Why is the study of harmony so important for composers and arrangers?

Answer 1

If you appreciate music, you have at least a latent understanding of harmony. At its core, it’s a language. Harmony can tell us how to feel, what to expect… It can surprise us, delight us, and awe us. It is an invaluable compositional tool.

Much like a traditional language, to fully understand harmony, you must understand its history and development. Typically, in Music Theory classes in the United States, this is done through the tradition of Western Music. This body of repertoire is a great vehicle for understanding complex harmonic concepts and the knowledge gained from that work provides a solid foundation for understanding the harmonic language of other musical styles as well.

Studying harmony will increase your harmonic vocabulary, and that in turn will make your goals as a composer easier to achieve. It is nothing short of essential!

Answer 2

Harmony is a really great way to add depth and emotion to your melody. It's one of the three key building blocks of music. The others are melody, and rhythm. Harmony adds emotional context to the melody, makes the "feeling" you are going for more specific and powerful, and makes the music feel "complete". It tells the rest of the story.

If melody is the main character in a movie, harmony is all of the other characters. They show off the main character and reveal sides to it that you would not see otherwise. Changing the harmony can completely change the "feeling" of the main melody.

Answer 3

The study of harmony is crucial for music composers and arrangers because it forms the foundation of how music is structured and experienced. Here’s why harmony is so important:

1. Foundation of Musical Structure

1. Chords and Progressions: Harmony involves the study of chords and how they progress from one to another. Understanding these progressions is essential for creating the underlying structure of a composition or arrangement, providing a sense of direction and coherence in the music.

2. Expressing Emotions and Atmosphere

1. Mood Creation: Different harmonies evoke different emotions. Composers and arrangers use harmony to create specific moods, such as tension, resolution, sadness, or joy, by choosing particular chords or progressions. For instance, a minor chord might convey melancholy, while a major chord suggests brightness and happiness.

3. Supporting Melody

1. Melodic Context: Harmony provides the context in which a melody is understood and appreciated. It can enhance the expressiveness of a melody, highlight certain notes or phrases, and create a richer, more textured sound. Understanding how harmony interacts with melody is key to creating balanced and compelling music.

4. Complexity and Interest

1. Adding Depth: Harmony allows composers and arrangers to add layers of complexity to their music. By exploring advanced harmonic techniques, such as modulation, chromaticism, or extended chords, they can create more intricate and interesting musical experiences.

5. Voice Leading

1. Smooth Transitions: Studying harmony helps in mastering voice leading, which is the smooth movement of individual musical lines or voices. Good voice leading is essential in creating seamless transitions between chords, making the music sound more natural and cohesive.

6. Understanding Genre and Style

1. Stylistic Awareness: Different musical genres and styles have distinct harmonic languages. For example, jazz often uses complex, extended chords, while classical music might adhere to traditional diatonic harmony. Understanding these conventions allows composers and arrangers to work effectively within or across different genres.

7. Enhancing Creativity

1. Expanding Possibilities: A strong grasp of harmony expands a composer’s or arranger’s creative toolkit. By understanding how to manipulate harmonic structures, they can explore new sounds, experiment with unconventional chord progressions, and innovate within their compositions.

8. Improvisation and Real-Time Composition

1. Instant Creativity: For composers and arrangers who also improvise, a deep knowledge of harmony is essential for creating music spontaneously. Knowing how chords and progressions work enables them to make quick decisions that sound harmonically correct and musically satisfying.

9. Collaboration with Other Musicians

1. Effective Communication: When working with other musicians, a composer or arranger must be able to communicate their ideas clearly. Understanding harmony helps them explain their musical intentions, whether it’s guiding performers on chord voicings or discussing harmonic changes in a piece.

10. Problem-Solving

1. Resolving Musical Challenges: In the composition and arrangement process, challenges often arise, such as how to transition between sections or resolve a dissonance. A solid understanding of harmony equips composers and arrangers with the tools to solve these problems creatively and effectively.

11. Music Analysis

1. Learning from Masters: Studying harmony also enables composers and arrangers to analyze and learn from the works of other great composers. By understanding the harmonic techniques used in different pieces, they can draw inspiration and apply similar methods in their own work.

In summary, harmony is a fundamental aspect of music that affects every layer of a composition or arrangement. Mastering harmony empowers composers and arrangers to create more expressive, cohesive, and innovative music, and it is essential for effective communication, collaboration, and problem-solving in the music-making process.