Welcome to Try This! Your weekly look at a partimenti rule. This week we are going to continue with the Rule of the Octave (RO), but in minor.
Dun, dun, dun, daaaaaaa. That’s not just a sound effect, the oh-so-famous opening of Beethoven’s 5th Symphony, which starts with 20 bars of RO harmony in C minor (that’s the first 20 seconds of this recording).
Classical music is drenched in the Rule of the Octave!
Grab your instrument and let’s try it!
RO ① ⑦ ① up to ⑤ in minor
- Play ① ⑦ ① ② ③ ④ ⑤ in D minor.
- Try first position, find the most neutral line starting at the 8v. Above ① add an 8v, above ⑦ add the 3rd, above ① come back to the 8v, above ② add the 6th, above ③ add the 6th, above ④ add the 5th, and above ⑤ add the 3rd.
- Try second position, find the most neutral line starting at the 3rd. Above ① add an 3rd, above ⑦ add the 5th (yup, it’s going to be a tritone), above ① come back to the 3rd, above ② add the 3rd, above ③ add the 8v, above ④ add the 6th, and above ⑤ add the 5th.
- Try third position, find the most neutral line starting at the 5th. Above ① add an 5th, above ⑦ add the 6th, above ① come back to the 5th, above ② add the 4th, above ③ add the 3rd, above ④ add the 3rd and above ⑤ add the 8v.
- Now put all of those together into chords!
Are you up for a challenge?
- Try transposing the RO to E minor and F minor (if you want to be ready for next week, make sure to transpose the minor RO to F minor.
- Try playing the whole notes in the bass with one note, any of the given intervals, in the upper voice (whole notes against whole notes).
- Try playing the whole notes in the bass with two notes, any of the given intervals, in the upper voice (half notes against hole notes).
- Once you can add two notes against one bass notes, try adding diatonic passing notes and neighbour notes to your melody
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- learn sequences, the Rule of the Octave, and cadences
- learn how to deconstruct and reconstruct the patterns at your instrument
- see how great composers use these elements in their compositions
- then we’ll put the elements together and create a musical phrase.
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