Group 4

ENHANCE YOUR INTERPRETATIONS THROUGH HARMONIC ANALYSIS WITH BEN LAUDE

Led by tonebase Head of Piano Ben Laude, you’ll also be receiving direct feedback from two special guests: Curtis/Juilliard music theory professor and new tonebase artist Eric Wen and pianist/composer/Indiana University music faculty member and tonebase blogger Nicole DiPaolo!

This Intensive is meant for pianists of different skill levels and music theory backgrounds. If you’re new to music analysis, you’ll find all the prerequisite knowledge you’ll need and more in Ben Laude’s “Music Theory Basics” course.

Whether you’re just getting your feet wet with Roman numeral analysis, want a better grasp of figured bass, or you’re ready to ascend to the high art of Schenkerian analysis, you WILL improve your skills in music theory and analysis.

Assignments

Follow these steps:

  • Submit a piece/passage for approval! Choose a piece of tonal music whose harmony you’d like to understand better. It can be a piece you’re working on, or just one you’d enjoy. For longer works, choose a section that you’d like to focus on. 
  • Attempt a roman numeral analysis! Begin identifying harmonies and labeling them with roman numerals, either directly to your printed score or digitally using a PDF annotation app. See below for more details (1a, 1b)
  • Post your analyses to the thread for feedback! Either take a picture of your handwritten analyses or save a digitally-annotated analyses and upload into the thread below, along with any questions you might have for me, Eric, or Nicole.
  • Recommended: Let's hear how your interpretation evolves with your analysis! Post videos to show how your harmonic understanding is influencing your performance.
  • Optional: Try out formal analysis, chordal reduction, and more! If you've completed a harmonic analysis and are satisfied with it, move on to analyzing the form of your piece, attempt a chordal reduction, or explore other analytic techniques. See below for more details (2, 3, 4)

For printable staff paper, click here!

More instructions:

  • Depending on your music theory background, consider starting at either 1a or 1b and consider how far you'd like to progress beyond harmonic analysis. There's not shame in staying at 1a the whole time!! It can take a while to get the hang of this:

1a. Roman numeral analysis - Diatonic. If you’re new to music analysis, this is a good place to start. Pick a work from the classical period (Mozart, Haydn, Clementi, or Beethoven), identify the key, determine the chord scale, and begin labeling your score with Roman numerals under each distinct harmony. Look out for “non-chord tones,” notes that don’t belong to the given triad or extended chord, but live in between or next door to chord members. When you see accidentals, look for clues in the harmonic progression to help you determine if it's a passing tone/embellishment or if you're entering chromatic harmonic terrain (see 1b). Your piece might modulate, but still remain diatonic to the new key (as in simpler classical works).

1b. Roman numeral analysis - Chromatic. If you’re comfortable analyzing mostly diatonic works from the classical era, consider choosing a romantic piece that features more chromatic progressions (late Beethoven, Schubert, Chopin, Schumann, Liszt, Mendelssohn, Brahms, Grieg, Tchaikovsky). Label your score with Roman numerals, indicating modal mixture, applied chords (secondary dominants/leading tone chords), and modulations. Identify what keys you visit and keep track of how you get there.

2. (Optional) Formal analysis. If you've grasped the harmonic content of your piece/passage, you can then move on to analyzing its larger form – how phrases connect to larger sections, what key areas you visit along the way, and how the composer journeys from the tonic to the dominant and back to tonic over the course of the work. Most 18th-19th century music is in one of the following forms: binary form (A/B), ternary form (A/B/A), and sonata form (exposition/development/recapitulation). Romantic works might have more varied forms.

3. (Optional) Chordal reduction. Using voice leading principles, try constructing a chordal reduction of your piece/passage and be able to play it musically.

4. (Optional) Explore other analytic techniques. If you feel confident in your harmonic and formal analysis, consider strengthening your understanding of figured bass (thoroughbass), species counterpoint, schemas (voice leading patterns), and Schenkerian analysis.

 

RECOMMENDED TONEBASE COURSES

Primary resource

Further resources for more advanced analysis

Recommended reading

Fellow Participants in Group 4:

 

Group 4

Alice Lin

Serene

Michaëlle

Ashley

Brett Miller

Luminita

Tina Ellul

Aline Valade

Enrique Rosano

Juan Carlos Olite

Roy

Ignazio

Massimo maj

Agnes moscrip

Derrick Wu

64replies Oldest first
  • Oldest first
  • Newest first
  • Active threads
  • Popular
  • Sonatina No 1 in C major by Kuhlau op 20 no 1

    Like
      • Ben Laude
      • Head of Piano @ tonebase
      • Ben_Laude
      • 2 yrs ago
      • Reported - view

      Enrique Rosano Good choice! Why don't you start by analyzing bars 1-12. If you're comfortable with that, feel free to move forward. Or, if you want to show me your work, I can help you with the first twelve bars before moving on.

      Like
    • Enrique Rosano 

      Like
    • Enrique Rosano  

      Hi Ben

      Thank You for your recommendation. The simple fact that You ask me to analyze the first

      1-12 measures  gave a clear picture of the chordal harmony.

      Your advise was very helpful and will proceed accordingly.I’ll keep in touch with the progress. 
      Thanks again for Your help!!

      Like 1
      • Ben Laude
      • Head of Piano @ tonebase
      • Ben_Laude
      • 2 yrs ago
      • Reported - view

      Enrique Rosano Looking forward!

      Like
    • Ben Laude 

      Good morning Ben

      Enrique here

      Sorry I couldn’t be on zoom yesterday, had to work

      attached is my work sheet

      thanks

      • Ben Laude
      • Head of Piano @ tonebase
      • Ben_Laude
      • 2 yrs ago
      • Reported - view

      Enrique Rosano sorry for the delay! Here's some feedback on your analysis:

      • Bars 1-3: You're correct to identify the C major triad as the prolonged harmony in bars 1-3. You wrote "scale degree" roman numeral I, but remember that roman numerals refer to the whole triad built on a given scale degree. In C major Scale degree 1 is just the note C. So, you should write roman numeral I under the first bar and then the horizontal line through bar 3, like you did.
      • Bars 4-6: You identified the harmony in bar 5, but not 4. In fact, they are the same, but in different inversions. What is tripping you up is that they are not dominant triads (roman numeral V in C major), they're dominant 7th chords (V7). But in bar 5, you noticed the triad in the Alberti bass figuration, whereas bar 4 has an F in the figuration. But if you understand that the dominant 7th chord in C major uses the notes GBDF, then you should see that both measures are the same harmony. Bar 4 is in 2nd inversion (the D is in the bass) and bar 5 is in 1st inversion (B in bass). You also may have been thrown off by the C in the right hand of bar 4. That's a non chord tone, specifically an "appoggiatura," resolving by step to the chord tone B. Then, in bar 6 you return to roman numeral I.
      • So, the opening 6 bars have the very predictable progression: I - V7 - I. The 7th chords are in inversion, but let's leave that alone for now.
      • Bars 7-8: You chose the subdominant, which is close - but not quite accurate. You were seeing that F is in the bass and has an A right above it. If you play that alone, it will sound like an F major triad that is missing a C. But, it could also be a D minor triad missing the D. And, in fact, that's what it is. How can you tell? Notice that there are no Cs in the right hand, but there are several Ds, including a D on a strong beat. The C-sharp is just a chromatic lower neighbor (non chord tone). Since F is in the bass, it's in first inversion, which we label with arabic numeral 6 (referring to the 6th created between F up to D. Bar 8 is a V chord (G major) again, with some non chord tones. Can you spot them?
      • So, bars 7-8 should be labeled: ii6 V
      • Bars 9-10: You pretty much got it, but you're missing that the dominant chord has a 7th in it (F). So, the roman numerals in these bars are: I V7 (again). And the dominant 7th is in first inversion.
      • Bars 13-14: You're right, C minor. But where did that come from? We're in C major, and then Kuhlau suddenly shifts to the minor tonic (roman numeral i... lowercase). This is called "modal mixture" or "modal borrowing," since you're mixing in or borrowing a harmony from the parallel minor (C minor, in this case). 
      • Bar 15: Now we're going somewhere. The half note F-sharp in the bass indicates that this chord also does not belong to the C major chord scale. But, unlike 13-14, it's not borrowing from the parallel minor. Rather, you're moving towards the dominant of C major, which we know is G major. But rather than just using a G major chord as a V, Kuhlau wants it to sound like a new tonic. How does he achieve this? With a "secondary dominant" chord. D-F#-A-C (those are the notes of the bar) is the dominant 7th chord in G major. So, since this piece is in C major, we'll call this V7 / V ("Five-seven of five").

      In general you're on the right track. You're not quite spotting 7th chords or inversions yet, and the chromatic harmonies (those not found in your home chord scale) might be more confusing. Here's how you should approach this kind of thing: have your chord scale handy (three-note triads, but also knowing the four-note 7th chord built on scale degree 5: V7), with roman numerals labeled. Look at all the notes of a given bar and determine which notes seem most important and which might be decoration. Then see if those notes stack up to one of your chords in the chord scale. This will tell you your roman numeral! Then, when you get to exceptions like bars 13-15, you should still think in relation to your tonic, C major. That's how we were able to make sense of a C minor triad ("borrowed") and a D-dominant 7th chord (V7 of V).

      Like
    • Juan Carlos Olite
    • Philosophy teacher and piano lover
    • Juan_Carlos
    • 2 yrs ago
    • Reported - view

    Hello Ben!

    I would like to analyze a piece I am learning: Scarlatti Sonata K466 in F minor. I think I understand its basic harmonic structure, but I would like to go deeper in the many interesting harmonic  details here and there... I find these kind of Scarlatti Sonatas absolutely fascinating to know and appreciate his mastery as a keyboard composer. 

    Like
      • Ben Laude
      • Head of Piano @ tonebase
      • Ben_Laude
      • 2 yrs ago
      • Reported - view

      Juan Carlos Olite That's great! I'm glad someone is doing Scarlatti.

      Like
    • Aline Valade
    • Artist
    • Aline_Valade
    • 2 yrs ago
    • Reported - view

    Hello Ben Laude , I will choose Clementi Sonatina like you suggest, first movement, did not choose the phrase wet that I will analyse, and this choice will be easyer for me. to do this analyse. I start listening last sunday the music theory basics that you did on tonebass. It help me a lot to understand the music I play. Thank You for this. Actully I chanllenge myself since last march to play the prelude from the second english suite, Jean Sebastien Bach.  I don't have question about it for now but I probably will, later on. I will start by this two weeks to help me to analyse music. I am nervous about it, lol! But I think I will be able to understand more and more about music. Thank  you fro this two weeks, I really appreciate it. 

    Like
      • Ben Laude
      • Head of Piano @ tonebase
      • Ben_Laude
      • 2 yrs ago
      • Reported - view

      Aline Valade Sounds good! I look forward to seeing your analysis.

      Like 1
  • I chose Mozart K397 and I am reviewing the lessons and courses you suggested for this topic.

    Like
      • Ben Laude
      • Head of Piano @ tonebase
      • Ben_Laude
      • 2 yrs ago
      • Reported - view

      Massimo maj That's great. Looking forward to seeing your analysis.

      Like
    • Brett Miller
    • Software Developer - Pilates Teacher - Aspiring Pianist
    • Brett_Miller
    • 2 yrs ago
    • Reported - view

    Hi, here is my rough analysis of Beethoven Sonata Op 78

      • Ben Laude
      • Head of Piano @ tonebase
      • Ben_Laude
      • 2 yrs ago
      • Reported - view

      Brett Miller I will look at this first thing tomorrow morning! Excited that you chose this piece.

      Like
      • Brett Miller
      • Software Developer - Pilates Teacher - Aspiring Pianist
      • Brett_Miller
      • 2 yrs ago
      • Reported - view

      Ben Laude ok, since you are excited about it I thought I better do a little once over to (hopefully) make it worth your while.  I pretty much always write in the name of the note because when playing I am not quick enough to understand a Roman numeral....ok, thanks for taking the time.  I did the first 46 bars but understand if you want to limit your focus,,,,,this course is A LOT of work for you, thank you for doing it! (fyi - I live in Stockholm so I am 9 hours ahead).

      • Brett Miller
      • Software Developer - Pilates Teacher - Aspiring Pianist
      • Brett_Miller
      • 2 yrs ago
      • Reported - view

      Really not sure what is going on in bars 25-26....F double sharp in the right hand, G natural in the left.....I think bar 26 is a combo of A aug 6 and, A dom 7 (enharmonically equivalent) - is that possible?  Bar 25...no clue.  ;-)

      Like
      • Ben Laude
      • Head of Piano @ tonebase
      • Ben_Laude
      • 2 yrs ago
      • Reported - view

      Brett Miller Great! Yes, let me start with the first 16 bars and I'll return later to proceed forward.

      MM. 1-4

      • I love this opening, mostly because of the tonic pedal point and the extreme difference in register between right and left hands. It really gives it a heavenly quality.
      • You should actually write "tonic pedal" and a horizontal line to the right all the way through bar 4 (or even bar 5 - you do point out the pedal there).
      • The last chord of bar 2 is a secondary dominant. Are you familiar with this concept? Think of it as borrowing a dominant from the chord scale of another diatonic triad in the key you're in. In this case, it's the dominant of IV, so you'd write "V7/IV." That accounts for the chromatic E-natural. (When you're playing this, pay attention to that beautiful E-sharp rising to the F-sharp before descending to the E-natural, which is a consequence of the leading tone chord segueing to the secondary dominant of IV.)
      • In bar 3 I would call the whole second beat "V" and circle the D-sharp and write "app." (short for "appoggiatura." Jazz musicians might call it a 9 (since it's a 9th above C-sharp), but for our purposes, just consider it a non-chord tone that falls by step to a chord tone. I see why you wrote viiÂș first, but if you think of the D-sharp as a decoration of the C-sharp to come, then it's less fussy to just call it all V.

      MM. 5-16

      • Well done! Just a few things.
      • With all the pedal points, I think it's okay to ignore inversions like you have been. But starting in bar 9 you need to start labeling them, because they actually have a musical function. 
      • What's the inversion of the V7 chord that occurs on beat 3 in bar 9, and do you know how to label it? Notice the implied bass motion (if you were to play these as blocked chords, you'd see it more explicitly): C-sharp - B - A-sharp. Bar 10 is also an inversion.
      • Bar 11 downbeat can't be I, given the strong scale degree 4 in the bass underpinning the scale.
      • Notice another really beautiful example of what's called a "cross-relation": Beethoven scales down to a B-sharp, which is a chromatic lower-neighbor of C-sharp, before heading back up; and immediately after we hear a B-natural in the tenor. These are the kinds of juicy moments I'm listening for when I play this (you can almost hear the B-sharp leading down to the B-natural... it doesn't function that way, obviously, but just a cool thing your ear might notice. Noticing these kinds of things, and enjoying them, is also what helps you with memory (since you'll look forward to that spot and now can't forget what notes are involved) and musicality (since you'll be more sensitive to the B-sharp/B-natural in close proximity, and maybe pronounce the B a little more, and hear it as it falls to A-sharp).
      • Bar 15, beat 1 is in inversion.
      • Bar 17 isn't ii, actually. The whole thing is viiÂș with a suspended F-sharp that resolves to a chord tone.

      Okay now I need to tell you something very important: your entire analysis from bar 17 to the end of the exposition is wrong because you do not account for the modulation to the dominant.

      When in sonata form, ALWAYS be on the lookout for where the composer begins to modulate away from the tonic. 99% of the time, in major keys, it will be to the dominant (it was actually Beethoven who stopped doing that, like in the Waldstein which modulates to III).

      So, before I look at any more, your homework is to rework your analysis of these bars. What is the dominant of F-sharp major, and how does Beethoven get there? Bars 18-28 are some of my favorite music Beethoven ever wrote. It's actually simpler than it looks, since he's really vamping on the same decorated chord for a while.

      Like
      • Brett Miller
      • Software Developer - Pilates Teacher - Aspiring Pianist
      • Brett_Miller
      • 2 yrs ago
      • Reported - view

      Ben Laude I took in your corrections and re worked bars 17 -28...I came to that there is a move to d#- in bar 19 and then we end up in C# in bar 28.  I hope I am closer to the mark.  I will work further today.  Thank you for your feedback.

    • Alice Lin
    • Alice_Lin
    • 2 yrs ago
    • Reported - view

    I’d like to try Mozart piano sonata k280

    Like
      • Ben Laude
      • Head of Piano @ tonebase
      • Ben_Laude
      • 2 yrs ago
      • Reported - view

      Alice Lin That's great. Looking forward.

      Like
      • Alice Lin
      • Alice_Lin
      • 2 yrs ago
      • Reported - view

      Ben Laude Okay, here are the first couple pages. đŸ„ŽđŸ˜Ź.  It was challenging for me but I think I learned a lot.

      • Nicole
      • Nicole
      • 2 yrs ago
      • Reported - view

      Alice Lin Hi Alice! Just thought I'd take a look at this real quick. Measures 3-6 are very interesting, as you noted--with F in the bass persisting over what looks like these vii chords and a borrowed V7 of IV. I would just call this a "quiescenza" schema (the one I mentioned in the Zoom chat, which Bob Gjerdingen himself regrets calling the "quiescenza" because it's rarely as "restful" in sound as the name would suggest in Italian). That schema is a (local) 1-b7-6-#7-1 over a persistent 1 bass, usually. Although I've seen Bach do them upside down, like at the end of the G# minor fugue from book 1 of the WTC, where the 1-b7-6-#7-1 is in the bass. It's defined on page 8 of this PDF extracted from Bob's excellent book "Music in the Galant Style" - https://partimenti.org/schemas/collections/galant/schema_prototypes.pdf

      First measure of system 3 on that first page, I'd just say I - vii*6 - I6. Where the sequence begins in the middle of the 4th line I might just do a "Linear Intervallic Pattern" and not even use Roman numerals--sequences basically get a pattern rolling down a hill and you lose chord functions when that happens. If you go with the outer voices, it goes 10-6, 4-10, 10-6, 4-10. I wouldn't bother putting a modulation to C there. But I agree with modulating in the bottom system.

      Your first RN on the second page should be I6 and not iii, IMO, followed by a ii6. Mozart throws so many nonchord tones in there that it's hard to say (and Roman numeral analysis wasn't invented until after Mozart's death, so he's not necessarily thinking along these lines either). 

      Last chord, 2nd system of that page--I'd make that IV6 and not vi. Again, tough because the texture is thin.

      2nd measure, 3rd system--after the ii6 this is a cadential 6/4, which I prefer to analyze as a V with suspensions (which I think Eric Wen has explained or will explain).

      Like
      • Alice Lin
      • Alice_Lin
      • 2 yrs ago
      • Reported - view

      Nicole thank you Nicole for your detailed response!  This is really helpful so I can go through it and compare with what I did.  

      Like
Like Follow
  • 2 yrs agoLast active
  • 64Replies
  • 244Views
  • 12 Following

Home

View all topics