Modulating, Transitions, etc...

I was wondering what techniques there were to seemlessly change keys. We all know going up or down the circle of fifths, but I'm interested in other tricks.

For example, if I want to go from C minor to G minor, but having a transition between them, how could I do this?

I'm working on a symphonic movement right now, and am struggling with the same. My advice is to do the same thing I've been doing. Get your hands on several scores music in the style that you are writing (music you like). Do a chord analysis of the modulations. Use that. You don't have to copy the chord progressions, but it should give you ideas. And if you are writing your piece as an exercise, go ahead and copy the progression exactly. See if you can make it work.

Best to study a few modulations - they're everywhere. If you write diatonically, Beethoven did plenty of flashy ones.

You have many choices. It comes down to how remote the new key, from what mode to what (major to minor or vice versa or whatever other mode); how abrupt you want it (how quickly you have to modulate and how definitively you want to be in the new key. Sometimes it's better not to bother to modulate - end a phrase then start the next in the new key (when the phrases are related in some way).

Aside from using V in the new key:

Pivot on diminished 7th chords (i.e a pivot chord is one common to both keys). As there are only 3 diminished 7th chords (with their inversions) each is be common to 8 keys but you can still somehow get to one in another key.

Neapolitan 6th - (flat)IIb.

Interrupted cadences (not sure what they're called in the US).

There are other ways. You need to know a little about approach and resolution to get it seamless though, and if you're writing just a melody or duet, you have to imply harmony in the melodic movement.

Treatment of minor scales is a little harder because of the greater number of triads on minor scales.

Good luck.

M

A good search in wikipedia will help :shifty:

If you think diatonically, c minor is iv of g minor. I feel like it would be pretty seamless doing a phrase modulation (aka as soon as one phrase finishes - the c minor one - start the next phrase in the new key). There would only be the issue with the previous NHT of the A natural.