Masterclass: THEORY 202 - Adv. Harmonic Extensions

In the second of these harmonic technique series, it's going to focus a lot on modulation and phrase alteration. These are good for keeping your audience guessing, and can easily grow and come back from a developing arc, at least harmonically. These are:

• Saturation (chromatic or diatonic)
• Direct/phrase modulations
• Reharmonization 

Saturation is a way of using all the tones in either a chromatic or diatonic scale before moving on with the phrase. A lot of you might refer to Schoenberg's twelve tone rows, but chromatic saturation has been used a lot before that, in pieces by Hugo Wolf. Mozart even attempted this kind of writing in the fourth movement of Symphony No. 40, KV. 550, in G minor, right before the development starts.

• Chromatic saturation is simply using all of the notes of the 12 tone spectrum within a segment of music. Here's the Mozart example from before: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B5fqVYXVDwU#t=03m30s
  • It creates a perfect location to start a new phrase in a completely new place (the V/V of the key) from the III. Chromatic saturation doesn't all have to be in a row, though. Connecting strings of chromatic chords can achieve the same goal.
• Diatonic saturation is the same concept of chromatic saturation, but using a scale (any mode) as the grounds of saturation rather than chromaticism. Especially when combined into chords, this method can sound very cacophonous, but still tonal, as the composer resolves the mass of sound into a new phrase. An example from Rautavaara's "Cauntus Articus"
  • https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TO3YRZWLvQo#t=04m12s

Direct modulations are basically modulations that don't really seem to fit within any traditional tonal analysis. The most common type of this is in pop, musical theatre, or rock music where the key moves up a whole or half step without warning to give the sense of harboring more energy in the song, especially with a repeated motif. Phrase modulations, can be direct modulation, but simply happen in the middle of a phrase to jar the audience, but still stay fluid throughout, most often by keeping a melody or inner voice in constant motion throughout the phrase. Phrase modulations are especially useful in recapitulations of sonata format, or when a repeated figure in any form of music is getting to be a little bit too much. 
Executing these may seem counter-intuitive, but it requires you to think outside of the realm of diatonicism in one key. If you compare the key of the phrase you're in and the key of the phrase you want to end in, the composition of phrase modulation is "how am I going to bridge those gaps?". Common ways, as said before, can be:

• ...keeping the melody/inner voice moving, and using accidentals to reach the new key.
• Ending a phrase in the original key, and instead of ending the melody where the the audience expects it diatonically, make the last note an accidental in the old key, but perfectly fine in the new key.

Reharmonization is simply a way of taking a melody and changing the chords underneath it to make it sound new and different. An easy way to do this is take your melody, and find chords that it also sounds good with; sometimes these will be diatonic, sometimes they won't.
Oftentimes, to make the new progression sound smooth, composers employ extended chords to help, having the melody end on 9th's, 11th's, or 13th's, so the bass line can move without sounding too jarring. This technique is also good in recapitulations or repeated figures. Using it can also be a great pivot for a modulation.

Wow, this is so interesting! I found the first Harmony Extensions class very useful, so I would like to sign in for this one too!

Sure thing.

49 minutes ago, Monarcheon said:

Sure thing.

 

I have a question: I have started to compose a piece for this masterclass, but I used the Messiaen modes and the music sounds atonal. Do the harmonic extensions you mention also apply to atonal music or do I have to write a tonal piece?

This works better with tonality, otherwise it's these techniques wouldn't be necessary.

Sounds very interesting and useful; I'll officially join this one!

I would like to participate, assuming being unable to participate in the previous masterclass on harmony won't put me at much of a disadvantage

18 minutes ago, fishyfry said:

I would like to participate, assuming being unable to participate in the previous masterclass on harmony won't put me at much of a disadvantage

 

Shouldn't be! You're both in.

Sign me up!

Hi Monarcheon,

Please follow this link to view my piece for this assignment: http://www.youngcomposers.com/t34956/sonatina-in-bb/#comment-1186672506

Maarten

Here's my assignment. Please excuse my total ignorance of the piano!

Hi. I lost a big chunk of my work for this assignment, and I don't think it's going to be possible for me to complete by tonight. I guess that goes to show why I ought to be doing more sketching on paper.

Just get it in when you can!

@KJthesleepdeprived?

12 hours ago, fishyfry said:

Hi. I lost a big chunk of my work for this assignment, and I don't think it's going to be possible for me to complete by tonight. I guess that goes to show why I ought to be doing more sketching on paper.

 

How did you lose it? Maybe it would be possible to recover it?

@Monarcheon My computer troubles have resurfaced and made it impossible to get any work done for this. Actually my computer is totally unusable at this point. I would have said something sooner but frustration drove it from my mind. I look forward to participating in these classes when this issue of mine is resolved. In the meantime, I'll still be checking out the threads on my phone and playing around with these ideas on my own. If I get a chance to somehow post my exercises on here, I will. And if it pleases her ladyship or anyone else to do so despite my lateness, I'll graciously consume any feedback that comes my way.

Anyhow, my apologies for leaving you hanging Monarch!

35 minutes ago, KJthesleepdeprived said:

@Monarcheon My computer troubles have resurfaced and made it impossible to get any work done for this. Actually my computer is totally unusable at this point. I would have said something sooner but frustration drove it from my mind. I look forward to participating in these classes when this issue of mine is resolved. In the meantime, I'll still be checking out the threads on my phone and playing around with these ideas on my own. If I get a chance to somehow post my exercises on here, I will. And if it pleases her ladyship or anyone else to do so despite my lateness, I'll graciously consume any feedback that comes my way.

Anyhow, my apologies for leaving you hanging Monarch!

 

That's understandable! Though the pen and paper method never dies 

Finally I was able to reach some level of completion with this. I'm sorry it took me so long, and thanks for being understanding about it.