Inner Voice
The voice between melody and bass — often what gives harmony its body
Related
An inner voice sits between the main melody and the bass. It is rarely noticed, yet it decides the harmony's thickness, connection and colour: the same melody and bass sound hollow or full depending on how the inner parts are arranged.
It differs from a counter-melody: a counter-melody wants to be heard, an inner voice mostly supports. The usual mistake is to fill it with anything — parallel fifths, voice crossing and leaps in an inner part can ruin a progression more easily than in an outer voice.
Read deeper → voicing
Sources
- 内声部在四声部织体中的功能，参 The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, "Texture" 与 "Voice leading"；本文为原创表述
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