Questions tagged [figured-bass]
For questions related to figured bass (also called thoroughbass), the notation of a bass line and the intervals to be played above the bass.
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Bach's figured bass notation?
In this original Bach manuscript excerpt (from BWV 998), does anyone understand what he's writing along the bottom? Can it be deciphered as figured bass?
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Did J.S. Bach write the figured bass in scores or continuo parts?
This full score for Bach's St. Matthew Passion helpfully has the figured bass written below the continuo part. I found this particularly illuminating, as it helped me to see the harmonic movement ...
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What does an isolated dash mean in figured bass?
(Note that these do not seem to be the same as the isolated lines discussed in What does an isolated horizontal dash mean in figured bass notation)
I am trying to work with a figured bass score that ...
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Isn’t the root progression or chord progression of a song meant to anchor in a foundation for rest of the instruments to experiment over?
What I mean is, isn’t the idea of creating and using a root progression or chord progression for it to be the foundation for a composition. With pop music (rap, r&b, latin, pop rock, country) the ...
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Do figured bass symbols indicate an altered octave?
This is notated in B♭ major and the ♭VII chord has a duplicate of its octave in one of the upper voices. Would this need a figured bass symbol?
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How to write figured bass symbols for chords built on chromatically altered tones
Here I have given my best shot at trying to write figured bass symbols for chords containing descending lines built on ^4 and also ^#4. I would appreciate if someone with experience in figured bass ...
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figured bass question
I have learned figured bass only using well-organized reduced excerpt.
Above picture shows a real excerpt with figured bass.
Does '8' respond to the red circled 'Eb', and
'7' to the 'Db'?
What makes ...
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Can we use double accidentals in figured bass?
I've composed the following figured bass example:
It modulates from E to F and therefore needs several chromatic alterations. But my question is on the final beat of the third measure: if I want a B♭-...
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Figured Bass Standalone Accidentals
I'm wondering whether or not standalone accidentals always imply 3rds in figured bass notation.
Is (5)(♭)(8) the same as (5)(3♭)(8)?
Is (9)(♮) the same as (9)(3)?
Can a figure 3 always be inserted ...
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How do you figure an accented passing note in the bass?
How do you figure an accented passing note in the bass, specifically when the harmony changes?
If you have non-chord tones in the bass following a figuring, it's easy to show the same harmony ...
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How can I distinguish between a full 7th chord and a 7th chord without a 5th in figured bass?
The standard figured bass is usually just a 7 for a 7th chord in root position, right? If this is correct, the 5th and 3rd are assumed. But what about if the 7th chord should omit the 5th and double ...
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When to use sixth in continuo according to Bianciardi?
From Bianciardi's Breve Regola (http://www.bassus-generalis.org/bianciardi/bianciardi.html): "But because some notes don’t have a fifth above, a sixth
is used in its place; this happens in those ...
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Is partimento a good way to learn how to write a Baroque trio sonata in the style of Corelli?
Who I am:
I am 16 years old and I play violin. I am a music student and I consider myself to have a very good ear and understanding of music theory. My piano-playing is however not very good. I really ...
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How to write figured bass for an augmented harmony above a dominant bass
This is the eighth bar of fugue no. 9 in Ariadne Musica by Fischer...
...transposed to C# minor.
In terms of figures the two tones above the bass are a third which is raised and a diatonic sixth, so ...
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Rules for improvising intermediate notes in basso continuo
When realizing figured bass, passing notes in the bass are analyzed quite thoroughly in literature (e.g. The Art of Accompaniment from a Thorough Bass). However, I cannot find any information or rules ...
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Figured bass: Am I on the right track?
I'm studying for the Grade 6 music theory exam with the ABRSM and am working through this exercise in preparation (2018 B, question 2)
Can anyone tell me if there are any errors I should correct? Beat ...
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Stuck with figured bass notation for inverted 7th chord
My apologies for the "name this chord" question, but i'm stuck trying to identify this harmony.
The figured bass notation indicates to me that the bass note should be the seventh of a 7 ...
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Can the harmony change at the resolution of a suspension?
I came across a 7-5 suspension for the first time today- as seen in the image. This is the first time I have come across a suspension which has a change of bass (that isn't an octave leap or fall) at ...
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Figured Bass Notation
I am wondering if there are better ways to remember the figured bass. I'm having trouble remembering all of the inversions for triads and sevenths, and I've been trying to memorize them for a few ...
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Why aren't passing V64 chords in minor notated with a raised 6 in figured bass?
If all accidentals are supposed to be notated in the figures why do passing 64 chords only appear with 64 and no slash or sharp symbol next to the 6. The 6 in a passing 64 chord is the leading tone ...
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Can there be a chord with two inversions represented by the same figure?
When figures are used to describe chords, they represent the intervals above the lowest pitch, and these seem to be treated as unique. For example, basic triads come in 5-3, 6-3, and 6-4 forms; and ...
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Who has brought up the English term **figured bass** for thorough bass?
I wonder when and by whom figured bass has been introduced as synonym for thorough bass in the basso continuo. In my view this must be somehow an error or a misunderstanding of figurierter bass in ...
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Should the inversions of VII and VII7 in minor be seen as dominant chords in the relative major?
I am doing some harmony exercises in minor keys where there are tonicizations of III approached usually by VII. By having VII7 or just VII and its inversions available as applied chords or secondary ...
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Why are accented passing tones not figured but suspensions are?
If 4-3 happens as a suspension and it is figured then why not also figure an accented passing tone 4-3?
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Goldberg variations - chord progression changes between variations
The Wikipedia article on the Goldberg variations sets out the chord progression which all variations follow. In some bars, different options are separated by commas and it says there are different ...
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What does a 7 - 6 mean in figured bass?
Here in this voice leading exercise I am doing I have 73 going to 63 in the figured bass but I am not sure what this means for the voice leading. I understand the 7-6 means that the 7th above the ...
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What does a "6——" mean in figured bass?
I can't figure out what a "6——" means in figured bass. The bass notes are C and A.
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How can I learn thoroughbass?
I've done some reading and I've discovered that our modern system of music theory (I'm looking at you Roman numeral analysis) is not the same system that most of the great composers used, including ...
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Help understanding basso continuo in Vivaldi's 'La Folia'
This piece by Vivaldi is shown in the score to be notated for 3 voices. However in performances, there are 4 instruments played: 2 violins, cello and keyboard. The keyboard, along with playing the ...
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7th chord notation confusion
I simply cannot understand the notation used in this question:
I need to express this chord in 4-part, open or close position; I just can't seem to understand how the notation works. I know that this ...
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How to write a double sharp in a figured bass symbol
Here is an image of the exercise I am doing. I'm supposed to write the figured bass symbol underneath the chord label but I am not sure if this is right. I just put a double sharp next to the 3. Can ...
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How to use figured bass over a stationary bass note
I am studying figured bass, and as a test I wanted to try and add figured bass symbols to the following passage marked with the pink arrow. I got stuck right at the beginning, because I am not sure ...
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Is a figured bass symbol supposed to show a raised 6th scale degree?
I am harmonizing this figured bass
Please look at the E note where the blue arrow is pointing. I have raised this note because otherwise there would be an aug 2nd leap to the F#. Can someone please ...
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Do figured bass symbols work with roman numerals?
I often see roman numerals and figured bass together when labelling chords but are both really necessary? Surely the Figured bass will have accidentals if the chord is to be modified in some way so ...
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What does a "2" on top of a figured bass exercise mean?
Here is a pic from my textbook, Adwell/Schachter's Tonal Harmony. It tells me what the soprano should be in the figured bass but there is a 2 next to both notes. What does that mean?
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For a first-inversion major V in a minor key, is the figured bass just a 6?
In figured bass usually a first inversion chord is just labelled as 6. However, in minor the V in first inversion has a raised note. In my book the V in first inversion is still notated as 6 without ...
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Figured bass question: When to use #6 in minor key?
So I'm transcribing a piece by Giuseppe Valentini, one of his Allettamenti da Camera (1714), but my figured bass is a bit rusty. Here's an excerpt that illustrates my question:
So in the end of first ...
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Do incomplete chords get roman numerals in harmonic analysis?
I am studying figured bass. I see some chords might be incomplete, for example 8/3 chords. Would those chords get Roman numerals assigned to them, or must all 3 notes of a triad be present to be able ...
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Did continuo players consider figured bass as "interval symbols" or "chord symbols"?
The "modern" idea of chords and their inversions being functionally equivalent is generally credited to Jean-Philippe Rameau's 1722 Treatise on Harmony. However, figured bass was already in ...
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Why are all voicings of a 5/3 chord written the same way?
A G major chord in root position is named 5/3 because of the intervals above the bass, but if I move the 3rd and 5th around up higher through the octaves, those intervals change but the chord is still ...
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Denoting multiple suspensions in figured bass Roman numeral analysis
When composing a figured bass Roman numeral analysis for a chord that has more than one suspension, is it typical to denote both suspensions, as I have done at the end of my analysis?
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Function of augmented-fifth in figured bass
What is the harmonic function of the 5+ in the figured bass in the following snippet?
If I have interpreted the figuring correctly, a F♯ figured 5+ should realise the triad F♯ A C𝄪. I am confused ...
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Is this the correct numeral for the given bass?
Pardon me, I'm pretty new on the whole "part writing from figured bass".
Based on what I know, I believe that a 6th means 1st inversion? (correct me if I'm wrong)
However, here's what I don'...
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Lilypond: Convenient code for basso continuo horizontal lines?
In basso continuo you sometimes want to place horizontal lines to indicate stable harmony. This is done in LilyPond using \bassFigureExtendersOn:
\version "2.18.2"
\score {
<<
...
CommunityBot
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What does a prime mean in figured bass?
What does a prime symbol after a bass figure mean? For example 6' or 6 4' 2?
I came across this in a 1956 edition of J.S. Bach's BWV 1035, by Otto Heinrich Noetzel. Looking at the written right hand, ...
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LilyPond: Figured bass help - Vertical figure order with bass figure extenders on
I'm having a bit of trouble obtaining the desired result in the following example:
\version "2.18.2"
<<
\relative c' {
e2 e,
}
\figuremode {
\bassFigureExtendersOn
...
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Is this a deceptive cadence?
i was wondering if someone could clear up whether this is some sort of deceptive cadence or not.
We are recently back to Bflat Major. The very last beat of the previous bar is F7 (labelled here ...
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Have I successfully/legitimately modulated?
Hi guys! Just wondering if I've done this properly.
We are newly in Csharp minor from the relative major E major, and we need to finish in the home key- F sharp minor. As it stands, I have written the ...
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Is this a Neapolitan 6?
I have a couple of questions regarding this passage. Have labelled the bars in question ''1'', ''2'' and ''3''. The stave in question is second from bottom (directly above ''N6??'').
We are in G minor,...
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Is this some sort of suspension? If so, how do I write it in?
Hi guys,
We are in F sharp minor. There is a G sharp being held over V7 (Csharp7), the second inversion tonic chord (Fsharp minor), and then the ii7 chord that follows. The G sharp is a chord tone of ...
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