THE PHYSICS OF HARMONIC PROGRESSION

The Physics of Harmonic Progression

Chelsea Simpkins

Westminster Choir College

THE PHYSICS OF HARMONIC PROGRESSION

Abstract
David E. Cohen, author of The Imperfect Seeks Its Perfection: Harmonic Progression, Directed
Motion, and Aristotelian Physics gives a detailed explanation of a chord progression we all know
and love. His study is concerned with the early history of the theoretical concept of harmonic
progression and thereby with the early history of directed motion in music. He connects the
movement within a musical phrase with Aristotles theory of physics. The Aristotelian physics is
best described as follows: matter takes its form through a process of motion. For example, a
house is made when bricks, wood, etc. are combined together to create a certain form. How does
this theory relate to music? A song is made when chords and intervals seemingly flow together to
create the perfection it longs to have.

THE PHYSICS OF HARMONIC PROGRESSION

Progression in general is a series of two secular harmonic events related in a way that is
stronger than mere sequence. The concept of imperfect to perfect simply refers to a V7-I
progression. The father of chord progression is Rameau where it is demonstrated in the Traite de
lharmonie in 1722. The listeners ears leans into the dissonance of the major-minor chord and
expects it to resolve back to tonic. Rameau noticed that in an authentic final cadence, the
penultimate dominant chord was to be misinterpreted as a perfect chord unless it contained a
dissonant seventh. Thus the V7 chord we know and love today was born. The tendency tones in a
V7 chord (Ti and Fa) go from an imperfect interval to a perfect one. Tonic is the end goal of any
progression. There is a sort of gravitational pull towards tonic in any progression. The dominant
and subdominant seem to be attracted to the tonic like a magnet. Rameau introduces the idea that
these chords have a specific characteristic dissonance which labels them as non-tonic chords thus
demanding their return to perfection. He still believes that as consonant harmonies, they are too
easily mistaken for tonic themselves. The drive or motion that propels the phrase forward to an
end result of tonic is exactly what Aristotle meant with matter and form.
Harmonic progression includes not only the progression of chords, but also the
progression of one harmonic interval to another. For example a less stable interval moves to a
consonant interval in correspondence of the voice leading. The theoretical development of this
concept of progression requires attention to both events in the progression. Theorists must listen
horizontally as well as vertically.
Dahlhaus identifies the premises of both types of progression (voice leading and
Rameaus) as the Aristotelian principle that the Imperfect by nature strives for the Perfect. This

THE PHYSICS OF HARMONIC PROGRESSION

principle is not demonstrated in a musical setting until about 1320 where it appears in a passage
from Marchetto of Paudas Lucidarium. It is said that this wasnt largely attested until this time
due to the increasingly extensive influence of Aristotelian-scholastic thought. Before Aristotle,
medieval philosophical thought had been largely dominated by a Christianized Platonism. The
period from 1120 to 1280 is where we saw a gradual transition of the entire Aristotelian corpus.
Natural form is the basis of Aristotles physics, or the science of nature. Nature is the
principle of motion that each natural thing has within itself, whose principle of motion is in their
soul. Motion is the process of moving from potentiality to actuality. To explain deeper, the
mobile that is in motion is in the process of fully acquiring a form toward actuality of which it is
still in potentiality, which means it has begun to acquire it but has not done so completely.
Potentiality proceeds toward actuality. As the mobile reaches actuality, the motion ceases
indicating that it has reached its natural end.
Latin scholastics use the term perfection as an equivalent to actuality. Contrarily,
Aristotle believed that perfection does not equal actuality. Actuality equals the state, or result, of
a thing that has went through the process of changing its form in its nature. This is also known as
the process of natural motion. Each thing naturally seeks the perfection of itself. Musics
essential nature is tonic, which attains its perfected actuality in the act of imperfect to perfect
motion. It is furthermore, a directed motion since its goal is specific and predetermined.
The author of this article relays the information in a way where anyone can understand it.
He explains the imperfect to perfect concept of resolution in many different ways changing his
word choice to make it a little more clear. That being said, with the amount of information that
the reader was given to absorb, I felt it was unnecessary to explain it as many times as he did.

THE PHYSICS OF HARMONIC PROGRESSION

This article was about 28 pages long and if you were to shave off the sections where the same
definition was given, you could erase five to eight pages worth of words. The concept of
harmonic progression is fairly simple. I didnt think it were possible to get 28 pages out of
explaining how a V7-I progression is pleasing to the human ear, but Cohen has proven me
wrong.
The greatest strength of this author is his ability to introduce significant people without
overwhelming the reader. After reading this article I understand the importance of Rameau and
the theoretical framework of Aristotle. He also uses many examples throughout the article,
allowing the reader to connect with the new terminology with ease. For instance as he was
explaining the similarities and differences of potentiality, actuality, and form he uses the example
of water. Water is in a state of potentiality with respect to the form of heat (i.e., water is
potentially hot) unless it has, via a motion (heating), already acquired the form of heat in
actuality (in which case it is actually hot) (Cohen 154). I appreciate his attempt to make the text
more clear.
I wish Cohen had taken more time to analyze the physics of musical phrasing. The most
interesting part of this article was thinking about music, specifically harmonic progressions, in
the mindset of a philosopher rather than a musician. The idea that the motion of dissonant, less
stable chords propel the line forward and pulls to a perfect tonic chord is such a astounding
concept. I feel like I will think of music in an entirely new light after reading this article.

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Bibliography
Cohen, D. (2001). The imperfect seeks its perfection: Harmonic progression, directed
motion, and Aristotelian physics. Music Theory Spectrum, 23(2), 13969.