Exercise

Bass 213 — Deceptive cadence

Cadence formulasG major

Corpus id bass-213 · cite this id — it is permanent

What it teaches

The deceptive cadence: the dominant resolves, but the bass rises a step to the submediant — every tendency tone keeps its promise except the ear’s expectation.

The given bass

4/4	bar 1		bar 2		bar 3		bar 4		bar 5
Bass	G2		C3	D3	E3		C3	D3	G2

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
Soprano	G4	G4	F♯4	G4	G4	F♯4	G4
Alto	D4	E4	D4	B3	E4	D4	D4
Tenor	B3	C4	A3	G3	C4	A3	B3
Bass	G2	C3	D3	E3	C3	D3	G2

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

The leading tone rises to the tonic degree and the second degree falls to it — which is why the submediant chord doubles its third. Everything resolves except the expectation, the phrase is thrown back open, and the real close two bars later pays what the deception withheld.

At the keyboard

The three upper voices of the model realization fit under one hand. Play the fourth bar expecting G and let the E surprise your own hand. Then notice the leading tone still rose exactly as promised. Carry it into C major, D major.

Voice-leading patterns this exercise drills

Cite this exercise

Gradus Figured-Bass Corpus, bass-213 — Deceptive cadence. v1.0. https://gradusmusic.com/figured-bass-corpus/exercise/bass-213

Corpus v1.0 · licensed CC-BY-4.0 · machine-readable at /api/v1/figured-bass/exercises/bass-213

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