MUSM 102

Voice Leading Principles

The following are generalizations regarding part-writing in eighteenth and nineteenth century Western music, and are intended to assist the music theory student in the fulfillment of part-writing exercises. It is important to note that:

a) these are generalizations; numerous examples contradicting these generalizations can be found, and when examined, the musical reasons for exceptional or atypical voice leading decisions can be quite illuminating.

b) melodic motion in the voices is of primary importance; exceptions to the below generalizations are inevitably in the service of smooth and musical melodic motion, particularly in outer voices.

General Principles

• Move each voice the shortest distance possible and retain common tones in the same voice.
  
• Strive for contrary or oblique motion in the outer voices.
  
• Strive for contrary or oblique motion in the resolution of intervals of a tritone (diminished fifth or augmented fourth).
  
• Avoid parallel fifths and parallel octaves.
  
• Avoid moving the outer voices in similar motion to perfect intervals (P5, P8) [hidden or direct fifths or hidden or direct octaves result when the soprano leaps; see p. 87 of Tonal Harmony].
  
• Avoid writing melodic intervals of an augmented 2nd or tritone (diminished fifth or augmented fourth).
  
• Chromatically raised notes will tend to resolve up by step.
  
• Chromatically lowered notes will tend to resolve down by step.
  
• Dissonant chord tones (sevenths, ninths, elevenths, thirteenths) will tend to resolve down by step.
  
• Avoid doubling dissonances/tendency tones (any tone that must be handled in a particular way), including the leading tone, altered tones, non-harmonic tones, and the seventh of a harmony.
  
• Spacing of the voices is as important as doubling; avoid radical changes of spacing and strive to keep the upper voices within an octave of each other (it is common for distances of greater than an octave between the B and T voices)
  

Harmonic Considerations in Voice Leading

Position (inversion)

• All diatonic and secondary triads are typically encountered in root position (root in bass; five-three position) except diminished triads.
  
• Diminished triads typically occur in first inversion (third in bass; six-three position).
  
• Tonic, supertonic, subdominant, and dominant harmonies occur freely in first inversion (third in bass; six-three position).
  
• Harmonies in second inversion (fifth in bass; six-four position) are considered unstable (dissonant), and typically occur as a cadential six-four, passing six-four, or pedal six-four [see p. 149 of Tonal Harmony]. They are otherwise the result of bass line arpeggiation of the harmony itself.

Doubling

The following are broad generalizations regarding doubling.

Remember, avoid doubling dissonances/tendency tones (any tone that must be handled in a particular way), including the leading tone, altered tones, non-harmonic tones, and the seventh of a harmony.

Avoid doubling/emphasizing the mediant and submediant scale degrees (they can strongly imply other tonalities or modes). Voice leading considerations often determine whether one should double the mediant and submediant scale degrees in a polyphonic texture.

Major and minor triads

• Double the root in root position (root in bass; five-three position).
  
• Double an outer voice (S or B) with an inner voice (A or T) in first inversion (third in bass; six-three position).
  
• Double the bass in second inversion (fifth in bass; six-four position).
  
• Omit the fifth of the chord when necessary to drop a harmonic element.
  

Diminished triads

• Double the third, avoid doubling the root if it has a leading tone function (it usually does).
  

Harmonic Progression

Typical harmonic motion is largely the result of aesthetically desirable voice leading. Certain tonal harmonies posses tendency tones that contribute to their harmonic function (tonic, dominant, and predominant). For example, both V and viiº posses the leading tone, which tends to resolve to the tonic, which is why these harmonies are characterized as possessing a dominant function (they tend to proceed to a harmony with a tonic function). Below are flow charts of typical harmonic motion in functional tonal music [see pp. 117 - 8 of Tonal Harmony].

Major mode

• Generally: iii » vi » ii or IV » V or viiº » I
  
• Also: iii » IV, IV » ii, vi » V, viiº » V, IV » I, V » vi
  
• And: I may occur between any of these typical progressions, e.g. vi » I » V
  

Minor mode

• Generally: VII » III » VI » iiº or iv » V or viiº » i
  
• Also: III » iv, iv » iiº, VI » V, viiº » V, iv » i, V » VI
  
• And: i may occur between any of these typical progressions, e.g. VI » i » V
  
• Furthermore: In the minor mode, the minor v:
  Does not have a dominant function.
  Typically occurs in first inversion (third in bass; six-three position).
  Progresses to a subdominant in first inversion (third in bass; six-three position), e.g. v6 » iv6.

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