What is Harmony? (Leaving Cert Music): Revision Notes

What is Harmony?

Harmony refers to the combination of notes played or sung together to create chords and progressions that support the melody. It provides depth, structure, and emotional context to music.

Importance of Harmony in LC Music

• Composing: Harmony exercises involve creating cadences, adding chord progressions, and harmonising melodies.
• Listening: Understanding harmony helps in identifying cadences, chordal textures, and progressions in prescribed works.
• Performing: Recognising harmonic structure aids in interpreting phrasing and expression.

Key Concepts of Harmony

Chords

• Triads: Three-note chords built on the tonic, subdominant, or dominant.
  • Major Keys: Common triads are I, IV, V, ii, and vi.
  • Minor Keys: Common triads are i, iv, V, and VI.
• Inversions: Chords rearranged so the root, third, or fifth appears as the lowest note (e.g., root position, first inversion, second inversion).

Cadences

• Cadences are chord progressions that signal the end of a phrase or piece:
  • Perfect Cadence (V-I): Strong and final.
  • Imperfect Cadence (I-V or IV-V): Unfinished, leads to continuation.
  • Plagal Cadence (IV-I): Soft and gentle resolution.
  • Interrupted Cadence (V-vi): Unexpected and surprising.

Progressions

• Chords are arranged in progressions to create movement and tension:
  • Primary Progression: I-IV-V-I.
  • Secondary Progression: Includes ii and vi chords for variety.
  • Passing Chords: Smooth transitions between main chords.

Tonality

• Harmony is rooted in the key signature and follows the rules of tonality.
• Use appropriate accidentals for modulations to related keys (e.g., dominant or relative minor).

Preparation for Harmony in LC Music

• Understand the rules of chord selection and progression outlined in the syllabus:
  • Use chords from the given key (major or minor).
  • Ensure cadences are stylistically appropriate.
• Practise common harmonic exercises:
  • Adding bass notes to melodies.
  • Creating chordal accompaniments.
  • Writing cadences.