Key Takeaways
- Analyze bass line scale degrees first — most chords are predictable from bass position alone, eliminating the need to tally every note from scratch
- Pattern recognition beats chord-by-chord grinding: recurring bass formulas (i–vii–i, i–ii–iii, iv–V) instantly narrow chord choices
- Accidentals = alarm bells: chromatic notes (or missing leading tones in minor) signal non-Big-18 chords requiring closer analysis
Why Context-First Analysis Works ▶ 1:43
- Context clues narrow options before you analyze — faster to confirm/deny an expectation than start from zero
- Knowing where to look first (bass line) speeds processing dramatically
- Multisensory reinforcement — ear + eye + hands (piano) together accelerates pattern internalization
The Wrong Way vs. The Right Way ▶ 3:21
Chord-by-chord grind (wrong): tally all notes → find root → determine inversion, one chord at a time
- Inefficient, unmusical, no big-picture insight, no transferable learning
Bass-first analysis (right): extract bass line as melody of scale degrees → use Big 18 + function to fill in chords
- Brings tools: Big 18 grid + harmonic function knowledge
Bass Line Strategy ▶ 6:18
| Bass Scale Degree | Likely Chord(s) | Shortcut |
|---|---|---|
| ^1 | I (or rare ii42) | Default to I; ii42 requires bass to descend |
| ^3 | I6 | Only one common option |
| ^7 | V6 or V65 | Triad vs. 4-note chord decides |
| ^5 | V, V7, or I64 | Melody/note-count decides |
| ^2 | Predominant ii or dominant | Check surrounding chords + leading tone in melody |
| ^4 | Predominant or V42 | V42 requires bass to descend; rising step = predominant |
Recurring Bass Line Formulas ▶ 13:56
- ^1–^7–^1: dominant (V6 or V65) sandwiched between tonics
- ^1–^2–^3: tonic → [dominant] → I6 (dominant chord in middle varies)
- ^4–^5: predominant → dominant (hallmark of cadential approach)
Worked analyses — Beethoven Op. 14 No. 2, Op. 49 No. 1, Piano Concerto No. 1: ▶ 14:21
Broader archetype: classical themes often zigzag between ^1/^7/^2 (T–D alternation), then step up to cadential dominant
Handling Complex Textures ▶ 20:53
- Filter out arpeggiation/figuration; extract the actual bass line and key melodic notes
- I64 (cadential six-four): sounds over ^5 in bass, feels unstable — has dominant function, not tonic
- Schubert Impromptu example: thick RH chromatic texture collapses to familiar ^1–^2–^3–^7 bass — ▶ 23:55
Spotting Non-Big-18 Chords ▶ 26:53
- Alarm trigger 1 — accidentals: chromatic notes outside the key (e.g., G♭ in F minor → Neapolitan ♭II6, not Big 18)
- Alarm trigger 2 — missing leading tone in minor: absence of raised ^7 signals subtonic (♮VII) chords (e.g., VII or III), which drift toward the relative major — avoid assuming Big 18