how do you know what chords to use with melody

say i have a melody in b minor with my right hand....i can sort of hear what should accompanient it but sometimes i cant figure it out... is there a site that can explain how to figure it out

In order to play in harmony with the B minor melody, you have to use the chords related to the key of B minor. After all, the relative Major of B minor is D Major. So, you would use chords from the D Major diatonic scale.

D Major
E minor
F# minor
G Major
A Major
B minor
C# diminished
D Major

But in most cases, the use of just the diatonic chords is rather boring. To make it more interesting, we can use modal mixture, which is the mixing of the chords from the parallel major, minor and parallel harmonic minor keys. When you use chords from parallel keys, the chords are said to be "borrowed chords". A common borrowed chord in the key of B minor is the use of the V or V7, which in this case is F#7(which is borrowed from the parallel Major key - B Major), which leads to the i(B minor). This is because of tritone resolution, which is the 3rd(which is the leading tone) and the 7th(which is the subtonic) of the dominant 7th chord moving toward the tonic and 3rd of the i chord.

You can also make use of the secondary dominant. A secondary dominant is a dominant chord that moves up a 4th or moves down a fifth in scale step to any one of the diatonic chords. For example, The V chord of B minor is F#7, so you can precede the F#7 chord with its secondary dominant, which would be C#7. The chordal progression of a secondary dominant leading to the the V chord is just a circle of fifths progression. Long strings of dominant 7th chords following the circle of fifths progressions are called "extended dominants."





I would just look up "harmony", or "chord progressions" in the search engine of Google to get some rudimentary foundation of harmony.

i understand that but is there any way to just look at the notes in the right hand melody and immediatly know what chord would work best with it instead of going through a lot of trial and error

Well, what do you mean by "work best"?

Which chords to use depends on your style, the mood you're looking for (and possibly the price of oil). If you're going to treat your melody in a medieval organum-like fashion, you should use only octaves, fifths and unisons, if it's a Debussyan sound you're after, your set of chords will be vastly different.

So, what's your cup of tea?

vanillascoke asked about harmonizing a b minor melody. noSkillz gave a competent answer to which vanillascoke asked, "I understand that but is there any way to just look at the notes in the right hand melody and immediatly know what chord would work best with it instead of going through a lot of trial and error?" Now I'll offer my response.

In my mind there are 3 flavors of diatonic harmony (in a major key), I (tonic), IV (subdominant)and V (dominant). Everything else is a derivation from there. The relative minor (vi) can almost be a flavor of its own, but it's so closely related to both tonic and subdominant that I don't believe it to be completely independent. So if you want a rather unsophisticated sound you can harmonize any diatonic melody with just 3 chords.

Minor keys are different because of the various flavors of minor scales. For example in the natural minor there's no leading tone so dominant harmony doesn't exist. But of course modern ears have a hard time listening to minor mode music without a leading tone and that's why the melodic and harmonic minor scales were invented.

Most of us have studied harmony to some degree and are aware of richer options for harmonization. Add to that the fact that most great melodies include notes from outside the scale. So how do you know what is the most natural harmonization for your melody? You can use trial and error or you can do the necessary ear training to know what your mind is hearing. Frankly trial and error is something I've never gotten away from because I keep pushing the envelope. I find the exploration fun. YMMV. However it's helpful to know the diatonic chords in your head and know the sound of a secondary dominant. Add in Neopolitan and augmented sixth harmony and you'll have most standard practice harmony in your head. Exploring from there is where it gets interesting. Good luck.

Generally if you have just a melody, there are always many variations how to harmonize it, there is never just one good. But I personally prefer holistic composition where you create melodies and harmonies simultaneously, I would bet that if you have a melody idea in your head that you also hear the appropriate harmony to it, fot me its unnatural to do it separately.

The only advice I can offer is to become more familiar with chord progressions. You can hear the progression in your mind, you just can't find it on the piano. Spend time every day remember the sound of chord changes and this will save you a lot of time compared to trial and error.

Of course you can surprise yourself with trial and error and your composition can take a nice new direction you didn't expect.

Firstly, I have faith in the idea that if a melody is to withstand development into a great piece it must be adaptable to at least a set of chord progressions underlying it, so the art of writing this "highly evolvable" melody itself is also worth studying.

Answering your question, I like campidiot's idea. Within the realms of standard harmony there are only a few "basic" harmonic progressions that are modified and combinatorially used according to the texture and the structure of each musical passage. It's then a matter of educated inspection of your melody (this is where music theory helps a lot) to filter out a large volume of "unsuitable" progressions, leaving few that you can explore.

If you're only beginning composing, maybe you have a musical inspiration in mind: "I like to write something that affects me musically as Piece X does". Then listen to Piece X and try to see what is being done in it and why it's affecting you that way. Then try to test your understanding by reproducing that phenomenon (this doesn't just apply to chord progression but also rhythmic structure, contrapuntal structure, whatever). Pieces by various composers from Mozart to Grieg to Rachmaninoff to Uematsu have taught me volumes without having really studied music "theory" formally.

Maybe you can post your melody in B minor and let other composers in the this forum describe how they might harmonise it given each's stylistic preference? You'll see why each of them choose to do things differently and how various solutions are possible. I feel demonstration of a concrete example is more likely to help you grasp the essentials of harmonisation than abstract descriptions and generalised advice.

Excellent idea! I'm sure many here would accept the challenge, and probably no two would be the same.

I start with a bass line, writing counterpoint to the melody, then fill in the inner voices with whatever figuration seems to fit.

well im not to sure what program i would need to upload it but this is a pretty crude way

http://img41.imageshack.us/my.php?image=examplem.jpg

i think the first chord should be B minor

You have a melody that lends itself well to romantic style harmonisation. Respectfully ignoring the tempo indication of 120 bpm, here's my "first impression" stab at making a Waltz-style accompaniment to it (I added three more bars of "minimal" extensions just to make it into an 8-bar phrase):


Listen

It basically exploits the falling trend of your melody (circled). Its rich chromaticism means I can be relatively "bare" with the accompaniment to achieve the romantic effect. A tenor voice resolution (Bar 3, G->F#, not actually observed in the recording) adds interest to the passage.

The progression is Bm, G (on B), F# (on A#) F#m (on A), E (on G#). By using the median for each chord as the root, I avoid bar-scale parallel octaves with the melody and instead create nice descending parallel sixths all the way along. As indicated with the blue lines, the essential "feel" of this progression is I-V-IV-V, so nothing fancy!

thats amazing!!! thank you very much

Tar,

Just listened. And loved what you did with his melody! Absolutely brilliant. And a nice piece of music too! Except now, it's kinda your piece.

Where did you learn composition?

Very impressive Tar, Sounds good.

Thanks chaps. I'd be interested to see how others would harmonise this too!

Ed, I've never taken composition lessons. I took a short course in music theory 12 years ago... (it was very basic, I was ten!) Ever since, I learnt composition at the piano

Here's my entry:

harmonized melody

First, I had to figure out what the overall feel is. To my ears, it sounds very much like a folk melody - something akin to a waltz or mazurka.

I started with b minor, then the g in the 2nd bar strongly suggests a iv chord. The iv chord, which is predominant, likes to be followed by a dominant chord. This is further strengthened by the F#-C# in the 3rd bar, which strongly suggests a dominant chord.

Since the E# serves as a leading tone to the F#, I threw in a secondary dominant (viio7/V, to be exact), and this also created a nice descending line in the top voice of the LH.

The fourth bar gets tricky. It outlines the same F#-C# as the 3rd bar, with some chromatic passing tones in between, but using the same harmony seemed too static to me. So I started playing around with some different ideas, and found that I could imply a i6 chord. The F-E-D line in the LH between mm. 3-4 imitates the LH E-D-C# in mm. 2-3, and the G Major harmony (VI) balances the previous predominant well. (Earlier, I used a secondary dominant which rose UP to the F# chord in m. 3, and here I use a submediant which leads DOWN to the F# chord in m. 5.)

A simple V7-i cadence closes it.

There were two challenges. One, it is uncommon for melodies like this to be five measures long. Most waltz and mazurka melodies would simply be four measures and lend themselves to a simple tonic-predominant-dominant-tonic harmony, one chord per bar. The "extra" measure here meant decorating (or prolonging, in Schenkerian terms) the dominant harmony in mm. 3-4 in a way that doesn't sound static or lose tension.

The second challenge was the 4th bar. Finding a harmony that works naturally with both the D# and the D is tricky. My solution was to change harmony on the 3rd beat, since I couldn't find anything that sounded right for the entire bar.

All this analysis is (mostly) after the fact. I stole the basic texture from Chopin's Waltzes and Mazurkas, some of the contrapuntal ideas are just a part of my own style (I stole the idea of a 3-note descending motif I used in the LH from measure 2 of the melody.) The rest was just fiddling around in Sibelius and singing and playing the accompaniment on the tabletop to make sure it 'felt' right. (I'm too lazy to walk downstairs to the piano right now...)

Fun exercise!

Kreisler, I can imagine your bars 2-3 being part of an "Adagio" baroque piece, reminds me of the Second Brandenberg Concerto (second movement). Think the raised sixth in bar 2 and the walking bass the in the next bar did it.

Interesting

okay--

http://img40.imageshack.us/my.php?image=bminormelody.jpg

just an a further example--- would you use the same steps you used to harmonize the rest?
if you do, can you put it in a step by step explanation as to what you are did?

also can you explain what you meant by "By using the median for each chord as the root, I avoid bar-scale parallel octaves with the melody and instead create nice descending parallel sixths all the way along."

i haven't really taken music theory but i think what you mean is you are using the middle note of each chord as the first note? to avoid "bar-scale" parallel octaves--- thats boring right???

also
i understand what you are doing with the root notes, but how did you come up with the chords--- like the G after the first Bm

kreisler i think your intepration is brilliant too even though i can barely understand half of what is in your post
your left hand sounds a lot more like counterpoint/less waltz-like (is that the term)

P.S
Where did you guys learn all this?
is it just playing many pieces and noting whats happening with them? or is there a book that will explain most of this

From your question about the chords to harmonize your melody, I assume that you have not completed the basic music theory sequence, so you need to do a bit of self education in regards to three forms of simple diatonic triads and the four forms of diatonic seventh chords.

There have been several excellent suggestions offered, but much to my surprise no one has suggested a couple of excellent learning tools. One is lead sheets and the other is simple counterpoint. First let's look at chords and their inversions. My apologies to all that the following is second nature.

Diatonic Triads
Any diatonic triad consists of three tones, the root, the third, and the fifth. For example an F# minor chord is F#-A-C#.
I makes no difference in which order the tones are sounded. those three tones together make an F# minor chord.

Diatonic Seventh Chords
A diatonic seventh chord is simply a diatonic triad with an added seventh such as an F# dominant seventh chord would be F#-A#-C#-E. Like the triads, those four tones sounded together always sounds an F# dominant seventh chord.

Inversions
Obviously the lowest sounding note of a triad can be any of the three tones that make up a chord. Let's use an E major chord as an example. That chord is spelled E-G#-B.

• If the root of the chord is the lowest sounding note, the chord is said to be in root position. It makes no difference whether the next highest note is the G# or the B, it is still in root position.
• If the lowest sounding note of the chord is the third or the G#, the chord is said to be in first inversion. Like the root position chord whether the E or the B is the next note is immaterial.
• If the lowest sounding note of the chord is the fifth or the B, the chord is said to be in second inversion. Like the root position chord whether the E or the G# is the next note is immaterial. It's still a second inversion chord.

The same logic applies to seventh chords except when the seventh is the lowest sounding note the chord is said to be in third inversion.

What does all of this have to do with harmonizing your melody? Surprisingly, nothing and everything.

The Lead Sheet Path
If you have access to a fake book with some songs you like and a keyboard, learn how to play those songs using the indicated chord. The process is fairly simple and once you catch on to it well enough that you can pick up a melodic line with the chords indicated above and simply sit and play it.

Start by picking a lead sheet that doesn't have more than one chord per measure, and then analyze it. Look at every note in the melody and determine which notes are chord tones of the chord indicated for that measure and which are not. Play the melody and support with the chord tones with with the inversions of the chord that allows the melody chord tone to be the highest pitch note of the chord. Don't worry about the left hand just yet. Just keep experimenting with the voicing of the chord in the right hand that gives ou the best sound for the melody. Once you have the chords worked out for the right hand, play the piece playing the root of the chord in the left hand. Once you've gained some confidence and proficiency, experiment with the third and the fifth as the lowest chord tone played in the left hand. when you've done this with several pieces, you'll begin to see certain patterns, and that should make harmonizing you melody much easier.

The Counterpoint Route
The simplest and most complicated method of harmonizing your melody is by using the rules of counterpoint. There are several excellent references available for counterpoint, but one of the most concise to use as a starting point is the basic writeup on Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Counterpoint. Start by writing a species one counter point line for the bass then go back and fill in the alto and tenor voices keeping the rules of simple counterpoint in mind. You should keep an eye to the chords to ensure they follow an expected progression, i.e., as close as possible to the circle of fifths.

The Academic Solution
The most robust solution is to successfully complete the standard college level sequence in music theory, 18th century counterpoint, and 20th century counterpoint. (Therein lies the answer to your question about, "Where did you guys learn all this?")

I hope this helps without being too pendantic or obtuse.

Yeah, while I'd like to be able to give some super-secret insight into how I learned to composer, the truth is rather complicated:

Lots of aural skills training by three fantastic choral directors during middle and high school.

Tons of improvisation experience in jazz bands in high school and during my undergrade. (And still occasionally as a freelancer.)

A fair bit of transcribing things off the radio.

The following coursework in college:

4-semester core music theory course
16th century counterpoint
18th century counterpoint (which I took 3 times from three different teachers, once as an undergrad, once for my masters, and again during my doctorate)
Introductory Composition
Serial and Aleatoric Composition
Schenkerian Analysis (which I took twice from two different teachers - Schenker's major work, "Free Composition", is a big influence on me)

Various assignments over the years:

I helped do some arrangements for a children's choir at my church.

I did some arrangements for an anthology of children's pieces.

Several arrangements of pieces for a beginning string orchestra class I taught at a public middle school.

I spent one summer during which, every night before bed, I wrote three 8-measure melodies. I'd wake up the next day and play them through, evaluating how good they were. 120 melodies later, I feel like I have a decent feel for what works and what doesn't.

30 years of playing the piano. I regularly steal material from others.

well you know what they say--- "talent borrows, genius steals"

Well said!

A quick survey of music history shows that while there is no single route to acquiring the necessary knowledge and mastery of the subjects of harmony and counterpoint, there is no doubt that mastery and knowledge is extensive and takes both dedication and considerable time, so much so that I am tempted to chuck it all and just go back to being a ROF (Retired Olde Farte).

oh and can anybody explain the whole tonic dominant subdominant thign for minor key's... like i know that
C major goes like

C Dm Em F G A Bdim C
also can anyone explain what notes the Dim chord are made out of...
sorry for being extremly ignorant about music theory

A diminished chord is just a series of three stacked notes each a minor third apart. So if you take a C Major chord(C, E, and G) and lower the 3rd and the 5th by a half step(C, Eb, and Gb), we get a C diminished chord. As you can see, this chord is just a series of stacked intervals of minor thirds.

I do that all the time to! Anybody I can steal from, I make the attemp to do it.

A quick note on how I think about harmony:

The piece in question is in b minor. The notes of a b minor scale are:

B, C#, D, E, F#, G, A, B

Any given key has three chords that are "more important" than all the others. They are the chords built on the first, fourth, and fifth note and are called Tonic, Subdominant, and Dominant, respectively.

In B minor, these chords are:

Tonic - B, D, F#
Subdominant - E, G, B
Dominant - F#, A#, C#

Note that the dominant has its middle note raised, making it a major chord. This is a quirk of minor keys and is done to create a feeling of motion - the A# is a "leading tone" which leads up to the tonic B.

There are a few alterations that are often made to these chords. For example, you can substitute a VI chord for a i chord, creating a deceptive cadence. You can also use a iio or iio7 chord instead of iv (because ii and iv share two of the same notes, in this case the E and G.)

Dominant chords commonly add a 7th - F#, A#, C#, E. The E has a strong tendency to resolve to the 3rd of tonic chord (D), and the A# has a strong tendency to resolve to the tonic note (B). These notes are so strong that you can sometimes leave out the F# entirely and still get a similar effect (creating an A#, C#, E chord - viio).

Typically speaking, music likes to begin on the tonic, move to the subdominant, then go dominant, tonic. Of course, there are a million variations on that, but that's the basic idea. (It's like plot development in stories - Exposition, Complication, Climax, Resolution)

what chords would correspond to the C# and D and those other notes?
and so the IV in a minor chord sequence is a minor... but in major its major


and major/minor chord sequences have to have a major V?

also i tried to fill in what i had and managed to fill the bar before the tonic using the 7th trick you mentioned

http://img40.imageshack.us/my.php?image=badharmony.jpg

but i can't finish that one bar thats blank i have no idea what should go there (the other bars that are complete i just took from tar (im wondering if they should be changed since the right hand is sort of changed)