A. P. Music Theory Syllabus
Course Overview
The musically talented student is challenged to recognize, comprehend and analyze the
basic materials and processes of music. This goal is approached through the development
of fundamental aural, analytical, and compositional skills. The course provides a solid
foundation in music notation, intervals, scales, chords, rhythms/meter, phrase structure,
form, and the terms used to describe these elements of music as related to the majorminor tonal system. With this foundation, the course progression includes more
complicated tasks such as the following: dictation of melodic and harmonic materials,
sight singing, the analysis of repertoire, including the study of the rhythmic and melodic
interaction between voices; harmonic analysis of functional tonal passages, and
modulation to closely related keys. Creative activities include the realization of a figured
bass and a Roman numeral progression, as well as composition of traditional four-part
chorale passages. The course covers all topics necessary for the Advanced Placement test
that all students are encouraged to take.
Student Evaluation
Grades will be determined by work in several areas:
Practice & Preparation (In class, Homework)
Process Grade (Assignments, Projects)
Chapter Tests/Exams
Sight Singing/Aural
10%
20%
40%
30%
Tests and quizzes will be given approximately every week or two. Following the
completion of a unit (chapter) an exam is given.
Primary Texts
Benward, Bruce, and Marilyn Saker. Music in Theory and Practice, 8th ed. New
York: McGraw-Hill, 2009.
_________________. Workbook for Music in Theory and Practice, 8th ed. New
York: McGraw-Hill, 2009.
Supplemental Texts include:
Benward, Bruce, and J. Timothy Kolosick, Ear Training: A Technique for
Listening, 6th ed. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2000.
Berkowitz, Sol, Gabriel Fontrier, and Leo Kraft. A New Approach to
Sightsinging, 4th ed. New York: W. W. Norton, 1997.
Burkhart, Charles. Anthology for Musical Analysis, 6th ed. Belmont, CA:
Schirmer, 2003.
Ottman, Robert W. Music for Sight Singing, 6th ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ:
Prentice Hall, 2004.
Turek, Ralph. The Elements of Music: Concepts and Applications, 2nd ed. Vol 1.
New York: McGraw-Hill, 1995.
Course Planner
Note: Chapter references are to the Benward and Saker textbook.
First Semester - First Quarter
Week 1 – Introduction and Chapter 1
Elements of musical sound. Review the fundamentals of music notation including the
grand staff, clefs, octave identification, enharmonic equivalents, rhythm and meter,
metric organization, simple and compound meters and dynamic markings.
Weeks 2 and 3 – Chapter 2
Introduce diatonic scales (major and minors), solfeggio syllables, scale degree names,
scale relationships, tonality, key signature, circle of fifths, miscellaneous scales (e.g.
pentatonic, whole-tone, chromatic, blues, chromatic, non-diatonic).
Weeks 4 and 5 – Chapter 3
Introduce concepts of the interval, consonance and dissonance, inversion, compound
intervals, and transposition.
Week 6 – Chapter 4
Elements of harmony: chord, the triad and its inversions, seventh chords and inversions,
Roman numeral analysis, figured bass symbols, macro analysis and popular music
symbols.
Weeks 7 and 8 – Chapter 5
Cadences: harmonic (authentic, half, Phrygian, plagal, deceptive), and rhythmic. Nonharmonic tones: passing tone, neighboring tone, escape tone, anticipation, suspension,
retardation, appoggiatura, neighbor group, pedal tone.
Weeks 9 – Chapter 6
Concepts of melodic organization: motive, sequence, phrase structure, period, phrase
modification through types of extension, and melodic structure.
Sight-Singing
Weeks 1-2
Weeks 3-4
Weeks 5-6
Weeks 7-9
Introduction to Solfege/Simple Time (Meter)
Scale-Line Melodies
Intervals from the Tonic Triad, Major Keys/Simple Time
Intervals from the Tonic Triad, Major Keys/Compound
Time
Ear Training during First Quarter
The focus is on scale-wise major and minor melodies, melodic and harmonic intervals
beginning with 2nds and 3rds gradually increasing up to an octave; simple bass line
dictation; triads; chord function beginning with I (i) - IV (iv) - V chords (and eventually
adding the ii chord).
Second Quarter
Week 10
(Continuation of Chapter 6, melodic organization).
Week 11 – Chapter 7
Texture and texture types: monophonic, polyphonic, homophonic, and homorhythmic.
Textural reduction. Identification of textural elements to include primary and secondary
melodies, parallel supporting melodies, static support, harmonic and rhythmic support.
Week 12 – Chapter 8
Introduction to species counterpoint. Principles of voice leading in first species, twovoiced counterpoint. Composition of a counterpoint against a given cantus firmus.
Weeks 13 and 14 – Chapter 9
Voice leading principles common to music from the common practice period. Guidelines
for inviolate and occasionally broken rules are given. Analysis of chorale phrases.
Stylistic practices of part writing. Stylistic practices of second inversion chords. Voiceleading guidelines.
Weeks 15 and 16 – A.P. Practice Exam; Review and Catch-up
Week 17 – Sight Singing and Listening Final Exams
Week 18 - No scheduled classes -Written Final Exam
Sight-Singing
Weeks 10-11
Weeks 12-13
Weeks 14-15
Weeks 16-17
Week 18
Minor Keys; Intervals from the Tonic Triad
Intervals from the Dominant Triad; Major and Minor Keys
Further Use of Diatonic Intervals
A. P. Practice Exam examples
Final Exams
Ear Training during Second Quarter
The focus is on major and minor melodies with arpeggiation of I, IV and V (and
diminished vii) chords and some larger leaps; non-harmonic tones; all triads; harmonic
dictation increases to include I (i), ii, IV (iv), V, vi (VI) and diminished vii chords;
cadences; outer voices; texture identification.
Second Semester - Third Quarter
Week 1 and 2 – Chapter 10
Harmonic Progression and Harmonic Rhythm: chord relationships, circle progression,
determining harmonic rhythm. Harmonizing tonal melodies: chorale phrases and folk
melodies.
Week 3 and 4 – Chapter 11
Dominant Seventh Chord: inversions, resolution of the dominant seventh in circle and
non-circle progressions.
Week 5 and 6 – Chapter 12
Leading-Tone Seventh Chords: resolution of the tritone and seventh factors, voice
leading of fully diminished and half-diminished vii chords.
Week 7 and 8 – Chapter 13
Non-dominant Seventh Chords: analysis symbols, dominant and non-dominant function,
circle progressions and non-circle treatment, resolution of the seventh factor.
Week 9 and 10 – Chapter 14
Secondary Dominants and Leading-Tone Chords: characteristics, part writing, voice
leading, and analysis of secondary dominants and leading-tone chords.
Sight-Singing
Weeks 1-2
Weeks 3-4
Weeks 5-6
Weeks 7-8
Weeks 9-10
Alto and Tenor Clefs
Intervals from Dominant Seventh Chord
Intervals from the Tonic and Dominant Triads/Simple and
Compound Time
Further Use of Diatonic Intervals
Chromaticism
Ear Training during Third Quarter
The focus is on two-phrase melodies, phrase relationships and cadences; larger leaps,
sequences, modulation to closely related keys; six-four chords, seventh chords; harmonic
dictation includes all diatonic chords, seventh chords, and phrases that modulate to
closely related keys.
Fourth Quarter
Week 11 –
AP Practice Exam
Week 12 – Chapter 15
Modulation: closely related keys, common chord modulation, pivot chord modulation,
phrase modulation, chromatic modulation, analytical symbols for modulations.
Procedure for harmonizing melodies that modulate.
Week 13 – Chapters 16 and 17
Two-Part (Binary) and Three-Part (Ternary) Forms: Open and closed formal division,
analysis of form in music. Compound forms, bar forms, expanded ternary, rounded
binary, refrain and bridge. Other small forms include theme and variations and strophic.
Week 14
Brief introduction to twentieth-century compositional techniques through analysis and
listening examples. Review for AP Music Theory Exam.
Week 15
Review for AP Music Theory Exam (to be given during week 16).
Week 16/17/18
Work on final projects. Semester Two Exam.
Sight-Singing
Week 11
Weeks 12-15
Practice Exam
Examples from miscellaneous choral literature
and various sight singing texts. Focus on modulation to closelyrelated keys and secondary dominants.
Ear Training during Fourth Quarter
The focus is on melodies in two-phrase periods that include modulation and non-diatonic
tones; harmonic dictation of chorale phrases containing secondary dominants and leading
tone chords; harmonic relationships; small forms such as binary, rounded binary and
ternary.
Post AP Exam Activities
Our AP class has one or two additional weeks of class meetings following the AP exam.
During that time I allow the class to work on a mutually agreed-upon activity. In past
years students have chosen to do in-depth analyses of favorite works (e.g. Beatles tunes),
or write compositions. One class decided to write an “Alma Mater” for our school. The
group began with the examination of other alma maters. (Many were found on a web
search). The students then wrote a text appropriate for our school and showed the poem
to an English teacher for comments. After composing a melody, the group made a fourvoice setting. The four-voice setting was written using Finale and then transposed for
band instruments as well. Our band and choir later performed the selection at our
school’s graduation ceremonies.