CompClassical
Return to: Raymond Weiss Mini-Course | The Chord Map | Voice Leading | Instrumentation | Music_Composition
Classical Music
Note: Students who wish to practice their skills learned in this unit are encouraged to access this site for an opportunity to practice composition.
Classical music, in the broadest sense, is the genre that established Western music and Western music theory. Originating in Europe, classical music is most often associated with orchestras, bands, string quartets, and solo pianists. Some of the most notable composers of "classical music" are Beethoven, Mozart, and Bach (each of them actually representing a different period of Western music, but that is a topic for music history).
In this unit we will readdress the various topics learned in the preceding units by recognizing harmonic movement, voice leading principles, and instrumentation practices. These three skills should give you a base understanding for music composition, and should provide you with all the tools you will need to begin composing for yourself.
Quick Overview
To begin, we'll review the chord map again. If you need further review, return to The Chord Map
Unlike many other forms of music, classical music cannot be said to rely on certain central chord progressions. However, classical music pieces often begin and end with very typical and expected chord progressions. This allows listeners to center themselves and understand what is to be expected out of the piece. While some composers can use this expectation to great effect, we will focus solely on establishing basic chord progressions. In doing so we can minimize our efforts on analysis and focus instead on voice leading, instrumentation, and harmonic tendencies.
See, for example, the first four measures of Bach's Prelude in C below. You may also listen to it Media:Final6.mp3
You should recognize the basic chords of the progression here: I-ii-V-I. This progression firmly establishes C major as the tonic area and sets up expectations for the listener that they will be hearing more of C major. The voices flow very smoothly, avoiding parallels in doing so. It is important to recognize the reason these four chords go together in the order that they do. If you've forgotten, please review Voice Leading.
Quick Quiz - Part One
Below are two quick examples of simple chord progressions being used in classical music pieces. See if you can guess the name of the piece, and make sure to understand the chord progression being used.
| 1. Name the piece. | 
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|---|---|---|---|
| Answer: Pachelbel's Canon. | Media:Class3.mp3 | ||
| 2. Name the piece. | 
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|---|---|---|---|
| Answer: Beethoven's Fur Elise. | Media:Class4.mp3 | ||
If you'll recall from Instrumentation, musicians often use a wide variety of instruments in their compositions. While taking a look at the pieces above, keep in mind that these examples represent only one possible way of playing the music. For example, some composers have arranged full symphonies for a solo piano, like Franz Liszt did with Beethoven's nine symphonies. While you're looking at the music, try to work out how other instruments or combinations of instruments may be able to play the same notes, or an approximate. Below, we will practice this.
Quick Quiz - Part Two
Using the example provided, decide how you would arrange the piano work for string quartet. If you need to review the ranges of the instruments, see Instrumentation
| 3. Arrange the work for string quartet. | 
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|---|---|---|---|
| Answer: Violin 1 would handle the melody line in the treble clef, while Violin 2, Viola, and Cello would perform the accompaniment present in the bass clef. | Media:Final7.mp3 | ||
| 4. Arrange the work for string quartet. | 
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|---|---|---|---|
| Answer: Again, Violin 1 would handle the melody line in the treble clef, while Violin 2, Viola, and Cello would perform the accompaniment. Violin 2 does join Violin 1 for the melody in the last few bars of this example. See the answer here: | 
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Review and Conclusion
In classical music, conventions and common practices dominate the genre, giving rise to a familiar "feel" to the music. These conventions include chord progressions, voice leading techniques, and instrumentation choices. Understanding how the three components of composition interact with each other is crucial to composing your own works of music in any genre.
It is now highly recommended that you use what you have learned briefly here to practice your own compositions at this site. There are still many details in music theory that can help you compose a greater variety of musical compositions and understand more musical compositions composed by others. If you seek further knowledge, access this site for more lessons and exercises.
Resources
1. Apple Inc. (2000-2017). MusicTheory.Net. Retrieved from: www.musictheory.net
2. Noteflight LLC. (2008-2017). Noteflight.Com. Retrieved from: www.noteflight.com