Exercise

Bass 220 — Neighbor 6/4, minor

Second inversion (6/4)A minor

Corpus id bass-220 · cite this id — it is permanent

What it teaches

The neighbour 6/4 in minor, where the fifth’s upper neighbour is only a half step away and the decoration leans instead of lifting.

The given bass

4/4	bar 1		bar 2		bar 3		bar 4
Bass	A2	A2	A2	C3	D3	E3	A2
Figures		6/4		6		#

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

The model realization

4/4	bar 1		bar 2		bar 3		bar 4
Soprano	E4	F4	E4	A4	A4	G♯4	A4
Alto	C4	D4	C4	E4	F4	E4	E4
Tenor	A3	A3	A3	A3	D4	B3	C4
Bass	A2	A2	A2	C3	D3	E3	A2
Figures		6/4		6		#

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

The same decoration as the major version, but the fifth’s neighbour is now ♭6, a half step away — so the ornament carries minor’s characteristic pull even while going nowhere. The bass takes no part until the phrase moves on.

At the keyboard

The three upper voices of the model realization fit under one hand. The soprano’s E to F and back is a half step — minor’s neighbour presses closer than major’s. Play both exercises in a row and hear the difference in the lean. Carry it into E minor, D minor.

Voice-leading patterns this exercise drills

Cite this exercise

Gradus Figured-Bass Corpus, bass-220 — Neighbor 6/4, minor. v1.0. https://gradusmusic.com/figured-bass-corpus/exercise/bass-220

Corpus v1.0 · licensed CC-BY-4.0 · machine-readable at /api/v1/figured-bass/exercises/bass-220

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