3 ms·

bach would probably have an aneurysm from all the parallel fifths and octaves in a typical rhythm guitar part.

• kmill 6y ago
  Or he might understand it as an organ stop. The 5 1⁄3′ (quint) and 4' (octave) stops just create constant parallels. The prohibition of parallel perfect intervals is for independence of distinct voices, which strengthens counterpoint. It prevents a voice from being confused for the overtones of another. When independence isn't necessary, you can find these sorts of parallel intervals in even Bach's music.
  • rrmm 6y ago
    Music of his time and right before are interesting to me because they in a lot of cases were coming at harmony from a different place than we are (hexachords and modality). So I heard things that were surprising compared to common practice afterwards; certain harmonic choices would jump out at me that were dictated by voice leading, but they felt extremely modern and somewhat alien. That and the connection to jazz improvisation that sort of existed with basso continuo accompaniment in baroque music blew me away.
• adonovan 6y ago
  The rule about no parallel fifths exists to help the listener distinguish several melodies played together (counterpoint)---a bit like the rules of English style governing unambiguous use of pronouns. In a rhythm guitar part, there typically aren't multiple lines of melody; the whole chord shifts by a fifth.