Omnibus Progression
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The omnibus progression in music is a
chord progression In a musical composition, a chord progression or harmonic progression (informally chord changes, used as a plural, or simply changes) is a succession of chords. Chord progressions are the foundation of harmony in Western musical tradition from ...
characterized by chromatic lines moving in opposite directions. The progression has its origins in the various Baroque harmonizations of the descending
chromatic fourth In music theory, a chromatic fourth, or ''passus duriusculus'',Monelle, Raymond (2000). ''The Sense of Music: Semiotic Essays'', p.73. . is a melody or melodic fragment spanning a perfect fourth with all or almost all chromatic intervals filled ...
in the bass ostinato pattern of
passacaglia The passacaglia (; ) is a musical form that originated in early seventeenth-century Spain and is still used today by composers. It is usually of a serious character and is typically based on a bass- ostinato and written in triple metre. Origin Th ...
, known as the "
lament bass In music, the lament bass is a ground bass, built from a descending perfect fourth from tonic to dominant, with each step harmonized.Brover-Lubovsky, Bella (2008). ''Tonal Space in the Music of Antonio Vivaldi'', p.151-52. . The diatonic vers ...
". However, in its fullest form the omnibus progression involves a descent in the
bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Wood * Bass or basswood, the wood of the tilia americana tree Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in th ...
which traverses a whole
octave In music, an octave (: eighth) or perfect octave (sometimes called the diapason) is an interval between two notes, one having twice the frequency of vibration of the other. The octave relationship is a natural phenomenon that has been referr ...
and includes every note of the
chromatic scale The chromatic scale (or twelve-tone scale) is a set of twelve pitches (more completely, pitch classes) used in tonal music, with notes separated by the interval of a semitone. Chromatic instruments, such as the piano, are made to produce the ...
. It may also include one or more chromatic ascending
tetrachord In music theory, a tetrachord (; ) is a series of four notes separated by three interval (music), intervals. In traditional music theory, a tetrachord always spanned the interval of a perfect fourth, a 4:3 frequency proportion (approx. 498 cent (m ...
s in the
soprano A soprano () is a type of classical singing voice and has the highest vocal range of all voice types. The soprano's vocal range (using scientific pitch notation) is from approximately middle C (C4) = 261 Hertz, Hz to A5 in Choir, choral ...
,
tenor A tenor is a type of male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice types. It is the highest male chest voice type. Composers typically write music for this voice in the range from the second B below m ...
and
alto The musical term alto, meaning "high" in Italian (Latin: '' altus''), historically refers to the contrapuntal part higher than the tenor and its associated vocal range. In four-part voice leading alto is the second-highest part, sung in ch ...
. They are also known as "chromatic wedge progressions", in reference to their wedge-like appearance in score. Gauldin, Robert. "The Theory and Practice of Chromatic Wedge Progressions in Romantic Music." ''
Music Theory Spectrum ''Music Theory Spectrum'' () is a peer-reviewed, academic journal specializing in music theory and analysis. It is the official journal of the Society for Music Theory, and is published by Oxford University Press. The journal was first published ...
'', vol. 26, no. 1. (Spring 2004), pp. 1–22.
The origin of the term "omnibus" (Latin: "for all") to describe such a sequence is unclear, but it is of note that the chord progression encompasses ''all'' of the notes in the
chromatic scale The chromatic scale (or twelve-tone scale) is a set of twelve pitches (more completely, pitch classes) used in tonal music, with notes separated by the interval of a semitone. Chromatic instruments, such as the piano, are made to produce the ...
.


A simple example

The following example is in C major. The lowest part is a "lament bass" that descends from the tonic to the dominant using chromatic passing tones before returning at the end up to the tonic in a
perfect cadence In Western musical theory, a cadence () is the end of a phrase in which the melody or harmony creates a sense of full or partial resolution, especially in music of the 16th century onwards.Don Michael Randel (1999). ''The Harvard Concise Dicti ...
. The upper voice moves in the opposite direction from the dominant note up to the tonic. The chord names are given, followed where necessary by the inversion in
figured bass Figured bass is musical notation in which numerals and symbols appear above or below (or next to) a bass note. The numerals and symbols (often accidental (music), accidentals) indicate interval (music), intervals, chord (music), chords, and non- ...
. For example, 'Cm' refers to a C minor triad in second inversion, and G is a G dominant seventh in third inversion. A more extended treatment of this version of the omnibus could be: : For the purposes of
composition Composition or Compositions may refer to: Arts and literature *Composition (dance), practice and teaching of choreography * Composition (language), in literature and rhetoric, producing a work in spoken tradition and written discourse, to include ...
, the pattern may be halted at any point, and in so doing may facilitate
modulation Signal modulation is the process of varying one or more properties of a periodic waveform in electronics and telecommunication for the purpose of transmitting information. The process encodes information in form of the modulation or message ...
to any desired key.


Dominant prolongation

Modern theorists such as Telesco explain how small sections of omnibus progression (signified in example 1 by brackets around groups of chords) can be viewed as an instance of dominant
prolongation In music theory, prolongation is the process in tonality, tonal music through which a pitch (music), pitch, interval (music), interval, or triad (music), consonant triad is considered to govern spans of music when not physically sounding. It is a ...
achieved through voice exchange. Example 2 (above) is effectively a prolongation of the dominant seventh chord G7 which utilises chromatic voice movement. The bass voice descends chromatically while the upper voice ascends chromatically, and the inner voices remain stationary on the notes of D and F. Eventually the chromatic movement results in a new inversion of the dominant seventh chord G7, resolving to the tonic chord C.


References


Further reading

* Kostka, Stefan, and Dorothy Payne. ''Tonal Harmony''. 6th edition. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2009. (pp. 476–480) * Laitz, Steven G. ''The Complete Musician''. 2nd edition. New York: Oxford University Press, 2008. (pp. 845–846)


External links


Examples of the Omnibus, compiled by Prof. Timothy CutlerJohn A. Rice, "The Morte: A Galant Schema as Emblem of Lament and Compositional Building-Block
{{Chord progressions Chord progressions