Counterpoint and Bach

Learn about counterpoint and bach: understand voice leading principles

🎵 Stage Brief #14

A pedal point is a sustained or repeated note (usually in the bass) while harmonies change above it.

🎯 Your mission

Two notes together — does it feel calm or tense?

⚡ The twist

Major sounds bright. Minor sounds soft. Both are beautiful.

What you'll learn

A pedal point is a sustained or repeated note (usually in the bass) while harmonies change above it.

Remember

🎧 Listen

Listen for this

🎧 Pick out the lowest note. That's the bass — the foundation.

🌟 Artist spotlight

🌟 Bach wrote so many harmonies he basically invented the rules everyone still uses.

🤯 Mind = blown

🤯 Some cultures use scales with 22 notes — way more than the 7 you know.

Check your understanding · 1 of 3

What does 'consonant' mean in music?

Check your understanding · 2 of 3

What is a chord?

Check your understanding · 3 of 3

What is a triad?

Nice work!

You got 0 of 3 right.

🎯

We'll pick a music lesson that matches exactly where your ear is right now.

✨ More to explore

🌍 Where you hear this: The reason songs make you feel things is harmony doing its quiet job underneath.

🏆 Try this week: Listen to any song. Try to hear the bass line.

👨‍👩‍👧 At dinner: “Play one song together. Talk about what feeling it gave you and why.”

Send it to a parent who wants 5 minutes of music with their kid — no instrument required.

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