Exercise

Bass 183 — Octave rule — major, descending

The Rule of the OctaveG major

Corpus id bass-183 · cite this id — it is permanent

What it teaches

The Rule of the Octave falling, where the fourth degree carries the seventh in the bass itself and must step down to resolve it.

The given bass

4/4	bar 1	bar 2	bar 3	bar 4	bar 5	bar 6	bar 7	bar 8
Bass	G3	F♯3	E3	D3	C3	B2	A2	G2
Figures	5/3	6	6	5/3	4/2	6	4/3	5/3

The given bass and its figures (G major, 4/4; ⌒ = tied from the previous note)

The model realization

4/4	bar 1	bar 2	bar 3	bar 4	bar 5	bar 6	bar 7	bar 8
Soprano	B4	D5	C5	D5	D5	D5	D5	D5
Alto	G4	A4	G4	A4	A4	B4	C5	B4
Tenor	D4	D4	E4	F♯4	F♯4	G4	F♯4	G4
Bass	G3	F♯3	E3	D3	C3	B2	A2	G2
Figures	5/3	6	6	5/3	4/2	6	4/3	5/3

The model realization (G major, 4/4; ⌒ = tied from the previous note)

The 4/2 on the descending fourth degree is the pattern’s engine: the bass is itself the chordal seventh, so the bass has the resolution to make, stepping down into the sixth chord below it. Note the seventh degree — the bass carries the leading tone there, so the upper voices take the root and fifth and leave it alone.

At the keyboard

The three upper voices of the model realization fit under one hand. The descent is the harder half. Play it slowly enough to hear the 4/2 arrive on the fourth degree and fall. Carry it into C major, D major, A major.

Voice-leading patterns this exercise drills

Cite this exercise

Gradus Figured-Bass Corpus, bass-183 — Octave rule — major, descending. v1.0. https://gradusmusic.com/figured-bass-corpus/exercise/bass-183

Corpus v1.0 · licensed CC-BY-4.0 · machine-readable at /api/v1/figured-bass/exercises/bass-183

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