EXERCISES IN FIGURED BASS Root-position triads No. 1 e tee £ =e This first exercise is designed for practising the three most common bass progressions using foot-position chords: progressions by fourths and fifths (bb. 1-3, 6-7); by falling thirds (bb. 34 and by rising seconds (bb. 4-5, b. 6), Tn order to get maximum benefit from the exercise, you should keep strictly to the traditional disciplines of elementary figured bass playing. There are three basic principles, 1. Play one note in the left hand (in) and three in the right (RH). The RH notes are the octane fifth, and third above the bass. 2. Move to the nearest available position of the next chord. The essence of fluency in figured bass playing is that you should be equally familiar with all the possible RH shapes of cathe chord, ‘Thus the first chord has three possible shapes, depending: on whether the octave, thirds or fifth is on top (Ex. I}. The shape you use for the succceding rar chord will depend on yous Ex ¢ 4 E e point of departure. You will notice that different bass intervals require different numbers notes to be changed in the Rit, If the bass moves a third, only one RH note will need to changed: if the bass moves a step, all three rat notes will need to be changed. If you. playing these exercises on an organ, you should tie any common notes between chords.Exercises in Figured Bass 5 3. When the bass moves by step (bb. 4-5, b. 6) the ni parts must move in contrary motion to it. This avoids the parallel fifths and octaves which would result from similar motion between upper parts and bass, and is the main exception to the principle of moving to the nearest available position of the next chord, Seventeenth- and eighteenth-century tutors are strict about parallcls, and they should certainly be avoided in basic exercises. ‘To begin with, play No. | three times keeping to thesc principles. Start with the octave on top of the first chord, then with the third, and then with the fifth. Whilst playing the exercise in this way is useful for acquiring fluency in moving from one nar chord shape to the next, it docs give a rather mechanical resull. In order to get a better struc- tured melodic line, two further aspects of style should be taken into account. 1. Where there is a sequence in the bass, have a corresponding sequence in the nit. The first three bars have a sequence of rising fifths and a fourth. In order to-get a corresponding, it sequence, begin with the same factor on top in bb. 2 and3 as in b. 1, and move to the nearest available position for the second chord of each bar. The rest of the exercise should. be played in accordance with the basic principles, i.e, moving to the nearest available nit position for the falling thirds in bb. 3-4 and bb. 5-6, and using contrary motion for the steps in bb, 4-5 and b. 6, 2. Ata cadetee, when the RH chord has the root of the dominant as the top note of the pentultimate chord, itis dull 19 repeat this note as the fifth on top of the final tonic chord. Drop down a position to have the third on top instead, These principles of style will improve the melodic profile of the top part and ita natural relationship to the shape of the bass line. Such a basic exercise gives litle scope for imaginative melodic realization, but it is excellently designed to cultivate the basic reflexes which must be natural in good continuo playing.6 Exercises in Figured Bass No.2 ‘When the bass moves in crotcheis, there necd not be a change of chord from one nate to the next in every case. The mast obvious exanaple of two bass notes having the same chord is where the bass leaps an octave (bb, 1 and 5), There will thus be some variety in the rate of chord change, and it is important that this harmonic rhythm is reflected in the RH. There is no necd ‘to repeat the RA chord on the-second craichet beat of b. 1 or the last of b. 5. Otherwise, the asic principles remain in operation. First play the exercise starting with the root on top, then try with the third and the fifth. b, J. Have a minim xx chord for the first two beats. For the falling thirds in the second half of the bar, move to the nearest available position of the next chord. ‘bb. 1-2. The step across the barline requires contrary motion. bb, 2-3. A sequence of rising fourths begins on the second beat of b. 2: use a corne- sponding RH sequence, with the same factor on top of the first of cach pair of bass notes. bb. 3-5. The last beat of b. 3 begins a sequence of rising fifths. Again, have a corre- sponding ax sequence. In both bb, 2-3 and 3-5 avoid having the same note on top of each pair (which gives a very dull effect). Thus, if you have ¥ on top of the second chord of b, 2, move down a position to have g on top of the third chord, and soon down the sequence. Similarly, it is better not to have e” on top of the last chord of b. 3, which wauld give repeated top notes up the rising fifth sequence. No. 3