Audiation and counterpoint belong together. The better you can hear two lines at once in your head, the faster this course moves. If you cannot yet, start with the ear training and come back.
Old music is not homework here. It is the clearest place to watch these techniques work.
Counterpoint is the art of combining melodies. It’s a fundamental technique in music composition that has been used by composers for centuries. By studying counterpoint, you can gain a deeper understanding of how music works and enhance your own compositional skills.
Studying counterpoint can reveal the underlying structures in music. No matter the style of music you love, counterpoint can teach you about the inner workings of music and reveal music composition’s basic principles and process. Composers, performers, and musicians will learn to hear and compose contrapuntal works. Listen more deeply, compose more richly, and learn why the music of yesterday is still relevant today.
This course offers a complete working study of counterpoint. Originally designed for my undergraduate and graduate students at the university, it has now been adapted for a wider audience. While the course includes a basic review video that gives an overview of counterpoint, the main content goes much deeper, providing a thorough understanding of contrapuntal works and techniques.
In this course, you will:
Understand the principles of counterpoint
Learn to analyze contrapuntal works
Develop skills to compose your own contrapuntal music
Gain a deeper appreciation for music of all styles
Composers, performers, and students who want to know how independent lines fit together. You do not need to be advanced. You do need to read notation, and you need to be willing to write.
It sits downstream of the ear training. Come to it once you can hold two lines in your head at once, and everything here lands faster.
This course is designed for committed musicians. To fully benefit from this course, you should possess:
The ability to read and write music using standard notation.
An understanding of scales, intervals, and chords.
Proficiency in playing at least one instrument.
Basic aural skills to identify chords and intervals by ear.
The ability to vocalize or hum a written melody.
In summary, a foundational understanding of music is required. If you’re not there yet, consider starting with my book, ‘The Staff Speaks’, which teaches notation and the language of music from the ground up.
New sessions are added as they are finished