Download MUS 1110 Elementary Harmony

MUS 1110 Elementary Harmony, Counterpoint, and Ethnic Music Writing
Description:
This course is designed for students who have a background in music as one of the subjects
offered for the Uganda Advanced Certificate of Education (UACE) or the equivalent or a good
diploma certificate in which music was a specialization. The course builds on the introductory
courses in harmony that students offered at UACE and diploma training. It equips students with
elementary skills in harmony, counterpoint, orchestration, and ethnic music writing, and music
transcription. The course offers a strong theoretical and practical component all geared
towards giving background to music composition.
Objectives:
1. To review the Uganda Advanced Certificate of Education (UACE) music composition
skills.
2. To enhance the techniques of counterpoint writing in western art music
3. To enhance skills of transcription and ethnic music writing
4. To enhance skills in writing for both western musical and ethnic music
Course Outline
Western Music
Topic 1:
Topic 2:
Topic 3:
Topic 4:
Key Signatures
 Sharp and Flats Keys
 Major and Minor
 As written on treble, alto, tenor, and bass clefs
Types of Intervals
 Perfect
 Major
 Minor
 Diminished and Doubly Diminished
 Augmented and Doubly Augmented
 Inversions of Intervals
Triads
 Root, Third, and Fifth of Triads
 Major, Minor, Diminished, and Augmented Triads
 Inversions of Triads
 Types of Triads Built on Scale Degrees (i.e. Tonic, Super Tonic,
Mediant etc. or I, II, III etc.) of Both Major and Minor Keys
 Open and Close Positions of Triads
Tonality and Modality
 In Major and Minor Keys
 Tonal and Modal Tones
 Tonal and Modal Triads
Topic 5:
Motion
 Similar
 Parallel
 Contrary
 Oblique
Topic 6:
Harmonic Progression
 Voice-leading Principles
 Root Position Progression in Four Part Harmony;
 Treatment of the Tritone, and Leading Tone
 Harmonic Functions of each Scale Degree Triad in Root Position in
Both the Major and Minor Modes
Topic 7:
Phrase Beginnings and Endings
 Cadences: Perfect, Imperfect, Deceptive or Interrupted, Plagal
Topic 8:
Harmonizing in Four-parts
 When Given Soprano or Bass Part/the Figured Bass
Topic 9:
Writing for Strings (Violin, Viola, Cello, and Double Bass)
 Musical Terminologies Associated Used
 Clefs, Range, and Performance Possibilities
 Single, Double, Triple, and Quadruple Stopping
 Positions (First, Second etc.)
 Orchestrating a Chorale for Strings
Topic 10:
Harmonic Function of Sixth Chords:
 The Tonic, Super-tonic, Mediant, Sub-dominant, Dominant, Submediant, and Leading Tone in Both Major and Minor Keys
Topic 11:
Modulation
 In Major Keys to the Dominant, Sub-dominant and Relative minor
 In Minor Keys to the Dominant, Sub-dominant and Relative Major
Ugandan Ethnic Music
Topic 12:
Topic 13:
Topic 14:
Classifications of Musical Instruments
 Aerophones, Membranophones, Chordophones, Idiophones and
examples of Ugandan ethnic instruments
The Pentatonic Scales
 Intervallic Relationship of Scale Degrees
 The Equidistant Pentatonic Scale
Forms of Ugandan Ethnic Music
 Strophic
 Strophic-modified
 Super-imposition
 Partial Super-imposition
Topic 15:
Topic 16:
Topic 17:
 Full Super-imposition
 Leader and Response
 Recitatives
Rhythmic and Intonation Aspects of Ethnic Languages in Uganda
 Natural Use of Text and Ethnic Music
Transcription of Ethnic Play Songs
 Fitting Text to Music;
 Breaking Syllables in A Word;
 Erasing Vowels in Adjacent Words
Simple Score Arrangements for Ethnic Music
 Leader and Response
 Voice and Drums
 Appropriation of Clefs in Ethnic Music Transcriptions
 Guidelines for Ordering Ethnic Instruments on A Score
Learning Outcomes
1. Ability to use triads in both root position and first inversion, and even effect modulation in
order to musically harmonize a given soprano or bass line in four parts
2. Ability to arrange a given chorale/hymn for a string orchestra
3. Ability to transcribe an ethnic children’s play song, and arrange it on a score for leader,
response, and drums
4. Ability to recognize the different rhythms and intonation of ethnic texts
5. Ability to break words in ethnic languages in syllables
Methods of Teaching/Delivery
Lectures, tutorials, demonstrations, singing, group and individual assignments, and individual
instruction
Modes of Assessment
Course work



Final examination
Written: 60%
Attendance and Participation in class Discussions: 5%
Weekly composition assignments: 20%
Mid-semester test: 15%
Selected Readings
Charles Horton and Lawrence Ritche. 2000. Harmony Through Melody. New York: Ardsley
House Publishers.
Gauldin, Robert. 1995. A Practical Approach to Eighteenth-Century Counterpoint. Waveland
Press.
Schachter, Carl. Hedi Siegel. 1999. Schenker Studies 2: Cambridge Composer
Studies.Cambridge:Cambridge University Press.
Wilson, Mortimer. 2009. The Rhetoric of Music: Harmony, Counterpoint, Musical Form. New
York: BiblioLife.