. If you're new to chromatic harmony it may open your ears to new colors in your chord progressions. Good tip, Sean.

Thank you Muzo for wording it a little better than I did! :)

Sean

Quote:

Original post by Sean R Beeson Thank you Muzo for wording it a little better than I did! :)

Aw, shucks. Wasn't it Thelonius Monk who said, "Writing about music is like dancing about architecture."?

Yay Neopolitan chords! They're cool. Granted, the piece on my myspace page doesn't have a single one in there. That only was written after my first semester Harmony class and we hadn't covered those chords yet. I'll have to make some good use of them soon.

Ok, on to the point! Some other techniques can be used in harmonic writing to make things interesting. Even though some of us theory students who have been in the game a while might take this for granted, the newer crowd needs to hear this. Inversions! Inversions! Inversions! Don't write a progession consisting of nothing but root chords, or it will bore your listener very quickly. For instance, say you're writing in C major and your chord progression arrives back at the tonic C but you've just got started with your melody and you're not ready to end it. If you want to lengthen your idea, don't let that C chord be in root position. Instead of spelling it (ascending) CEG, put the E or the G as your lowest note. The progression still functions, but it doesn't feel totally like "home" just yet, and it lets your listener know they still have more music heading their way. Inversions are indispensable...they make your part writing smoother with less wild jumps between chord tones.

The other fun thing you can use is a pedal tone. This works great for more ambient pieces. Here you hold out a single tone, or occasionally an open fifth, octave, or third while a melody plays over or under it. Those are grouped according to the frequency I notice them occuring. As an example, think of the first few bars of the often-cited score for Gladiator. The first thing you hear is a slightly menacing low note held out while the cellos play a melancholy melodic fragment above it. This creates a sense of harmony even if you only have two notes playing at any one time. It doesn't have to be strictly chordal. The pedal tone is like an anchor, a firm reminder of what key you're in, and should it create some dissonances with the melody as it holds out, it only makes the resolution to a unison that much more compelling. P.S. For scenes of extreme tension, use a tritone as a pedal tone. A tritone is 6 half steps away from your tonic, it divides the octave clean in half, and is the most dissonant interval possible. In C, the interval would be C to F#. You hear this a lot in horror movies where the violins will use tremolo bow strokes on extremely high pitches with the tritone interval to make your hair stand up. In days of yore, music students would get their knuckles whacked with a stick for using a tritone leap, and apparently some though it had the power to summon the devil.

That's all I can think of for now. Must crash.....bed....

Brian

Something to add to what Brian said. EXPERIMENT!!

There is not techinically a wrong asnwer, and for ANY progression that someone comes up with, I am sure that someone has done something similiar before.

A harmonie's context can be changed easily as well. Using multiple color tones, and techniques of instrumentation/orchestration.



Choirs can get away singing tone clusters, whlie a pack of Oboe may not :)! (Well they could :), just may not please the ears!)

Sean Beeson