When will I have access to the lectures and assignments?

To access the course materials, assignments and to earn a Certificate, you will need to purchase the Certificate experience when you enroll in a course. You can try a Free Trial instead, or apply for Financial Aid. The course may offer 'Full Course, No Certificate' instead. This option lets you see all course materials, submit required assessments, and get a final grade. This also means that you will not be able to purchase a Certificate experience.

What will I get if I subscribe to this Specialization?

When you enroll in the course, you get access to all of the courses in the Specialization, and you earn a certificate when you complete the work. Your electronic Certificate will be added to your Accomplishments page - from there, you can print your Certificate or add it to your LinkedIn profile.

Is financial aid available?

Yes. In select learning programs, you can apply for financial aid or a scholarship if you can’t afford the enrollment fee. If fin aid or scholarship is available for your learning program selection, you’ll find a link to apply on the description page.

Musicianship: Tensions, Harmonic Function, and Modal Interchange

Ends today! Save on skills that make you shine with 40% off 3 months of Coursera Plus. Save now

Musicianship: Tensions, Harmonic Function, and Modal Interchange

This course is part of Developing Your Musicianship Specialization

Instructor: George W. Russell, Jr.

Top Instructor

29,427 already enrolled

Included with

Learn more

4 modules

Gain insight into a topic and learn the fundamentals.

403 reviews

Intermediate level

Recommended experience

Flexible schedule

9 hours to complete

Learn at your own pace

97%

Most learners liked this course

4 modules

Gain insight into a topic and learn the fundamentals.

403 reviews

Intermediate level

Recommended experience

Flexible schedule

9 hours to complete

Learn at your own pace

97%

Most learners liked this course

What you'll learn

Describe Chord tensions and their role
Describe The concept of Harmonic Function
Aurally identify chord progressions and chord qualities
Identify Modal Interchange chords in a composition

Skills you'll gain

Details to know

Shareable certificate

Add to your LinkedIn profile

Assessments

8 assignments¹

AI Graded see disclaimer

Taught in English

91%

of learners achieved a positive career outcome

See how employees at top companies are mastering in-demand skills

Learn more about Coursera for Business

logos of Petrobras, TATA, Danone, Capgemini, P&G and L'Oreal

Build your subject-matter expertise

This course is part of the Developing Your Musicianship Specialization

When you enroll in this course, you'll also be enrolled in this Specialization.

Learn new concepts from industry experts
Gain a foundational understanding of a subject or tool
Develop job-relevant skills with hands-on projects
Earn a shareable career certificate

There are 4 modules in this course

After a tremendous response from learners on Coursera, Berklee Online has created a Developing Your Musicianship specialization, and this course is the third course in the series. If you have a general understanding of music theory or if you have completed Developing Your Musicianship I and II, this course will continue to help you understand musical concepts, enabling you to create and perform contemporary music. Taught by Berklee College of Music professor George W. Russell, Jr., the course includes four lessons that delve into an intermediate level of harmony and ear training.

The course will introduce you to new key signatures, and explore how they are constructed. You will continue to train your ear, learning to differentiate between the various intervals and chords that were explored in Developing Your Musicianship I and II. You will learn how to borrow chords from parallel tonalities (modal interchange), and how to write more common chord progressions. The course culminates with an assignment that asks you to compose and perform a composition using popular chord progressions. As with Developing Your Musicianship I and II, this course is designed to share the joy of creating music.

Module details

Welcome to Musicianship: Musicianship: Harmonic Function, Modal Interchange, and Tensions (also known as Developing Your Musicianship III)! Here we will cover all the details about the course and what you'll need to know to get the most out of your course experience. Then, we will explore the key of Eb Major and C minor. We will also learn about chord tensions and harmonic function, or, in other words, how chords function within a tonal center. We will continue to develop our ears by aurally identifying chord progressions and chord qualities.

What's included

7 videos4 readings2 assignments1 peer review1 discussion prompt

7 videosTotal 38 minutes

Welcome!3 minutes
What You Need To Know7 minutes
Eb Major and Chord Tensions8 minutes
Harmonic Function5 minutes
Ear Training Practice with Chords6 minutes
Ear Training Practice with Chord Progressions6 minutes
Module 1 Review and Project 13 minutes

4 readingsTotal 27 minutes

Course Resources10 minutes
Earn A Course Certificate7 minutes
Connect with Your Classmates!5 minutes
Module 1 Study Guide5 minutes

2 assignmentsTotal 35 minutes

Module 1 Quiz30 minutes
Self-Assessment: Project 15 minutes

1 peer reviewTotal 60 minutes

Project 1: Write Diatonic 7th Chords in the Key of Eb Major60 minutes

1 discussion promptTotal 7 minutes

Meet and Greet7 minutes

This module, we will explore learn a new chord progression, the I II- V I. If you took Developing Your Musicianship, you may remember the VII-7b5, but this week, we'll learn about diminished chords. We'll also continue to train our ears to hear chord progressions and qualities.

What's included

5 videos2 readings2 assignments1 peer review1 discussion prompt

5 videosTotal 25 minutes

Review of Module 14 minutes
The II- V I Progression6 minutes
The Diminished 7th Chord3 minutes
Ear Training Practice8 minutes
Review and Project 24 minutes

2 readingsTotal 15 minutes

Module 2 Study Guide10 minutes
Sign up for the full experience!5 minutes

2 assignmentsTotal 35 minutes

Module 2 Quiz30 minutes
Self-Assessment: Project 25 minutes

1 peer reviewTotal 60 minutes

Project 2: Write Chord Progressions in the Key of Eb Major60 minutes

1 discussion promptTotal 10 minutes

The II- V I Progression10 minutes

In this module, we will explore the concept of modal interchange, or borrowing chords from a parallel tonality. We'll also learn a new chord progression that showcases modal interchange, the bVI bVII I progression. Finally, we will continue to train our ears to hear chord progressions and qualities.

What's included

5 videos1 reading2 assignments1 peer review

5 videosTotal 24 minutes

Review of Module 23 minutes
Modal Interchange5 minutes
Key of D Major and the bVI bVII I Progression7 minutes
Ear Training Practice7 minutes
Lesson Review and Practice for the Week2 minutes

1 readingTotal 10 minutes

Module 3 Study Guide10 minutes

2 assignmentsTotal 35 minutes

D Major and Modal Interchange30 minutes
Self-Assessment: Project 35 minutes

1 peer reviewTotal 30 minutes

Project 3: Write in the key of D Major and B Minor30 minutes

This last module will focus on preparing you for your final course project: writing and performing a 16-bar song. We will run through a brief overview of the concepts you have learned over the past few weeks that you will be able to apply when you complete your project. We will also learn about suspended chords and we will continue our ear training practice.

What's included

8 videos3 readings2 assignments1 peer review

8 videosTotal 29 minutes

Review of Module 34 minutes
Suspended Chords3 minutes
Preparing For Your Final Project - Part 13 minutes
Preparing For Your Final Project - Part 27 minutes
Ear Training Practice7 minutes
Write a 16-Measure Song1 minute
Giving and Receiving Feedback2 minutes
Congratulations!1 minute

3 readingsTotal 25 minutes

Module 4 Study Guide10 minutes
How to Record Yourself for Your Project5 minutes
Advancing Your Knowledge and Skill10 minutes

2 assignmentsTotal 40 minutes

Module 4 Quiz30 minutes
Self-Assessment: Project 410 minutes

1 peer reviewTotal 60 minutes

Project 4: Write a 16-Measure Song60 minutes

Earn a career certificate

Add this credential to your LinkedIn profile, resume, or CV. Share it on social media and in your performance review.

Instructor

Instructor ratings

(44 ratings)

Top Instructor

George W. Russell, Jr.

Berklee

10 Courses166,515 learners

Offered by

Berklee

Learner reviews

5 stars
91.81%
4 stars
5.21%
3 stars
1.98%
2 stars
0.49%
1 star
0.49%

Showing 3 of 403

Reviewed on Dec 25, 2017

This course was awesome. I've already finished all lessons and BTW, this professor is a genius. Please ensure that my regards get to him. Thank you!!!!

Reviewed on Jul 17, 2021

Builds upon the same formula as the preceding courses in the series and is just as educational. George is a fantastic teacher.

Reviewed on Feb 13, 2019

Excellent course - helped me fill some of the holes in my music theory knowledge base.

View more reviews