A Monk's Musical Musings: How to Compose Counterpoint

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2/7/16, 11Monk's Musical Musings: How to Compose Counterpoint (Imitation and Modulation 1)

Page ttp://hucbald.blogspot.com/2008/07/how-to-compose-counterpoint-imitation.html

east. Then, the subjects he used for lute and violin were too - there's no tactful way to say this - trivial, which is why

is fugues for those instruments are so highly episodic. I was left then to come up with a new kind of subject that would

work for the guitar, and that would have some weight to it that allowed for some interesting contrapuntal devices. I

nally got the subject back in 1999, but it took seven years before the piece reached its final form. It's written on two

taves, but this is a solo.

s you can see, the fugue is in A minor and the subject is 3.5 measures in length. There are no leaps in it at all, and

fter tonicizing the dominant degree, it just descends the scale to the tonic, where there is a brief tail figure that

kewise tonicizes the tonic. The range of the subject is a minor sixth, and this is important: Subjects with wide ranges

uck for the guitar. An octave is pretty much the outer limit, and that is really, really stretching it.

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he answer starts in measure five, it is tonal, and it begins by tonicizing the tonic and then descends the scale. You'll

ote all the parallel thirds: This is idiomatic for the guitar. Because the answer starts on the tonic, it ends in a half-

adence to an implied V(6/3) in nine, which allows the final entry of the subject to begin on a highly desirable I(6/4)

onority, and the D-sharp actually momentarily creates a diminished triad sound. Looking for cool harmonic

uxtapositions like this is a big part of the job of writing counterpoint, and total awareness of these details adds an

lement of craftsmanship to the work. Bach and Beethoven both filled their music with nifty minutiae like this, and I

icked this stuff up by analyzing in detail every momentary vertical sonority in some of their works. It was a serious

hore, but it was well worth it.

ou'll notice that the parallel thirds are between the lower two voices this time. This is not particularly idiomatic, but as

ou can tell from the fingering, it isn't overly daunting to execute either.

t thirteen the first modulatory episode starts, and I just used a modified retrograde of the subject's tail figure to

chieve it. Note the idiomatic parallel thirds in the top two voices. The harmony in thirteen is i, of course, and thirteen

as an implied ii(d5). Then, I just modified the sequence in the bass to get the, la, ti, do, sol of the upcoming dominant

egion with, me, re, do, ti in the lead and the new, fa in the middle voice. This gives the V(m7) of the new key on the

nal eighth note, and we're there in three measures flat.

ach was fond of lengthy episodes - especially in his younger days - and his episodes are sublimely beautiful, but my

pproach is far more minimalist. It's a shame the term "minimalist" has been used to describe the repetitive music of

hilip Glass et al because it is really fitting of my approach. I'm interested in economy of means and expression, not

engthy perorations, and if you look at Bach's last works, he cut down on the episodic material there as well. Beethoven

ecame almost ascetic in his spareness in some of the movements of the late string quartets, and it is from there that I

ake my queues.

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T H E H A R M O N I C S E R I E S ,

M U S I C A L C O N T E X T , A N D

T H E L A W S O F M U S I C A L

M O T I O N .

Chapter 01: The Harmonic Serie

Chapter 02: The Native Systems

Chapter 03: The Alpha Context

Chapter 04: Beta/Gamma Conte

Chapter 05: Secondary Dominan

Chapter 06: Secondary Subdomi

Chapter 07: The Exotic Systems

Chapter 08: Exotic Motions

Chapter 09: Harmonic Canon

Chapter 10: The Alien Systems

Chapter 11: Alien Motions

Chapter 12: Mobius Loops

Chapter 13: The Extra-Diatonics

Chapter 14: Equal Temperament

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ow that we have reached the dominant level and the key of E minor, you can see here in the first middle entries the

ontrapuntal device this subject is set up to exploit: Suspension chains (Or, syncopation chains, if you prefer). I modifiedhe first counter-subject so that instead of parallel thirds, we now have a series of 4-3 suspension resolutions in measure

eventeen into eighteen. I repeat this 4-3 device at twenty into twenty-one under the answer (Now on the original tonic

evel: Tres cool, non? ), and the lowest voice on the second system is free.

n the third system I inverted the subject in the bass and have the syncopations in the lead, so we get a rising chain of

1-10's at twenty-five into twenty-six. The inverted subject leads into a half cadence in twenty-eight, so the second

modulatory episode has an extra measure in it to turn us around to the tonic. Aside from a slight elaboration in the lead,

his episode is the same as the previous one, so it seems to be taking us to, "the dominant of the dominant," but that

would be out of bounds for a strict fugue. So...

Chapter 15: Integrated Chromat

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Unchained Melody - Zaret/North

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F O R S O L O C L A S S I C A L G U I T

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I: Toccata in E Minor

II: Sonata in A Minor

III: Scherzo in G Major

IV: Axial Fugue in E Minor

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M U S I C A L R E L A T I V I T Y T H E O

Introduction: The Harmonic Seri

Chapter I: Tonality and Modality

Chapter II: Root Motion Dynamic

Chapter III: Secondary Dominant

Chapter IV: Integrated Modality

Chapter V: Harmonic Canons

Chapter VI: Secondary Subdomin

Chapter VII: Counterpoint

Chapter VIII: Rhythm

Chapter IX: Melody

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used the traditional deceptive motion to "modulate" to the relative of the dominant, which is perfectly legit, even inhe most rigorous of fugues. See how looking for the most economical means can lead to some great ideas? I could have

omposed an entirely new episode and just modulated in the same old boring way, but this arrival comes as a surprise

fter hearing just a mildly varied form of the first episode.

ince suspension chains are this subject's raison d'etre this set of middle entries starts off with a 2-3 chain. I'm adding

ome sixteenth note action to build up to the third episode in the final measures, as you can see, and the second system

resents the 7-6 posibilities. I present the 7-6's again over an inverted form of the subject in the third system, and the 2-

's again in inversion in the bottom system. Finally, I give a run of four sixteenths to lead to the final episode at the end

f the page, and it appears from the V(m7)/I that we are going to stay in the key of G major.

Chapter X: Form

Appendix I: Harmonic Music

Appendix II: Contrapuntal Music

Appendix III: Melodic Music

Epilog: Musical Philosophy

Appendix IV: Tritone Duality

Appendix V: Free Composition

C O M P O S I N G C O U N T E R P O I N T

Where to Begin

How to Progress

Using Larger Forms

Using Three Voices

Imitation and Modulation 1



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Wrong! The previous D(m7) allows for another deceptive motion, this time by whole step instead of half step, and to Eminor this time versus G major previously: We're back in E minor... or so it appears.

elieve it, or not, this episode is actually the original subject in augmentation. If you look at the first and last notes of

very measure, you can see this clearly: I've just ornamented it with harmonic figuration and put it all over a dominant

edal, the open low E string of the guitar. As my mom would say, "That's the bee's knees!" LOL! Notice that I don't shed

he F-sharp until measure fifty-three, at which point the modulation to A minor becomes apparent.

he recapitulation is a stretto, of course, but a unique one: Every voice starts out on the same pitch, which is the open

igh E string of the guitar, and then descends to take its place in turn.

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P R E V I O U S P O S T S

How to Compose Counterpoint (

Three Voices)

How to Compose Counterpoint (

Larger Forms)

How to Compose Counterpoint (to Progress)

How to Compose Counterpoint

(Where to Begin)

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one of this is overly difficult to play, and I ought to be performing it within the next year or so, but I just have so many

ieces on the to do list. At least I can see light at the end of the tunnel now. Coming up on four years ago I was looking

t a list of nearly eighty pieces and saying... well... you know. LOL! Now I have less than ten left.

OSTED BY HUCB ALD AT 8:27 PM

C O M M E N T S :

iceeey said...

he harmony in thirteen is i, of course, and thirteen has an implied ii(d5).

mall correction: You mean of course that the implied ii(d5) is in measure fourteen, not thirteen.

Great articles! I've enjoyed reading them immensely.

:47 AM

Hucbald said...

Good catch!

really appreciate your comment. Most of these posts are done to keep my analytical juices flowing, but it's very nice to

ear that someone else appreciates them.

re you the reader from Bethesda I see in the Sitemeter stats? I used to live in Adelphi, and I hung out at Uncle Jed's

oadhouse quite a bit.

heers,

George

:42 AM

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A Monk's Musical Musings: How to Compose Counterpoint

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