Thirteenth-Century Polyphony:

A Quick Guide to Combinations and Cadences

Table of Contents

1. Introduction
1. A scholarly caution
2. Two-voice intervals and progressions
1. A subtle continuum of tension
2. Directed cadences
3. Obliquely resolving sonorities
4. Summary
3. Multi-voice combinations
1. The unit of stability: the complete trine (8/5 or 8/4)
2. Mildly unstable combinations (5/3, 9/5, 7/4, 5/4, 5/2)
1. The "split fifth" (5/3)
2. Energetic quintal/quartal fusion (9/5, 7/4, 5/4, 5/2)
3. Tenser cadential combinations
1. Sixth combinations (6/3, 6/5, 6/5/3, 6/2, 6/4)
2. Seventh combinations (7/3, 7/5, 7/5/3)
4. Summary of combinations
4. Directed cadences for three or four voices
1. The versatile "split fifth" (5/3, 8/5/3)
2. Mildly unstable quintal/quartal sonorities (9/5, 7/4, 5/4, 5/2)
3. Sixth combinations (6/3, 6/5, 6/5/3, 6/2, 6/4)
4. Seventh combinations (7/3, 7/5, 7/5/3)
5. Multi-voice Obliquely Resolving Sonorities
1. The "split fifth" unsplit (5/3, 8/5/3)
2. Mildly unstable quintal/quartal sonorities (9/5, 7/4, 5/4, 5/2)
3. Sixth combinations (6/3, 6/5, 6/5/3, 6/2, 6/4)
4. Seventh Combinations (7/3, 7/5, 7/5/3)
6. Concluding words

1. Introduction

European music of the 13th century presents a rich variety of vertical sonorities
and cadences for three or four voices. One's enjoyment and understanding of this
music - as a listener or performer - depends to a great extent upon becoming
attuned to this dimension of the experience.
This guide is neither a full description of 13th-century style, nor a treatise on
13th-century theory. Rather, the more modest but not less important purpose is to
help listeners and performers recognize and enjoy some of the patterns of this
music.

Learning a musical style is rather like learning a new language: ear training and
understanding should go hand in hand. If this guide helps to make the music of
the great era from Perotin (fl. c. 1200) to Petrus de Cruce (active in the last
decades of the 13th century) more accessible and enjoyable, it will have served
its purpose.

1.1. A scholarly caution

Any attempt to describe or analyze medieval music must confront a basic

obstacle: the lack of any known treatises from this period discussing multi-voice
cadences. While the available treatises tell us a great deal about two-voice
intervals and resolutions (Section 2), and include some priceless passages about
multi-voice sonorities (Section 3), they leave undiscussed the matter of cadences
for three or four voices (Section 4). Nor do they address the matter of oblique
resolutions for multi-voice sonorities (Section 5).

Thus Sections 4 and 5 represent my own "extensions" to known medieval theory.

The concept of a multi-voice cadence as a harmonious union of two-voice
progressions joining in a greater whole seems to me consistent both with the
nature of the music and with medieval philosophy. How familiar, strange, or
felicitous this analysis might seem to medieval musicians and theorists remains
an open question.

2. Two-voice intervals and progressions

Rather as 3-D graphics can be seen as a logical extension of 2-D drawing

techniques, so music in any period for three or more voices reflects certain
artistic assumptions about the nature of elementary two-voice intervals. The 13th
century is no exception.

2.1. A subtle continuum of tension

Two-voice intervals range along a subtle scale of tension from the most purely
blending to the most strongly discordant. While such distinctions are often
relative, the absolute distinction between stable and unstable intervals is vital:

Stable:
Purely blending (1, 8)
Optimally blending (5, 4)

Unstable:
Relatively blending (M3, m3)
Relatively tense (M2, m7, M6)
Strongly discordant (m2, M7, tritone - and often m6)

Stable intervals, and especially the fifth, represent points of ideal concord and
rest, often serving as goals of directed cadences. The more tense an unstable
interval, the more urgently it suggests resolution to a stable concord - an
expectation often but not always immediately fulfilled.

In two-voice music, the fifth is both optimally euphonious and conclusive, while
the fourth is relatively stable but somewhat less conclusive. However, two-part
pieces often begin or end with a purely blending (although less sonorous) unison
or octave.

2.2. Directed cadences

The most powerful two-voice progressions in this period involve moving from an
unstable interval to a stable one by stepwise or near-stepwise contrary motion.
Either both voices move by step, or one moves by step and the other by a third.
Here are examples illustrating some of the most important resolutions:
m2-4 m2-5 M2-4 M2-5 m3-1 m3-5 M3-1 M3-5
--- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ----
c'-d' f-g b-c' g-a g-f g-a a-g a-b
b -a e-c a-g f-d e-f e-d f-g f-e

m6-8 m6-4 M6-8 M6-4 m7-5 M7-5

--- ---- ---- ---- ---- ----
c'-d' f'-e' e'-f' a'-g' d'-c' e'-d'
e -d a -b g -f c'-d' e -f f -g

(Notation graphics: m2-4, m2-5, M2-4, M2-5, m3-1, m3-5, M3-1, M3-5, m6-8, m6-4, M6-
8, M6-4, m7-5, M7-5)
 In two-voice music, these
progressions give a sense of directed and unifying motion. In music for three and
four voices, they serve as the elementary building blocks of many powerful and
beautiful cadences, as we shall see.

2.3. Obliquely resolving sonorities

Additionally, unstable intervals have standard resolutions where one voice

remains stationary while the other moves by step or by a third (sometimes with
the middle tone filled in). Here are some of the most common cases:
m2-1 M2-1 m3-1 m3-5 M3-1 M3-5
--- ---- ------- --------- ------- --------
f-e a-g f-(e)-d c'-(d')-e' a-(g)-f b-(c')-d'
e - g - d - a - f - g -

m6-5 M6-5 m7-8 m7-5 M7-8 M7-5

--- ---- ---- --------- ---- --------
f'-e' d'-c' c'-d' f'-(e')-d' e'-f' e'-(d')-c'
a - f - d - g - f - f -
(Notation graphics: m2-1, M2-1, m3-1, m3-5, M3-1, M3-5, m6-5, M6-5, m7-8, m7-5, M7-
8, M7-5)

2.4. Summary

The music of the 13th century boldly exploits the entire spectrum of intervals
from the most blending to the most aggressively discordant. While the distinction
between stable and unstable intervals is absolute, there are various degrees of
tension among the unstable intervals. Thus M3 and m3 are relatively blending
but have some tension, while M2 and m7 are rather tense but have some
"compatibility."

Given this approach of flexibility and bold contrast, we should not be surprised to
find an amazing variety and richness of multi-voice combinations and cadences.

Thirteenth-Century Polyphony

3. Multi-voice combinations

Music for three or four voices is at once a logical extension and a glorious
expansion of the two-voice elements we have just considered. It involves
combining intervals to create new multi-voice sonorities, and also combining or
superimposing two-voice progressions to build unifying cadences.

Around 1300, Johannes de Grocheo tells us that three voices are required for
complete harmony, and in fact three-voice compositions become the norm from
the age of Perotin on.

In this section, we survey some of the most important categories of stable and
unstable combinations for three or four voices. Then in Section 4, we focus on
directed cadential resolutions, while in Section 5 we consider obliquely resolving
sonorities.

3.1. The unit of stability: the complete trine (8/5 or 8/4)

In theory and practice, the unit of complete harmony in the 13th century is a
combination with three voices and intervals: the trine (trina harmoniae perfectio,
or "threefold perfection of harmony," as Johannes de Grocheio calls it). This
sonority requires three voices, the foundation-tone, fifth, and octave, and it
includes three intervals: an outer octave, a lower fifth, and an upper fourth:
 |g'
| 4
8|d'
| 5
|g

(Notation graphic)

Throughout the 13th century, and well beyond, this combination represents ideal
euphony and stable plenitude; it is a point of rest and the goal of unstable
sonorities.

Using a much later but rather familiar form of notation, we may describe this
combination as 8/5 (8 + 5 + 4). The "8/5" tells us that the intervals above the
lowest tone are an octave and fifth, while the "(8 + 5 + 4)" identifies all three
intervals, including the upper fourth.

In theory and practice, these same three intervals may be arranged conversely so
that the fourth is below and the fifth above:
|g'
| 5
8|c'
| 4
|g

(Notation graphic)

This combination - 8/4 (8 + 5 + 4) -- is also common, especially in the period

around 1200, but is very rarely conclusive. Around 1325, Jacobus of Liege
expresses the likely view of 13th-century musicians that this sonority, while
concordant, is less pleasing than the ideal arrangement of fifth below and fourth
above. He suggests a general rule that a larger or more blending interval (here the
fifth) should best be placed below a smaller or less blending interval (here the
fourth).
In this guide, I shall use the term "trine" for both the 8/5 and 8/4 combinations,
but with the 8/5 trine normally presumed unless the context indicates otherwise.

3.2. Mildly unstable combinations (5/3, 9/5, 7/4, 5/4, 5/2)

While the trine represents complete and stable harmony, two families of mildly
unstable combinations add sheer vertical color to the music as well as lending
themselves to a variety of directed and decorative resolutions. Happily, we have
an eloquent witness: Jacobus of Liege mentions the pleasing qualities of these
combinations, and indeed the music speaks for itself.

3.2.1. The "split fifth" (5/3)

In the quinta fissa or "split fifth" of Jacobus, an outer fifth is "divided" by a third
voice into two thirds: 5/M3 (5 + M3 + m3) or the "converse" arrangement of
5/m3 (5 + m3 + M3). Here the fifth is ideally blending, while the two thirds are
unstable but relatively blending (being the mildest unstable intervals).

Incidentally, Jacobus prefers the form with the major third below and minor third
above, but notes that the converse is also permissible, citing the opening of a
13th-century motet preserved in the Bamberg Codex.
| d' | e'
| m3 | M3
5 | b 5 | c'
| M3 | m3
| g | a

(Notation graphics: 1, 2)

The 5/3 combination often resolves by directed contrary motion (Section 4.1),
and has a featured role in many internal and final cadences. Additionally,
throughout the century it is often treated more freely, as we might expect for one
of the mildest unstable combinations, and in fact the only one to consist
exclusively of stable or relatively blending intervals.

3.2.2. Energetic quintal/quartal fusion (9/5, 7/4, 5/4, 5/2)

Jacobus also tells us about another favorite kind of mildly unstable combination
common in practice from Perotin on. Two fifths, two fourths, or a fifth and a
fourth combine with a relatively tense M2, m7, or M9 in a kind of energetic
blend or fusion.
In his monumental Speculum musicae or "Mirror of Music," Jacobus
enthusiastically recommends the three-voice sonority of a major ninth "split" into
two fifths by a third voice, i.e. 9/5 (M9 + 5 + 5). He also observes that it is
pleasant if a minor seventh is "split" into two fourths, i.e. 7/4 (m7 + 4 + 4).
| g' | f'
| 5 | 4
M9 | c' m7 | c'
| 5 | 4
| f | g

(Notation graphics: 1, 2)

Additionally, Jacob mentions another very common type of sonority, in which an

outer fifth is "split" into a fourth below and a major second above, or the
converse:
| d' | d'
| M2 | 4
5 | c' 5 | a
| 4 | M2
| g | g

(Notation graphics: 1, 2)

These four sonorities, like 5/3, represent the mildest unstable combinations
possible: here two of the intervals are ideally blending fifths and/or fourths, while
the third interval (M2, m7, or M9) is relatively tense but not sharply discordant.

The treatise of Jacobus suggests that to 13th-century ears, as to modern ones, the
overall impression was one of an energetic variant on 8/5 or 8/4, with the
unstable major second or ninth or minor seventh lending a sense of excitement
and motion.

While these combinations sometimes participate in directed cadential

progressions (Section 4.2), they often lend themselves to resolutions by oblique
mention (Section 5.2) - or, like 5/3, to freer treatments.

3.3. Tenser cadential combinations

In addition to stable trines and mildly unstable combinations, composers of the

13th century deploy some strikingly tense cadential combinations resolving very
effectively to a complete trine or a fifth (the prime interval of an 8/5 trine). These
combinations fall into two major families.
3.3.1. Sixth combinations (6/3, 6/5, 6/5/3, 6/2, 6/4)

Combinations with an outer sixth characteristically resolve to a complete trine,

with the sixth expanding to the octave of this trine. We shall focus on this group
of cadences in Section 4.3.

For now, it may suffice to give some examples of the most common forms: 6/3,
6/5, 6/5/3, 6/2, and 6/4. These sonorities, although all on the tense side, may vary
considerably in their degree of tension. We should recall that M6 is relatively
tense, roughly on par with M2 and m7, while m6 is often regarded as sharply
discordant (like m2, M7, tritone). Forms involving m6, m2, or tritonic fifths or
fourths heighten the level of tension, and along with their somewhat gentler
relatives are very effectively employed by Perotin and other composers. The
following examples may give a sampling of these possibilities:
| f' |
| m2 |
| c' | e' | e' | 4 |
| 4 | M2 m6 | M3 | |
m6 | g M6 | d' | c' | | 5
| m3 | 5 | m3 |
| e | g | a |

m6/m3 M6/5 m6/5/m3

(m6 + m3 + 4) (M6 + 5 + M2) (m6 + 5 + m2 + m3 + M3 + 4)

| f' | e'
| d5 | M3
m6 | b M6 | c'
| M2 | 4
| a | g

m6/M2 M6/4
(m6 + M2 + d5) (M6 + 4 + M3)

(Notation graphics: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5)

The fact that these sixth sonorities include a large number of unstable intervals
means from a cadential perspective that they invite some very dynamic
resolutions. As we shall see, the 6/3, 6/5, and 6/5/3 combinations can expand to a
complete trine in an especially efficient manner which makes them among the
most favored of cadential sonorities.

Additionally, the 6/5 combination often resolves by oblique motion to a simple

fifth (the highest voice descending a step while the others remain stationary), as
is discussed in Section 5.3.
3.3.2. Seventh combinations (7/3, 7/5, 7/5/3)

In the other leading family of more tense cadential combinations, an outer minor
seventh characteristically contracts by stepwise contrary motion to a fifth.
In Section 4.4, we shall explore these standard progressions.

For now, let us briefly look at these sonorities themselves. As with the sixth
combinations, they are all decidedly on the tense side, but more so in the case of
forms including M7 or a tritonic fifth. Here we consider 7/3, 7/5, and 7/5/3,
sampling some of these possibilities:
| d' |
| m3 |
| e' | a' | b | 5 |
| 5 | M3 m7 | M3 | |
M7 | a m7 | f' | g | | 5
| M3 | d5 | m3 |
| f | b | e |

M7/M3 m7/d5 m7/5/m3

(M7 + M3 + 5) (m7 + d5 + M3) (m7 + m3 + M3 + m3 + 5 + 5)

(Notation graphics: 1, 2, 3)

As in the case of our sixth combinations, a preponderance of unstable intervals

means a wealth of opportunities for directed cadential action. Additionally, the
7/5 combination lends itself to an oblique resolution where the upper voice
ascends stepwise (Section 5.4).

3.4. Summary of combinations

Here we have by no means covered the full range of combinations appearing in

13th-century music: Jacobus lists a catalogue of such sonorities with outer
intervals ranging from a major third to a twelfth (about the practical limit, given
the typical range of voices in this period). However, attuning ourselves to some
of the most prevalent and important families of sonorities is a large step toward
appreciating and understanding this music.

The stable trine (8/5, with its variant form of 8/4) is the unit of complete
harmony, and the ultimate goal of unstable combinations.

The "split fifth" with its two thirds (5/3), and mildly unstable combinations
featuring a preponderance of fifths or fourths (9/5, 7/4, 5/4, 5/2), are relatively
blending. They add pleasant vertical color to the music, and lend themselves
either to standard resolutions or to a freer treatment.
Other, tenser, combinations strongly invite directed cadential resolutions where
an outer sixth expands to the octave of a complete trine (6/3, 6/5, 6/5/3, 6/2, and
sometimes 6/4), or an outer seventh contracts to a fifth (7/3, 7/5, 7/5/3).

Having considered the harmonic vocabulary of 13th-century music, we now turn

to its dynamic grammar: the ways in which an unstable sonority may effectively
resolve to a stable one.

Thirteenth-Century Polyphony

4. Directed cadences for three or four voices

In two-voice writing, as we have seen (Section 2.2), the most compelling

cadential events involve progressing from an unstable to a stable interval by
stepwise or near-stepwise contrary motion. Music for three or four voices permits
a logical and glorious expansion of this pattern. In the most favored cadences, an
unstable combination artfully resolves by directed contrary motion to a richly
stable sonority, ideally a complete 8/5 trine.

Such cadences, whether involving mildly unstable combinations or dramatically

discordant ones, tend to follow patterns suggesting two main "guidelines":

(1) The unstable combination as a whole should resolve to a richly stable

sonority, ideally an 8/5 trine, and next most preferably a fifth (the prime interval
of 8/5), with 8/4 or a fourth as alternate goals.

(2) Each unstable interval should ideally resolve by stepwise contrary motion,
and next most preferably by near-stepwise contrary motion (one voice moving by
step, and the other by a third).

An actual example may make these points clearer:

f'-g'
c'-d'
a -g

m6/m3-8/5
(m6-8 + m3-5)
 (Notation graphic)

In this progression, very common throughout the 13th century, a rather tense
m6/m3 combination (m6 + m3 + 4) expands to a complete 8/5 trine (8 + 5 + 4).
Both unstable intervals resolve by stepwise contrary motion (m6-8, m3-5), and
these two resolutions reinforce each other, together making possible our arrival at
a complete trine. All three voices move by step, each contributing to the total
effect of directed cadential action.

Our notation below the example indicates that an m6/m3 sonority resolves to 8/5,
and then identifies the mutually reinforcing two-voice resolutions (m6-8 + m3-5).

Note that while either m6-8 or m3-5 serves as an effective cadence in two-part
writing, music for three or voices opens the new possibility of
combining both progressions at once, and introduces the vital new element of the
complete trine as an ideal cadential goal.

More generally, we will often find it useful to analyze a multi-voice cadence as a

mutually reinforcing union of directed two-voice resolutions. Given the variety
of such resolutions (Section 2.2), we might expect to find a diverse range of
multi-voice cadences; and so we do.

Before exploring this universe of directed vertical progressions, we may do well

to consider the broad meaning of "cadential" action in our present context. While
the progressions we are about to discuss are indeed favored at final closes or
internal cadences in the narrower sense, they may occur more generally at almost
any point where there is a "change of harmony" - that is, where the lowest voice
or foundation-tone (fundamentum) changes.

In this broad sense, cadential events occur constantly in most 13th-century

pieces, often making possible smoother melody as well as satisfying vertical
contrasts (Section 6).

4.1. The versatile "split fifth" (5/3)

The 5/3 combination or "split fifth" (Section 3.1) is much favored in 13th-century
music not only because it is one of the mildest unstable combination, but also
because it invites some very efficient resolutions. Three such resolutions are
favored throughout the century:
 g-a d'-c' d'-f'
e-d b -c' b -c'
c-d g -f g -f

5/M3-5 5/M3-5 5/M3-8/5

(M3-1 + m3-5) (m3-1 + M3-5) (M3-5)

Notation graphics: 1, 2, 3)

In the first two progressions, the two unstable thirds both resolve by stepwise
contrary motion: one contracts to a unison while the other expands to a fifth, as
all three voices move stepwise. The outer voices of the "split fifth" move
together, either ascending or descending by a step, while the middle voice which
"splits" the fifth into two thirds moves in the opposite direction, neatly resolving
both unstable intervals.

In the third progression, the lower third of 5/3 expands to the fifth of a complete
8/5 trine (here M3-5), while the outer fifth of 5/3 expands to the octave of the
trine.

Each of these efficient resolutions involves a slight compromise of our ideal

cadential guidelines. In the first two cases, each unstable interval resolves by
stepwise contrary motion (3-1 + 3-5), but we arrive at a simple fifth rather than a
complete trine.

In the third case, only the lower third resolves by stepwise contrary motion (3-5),
the upper third resolving by similar motion to the upper fourth of the trine. Thus
we gain greater sonority at a slight sacrifice of cadential efficiency.

Both minor compromises are quite acceptable, and indeed these progressions are
among the most popular cadences from Perotin to Petrus de Cruce. While our last
examples happen to involve 5/M3, Jacobus of Liege's favored form with major
third below and minor third above, the same progressions also occur with his
"converse" form 5/m3, and also sometimes with the discordant tritonic variant of
d5/m3:
b-c' b-a b-d' f'-g'
g-f g-a g-a d'-c'
e-f e-d e-d b -c' etc.

5/m3-5 5/m3-5 5/m3-8/5 d5/m3-5

(m3-1 + M3-5) (M3-1 + m3-5) (m3-5) (m3-1 + m3-5)

(Notation graphics: 1, 2, 3, 4)

In four-voice writing, we encounter an interesting variation on this pattern: the

8/5/3 combination (8 + 5 + 4 + 3 + 3 + 6) resolving by stepwise motion of all
voices to a complete trine. Note that this sonority may be somewhat more tense
than 5/3 because of the major or minor sixth between two of the upper voices. In
any case, all three unstable intervals resolve by stepwise contrary motion, and we
arrive at a complete trine, so the popularity of this type of cadence in four-voice
music is not surprising:
g'-a' g'-f'
d'-e' d'-c'
b -a b -c'
g -a g -f

8/5/M3-8/5 8/5/3-8/5
(M3-1 + m3-5 + m6-8) (m3-1 + M3-5 + m6-4)

Notation graphics: 1, 2)

4.2. Mildly unstable quintal/quartal sonorities (9/5, 7/4, 5/4, 5/2)

Like 5/3, these combinations serve as a great resource for harmonic color;
however, they play a somewhat less prominent role as directed cadential
sonorities. Let us first quickly consider the possibilities of 9/5 and 7/4, and then
explore the more versatile role of 5/4 and 5/2, which do rather frequently resolve
by directed contrary motion in the course of a piece, now and then providing
material for final cadences.
The 9/5 combination (M9 + 5 + 5) seems to lend itself more to oblique than to
directed resolutions, although I am aware of one curious resolution where the
major ninth contracts to a fifth, each voice leaping by a third:
e'-c'
a -c'
d -f

9/5-5
(M9-5)

(Notation graphic)

In another resolution by contrary motion, the major ninth expands to a twelfth

while the lower fifth expands to an octave, arriving at a 12/8 sonority. This
progression is probably rather rare because of the limited range of most 13th-
century polyphony, and it is my impression that it occurs mostly in pieces from
around 1300:
g'-a'
c'-d'
f -d

9/5-12/8
(M9-12)

(Notation graphic)

The 7/4 combination permits a resolution where the outer minor seventh
contracts to a fifth, and this progression does occur now and then, although it is
more characteristic of the tenser seventh combinations (7/5, 7/3, 7/5/3) to be
examined in Section 4.4:
f'-e'
c'-e'
g -a

7/4-5
(m7-5)

(Notation graphic)

As we shall see (Section 5.2), 9/5 and 7/4 both invite very effective resolutions
by oblique motion, as well as freer treatments.

In the case of 5/4 and 5/2, however, resolutions by directed contrary motion as
well as oblique motion play a significant role in the cadential lexicon of the 13th
century. In such directed progressions, the unstable major second of 5/4 or 5/2
expands to a stable fourth or fifth (M2-4 or M2-5):
e'-f' d'-e' e'-f' d'-c'
d'-c' c'-a b -c' a -c'
a -f g -a a -f g -f

5/4-8/5 5/4-5 5/2-8/5 5/2-5

(M2-4) (M2-5) (M2-5) (M2-5)

(Notation graphics: 1, 2, 3, 4)

As with 5/3 (Section 4.1), the outer fifth may expand to the octave of a complete
trine; or the two outer voices may ascend or descend together by step, with the
progression arriving at a simple fifth rather than a full trine.

These directed resolutions of 5/4 and 5/2 are quite common, and occasionally
serve as final cadences.

4.3. Sixth combinations (6/3, 6/5, 6/5/3, 6/2, 6/4)

Moving to tenser combinations, we now consider two groups of cadential

sonorities par excellence: sixth and seventh combinations.

As already noted (Section 3.3), cadential sixth combinations characteristically

resolve to a complete 8/5 trine, with the outer sixth expanding to the octave of the
trine (M6-8 or m6-8).

This process is especially efficient in the case of the 6/3 and 6/5 combinations,
the 6-8 resolution combining nicely with a 3-5 or 2-4 resolution:
d'-e' e'-f'
a -b d'-c'
f -e g -f

M6/M3-8/5 M6/5-8/5
(M6-8 + M3-5) (M6-8 + M2-4)

(Notation graphics: 1, 2)

Note that in each case both unstable intervals resolve by stepwise contrary
motion, and the progression arrives at an ideally sonorous 8/5 trine, satisfying our
criteria for a superb cadence.
As it happens, these two examples feature the comparatively milder M6/M3 (M6
+ M3 + 4) and M6/5 (M6 + 5 + M2) combinations, but more discordant
permutations involving m6, m2, and tritonic fourths or fifths are also common.

In four-part writing, another powerful cadential sonority becomes available: 6/5/3

(6 + 3 + 3 + 2 + 5 + 4). For an example, let us take one of the more discordant
forms, m6/5/m3, including m6 and m2 as well as two more mildly unstable
thirds:
f'-g'
e'-d'
c'-d'
a -g

m6/5/m3-8/5
(m6-8 + m2-4 + M3-1 + m3-5)

(Notation graphic)

This memorable cadence occurs at the close of Vetus abit littera, an anonymous
piece worthy of Perotin. Here we have no fewer than four unstable intervals, each
of which felicitously resolves by stepwise contrary motion, bringing us to an 8/5
trine.

While 6/3, 6/5, and 6/5/3 are ideally efficient cadential sonorities, the 6/2
combination is somewhat less ideal, since it requires a leap of a third in the
middle part in order to resolve to 8/5:
e'-f'
a -c'
g -f

M6/M2-8/5
(M6-8 + M2-5)

(Notation graphic)

The 6/4 combination seems yet less efficient as a cadential sonority resolving to
8/5 by way of a 6-8 progression, since the middle voice remains stationary, and
the upper third thus resolves by oblique rather than contrary motion - a pattern
not especially favored in this period for directed cadences:
f'-g' e'-f
d'-d' c'-c'
a -g g -f

m6/4-8/5 M6/4-8/5
(m6-8) (M6-8)
(Notation graphics: 1, 2)

Interestingly, a progression in which both unstable intervals resolve by stepwise

contrary motion is possible, but to the usually less conclusive 8/4 rather than 8/5:
f'-g'
d'-c'
a -g

m6/4-8/4
(m6-8 + m3-5)

(Notation graphic)

In practice, the 6/3 and 6/5 forms are most important in three-part music, while
the 6/5/3 form is very popular in four-part pieces. Final closes, internal cadences,
and transient progressions from one sonority to the next provide frequent
occasions for their use in directed vertical action.

4.4. Seventh combinations (7/3, 7/5, 7/5/3)

Like the sixth combinations we have just considered, seventh combinations such
as 7/3, 7/5, and 7/5/3 also invite compelling directed resolutions in which the
outer seventh contracts to a fifth (m7-5 or M7-5). In 7/3 (7 + 3 + 5) and 7/5 (7 +
5 + 3), the milder unstable third likewise contracts to a unison in the most typical
pattern:
e'-d' d'-c'
a -g b -c'
f -g e -f

M7/M3-5 m7/5-5
(M7-5 + M3-1) (m7-5 + m3-1)

(Notation graphics: 1, 2)

These cadences nicely meet our guideline that all unstable intervals should
resolve by stepwise contrary motion (7-5 + 3-1), but represent a slight
compromise in the department of full sonority: we arrive at a simple fifth rather
than a full trine.

In four-part pieces, including Perotin's, we also meet an especially impressive

seventh combination: 7/5/3 (7 + 5 + 5 + 3 + 3 + 3). Here is a milder form with
m7 and without any tritonic fifths:
d'-c'
b -c'
 g -f
e -f

m7/5/m3-5
(m7-5 + m3-1 + M3-5 + m3-1)

(Notation graphic)

As in the typical resolution of 6/5/3 (Section 4.3), all four unstable intervals
progress to stable ones by stepwise contrary motion. In this case, as with the
other seventh combinations, we arrive at a simple fifth rather than a complete
trine - a small and acceptable compromise of sonority.

Like the sixth combinations, these seventh combinations play a vital cadential
role throughout the century, often with superb effect. A fuller discussion would
cover related forms such as 8/7, 8/7/3, and 8/7/5, and also idioms which might be
considered part-writing variations on the basic resolutions we have just surveyed.

Thirteenth-Century Polyphony

5. Multi-voice Obliquely Resolving Sonorities

Having looked at directed cadential progressions for three or four voices, we now
turn to resolutions by oblique motion. Some popular combinations lend
themselves readily to both treatments: for example, 5/3, 5/4, 5/2, 6/5, and 7/5.

As we saw in Section 2.3, two-voice music frequently features resolutions from

an unstable to a stable interval where one voice remains stationary while the
other moves by a step, or by a third (sometimes with the middle step filled in),
e.g. 7-8, 7-(6)-5.

Extending this technique to music for three or voices, composers often apply
these basic resolutions to the unstable intervals of various combinations, with one
or more voices moving by oblique motion while the others remain stationary. Let
us consider some of the most common resolutions of this kind, with a definite
caution that the following presentation is only a very partial sampling.

5.1. The "split fifth" unsplit (5/3, 8/5/3)

While the "split fifth" or 5/3 often resolves by directed cadential action (Section
4.1), it can also resolve by oblique motion of the middle voice which "splits" the
fifth into two unstable thirds:
 a - d' -
f-(e)-d b-(c')-d'
d - g -

5 - 5 -
m3-(M2)-1 M3-(4)-5

[m3-(M2)-1 + M3-(4)+5] [M3-(4)-5 + m3-(M2)-1]

(Notation graphics: 1, 2)

The middle voice descends or ascends by a third, possibly moving through the
intervening step, to arrive at a unison with one of the outer voices and a fifth with
the other. Thus we are left with a stable "unsplit" fifth. From a vertical point of
view, we might say that the mild tension of the two thirds has "evaporated"
without impelling a directed progression. Of course, the motion of the middle
voice (often in quick note values) also adorns the music melodically.

In music for four voices, the 8/5/3 sonority likewise invites this kind of oblique
resolution as well as the standard directed resolutions. Here the resolution of the
two unstable thirds - and also an unstable sixth with respect to the highest voice -
leaves us with a complete 8/5 trine:
f' - d' -
c' - a -
a-(g)-f f-(g)-a
f - d -

8 - 8 -
5 - 5 -
M3-(M2)-1 m3-(M2)-1

[M3-(M2)-1 + m3-(4)-5 + m6-(m7)-8] [m3-(M2)-1 + M3-(4)-5 + M6-(5)-4]

otation graphics: 1, 2)

5.2. Mildly unstable quintal/quartal sonorities (9/5, 7/4, 5/4, 5/2)

These relatively blending combinations very frequently resolve by oblique
motion, sometimes with impressive effect indeed. The 9/5, 5/4, and 5/2
combinations can neatly resolve to a stable trine or fifth by the stepwise motion
of a single voice, while 7/4 invites a beautiful resolution in which the two upper
voices ascend stepwise in fourths to the octave and fifth of an 8/5 trine.

The 9/5 combination most typically resolves to an 8/5 trine by the stepwise
descent of the upper voice (M9-8), and may alternatively resolve to an 8/4 trine
by the stepwise descent of both upper voices in fifths:
g'-f' b'-a'
c' - e'-d'
f - a -

M9-8 M9-8
5 - 5 -4

[M9-8] [M9-8]

(Notation graphics: 1, 2)

As just mentioned, 7/4 often resolves by a stepwise ascent of the two upper
voices to the octave and fifth of a complete trine:
f'-g'
c'-d'
g -

m7-8
4 -5

[m7-8]

(Notation graphic)

The energetic but relatively concordant qualities of the 7/4 sonority, the pleasant
motion of the upper voices in parallel fourths, and the arrival at an ideal 8/5
combination make this a strikingly beautiful progression. Especially in the music
of Perotin's time, it sometimes serves as a very felicitous final or sectional
cadence.

While the 5/4 and 5/2 combinations rather frequently resolve by directed
cadential motion (Section 4.2), they also invite oblique resolutions rather similar
to those of 5/3 (Section 5.1). The middle voice, which here "splits" the outer fifth
into a euphonious fourth and a relatively tense major second, typically moves
stepwise into a unison with the nearer outer voice (M2-1):
d' - c'-
c'-d' g-f
g - f -

5 - 5 -
4-5 M2-1

[M2-1] [M2-1]

(Notation graphics: 1, 2)

Thus we are left with an "unsplit" stable fifth.

5.3. Sixth combinations (6/3, 6/5, 6/5/3, 6/2, 6/4)

Again we move to more tense combinations. In addition to their vital role as

directed cadential sonorities, combinations with an outer sixth also permit a
variety of resolutions by oblique motion. Here we consider only a few main
possibilities.

The 6/5 combination, in addition to inviting one of the most effective directed
progressions of the 13th century (Section 4.3), also has an alternative resolution
by oblique motion in which the upper voice descends from the sixth to the fifth:
d'-c' c'-b
c' - b -
f - e -

M6-5 m6-5
5 - 5 -

[M6-5 + M2-1] [m6-5 + m2-1]

(Notation graphics: 1, 2)
This motion of the upper voice produces two simultaneous resolutions: a 6-5
resolution with the lowest voice, and a 2-1 resolution with the middle voice. Our
examples show the milder M6/5 form, where both unstable intervals (M6 and
M2) are relatively tense but not sharply discordant, and one of the more intense
forms: m6/5 (with m6 and m2).

The 6/2 combination, when it does not resolve in a directed manner, sometimes
resolves by the stepwise descent of both upper voices, arriving at a stable fifth:
e'-d'
a -g
g -

M6-5
M2-1

[M6-5 + M2-1]

Here both upper voices have standard oblique resolutions

with the lower voice: 6-5 for the highest voice, and 2-1 for the middle voice. The
parallel fifths between the upper voices add an element of texture and color.

5.4. Seventh Combinations (7/3, 7/5, 7/5/3)

While many oblique resolutions are possible for these combinations as

alternatives to their superb directed resolutions (Section 4.4), we here consider an
especially important form in which the seventh of 7/5 ascends to the octave of a
complete trine:
c'-d' e'-f'
a - c' -
d - f -

m7-8 M7-8
5 - 5 -

[m7-8 + m3-4] [M7-8 + M3-4]

(Notation graphics: 1, 2)

The motion of the upper voice produces a 7-8 resolution with the lowest voice
and a 3-4 resolution with the middle voice. Both the milder form with m7/5 and
the dramatically intense one with M7/5 are very common.
A complete discussion would look at various other resolutions: for example, the
seventh in the above examples might descend to the fifth rather than ascending to
the octave, and 7/3 can also resolve by oblique motion in various ways.

Thirteenth-Century Polyphony

6. Concluding words

This first crude draft is, as cautioned, a very partial introduction. I have focused
on patterns rather than exceptions. The music itself presents patterns, variations,
and exceptions - and any line between these categories must also necessarily be
arbitrary.

As in most polyphonic music, there is a constant and often subtle interaction

between the vertical and melodic dimensions. A rather transient tone may permit
a smoother and more graceful melody at the same time as it results in a directed
vertical progression. Almost any point where the lowest voice moves by step or
by third provides an opportunity for "cadential action" in this freer sense,
however momentary, and there are pieces where such progressions seem to occur
at most transitions between measures in a modern score.

The sustained-tone organum passages of Perotin and his colleagues, like the
"pedal harmonies" of other periods, present a special kind of vertical color.
Typically such passages focus on a stable 8/5 or 8/4 sonority above the sustained
tenor, but exploit the full range of combinations we have explored. At times the
upper two or three voices may engage in directed progressions (Section 4) above
or around the unchanging sustained note; a change in the tenor provides the
opportunity for a decisive cadence involving all voices.

For an excellent example, see (and hear or perform) the end of the first portion of
Perotin's Sederunt principles for four voices. To set the syllable "-runt", Perotin
repeats a phrase twice. The first time, the vertical tension dissipates; the second
time, it is released in the cadence with m7/5/m3 described in Section 4.4.

It is well to end on a note of humility: any modern explanation of this music must
rest in good part on one's own artistic perception and conceptual imagination,
hopefully not inconsistent with the theory of the period and the evidence of the
music itself.