Sunday, November 29, 2015

I scream, You scream, We all scream for....Neapolitan Chords?

Recently, in my theory class, we've been discussing borrowed chords, mode mixtures, and Neapolitan chords.
Now, at the beginning, learning all of these is confusing, much like the rest of theory class. I've learned that I am able to understand the concepts of each subject, however applying them to analysis papers or even composing is a struggle. If I can't learn the way I've been trying and fail at, I try any way possible to be able to grasp it. So far, I've switched up my study strategies more than four times this semester. I then realized from my Psychology classes that memories are best formed and remembered when an emotion is felt with them.
I finally got my "AHA!" moment after learning this, so I thought "What if I make Theory fun?" I've thought of many ways to try and make theory fun, from reward systems to relatable concepts, such as "Neapolitan Chords...like Neapolitan Ice cream!"

This is the idea that started this exciting idea:
What if my theory class had an ice cream party when learning this new subject?
I mean, if you think about it, it serves as a reward system AND gives each student of "you remember that time when..." moment they can refer back to. I remember this idea was an instant click at the beginning of school, when we were going over the class syllabus. I even remembering blurting out, without thinking, "Can we have ice cream when we learn this?" My professor laughed and replied "Maybe", probably thinking I wasn't serious.
I put more thought into that suggestion and the more I thought about it, the more I liked it. At the time, it really depended if Blue Bell would be back on the shelves by then. Well guess what? It is.
As time went by and Neapolitan chords came closer, I still hoped we would have that Ice cream party. I re-suggested it in class the other day, making my points about Blue Bell being back on the shelf, and explaining that memories are remembered best if excitement is involved. My professor looked at me with a contemplating look, and seconds of no response seemed like minutes, building up to, "Sure, why not?" Whether or not the class really cheered, I'm not sure, but I know in my head it did. I was so happy at that moment, I was actually able to enjoy myself learning during theory class. (I mean..not that I don't usually do...).

I can now tell you that Neapolitan Chords are built on a half-step above tonic, also known as a flat- 2, and they will almost always be built on a four chord, since they are pre-dominant. They have two tendency tones, and the flat-2 should be used in the soprano line, because it is easier to resolve down by a diminished third. The only note you should double is the bass, and the chord will always resolve to a dominant chord,such as V.

2 comments:

  1. I'm still so happy we got to have ice cream in class! One thing I got confused on, you said that Neapolitan chords are "built on a four chord", but that makes it sound like scale degree 4 is the root when in reality the root is scale degree b2. It simply has scale degree 4 in the bass.

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  2. Hey, that was a fun day! Thanks for thinking of it!

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