The Counterpoint "Game" - Part 2

Tempo, Direction, Conjunct vs. Disjunct, Skips and Leaps - Variety!

The following material is the second pictorial essay which, like the first essay, has been repurposed from and largely based on a scripted slide show I researched, wrote and presented in video form, approximately five years ago. As mentioned before, a good comprehension of how to create a short cantus firmus is basic to mastery of the twin arts of counterpoint and harmony.

Therefore, I deem this material to be of sufficient value to not leave sitting idly on a computer storage drive, and have modified and adapted that material to this pictorial essay form. Unfortunately, I have not as yet worked out an efficient way to provide audio examples, so the reader is advised to personally play (and perhaps sing) the notated examples. Please comment below, and share a link if you like.

TEMPO – As seen above, and suggested by musicologist Peter Schubert (see References below), whole notes mark the downbeats of the cantus firmus, or CF. In our counterpoint exercises, whole notes represent the basic pulse. In this game, the whole notes move along at 60 to 80 bpm.

Do not forget! Each whole note in the CF above represents a DOWNBEAT, regardless of how many there are between the bars – in fact, there may not be ANY bar lines at all! As you see above, counterpoint lines of shorter note values will eventually be added and synchronized to the whole notes of the CF. You can hear this synchronization by playing and/or singing the above two lines together.

Look at how every cantus firmus has only one high point, an unrepeated climax. That single highest tone functions both as a goal to ascend to, and as the start of a descending curve back to the tonic. Oh, by the way, the answer to the earlier multiple choice question is c) 11.

CONJUNCTIVE VS. DISJUNCTIVE MOTION – The current example features mostly “conjunct” motion, which means “stepwise” motion. In this CF, there are two skips, and a single leap of a P4. The rest of the line walks along on adjacent scale degrees.

SKIPS AND LEAPS – For instructional purposes here, we’ll restrict the meaning of a “SKIP” to a diatonic 3rd – skipping over one scale tone – whereas a “LEAP” refers to a diatonic 4th or larger – because of leaping over two (or more) scale degrees.

SPICE – In themselves, leaps and skips are not bad. In fact, a totally conjunct or "stepwise" line gets boring pretty quick. The addition of one or more leaps and/or skips raises the melodic interest quotient. However, …

IF there are too many leaps, each tone becomes an island unto itself; in this line, there is no horizontal continuity. That’s too much spice, too much disjunctive motion, and all those melodic gaps won't make a smooth cantus – which literally means “song,” something to be sung with the human voice.

STEPS AND SKIPS – It follows that smaller intervals are less disruptive to song-flow than large intervals. After a step, or a diatonic skip of a 3rd, it is okay for the line to keep going in the same direction, as does this CF after the first skip of a third.

The Leap of a 4th – Following a leap of a 4th (P4) it is advisable to reverse direction, but as can be seen in this CF (the top line) a continuation in either direction is still feasible if by a diatonic step or a skip of a diatonic 3rd (but not another 4th!).

Leaps larger than a 4th tend to disrupt song-flow, even when restricted to the Acceptable Intervals (mentioned in Part 1). A line containing three or more large leaps – P5s, 6ths, or octaves – is NOT usually acceptable. This otherwise interesting line won’t work well as a cantus firmus, due to the many large leaps.

CHANGE OF DIRECTION AFTER LARGE LEAPS – It is best to change direction after a large leap – i.e., leaps of a 5th, 6th, or Octave – then continue in that reverse direction by steps or skips, which means by a diatonic 2nd or 3rd. In bars 7-9 of the CF line above, note the change of direction after a leap of a P5.

SUMMARY – Only two to four leaps ARE allowed in a cantus firmus of eight to 16 tones. Never leap three times in a row in a CF, and never leap even twice in the same direction. A change of direction should follow any leap of a 4th. After larger leaps – a 5th or more – the change of direction ought to be stepwise.

Now, with something like the blank staves above, you may try your hand at creating a couple of your own cantus firmi, eight or more bars in length (but no more than 16 bars each). You are welcome to refine the CF you experimented with from the previous essay in this series. Choose the clef and tonic key of your choice (add words if you like, one syllable per downbeat), and be sure to use pencil!

REVIEW of Cantus Firmus Rules (thus far) – Above, you can see there is a summary of the Counterpoint Game Rules of Parts 1 & 2, which we have examined, for reference. You may want to take a screenshot (tips are optional, but appreciated!).

If you decide to post your original cantus firmus on this platform, please share your link to it in the comment box below! Looking forward to seeing and hearing your work!

Tap/Click here to Read Part 3

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REFERENCES CONSULTED

Salzer, Felix and Carl Schachter. Counterpoint in Composition: The Study of Voice Leading, pp. 3-12. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1969.

Mann, Alfred. The Study of Counterpoint, from Johann Joseph Fux’s Gradus ad Parnassum. New York: Norton, 1965.

Schubert, Peter. Modal Counterpoint, Renaissance Style, First Edition, p. 18. New York: Oxford, 1999.

Jeppesen, Knud. Counterpoint: The Polyphonic Vocal Style of the Sixteenth Century. New York: Dover, 1992.

LINKS AND CREDITS

Link to Part 3: https://read.cash/@Majokdit/the-counterpoint-game-part-3-2d97f84a

Gradus ad Parnassum, by Johann Joseph Fux, (reprint of original edition, in Latin, pp. 94, 92, 110. This is a Public Domain work, published in 1725. Downloaded from the following link:

http://imslp.org/wiki/Gradus_ad_Parnassum_(Fux,_Johann_Joseph)

FLICKR IMAGE CREDITS, in Order of Appearance (commercial use allowed):

Spice jar labels, by Ben Ramirez: https://flic.kr/p/7Amfpu

Island, by Hector Garcia: https://flic.kr/p/JtG3w