How to Write Counterpoint - Music Composition
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- Опубликовано: 9 июл 2024
- Learn how to write counterpoint, an advanced music composition technique. Many musicians are happy writing melodies and chords but when it comes to writing counterpoint they feel out of their depth. Many music students need to be able to write counterpoint and are not sure how to go about it. Improvisers might want to be able to improvise counterpoint, and anyone playing a contrapuntal piece might want to learn how to understand better how the counterpoint works. This music composition lesson is for all of you. Homophonic music is music which is essentially constructed vertically i.e. it basically operates by moving from one chord to the next. Polyphonic music operates a layered horizontal construction, in which melodic lines interact with each other. Counterpoint is all about how to construct these interweaving melodic lines in such a way as to make both melodic and harmonic sense. It all seems daunting at first but once the basic approach has been mastered you will soon be writing, improvising, and understanding counterpoint.
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🕘 Timestamps
0:00 - Introduction to counterpoint
1:06 - The initial melodic idea
4:59 - Thinking about harmony
6:57 - Writing a second point
11:33 - What does it sound like?
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I've been playing piano for almost 30 years and I find your lessons very helpful. Until recently, I've been playing by memory, trial and error, and exploiting mistakes that become desirable to be implemented. I didn't even know how to read or write music for decades. My grandmother played piano for her local Baptist church and I used to watch her play for hours. I can honestly say it was my grandma, whom instilled the fervent passion for music.
Anyways, I've uploaded some of my compositions to my channel. I don't play by any sort of script or musical score. Oft times, I am making split second decisions in amidst the song, sometimes straying off into directions that I never intended to go. Oddly enough, sometimes this works rather well. And if I make a mistake, keep playing and look for opportunities to implement that same mistake further down in the composition; perhaps even transposing that mistake into another key signature. In doing so, I've feigned mistakes as part of the composition. The absolute worse thing to do is become discouraged and stop playing altogether. Let us not be discouraged by our errors, for they are an excellent learning tool.
wow. just wow.. this is quality content
That’s very kind. See www.mmcourses.co.uk for much more.
Some of the best I’ve found!!
I feel I've just found the greatest set of music theory videos on RUclips. Great job and thanks!
That’s very kind. See www.mmcourses.co.uk for much more.
That's exactly how I feel, Brian! Such clear explanations that aren't rooted in one style, but are applicable in everything from Classical to Pop.
That’s most kind. Thank you.
Brian, you HAVE found the greatest - I feel the exact same way!! Two or three weeks ago I took the plunge and bought the formal Music Matters Theory Courses Set 1-8. Am about half way through it now. It is SOOO in depth - and yet so easy to follow and learn. Logical, brilliant, fun. Best investment I've made in years. (And no I don't have the pleasure of knowing Gareth or anyone from Music Matters & no one asked me to say this!)
That is really kind of you. Thank you so much.
Sir, you are the best music teacher on RUclips.
That’s most kind. See www.mmcourses.co.uk for information about our 25 online courses and about our special Music Matters Maestros group.
Never thought I would binge-watch a series of music theory videos! Doing it now across your channel. Thankyou so much for sharing.
That’s most kind. Much more at www.mmcourses.co.uk including details of our online courses and of our exciting Maestros programme.
I'm glad I found this channel, this is one of the absolute best music theory channels I have seen so far. I'm a guitarist coming from a (progressive, symphonic) metal background and this is extremely helpful stuff around here. Thank you!
That’s great. See www.mmcourses.co.uk for much more.
I feel like I have discovered a goldmine! These videos are brilliant, thank you so much.
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Thank you! Our teacher is just getting us to compose our 3rd exam piece for trinity and it’s really opened my mind to this. Going to be cruising your excellent videos. Thank you
Thanks for your kind comment. There’s plenty more at www.mmcourses.co.uk
Great video, I've been looking all around for this subject matter, thank you so much!
Great. I’m glad it’s useful. Much more at www.mmcourses.co.uk and we have a new Counterpoint course coming out soon
Love your videos! Seen many of them and learned alot. I try to give thumbs up on every I remember. You got a slow and good tempo that gives space for the audience to reflect what you say. Its great. Keep going.
That’s really kind. Thank you.
I can't tell you how grateful I am for your content here on RUclips. Gareth is possibly one of the most likeable people I know here on RUclips. His knowledge and his way of explaining things in a practical way are extremely valuable for both amateur and advanced musicians. Thank you a thousand times for this huge content on this channel!
That’s most kind. It’s a pleasure to share it all
Just wanted to thank you. Have been following your videos for quite a while now and it is helping a lot to shape my compositional awareness. Cheers!
That’s great. Thank you. Much more at www.mmcourses.co.uk including details of our 25 online courses and of our Maestros programme.
This video is great. I liked how it didn't waste time going over basic stuff we already know and got right to the point. The example helped tons, too!
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This video exemplifies how a single theme can be used to generate contrapuntal and motivic material. Excellent!
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Great video - I've studied counterpoint for decades but was still captivated!
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This channel is so helpful! I always look here for my daily music theory lessons. Thanks!
Fabulous. Much more at www.mmcourses.co.uk including our 24 online courses and access to our special Music Matters Maestros group.
I usually play Pop/ Rock/ Jazz but watched the video and took your class because the polyphonic style amazed me. Your class inspired me to compose my first counterpoint piano piece which you can find on my channel. Thank you for the great explanations and the inspiration!
It’s a pleasure. Much more at www.mmcourses.co.uk including details of our online courses and of our exciting Maestros programme.
Just loving this channel, I’m so utterly grateful...! It’s just the right pace for me and I feel like I’m in the classroom. I missed out on music studies and I really feel like you are a miracle giving me what I wish I’d had... thank you so much...! 😊
That’s great and I’m really pleased to be here for you. Much more at www.mmcourses.co.uk
Excellent. I've been struggling trying to understand valid chord progressions for Bach Chorales for ages. This was really clear. Now I need to work out how to obliterate consecutives!!!!! The bane of my life. Thank you.
That’s kind. Yes, consecutives are always a joy! Have you seen our Bach Chorale course at www.mmcourses.co.uk
? It would help sort those consecutives partly by showing you how to avoid them in the first place.
Thank you SO much!! This is the most helpful external source I've found and it's a great introduction to an otherwise daunting subject :)
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Finally, I knew my next step was to look at counterpoint. I saw other videos about it, but they lack the simple approach that you have mastered.
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So thankful of you, the content that you put on here is so helpful ♥️
Thanks. Glad it’s helpful.
Thank you for this! I would LOVE to hear this piece completed! It seems to fit right in with Bach’s 2 part inventions! Truly beautiful start.
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Thank you!!
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Amazing! So enjoyable. Thank you so much for loading it.
That’s very kind. Thank you.
I love this first-person perspective and inspirational comments. This might have been how Bach thought about counterpoint and approached his masterpieces. I wish unbearable and often tedious music education would be more like presented here because after all the many books - music matters!
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I've learnt so much from these videos. Thanks.
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perfect lesson for me. thanks a bunch for your expertise!
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Nice! I always learn a lot with this tutorials!!
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What a brilliant teacher!
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This is just the lesson I was looking for at this time!
A pleasure. Much more at www.mmcourses.co.uk including details of our online courses and of our exciting Maestros programme. If you value this channel and would like to help us continue to share and develop the content please consider supporting us as a level 1 Maestro by clicking here ruclips.net/channel/UC8yI8P7Zi3yYTsypera-IQgjoin Alternatively you can express your support for the channel by clicking on the Super Thanks button beneath any of our videos. Thank you.
thank you sir for lesson. You clearly explain the counterpoint
A pleasure. Glad it's helpful. Much more at www.mmcourses.co.uk
wow, this is amazing!!! since i learned so much, heres a subscriber!
That’s great. Much more at www.mmcourses.co.uk including details of our online courses and of our exciting Maestros programme. If you value this channel and would like to help us continue to share and develop the content please consider supporting us as a level 1 Maestro by clicking here ruclips.net/channel/UC8yI8P7Zi3yYTsypera-IQgjoin Alternatively you can express your support for the channel by clicking on the Super Thanks button beneath any of our videos. Thank you.
Amazing, thanks a lot for all your knowledge
A pleasure. Thanks. See www.mmcourses.co.uk for our 24 online courses and details of Music Matters Maestros.
You're doing a GREAT job in this video. You're clearly indicating what counterpoint is and how it can be achieved. I personally like to think in terms of writing a long, sectional, melodic phrase with a homophonic harmonic structure (which basically just means a homophonic tune), and then writing what I call a "non-comping-based background line" (which allows harmonic tensions) that mimics the melody as the melody unfolds (in whatever way desired), and remains in line with the homophonic harmonic structure. If the counterpoint is to be three voices instead of two, then I likely would use a "two-voice harmonizing pair" with the melody to achieve complete harmony for each and every melody note and simply reposition subphrases of the melody such that the subphrases pop up in different voices, being certain to modify the two-voice harmonizing pair as necessary should any voicing problems arise as a result of repositioning. Harmonizing in this way automatically forces the creation of background melodies to counter the point without mimicking, while repositioning subphrases provides an effect similar to mimicking. For four voices, the two-voice harmonizing pair and the non-comping-based background line would both be used simultaneously. For five voices, I'd likely bring in a second non-comping-based background line. (It's pointless to go beyond five voices, as independence of the voices will then diminish too much.) Generally speaking, the rules of good voice leading for the achievement of independence of the voices will always be followed between the melody and every other voice involved, and between the two voices of the two-voice harmonizing pair. That way, there will always be a satisfying balance or compromise between the having of independence of the voices and the having of good musical interest in the background lines.
Thanks for your contribution to the discussion and for your encouraging comments about the video. The full Counterpoint course is available at www.mmcourses.co.uk
Brilliant as always. Thank you.
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Thank you so much for this. I am aspiring to compose, and I do. I wanted to learn how to do proper counterpoint. This is great!!!
That’s great. See our Counterpoint course at www.mmcourses.co.uk
Great lessons, Thanks you!
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Thank you, sir. Great vid I can’t ask for more.
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These videos are brilliant!!!
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Wonderful teacher. I feel I can write a B minor mass everytime I watch his videos
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This’s exactly what I was looking for 😍
A pleasure. Much more at www.mmcourses.co.uk including details of our online courses and of our exciting Maestros programme. If you value this channel and would like to help us continue to share and develop the content please consider supporting us as a level 1 Maestro by clicking here ruclips.net/channel/UC8yI8P7Zi3yYTsypera-IQgjoin Alternatively you can express your support for the channel by clicking on the Super Thanks button beneath any of our videos. Thank you.
Such a gem of a lesson. Thank you, Sir.
A pleasure. Much more at www.mmcourses.co.uk including details of our online courses and of our exciting Maestros programme. If you value this channel and would like to help us continue to share and develop the content please consider supporting us as a level 1 Maestro by clicking here ruclips.net/channel/UC8yI8P7Zi3yYTsypera-IQgjoin Alternatively you can express your support for the channel by clicking on the Super Thanks button beneath any of our videos. Thank you.
Thank you for this. I have studied species counterpoint but that it is a more formal approach. It was helpful seeing you writing it and thinking out loud on how to solve problems you came across. It presents ideas on how one may approach contrapuntal writing.
Thanks for your positive comments. You might be interested in the full course.
www.mmcourses.co.uk/p/music-matters-course-writing-counterpoint
This is so helpful! I really want to study music but I‘m still in school ugh
So glad people like you make music theory easy to understand
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I know it's 11 months late, but I'd like to encourage you to study music, even if only for yourself, e.g. with excellent videos like this.
Play, read, watch, write, just emerse yourself in music!
Good advice.
this is really amazing, thank you very much, I finaly understood it
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Great and very useful video. Thank you so much!
A pleasure.
This is so useful thanks a bunch
A pleasure. Much more at www.mmcourses.co.uk including details of our online courses and of our exciting Maestros programme. If you value this channel and would like to help us continue to share and develop the content please consider supporting us as a level 1 Maestro by clicking here ruclips.net/channel/UC8yI8P7Zi3yYTsypera-IQgjoin Alternatively you can express your support for the channel by clicking on the Super Thanks button beneath any of our videos. Thank you.
I am still new to this subject but you made this really clear to understand. Thanks!
That’s most kind. Much more for you at www.mmcourses.co.uk including details of our online courses and of our exciting Maestros programme.
This looks so fun and enjoyable. Thank you!
It is!
Thanks a lot sir!🙏 understood everything you taught
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Great video, thank you
Thank you. See www.mmcourses.co.uk for much more.
I think the penultimate note of measure 3, upper voice might better prepare the E on the downbeat of bar 4 if it were an F. By no means anything more than a hunch. What you've done here is quite nice. The vertical interval of the diminished fifth is 2-part counterpoint's ideal expression of V7 in first inversion, especially because of its ability to resolve by step in opposite direction.
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Thank you very much Sir !! 😍😍 I love your videos... they are so easy to understand and to the point... So inspiring.... 💖💖💖
Most kind. See www.mmcourses.co.uk for details of our 24 online courses and of our special Maestros programme.
Great Lesson!!! beautiful music!!!
A pleasure. Much more at www.mmcourses.co.uk including details of our online courses and of our exciting Maestros programme. If you value this channel and would like to help us continue to share and develop the content please consider supporting us as a level 1 Maestro by clicking here ruclips.net/channel/UC8yI8P7Zi3yYTsypera-IQgjoin Alternatively you can express your support for the channel by clicking on the Super Thanks button beneath any of our videos. Thank you.
Thanks you so much, really helpful!
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This is such quality content!
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This is brilliant content, thanks for sharing your knowledge, I appreciate it very much
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Really helpful video. Thanks heaps!
That’s most kind. Don’t miss our 25 online courses and details of Music Matters Maestros at www.mmcourses.co.uk
Muy buen trabajo, muy necesario sobre un tema tan difícil. Gracias por el aporte desde Argentina
A pleasure. Much more at www.mmcourses.co.uk including details of our online courses and of our exciting Maestros programme. If you value this channel and would like to help us continue to share and develop the content please consider supporting us as a level 1 Maestro by clicking here ruclips.net/channel/UC8yI8P7Zi3yYTsypera-IQgjoin Alternatively you can express your support for the channel by clicking on the Super Thanks button beneath any of our videos. Thank you.
This was so helpful! I always thought counterpoint has to be literall copy of the main subject for some reason.... Thank you!!!!
A pleasure. The rest of the Counterpoint course is at www.mmcourses.co.uk
Fascinating, thanks
Glad it’s helpful.
Thank you this was very helpful
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O.M.G...
Do you know for how long I’ve been looking for this video? Thank you!!!
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another great lesson!
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Very helpful..thank you.
A pleasure. See www.mmcourses.co.uk for much more.
This is very high in quality! I hope to make videos as good as yours someday.
That’s kind. As a composer you may be interested in joining our Music Matters Maestro group to access monthly live-streams. See www.mmcourses.co.uk
Thanks you so. Much!!
A pleasure
THANK YOU!
A pleasure. Much more at www.mmcourses.co.uk including details of our 25 online courses and of our exciting Maestros programme.
thanks a lot for this intro, i subscribe , i will learn for sure some new musical ideas
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Killer video. Thanks for sharing
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Thank you kindly
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AMAZING!!!!
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Fantastic contrapuntal food for thought.
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Very nice, Thank You!
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This is so amazing!!!!!! Thank you very much for this. Also the example you composed on the spot is quite pleasant :)
That’s most kind. I’m glad it’s helpful. See www.mmcourses.co.uk for much more.
Brilliant!
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Thank you so much!
That’s great. Much more at www.mmcourses.co.uk
This is very good. I came here after listening to the art of the fugue by bach. The fugues and canons are really complex with all the augmentation and inversions. Thank you sir.
A pleasure. The Art of Fugue is amazing!
Music Matters hello sir may i recommend to you Macgregors version of the art of the fugue there's a lovely version on youtube with the sheet music.
great tutorial thanks
Most kind. Much more at www.mmcourses.co.uk
i loved it!
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Thank you sir. Very nice.
A pleasure. Much more at www.mmcourses.co.uk
Yes, excellent video. All I recall from my Univ. courses was don't write parallel 4ths, 5ths or octaves.
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THANK YOU, SIR! I’ve taught myself theory for most of my life and I was just saying yesterday, “I need to learn how to write counterpoint.”
This was perfect! Thank you so much!
I’m so pleased it was helpful. If you really want to conquer counterpoint have a look at our course on the subject. www.mmcourses.co.uk/p/music-matters-course-writing-counterpoint
Same here. I've been learning music theories in every way I could but just to realize I necessarily needed to learn the counterpoint. This is definitely a good place to start.
Same here. I've been learning music theories in every way I could but just to realize I necessarily needed to learn the counterpoint. This is definitely a good place to start.
A pleasure. Much more at www.mmcourses.co.uk
excellent sir.. i like counterpoint melodies. you're great teacher
That’s very kind. Much more at www.mmcourses.co.uk
Very interesting. I am watching many of your videos and I find them very easy to understand compared to videos by others on similar subjects. I am mathematically minded and your presentations work very well for my mind. Many years ago, when I knew only some rudimentary parts of music theory I wrote a computer program that generates its own music. It was one of the most inspiring and fun projects I have ever done. I am now thinking of picking up that idea again, but this time with a deeper understanding of music theory and theory of composing, where your teachings will be an important influence. I play some instruments since I was a child and I like to improvise a lot.
That’s most kind. Very interesting to hear about your project. Much more at www.mmcourses.co.uk including details of our 25 online courses and of our Music Matters Maestros programme.
@@MusicMattersGB Thank you. I just got an idea for a subject you might be interested in making videos on. You have shown various ways to think when one composes a song, but what about making some videos about analysing existing known songs and show what it is in them that make them work so to say. Or perhaps you have already done this?
I’m in the middle of mu first semester in university (during covid) and I’m learning more on RUclips... and its free!
That’s great. Much more at www.mmcourses.co.uk including details of our 25 online courses and of our exciting Maestros programme.
very lovely explanation !
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Simply Superb!! I'm amazed at how you build up this piece without having to sit at the piano working everything out. I'm wondering whether you hear the music in your head as you're writing, or are you creating the piece based purely upon knowing what tools to use when - ie, adding rhythmic variety, or following harmonic or melodic rules such as "we've moved by steps so now perhaps some skips would spice things up"? In other words, do you hear this music as you write it, or are you working purely from knowledge of what tools to use when? Hope that makes sense! Thank you again, you are beyond amazing.
That’s very kind. To answer your question it’s a mixture of technique (knowing the tools) and hearing it in my head as I write. Much more at www.mmcourses.co.uk
Amazing! I can now make better sense of piano music! thank u!
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Wow! Great lesson that should be titled "How to Write a Bach Invention." One would not expect the final outcome. I was frankly very distracted by your handwriting which frankly looked like modern art. I use calligraphy pens for writing music and it can come out a lot more beautiful or stylized, but I must say I like your handwriting and musical outcome in different ways. Keep on with counterpoint please!! Many thanks from California!
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Thanks !
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Subscribed! Teach on, Gareth!
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THANKS!
A pleasure. See www.mmcourses.co.uk for the rest of the course.
What a revelation, should have know years ago
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6k likes. The most like for counterpoint videos ever. Thanks for incredible explanation ❤
A pleasure. Much more on counterpoint at www.mmcourses.co.uk
I think he can compose such good counterpoint... easily!
I’ve been at it for decades!
(@7.40-ish) 'fragmentary ideas', a cool expression because it brings to mind the notion of fractal geometry, or be that fractal melodies as it were🙂
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Excelent!
A pleasure. Much more at www.mmcourses.co.uk including details of our online courses and of our exciting Maestros programme. If you value this channel and would like to help us continue to share and develop the content please consider supporting us as a level 1 Maestro by clicking here ruclips.net/channel/UC8yI8P7Zi3yYTsypera-IQgjoin Alternatively you can express your support for the channel by clicking on the Super Thanks button beneath any of our videos. Thank you.
I like your website and content.
That’s great. Many thanks.