17.5: Harmonic Dictation Tips
- Page ID
- 258587
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There are no rules that you have to start at the beginning and work your way through the harmonic progression. This also applies to rhythms and melodies. Often, our ear will take a moment to register what we are hearing and the end of the phrase is easiest to hear.
- Does it end on do?
- Does it end on a tonic chord?
- Do the last two chords form a cadence?
- Thinking about the melodic line, if it does end on do, how is it approached? (Do we hear a descending step, an ascending step, or a skip that lands on do?)
- Thinking about the bass line, if it ends on do, how is it approached?
- Is the leading tone present in the second-to-last chord?
Identify Patterns
The common patterns that were covered in 1.5: Pitch Patterns are also useful when working on harmonic dictation. Identifying do and quickly hearing how do is approached can help with your musical memory and give you multiple pieces of information at the same time when listening through the pattern once.
- Does the melodic line move stepwise?
- Does the melodic line move back to the same note?
- Does the melodic line return to where we started?
Identify Tonic and Dominant
Practicing hearing the difference between the tonic and dominant chord will improve your harmonic dictation.
- Tonic feels like the music is resolved (even temporarily)
- Tonic includes do
- Dominant is creating tension
- Dominant includes ti (the leading tone)