May 9, 201114 yr I'm trying to write contrapuntal music for piano, and have a few questions. What are the exceptions regarding hidden consecutives? Are hidden fourths as bad as hidden fifths or are they slightly more acceptable? Are consecutive 4ths/5ths allowed if one of the intervals is diminished? Are there any more things I should know? Thanks.
May 9, 201114 yr In baroque/classical counterpoint parallel 4ths are ok if the lower tone is not the bass itself (for eg. 6/3 chords in parallel have perfect 4ths between upper voices). Tritone to P4th may also work at cadences but have a bit 15th cent. sounding. In my experience, composers often separate longer parallel/contrapuntal/harmonic phrases with cadences instead of mixing them together.
May 10, 201114 yr I think Ian meant that parallel fourths are acceptable as long as the bass note is not the bottom note of the fourth. One sees parallel fourths in Bach all the time. I believe DV is referring to Renaissance and early Baroque counterpoint, such as is expounded in Fux's "Gradus ad Parnassum." In that context he is quite correct, though by Bach's time that restriction had been relaxed considerably.
May 16, 201114 yr I was always taught that a perfect interval moving into a tritone is okay if it isn't in the bass - was that incorrect, or just a stylistic disagreement?
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