Questions: Harmonizing Melody: Voice Leading Choices

Question 1

A student harmonizing a melody has two chord choices that both support the melody note and serve the correct harmonic function. In one option, the alto and tenor move by step; in the other, they leap a sixth. Which principle most directly favors the stepwise option?

• A. The melody note must always be in the soprano, so inner voice motion doesn't matter
• B. Voice leading prefers smooth stepwise motion in inner voices — large leaps are avoided when smaller intervals can achieve the same harmonic result
• C. Harmonic function requires that inner voices resolve by half-step at all times
• D. The bass voice is the only voice whose motion determines the quality of the harmonization

Answer: (B)

When two chord choices are equally valid harmonically and functionally, voice leading serves as the tie-breaker. The core voice-leading principle is smooth motion: prefer contrary motion, minimize leaps, resolve tendency tones, avoid parallel perfect intervals. If both IV and ii6 serve pre-dominant function equally well, but ii6 allows stepwise inner-voice motion while IV requires leaps, ii6 wins on voice-leading grounds. This is the third layer of the constraint hierarchy: melody first, function second, voice leading to decide among remaining options.

Question 2

A melody note E in C major appears mid-phrase. Several chords contain E (I, iii, IV with extensions, vi). What factor most immediately narrows the list to appropriate chords at this moment?

• A. The register of E in the soprano — higher notes require specific chord types
• B. Harmonic function: the T–PD–D–T framework determines which chord roles are needed at this structural point in the phrase
• C. The key signature alone determines which chords contain E
• D. The number of chord tones the melody note represents — root position is always preferred

Answer: (B)

Harmonic function is the second layer of the constraint hierarchy and the first filter after the melody. Mid-phrase, the music needs forward momentum — tonic function may be appropriate for stability, pre-dominant for moving away, dominant for building tension. The T–PD–D–T framework eliminates chord choices that would cause the wrong functional effect at this structural moment. Voice leading then decides among chords that pass the function test. Neither register nor position alone narrows the field the way harmonic function does.

Question 3

For a given melody, there is exactly one correct harmonization that satisfies both harmonic function and voice-leading rules.

• T. True
• F. False

Answer: False

Multiple valid harmonizations of the same melody routinely exist — Bach harmonized the same chorale melodies multiple times with different results, each musically coherent. Within harmonic function constraints, different chords can serve the same role (IV and ii6 both function as pre-dominant). Among those, different voice-leading solutions may all follow the rules while producing different expressive effects. 'Correct' means satisfying the constraints; it does not mean uniquely determined. Recognizing this is essential for understanding harmonization as creative decision-making, not rule-following with one answer.

Question 4

Voice leading considerations can serve as a tie-breaker when two chord options equally satisfy harmonic function requirements at a given point in a melody harmonization.

• T. True
• F. False

Answer: True

This is precisely how the three-layer constraint hierarchy works in practice. When harmonic function narrows the field but doesn't uniquely determine a chord, voice leading makes the final selection: prefer the option that keeps lower voices moving smoothly (by step, by contrary motion to the soprano, resolving tendency tones). The tie-breaker role of voice leading is what makes it the third layer rather than an overriding first principle — it operates after function has narrowed the candidates.

Question 5

Describe the three-layer constraint hierarchy used when harmonizing a melody, explaining what each layer contributes and how the layers interact.

Model answer: The melody is the fixed constraint — it cannot be changed. Harmonic function (the T–PD–D–T framework) narrows the field of plausible chords for each melody note by eliminating those that serve the wrong functional role at that structural moment. Voice leading then decides among the remaining options by favoring progressions where inner voices move smoothly — by step, by contrary motion, resolving tendency tones, avoiding parallel perfect intervals. The layers interact sequentially: melody → function → voice leading, with each layer reducing the field further.

Understanding this hierarchy prevents two common errors: (1) choosing chords based purely on which ones contain the melody note, ignoring function; (2) choosing chords based purely on function, ignoring which produces the smoothest voice leading. The hierarchy also explains why multiple valid harmonizations exist: different chord combinations can satisfy both function and voice-leading constraints, each producing a different expressive character. Studying multiple harmonizations of the same melody reveals this most clearly.