Lecture Notes: Functional Harmony in Western Classical Music

Overview

• Focus on the concept of functional harmony in Western Classical music, specifically during the Common Practice Period.
• Functional harmony involves chords with specific roles or functions that facilitate movement between musical "home" (the tonic) and "away" (non-tonic chords).

Key Concepts

Functional Harmony

• Functional Harmony: Chords serve a specific purpose; primarily moving music from a "home" position to "away" and back.

Example: "Mary Had a Little Lamb"

• Uses G Major and D Major chords:
  • G Major: Functions as the tonic chord (home).
  • D Major: Functions as the dominant chord (away), which naturally resolves back to tonic.

Chord Roles in Major Key

• Chords in a major key:
  • Major: 1, 4, 5
  • Minor: 2, 3, 6
  • Diminished: 7
• A chord being major or minor does not solely determine its function.
• Three Basic Functions of chords:
  1. Tonic
  2. Dominant
  3. Sub-Dominant

Chord Functions

• Tonic (Home): 1, 3, 6
• Sub-Dominant (Leads to Dominant): 2, 4
• Dominant (Leads to Tonic): 5, 7

Progression of Chords

• Example of a basic progression:
  • Tonic → Sub-Dominant → Dominant → Tonic

Upcoming Topics

• Detailed exploration of each chord function will be covered in a future class.

Engagement

• Encouragement for viewers to ask questions in the comments.
• Promotion of the channel and related content:
  • 2 Minute Music Theory
  • Jesse Strickland Music for compositions
  • Social media connections

• Note: This lecture provides a foundational understanding of functional harmony, a critical aspect of Western classical music theory.