FEATURES of a VOICE STRUCTURE GRAPH

To complete your preliminary analysis of a short tonal work, use a double grand staff in landscape (horizontal) format, showing the surface of the piece (basically all of its notes) on the bottom pair, and its fundamental progression on the top pair.

(A) The lower staves include:

(i) Stems-up notation of the full melody, with barlines and key signature(s). Write beams, stems and flags lightly.

(ii) Measure numbers corresponding to the score, in small boxes above the staff.

(iii) Most of the rest of the notes unstemmed — written lightly according to their positions in the score.

(iv) No clef changes, and no rhythmic information in non-melodic voices; limit ledger lines above the bass clef or below the treble.

(v) Clearly marked & labeled notes in the treble: These are marked with a long stem (extending above the flags and beams of the rhythmic notation), and a karated (^) scale-degree number.

— one melodic note representing the most stable “primary tone” (Kopfton) of each phrase—usually in the first phrase of the piece it will be 5^, 3^, or 8^—and in other phrases, a member of a stable triad

— two representing the cadence—usually descending by step (e.g. 3^ 2^ or 6^ 5^) or repeating (e.g. 5^ 5^). 

(Note: If the Kopfton seems not to be “prolonged” all the way to the intermediary and cadential harmony of the phrase, consider either (a) choosing a different primary melodic note, or (b) identifying an additional prolonged note 1 step away, that “bridges” to the cadence. In either case, IF you choose Kopfton, bridging tones, and cadential tones that connect via stepwise motion … this will express that you hear the melody in a coherent, overall stepwise structure.)

(vii) clearly marked & labeled notes in the bass:

— the bass notes that are the “essential support” of the primary tone and cadential tones in the treble. Mark them with stems (down) and Roman numerals with figures. (No additional marking is necessary to clarify that these are the prolongational and cadential harmony!)

— if the cadence is authentic, you should usually locate one bass note that prepares the dominant. Mark it “PD,” and slur it to the bass note of the cadential dominant. (No additional marking is necessary to clarify that this is the intermediate harmony.)

— if appropriate, somewhere between the prolongation and the cadence, stem a bass note a third above or below the bass of the prolongation: usually I6, vi, or iii in major, i6, III, or VI in minor. 

(vii) Finally, to help explain the remaining notes, mark them as elaborations: NCTs, CS/Arp., voice-exchanges, unfoldings(only when necessary!), and linear intervallic progressions. None of these need to be marked if they are obvious—focus on those that help account for the treble and bass notes not yet “spoken for” in step vii and vii. 

(B) In the upper staves, produce a more highly reduced version of the detailed graph, that works directly “in rhythm” with the lower analysis. You don’t need to include Roman numerals beneath bass stems, because they should be clearly visible beneath the bottom pair. The upper staves include:

(i) harmonic structure 

— show the prolongational harmony, intermediate harmony, and cadential harmony as simple chords with stemmed melodic notes

— add any “thirds” elaborations (I6, VI, III, etc.), and any harmony that supports the important stemmed notes in your melody.

(ii) the basic melodic structure, clarifying how the melody moves by steps, toward the cadence.