Chord Progressions in Classical Music
Early European art music developed through embellishment of a single line of melody and classical theory still emphasizes the correct "horizontal" progress of single-note parts, sometimes known as "voice-leading". Generally, to the melody in the upper part is added first a bass line and then two inner lines to complete the chords in four part harmony suitable for a choir or string section, terminating with cadences, avoiding some chord inversions and favoring others, maintaining an orderly and melodic conjunct, contrary and oblique motion of each part relative to the others in order to achieve unity of texture by avoidance of inappropriate intervals, parallel fifths and octaves etc. Much practice is given to the art of harmonic transition and development that is essential to classical music's use of harmony as a means of achieving unity in a large-scale form. While (as noted above) classical music has its cliche progressions, they are seldom named and discussed: perhaps only Schoenberg among the authors of popular text-books of harmony has made some attempt to do so.
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