![polyphonic voice polyphonic voice](https://jan.ucc.nau.edu/~krr2/polytex/polytex7.gif)
But in practice, the concept can be difficult to pin down. something that behaves as one voice or line (as defined in the chapter on unisono and doubling). Octave doublings and “split” orchestration – fundamental strategies found in all orchestral music – extend the notion of a “voice” to include unisono, i.e. Wagner, Tristan und Isolde, Vorspiel, m.The Wagner example below shows how the tone color of individual voices is subject to continuous change.įigure 119 Here one may well expect the theme to assert its principal role, but thanks to the octave doubling of both parts, our perception of their relative importance in the texture (which is upper and which is lower?) resembles the kind of optical illusion that leaves the viewer with a choice between two equally valid interpretations.įigure 118 In the passage below, a counterpoint is added to the theme of the minuet. Once again it seems reasonable to expect one instrument or group of instruments to represent a single voice, appearing in its own well-defined position relative to the placement of the other voices and maintaining a particular tone color.
![polyphonic voice polyphonic voice](https://awave.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/Detail-2-768x768.jpg)
Since its advent during the Middle Ages, polyphony has been associated with the notion of independent voices, each with its own individual identity and placement in the larger context. Something similar applies to polyphonic passages. Once again we see that idiomatic considerations may at times override or even transcend classical music theory. Not even the rather more conservative Brahms follows the classical rules of voice leading in the otherwise homophonic, chorale-like opening of his 4th Symphony’s final movement.įigure 116 Berlioz, Symphonie fantastique, 1st movement, m.But with regard to the alto and tenor part, Berlioz treats the remaining instruments freely in terms of tone color or other instrumental considerations, without paying any particular attention to voice leading.įigure 114 At first glance it appears to be a typical four-part chorale with the soprano part in the flute, 2nd oboe and 1st violins, and the bass part in the bassoon, cellos and double basses.
![polyphonic voice polyphonic voice](https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0422/3813/products/desktop-synthesizers-novation-peak-eight-voice-polyphonic-synthesizer-4_2000x.jpg)
An instructive case is the first movement of Symphonie fantastique, which ends with the quasi-chorale cited below (“religiosamente”). Considering the overwhelming influence of the four-part chorale as a fundamental model in classical music theory, one would reasonably expect to see orchestral music teem with examples of similar instrumental four-part writing: one instrument (or instrument group) = one voice. Although focusing on chord progressions rather than polyphony, the strict rules of voice leading continue to be a regular part of a traditional education in music theory. Four-part chorale writing is still taught at conservatories all over the world as a representative template for “pure” traditional tonality.