Dear David, My answers and comments are scattered amongst your questions.
----- Original Message ----- From: "David Rastall" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Sunday, March 07, 2004 4:35 AM Subject: Continuo Question > Dear luters, > > I have a continuo question (or two): > > In a minor key, I'm not entirely sure what to do with the V chord. > When there's *no other* indication to tell me what kind of third to > play (e.g. a melody note, or some other written part, or a sharp sign > in the figures), does the V chord take a major third or a minor third? > In a major key, obviously the V is major, but what about a minor key...? The rule is that the dominant is a major chord, whether the key is major or minor. Unless you have a good reason not to, you should keep chord V major. Generally speaking this applies to music in the 16th and 17th centuries as in more recent times, although there are always exceptions to quibble over, especially where modal issues predominate. > And, for that matter, is the third in any 4-3 (11-10) suspension > *always* a major third? No, not necessarily, because a 4-3 suspension doesn't always have to be on the dominant (chord V). If it is on the dominant, it will involve a major 3rd, apart from exceptional circumstances. If it is on the tonic or sub-dominant in a minor key, the 3 without a sharp sign would indicate a minor chord. > I'm looking at Caccini's "Amarilli mia bella." One flat, but I'm > assuming that the key is G minor. Bar 2 begins with an 11x10 > suspension over D in the bass: does the "x" mean a major 3rd? If > there were no "x" there, would you still play a major third? The x means sharp. (In fact Caccini's x looks more like two crosses superimposed, but the meaning is the same.) In figured bass a sharp without figures means play a major chord. If there were no x for the dominant chord, I might still be tempted to play a major chord, but that decision would be based on a number of factors. As far as key signatures are concerned, the rule of thumb is that 17th-century musicians would normally have one flat fewer than we would expect today. They would have a key signature of one flat for G minor, of two flats for C minor, and so on. > Bar 3 begins with the note D in the bass with A in the melody. What > about the middle note? Assuming D is the dominant (assuming the key is > G minor), does that mean that it always takes a major third? This is a very interesting question. Caccini seems to have been careful to notate the figured bass he wanted, and there is no sharp for that chord. There are three possibilities: 1) He wanted D major, but didn't put (forgot to put?) a sharp sign for it; 2) He wanted D minor, so deliberately left out the sharp sign; 3) He didn't want a 3rd in the chord - just the notes D and A - so again he put no sharp. We are extremely fortunate that "Amarilli mia bella" is one of the three Italian songs which Robert Dowland included in _A Musicall Banquet_ (London, 1610). Dowland realises Caccinini's figured bass, so we can see from his tablature exactly what he understood the harmony to be. There is always the chance that Dowland's interpretation is not quite what Caccini had in mind, but his setting is nevertheless extremely useful to us. For the chord under consideration Dowland opted for the first possibility, i.e. a major chord. Here is Dowland's tablature for the first few bars: |\ |\ |\ |\ |\ |\ |\ |\ |\ | |\ | |\ | |\ |\ |\ |\ | | | | | | |. |\ | | | | | | | | | | _d__c___a__c__a_________c__c__c__c__a_____ _a__a___a__a____|_f__e__d__d__d__d__a_|_e_ ______d____a__d_|____f__f__d__d__d____|_f_ _c__b___c_______|_e__e_____a__a__a__c_|___ ___________c__d_|_c__c__c_____________|_c_ ________________|_____________________|___ The last chord of the extract is clearly D major. I think it would be unwise to follow Dowland slavishly. His tablature was conceived for a lute, not a chittarone. The chittarone has a re-entrant tuning, and it can often be effective with fewer notes to fill out the texture. However, it is certainly worth keeping at least half an eye on Dowland's interpretation. Best wishes, Stewart.
