Tag Archives: harmony

The World Was Wide Enough for Different Approaches to Harmony

Posted on May 9, 2019 by timchenette

Hamilton: An American Musical centers around the friendship and rivalry between the contrasting characters Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr. Hamilton is tense, ambitious, rash, risk-taking, trying to reach his goal (his power of speech, unimpeachable). Burr is cautious, waiting to play … Continue reading →

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Is the augmented sixth chord just a tritone sub for V7/V?

Posted on July 31, 2018 by timchenette

Good question. (Don’t worry if you don’t know/remember what these chords are. We’ll get there.) In my experience, classically-trained music theorists prefer to consider the augmented 6th as separate from tritone substitutions while jazz musicians explain the augmented sixth chord … Continue reading →

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Groovy Muzio

Posted on April 22, 2018 by timchenette

I don’t know about you, but when I hear a piece by Muzio Clementi, I think, groovy. Apparently, so did Toni Wine and Carole Bayer Singer, because they based their song “Groovy Kind of Love” on the opening of the final … Continue reading →

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Aesthetics of the “Singer-Songwriter Progression”

Posted on September 22, 2017 by timchenette

First, let’s define the “singer-songwriter progression.” You could read about the progression in a reputable source. Or you could just listen to it over and over: Given the association with 90s singer-songwriters, you might wonder if this progression is less relevant … Continue reading →

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Mozart’s Horn Concerto, K. 412, “Ob-la-di”

Posted on July 13, 2017 by timchenette

With a little shifting of tempo and pitch level, the opening theme of Mozart’s Horn Concerto, K. 412, fits rather nicely atop the verse of the Beatles’ Ob-la-di, Ob-la-da. Here’s the chord progression, simplified slightly: I / / / V … Continue reading →

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Chord loops vs. progressive harmony

Posted on March 21, 2017 by timchenette

This blog is usually dedicated to making connections between pop/rock and classical music, but sometimes it’s good to acknowledge differences. For example, there’s a huge difference between how these repertoires use harmony. The playlist below gives some nice illustrations. Perhaps … Continue reading →

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The Dominant’s Fall From Dominance

Posted on June 13, 2016 by timchenette

This is interesting: not a single song on the Billboard Top 10 right now uses a dominant chord in ways that make use of its tension. Here’s the list: Drake (ft. WizKid and Kyla), One Dance Desiigner, Panda Justin Timberlake, … Continue reading →

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