Harmonic Study of Bach's 371 Four-Part Chorales

Author: Zhang Jianhua
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2003-12-01
Features: "Johann Sebastian Bach, the 'Father of Music,' has a vast body of work that encompasses nearly all musical genres of his time. His compositions are rich in compositional techniques, whether in homophonic or polyphonic styles, or in their fusion, all of which are well inherited and continuously developed in his hands. Bach's 371 Chorale Preludes are the essence of his harmonic techniques and a of classical harmony. The combination of major and minor functional harmony with church mode melodies is the greatest feature of the harmonic treatment in 371. The first part of this book analyzes the melody structures, modes, notation methods, and altered notes in the 371 chorales. The second part focuses on Bach's harmonic treatment of church mode melodies in 371—the combination of church modes with functional harmony in two tonal systems—and discusses the following five aspects: 1. The relationship between the structure of mode melodies and the layout of functional harmony, 2. The relationship between mode characteristic notes and the seventh-degree note in melodies and their combination with functional harmony, 3. The relationship between melodic tonality and harmonic tonality, 4. The relationship between local modes and keys and their combination with overall functional harmony, 5. The combination of melodies in the same mode with different harmonic settings. The author attempts, through this research, to reveal the basic principles, characteristics, and main techniques of Bach's use of major and minor functional harmony to treat church mode melodies.