So if species counterpoint is not a discipline of chords, what then?

At its basic it is a surprisingly simple system once you get the nomenclature. It is mainly a language of intervals, and “chords” are the result of layering intervals.

There are 3 types of movements and 4 rules to begin with.

Types of movements (of intervals)
1. Parallel: When one voice moves up (or down), the other moves up (or down) too.
2. Contrary: When one voice moves up, the other moves down (or vice versa).
3. Oblique: When movements are made in steps and/or leaps by one voice, while the other is steady (e.g. a melody voice running through the scale up and down above a sustained bass note).

Rules
1. From one perfect consonance to another, move in contrary or oblique motion.
2. From a perfect consonance to an imperfect consonance, move in any motion.
3. From an imperfect consonance to a perfect consonance, move in contrary or oblique motion.
4. From an imperfect consonance to another imperfect consonance, move in any motion.

An imperfect consonance is a third or sixth, while a perfect consonance can be an octave, fifth or fourth (given that lowest note of the fourth is the 5th degree of a scale and not tonic). So this leaves out parallel fifths and octaves by first rule. You can go from 5th to 5th or from 5th to 8th (or vice versa) if it is in contrary or oblique motion, but not in parallel.

Basically these 4 rules can be reduced to 2, because rule 2 and 4 are “do what you want rules” and thus hardly rules at all.

Species
To this the 5 species are added, which concern both the rhythms and harmonies between the voices.

1. Species: Note against note. Here the notes of intervals enter simultaneously (e.g. by a chord instrument)
2. Species: Two notes against one (e.g. one instrument plays in 1/4 notes, the other in 1/8 notes).
3. Species: Four notes against one (e.g. one instrument plays in whole notes, the other in 1/4 notes).
4. Species: Different note off-sets are used by suspensions and prolonging of some notes over measure bars (basically that means a voice can start off beat and/or be taken into the next measure before it is resolved).
5. Species is all of them together, called "Florid Counterpoint". This is the level where the student is supposed to master it by intuition. You should now be able to just let melodies flow and entangle into a harmonic whole.

You start out by leading two voices, then three and finally four.

To each species a lot of advices for harmonizations and voiceleading are given, e.g. avoid voice leaps higher than a fifth unless it is the octave above, avoid parallel movements in outer voices if possible, (e.g. bass and Soprano both moving up), avoid voice crossing (e.g. shift of place as upper or lower voice), keep dissonances off beat so they always resolve into triads on beat and more. There are some exceptions to the rules as well, some are suspended when we go from 2 parts writing to 3 and 4 parts and beyond. Further, it should be taken into consideration that some rules relate to the difficulty of singing it, they do not necessarily have to be applied to orchestras. Rules that really are period specific and change over time and according to style. Still the basics remain.

From such simple axioms, masters like Mozart, Haydn and beyond found inspiration to some of the most wonderful music made. How we come from such basics to their complex music is almost incomprehensible, but that is it. First and foremost it shows J.J. Fux´ amazing educational skills. He had practiced it for years before writing it down and knew what would work and not.

My lesson today will end by describing a feeling, namely the stunning surprise the day you find yourself at the level of florid counterpoint, just being able to let the polyphony flow with minimum and often none corrections of ugly dissonances that have sneaked into the flow. It was the point when I realized that now I knew the secrets behind classical music. Something I had never imagined I would master.


An example of Florid Counterpoint
I will give you an example of some florid counterpoint of my own that is in line with Fux´s counterpoint, but also breaks it at some points. All follow rules of counterpoint except the choirs, which moves in parallel fifths, which is forbidden by default as said. Besides, the meter is 5/4, not the preferred 4/4 in which you are usually trained in counterpoint. Both were to give the tune some pagan vibes.

What happens here is that a harp makes a melodic arpeggio by default to which every other instrument is counterpointed, so the constellations and interactions between melodies stay harmonic. Perceptually this harp will fade as melodic background to the rest. Its harmonic constellations are our “chords” so to speak and you may even forget it is there. Point is this tune is made in a continually flow starting with the harp with no retrospective corrections as is the ideal of Florid Counterpoint.



Kindly Gothi