Below are some responses to common misconceptions on the quiz. We will discuss some of this in class on Wednesday.
Cadence definitions
Some of you are confused as to the definition of perfect authentic cadence and imperfect authentic cadence. This may be because of an error in the Clendinning/Marvin text you used last year. Those authors include inverted chords in the category of IAC. However, historical theorists and composers did not consider things like V–I6 or V6–I to be cadences, nor do most theorists today who are leading the study of musical form. Both perfect and imperfect authentic cadences always have sol–do as their bass, and the functional bass for both is always D5 T1. The only difference is in the melody.
5) Why do you think a perfect authentic cadence is called “perfect” and an imperfect authentic cadence is called “imperfect”?
This is the same as species counterpoint. While both, by definition of a cadence, can end a phrase, only a perfect cadence will end, or complete, a typical classical work. (Remember that “perfectus” means “complete.”) This is because is has more of a closed or final sound than the IAC. (Though, again, keep in mind that both have the same bass pattern.)
7) Explain prolongation as best you can in a single sentence.
Prolongation extends a harmonic function by means of embellishment (either a voice-leading embellishment, a “contrapuntal chord,” or a subsidiary harmonic progression), allowing more elaborate harmonic phrases while still maintaining a single T S D T progression.
10) Attempt an interpreted functional bass analysis of the following progression:
T1 D7 T1 D2 T3 S4 D5 T1
Answer: T(1 D7n 1 D2p 3) S4 D5 T1
Tonic function (the most common function to be prolonged) is prolonged by two passing chords: D7 and D2. Since the ti bass note of D7 functions as a neighbor to the do of the T1 chords, D7 is a neighbor chord (D7n). Since the re of the D2 chord functions as a passing tone between the do and mi of the T1 and T3 chords, the D2 chord is a passing chord (D2p).
Two general rules of thumb come in to play here: S4 D5 T1 at the end of a phrase is always the cadential progression, and prefer to analyze a tonic prolongation as long as makes musical sense.
Don’t sweat this one too much. It’s all very abstract still, with no real music in front of you. I mainly wanted to get you thinking about this before we see real musical examples in the near future. It will make a lot more sense once you get more familiar with it and start connecting it to musical form and analysis, but only if you have some vague notion of the concepts first.