• Skip to main content
  • Skip to footer

Breaking Barlines

Online Music Theory Lessons: Turn Sound Into Skill

  • Home
  • Aron In the Classroom
  • Music Theory Lessons
  • Blog
  • About Aron Bernstein
  • FAQ

April 5, 2021 By Aron Bernstein Leave a Comment

Weekly Music Theory Challenge: 4/5/21

Show off your music theory chops with my weekly challenge! You’ll find a new question posted here every Monday, and you can comment to post your reply.

This week’s challenge:

When writing in four voices, what’s the best note of an Italian augmented sixth chord to double?

  • A) The Root
  • B) The Third
  • C) The Sixth

Hint: choose the option that avoids parallel octaves.

CHECK BACK on Friday, 4/9 for the answer!

ANSWER for 4/5/21

B) The Third. The Italian sixth is the only augmented sixth chord with only three notes, so in a four-voice texture one of them has to be doubled. If you double either the root or the sixth, you get parallel octaves. The only note in the chord that can resolve either up or down is the third, so this is the best note to double. On the staff below, we have an Ab Italian sixth resolving to the V chord in the key of C minor. The third of the Italian sixth, C, can either resolve up to D or down to B. So the alto and tenor double this third, thereby avoiding parallel octaves.

Want to learn more?

Sign up for a membership and get full access to all video lessons, worksheets, and answer keys!

Spread the love

Filed Under: music theory challenge Tagged With: 6th, augmented, augmented6th, augmentedsixth, chord, harmony, Italian, Italian6th, musictheory, sixth

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Footer

Don’t Miss Out

Get on the email list and we will let you know when new music theory lessons drop.

FREE LESSONS

* indicates required

Your privacy is important to us. We will not share your information with anyone.

Copyright © 2023 Breaking Barlines · WordPress Website by Waterlink Web