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THE F Oill.:JlL DESCRIFTIO.N OP
MUSICAL PERCEPTICN
1IARK STEEDMJ.l·J
Ph:!) . 'i972
Part I Int rcd.uct ion. 1
Part II Metre. 29
Part III: Key'· and Notation. 83
Appendices. 22"6.
Abstract:
,,
.,
This work concerns a problem in modelling people's understanding
of music. The pTOblem is cast in the terms of discovering formal
rules for transcribing r.:clodics into musical notation, as thio might
be done by a student in a harmony class, taking musical dictation
from a 1 dead pan' perf or::tance on the keyboard. The score th'lt r·esul ts
reflects important aspects of the structure and interpretation of the
piece, which are only implicit in the performance. In Part I it is
argued that this p~radigm raises questions of general relnvance to the
study of our perception of music.
In carrying out the task of notating a piece, two kinds of problem
arise: w·hat are the har:a.onic relations bet\veen the no·tes, and vrhnt
are the metric ~~its into which they are grouped? '.Phese t'l:o problems
are considered in isolation from one another. In Part li, al(~·o:;... i thms
1vhich embody two kinds of rule for the inferonce of me·tre a.rF.: pr.:~P.-
sented •.
In Part III the harrno!'lic problem is considered .. It arises frorn
the fact that the number of keyboard semi tones b8tween tvro notes does
not:, by itself, identify their harmonic relation, l·Thich is vrhat t!Je
notation has to express. Among other considerations, the key Gf' thG
piece is an important characterisation of this identificatio:-t ·- bu:l;
the key is not explicit in the perfo:r·w.ance, and !!lrc.st i tGelf be inferr·ed..
An earlier theory of h9.rmonic relations is further cievelop~~d into
algorithms for .:tssigning key-signatures and notation to !D~lodies.
By -the definition of the problem, v!e are committed to i.-h2 coilC(-~rn
of music bclongiEg to the trac'i.i tion of vl est ern ton2..l mu.s:i.(:, +:v
the/
the idea of key applien. Most of' the musical examples discussed N'ill
be taken from the 'tlork of one of its outstanding exponont::J, J .s. Bach,
and in particular we shFJ.ll b0 dealing \ii th t:b.0 fugue sub~jects of hie
11
Well-Ternpered Clavier".
Some of the contents of P[--.rt Il, Section § 2, and of Pn.:.c-t III,
Section ~ 3, have already appeared in a paper published in collabo:ratioE

with H.C. Longuet-Higcins. Par·t III, Section § 2.1, desc:ri-bes his
prior \vork in formul::-t ting the theory of h·J.rmonic rela::ions, mentio:1ed
above, Tt1hich for1118 the foundation of the work descrih€d ir1 that ::~::-c-:i.o~:.,
and has been published elsG'tlhere by him.
The work vTas carried. out under the supervision and euidnnce of
Professor H. C. Longuet-Iliggins, "ivhom the author than..'l{s for his :~eac}"~itj·g ~

.rv
Termino1og;y
It is intended that the <liscuasion to follow should l::c unde:j·sta.nd-
able by anyone, vthether or not they have had rr:u~h formal musical
,,
teaching. To that end, the use of abstru~e musicological terms has
been avoided where possible. l.,here they have been used, they a-e
generally explained in the accompanying tex·t, ev~n at the ri ~le.: of
some tedium for the reader lvho is more familiar with them. HoweYer,
certain terms are so basic as to be necessarily assUffied in the t8xt,
and have been used there vTi thout explanation. Most people will be
familiar with such terms as chord, scale, do·v.rnho-9.t, tonic a!!d domiL~ant,
and so on, but nevertheless these have been briefly def:.ned or d.escri b8d
in Appendix V.
All the prog:rams were written in the langt4.:3.ge POP2 (Bur stall et •.al.,
( 1971 ) ) •
T:he fugue subjects of the ~afell--Tempered Clavier ~~e:r-:·~ taken from
·the edi-ti'on edited by 'J.'.ovey and Snr::.uel ( 1924). I~ t~anscribing them
for.the computer, each note was represented by a triple cf integers,
identifying ·the p:.ano-key, or equall;y--tewpered value of its ·d. tch,
its octave, and its duratio::-1 e.s written, rexpressed. as a l!lultiple of

1
the duration of demisemi-q_uaver, or thirty-second note. \'/here the
notes or rests of the score were v;ri tten as tied, they l-¥8)'0 trans-
cribed as single notes, or rests, in keeping ~li th the ideB- of giving
the programs o.u.ly the i11formation explicitly available to t~te ear:3 of
the student in the '~usical dictation' paro.digm. Hoivever~ 7-rills,
where the editors had written them as single notess were i~rut ~R
such, rather than as the sequence of notes which would ~Q used to
play them. In one case, that of the very lo~g initial triJl of ~l£UO
13 of Book IT,/
13 of Book II, t~1e notation of this odi tion is slightly confusing in
this respect, (though not of course to the human ~erfo!~er, who knows
the conventions of scores). A long note is a~rked as a trill, b~t
is only in fact the bogin..'.1ing of the trill, whose ending is explicitly
wr:i tten out. This trill was t!'!erefore transcribed in full, beginning
with an alternation of tonic and leading note.

Five rlindows lir.~ht the cavern'd man: thro' one
he breathes the air;
1!hro' one hearn music of the spheres; thro' one
the Eternal Vine
Floul"ishes, that he may recieve the erapes; thro' one
can look
And see small portions of· the Eternal World
that ever grov1eth;
Thro' one himself pass out what time he please,
•••••
1
Part I· Introduction.
1• llliy Study Musical Perception ? 2
2. How To Study MusicaJ. Perception. 6

Two Problems. 25
2.
PART I
Introduction
1. Why Study !1usical Perception?

The musical faculty seems oddly useless, viewed in the
context of the usual concern~s
"-'
of perceptual or cognitive
psychology. Unlike such capabilities as those involved in
vision and use of language, it can hardly be imagined to have
come. about as something of direct evolutionary value. Yet it has
a power and attraction quite disproportionate to this non-utility.
In these respects it is more like such arts as painting and poetry,
which seem to be the 'by-products', or secondary developments, of
the more directly useful corresponding faculties of vision and
language, than like the independent perceptual mode that the title
of this work might seem to imply.
Thorne (1970) characterized this secondary nature of art, as
the offspring of more practical faculties, when he identified the
relation of poetry to its parent, natural language, as one of
creation of "a nelv language or dialect", to the end of saying
things that "cannot be said in Standard English at all, - though
they can be understood only by someone who ~~derstands Standard

.CL
English". Gombr~ (1960) offers a parallel definition of the
relation of painting to Vision.
Husic is like this, inasfar as part of t:he activity of co:nposition
lies in the creation of a nerr 'language' or 'dialect' , by modifying

or discarding established or familiar rules. Given that the old
rules are understood by the hearer, he may learn the new variant.
It \'Tould be most unusual for a study of one of the faculties
that have been described as 'basic', or 'pri~ary', to be attempted
by looking first at its 'secondary' artistic developments. You
do not arrive at a theory of English by looking only at its
artistic use by James Joyce, (though once even the rudiments of
such a theory have been arrived at, such a study might direct
attention to interesting problems.) Rather the reverse: the
form of the current theory of the basic language will direct the
study of the art, as Thorne(1970) implies when he says that
'there are special reasons for thinking that the introduction into
linguistics of the notion of Generative Grammar \'Till have an
e~fect upon stylistics. 11 Meyer ( 1956), i.n the field of music,
and Gombrich (1972), have explained aspects of their fields of
study in terms of the psychological concept of expectancy.
While one result has been the raising, in turn, of further
interesting questions for psychologists, nevertheless Gombrich
(1963) has suggested one reason why the reverse procedure - the
direction of psychology by aesthetics - is unlikely, vrhen he says
that every image presented as art alters the frame of reference
for itself and other art-works: the new dialect becomes a part of
the established language. He compg.res the "strange precinct we
call art" with a hall of mirrors, or a whispering-gallery: we
might draw the inference that the psychologi~t vrho insists on
finding the real figure, or the direction of the voice in that
precinct, may get lost among "a thousand memories aT!d after-image.s".
4-
But music iS unusual among the arts. If poetry is a process
of 1
playing about' l'Ti th the rules of language and painting is play
with the processes of seeing things, vrha t, then, is the practical,
down-to-earth, 'useful' faculty whose 'language' \'le play about
with in r.1usic, the first shout in that particular whispering-
gallery? There does not seem to be one, and in this respect we
do not fully explain t!1e st:::·ange nature of music by classifying it
with other art.
Admittedly, music appears in some respects to involve a
secondary development from language, but it does not stand in the

same kind of directly secondary relationship as the other arts
vrhich constitute developments of language, such as poetry. It
seems rather that, instead of being secondary to any one 'useful'
faculty, music constitutes an abstraction of many. Perception of
pitch and time are the by-products of perceptual apparatus evolved
to quite separate practical ends. The structure of melody has
often been associated vTi th the idea of language and sentence
structure, while the vocabulary of musical form, at a still higher
level, abounds with the metaphors of discourse, as in the terms
'exposition' and 'answer'. But in none of these cases does music
involve the exercise of the faculty itself, but rathe~ of the pure
capabilities that it involves, in isolation f-rom their everyday
subject matter.
Herein may lie t_he great attraction of the psychology of
musical perception, in the promise of direct access to the very

bases of our perceptual processes.
6
2. Hol-r To Study J.lusical Perception.
When, for some area of study, there are several theories and
few unexplained facts, tten the way to pu~sue the study may be to
find some new facts. There is a procedure that dictates which
new facts should be sought: they should be those that discriminate
most sharply between the various theories, in being predicted by
some and contradicted by others. There is also a procedure that

cl
defines a relevant fact, and says~ it is to be establishej(, in
the repeatable experiment. On the other hand, there may be large
numbers of unexplained facts in tte area of concern, and few·
theories, if any, to account for them, none of them differing as
to their predictions. In this situation the experimental
procedure is inappropriate. For one thing, it merely adds to what
may be a very confusing plethora of data. More significantly, the
procedure mentioned above for 4eciding which fact to look for does
not apply. In this situation the appropriate procedure is rather
to develop theories to account for the facts already to hand, and
leave the acquisition of further data until it becomes necessary.
A suitable case ~tudy of the latter situation is offered in
linguistics. It was not necessary to carry out an experiment to
establish the fact that, of the now famous pair of sentences
John admires sincerity.
and
*Sincerity admires John.
only one is good English. In some sense, this fact was· just lyj_ng
around, not accounted for. It is by no means straieht;forward to

7
gl~ such facts, and it may require a considerable body of prior
theory. (The fact that an active sentence ~nd its passive are
paraphrases can only be noticed and only makes sense in the
context of a prior descriptive theory which says that the sentence
is a meaningful unit which can sensibly be considered in isolation
from extended discourse.) Nevertheless, the question of an
experiment does not arise, and indeed it is hard to say how an
experiment in which a hundred subjects were interrogated on this
question could mean anything at all.
Music is another field where the theories, if there can be
said to be any, are weak, and the data io just lying about.
Experiments to establish facts, such as that people· can, for a wide
range of familiar and unfamiliar music, detect the occurrence of
'wrong notes', are out of place. It may be difficult to say
~xactly what we mean by such a statement, but that just makes it
all the more difficult to even formulate a meaningful experiment.
Some descriptive theory is necessary first, and the development
of theory sufficiently to define just this kind of behaviour will

occupy quite a fe''l of the pages that follow. It is for these
reasons that the extensive and venerable psychophysical literature
concerned with the quantitative measurement of musical performance
is not discussed here, vri th the exception of a brief consideration
of Helmholtz's (1862) experimental account of consonance in a
later section.
It may not be possible simply to distinguish theories in such
fields as language and music on an experimental basis, but strong

B
requirements of formality and computability can be made of the
theories. This is the case in this study. Accordingly, because
of the vastly inferior position of musicology with respect to
descriptive vocabulary at the simpler levels, as compared with
the corresponding detailed vocabulary of constituent structure
upon which formal linguistics was built, the concern will be with
rather restricted problems. We shall accordingly have to leave on
one side more ambitious theoretical works, l'thich, whilst t-tai ving
the business of strict formality, are free to gain valuable insights
into· the highest reaches of musical comprehension. Despite this
neglect, it is hoped that, in particular among l'Torks of musical
analysis, this may claim some kinship, hovrever remote, l'Tith
Meyer's (1956) incorporation of the Gestalt psychologis~s ideas of
Expectancy into the study of music, and with Cooke' s ( 1959) -idea of
tne nature of the 'language' of music.
The analogy betw·een music and language l'Thich is implied in
the titled of these last tlvo, and in the previous discussion, is
common throughout the literature, particularly that part of it
which derives from Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence
laboratories. The analogy is an obvious one: music consists of
sequences in time, of a highly 'structured' kind, with various
levels of this structure identified in the traditional descriptive
vocabulary - sonata form, theme or subject, phrase or cadence,
arpeggio, scale, trill, and so on - and has a similar function of

.::;
communication. Neyer and Cooke between them have lent considera~;l9'
more force and interest to the metaphor, by identifying ideas of
paraphrase and ambirruitY in music corresponding to those in
language. Can vTe continue this process, and, by identifying
further correspondences betvmen music and language, subsume
some of the problems of musical perception under existing theories
of language? The particular temptation, of course, is to take
over the powerful formal apparatus of generative grammar which
Chomsky (1957, 1965) applied to English. This kind of linguistics
concerns itself in particular with the representation of language
in writing, so it is natural enough that several pieces of work,
which implicitly or explicity subscribe to this idea of investigating
music in a way that language has been investigated, concentrate
upon the 'vri tten form of music, the tradi tionat notation of the
score.
Simon and Sumner (1968) proposed that programmes should be
designed to read and write scores to and from a representation of
music in terms of simple generative procedures. They gave
examples of various aspects of harmonic progression and rhythmic
structure that could be expressed in terms of finite~state and phrase-
structure rules. Several projects can be discussed under these
tvro headings of score-generators and readers.
Lindblom and Sundberg (1970) produced an outline of a score-
generator which involved a rather close parallel to the methodology
of linguistic generative grammar, in the. sense that they outlinecl
a generative procedure 'tthich \·Tas to stand or fall as a theory of

~0 .
the piece concerned on the 'acceptability' of its products as
music of that type. They attempted to produce a generative
specification of a certain class of 19th Century S1-1edish nursery
songs. These harmonised songs were characterised by a very
stereotyped range of metrical frameworks, and an absence of
syncopation, or 'non-congruence' between the rhythm and this
metre. The most common metre was of an 8-bar verse, consisting
of two phrases themselves divided into two groups of two bars
each. Other patterns were of a similar nature, readily
described by simple generative rules. Using r~es similar to
those used with surface-structural descriptions of English
sentences by Chomsky and Halle (1968), they assigned 'stress
contours' to such metrical struct~es as the above. This property
of the metrical descriptions appeared to bear a close relation to
certain harmonic and rhythmical aspects of the data, and formed
the core of a set of rules for generating similar tunes.
The authors have hand-simulated a generative procedure of
·this kind, restricting themselves to the single eight-bar
symmetrical form, (according to an algorithm which is not
completely spelled out) and offer examples of its results. The
main interest of this work is in the \'lay various traditional
aspects of music, such as metre, rhythm, harmony and melody,
can be related in the.framework of a generative algorithm. Actual
generation of pieces by such algorithms is a very weak criterion
for judging them: despite the well-known definition of a
generative grammar as one vThich gener~ tes all and only the legal
11
sentences of a language, no linguist in his right mind sets a
computer generating at random accordine to his grammar, and
examines the results for their Enelishness or otherwise. !le has

much more sophisticated tecl~~iques which lead him very directly
to the crucial generations and derivations. Traditional linguistics,
just as perhaps it · suggested to him in the first place that
the theory must express (say) the relation of the active and
passive, will also specify the ways in which sentences· of English
are the same or different in their behaviour under such a relation.
Whole infinite classes of sentences whose derivation l'lould add
nothing to the discussion are eliminated in this way, and the
range of test sentences may be narrowed down to a handful. In

the case of music, on the other hand, and such generative schemes
as this, it is not clear where we find these strong criteria.
It is not even clear that, even in the case of such a reBtricted
class of melodies as this, we have a clear criterion of 'lvell-
formedness' or of the domain of the rules. Even if we choose to
find Lindblom and Sundberg's pieces "well-formed" nursery tunes, it
is not clear how we are to be convinced that the grammar generates
'all and only' tunes of this type, in the absence of a cloar
definition of this set.
It se.ems as if the methodology of generative grammar, vTi th
its device of the 'informant' who tests the conclusions of the
gram~ar against his knowledge of the language, is more appropriata
to a study like linguistics -vThich has a substantial descriptive
theory already established, but no single fonnal theory, than to

·.11
music, whose descriptive theory is more fragmentary.
In the absence of such a helpful prior descriptive theory, we
have to develop one, and can only do so by looking at tasks which
human beings perform with music that are considerably better
defined than the gen~ration of whole pieces.
Smoliar (1971) extended the idea of a score-generator
considerably, expressing a wide variety of musical forms in the
mediuo of computational procedures. His main concern was with
the computer as an aid to the composer, and to capture ideas of
musical form in the traditional sense, so that, like the related
studies of Bamberger (1972) in the field of teaching music, this
work is of secondary concern to a theory of hunan interpretation
of music, at least until we have specified the more trivial
levels of musical utterance, which in these schemes are left to
the human operator.
The other approach advocated by Simon and Sumner (1968) was
the modelling of the opposite aspect of.mueical activity involving
scores. This is the interpretation of the information in the
score, as a fuller de.scription of the piece, as a human performer
does when he sight-reads a piece and recognizes its structure in
such terms as scale and broken-chord, as consisting of repeated
or varied occurrences of a motive, or on a larger scale, recognizes
the recurrence of a theme, perhaps in some transformation, such
as stretto or anm-1er of a fugue-subject.
Forte (1967) had already written and programned some early
stages of a project to carry out t~is ~nal1tic reading ,of ~usical

13
scores. The scores concerned were those of atonal music, input
in a form as closely related to orthodox scoring as the usual
character-sets and inout-rlevices of a computer would all0\-1. The
scores, \'Thich vtere for :nany instrument3.l parts, were 'parsed'
into a description in tern1s of simple segments or :nelodic fragments
of one instrumental part, and in terms of the temporal relation3
of such fragments with each other, either co-extensive, overlapping
or in sequence, and also in terms of simultaneous groupings of
notes. These rather abstract categories of description of t~o
piece correspond in some sense to the categories associated with
orthodox tonal music, of melodl, counterpoint and ha~wony, but it
would be unfair to interpret them as an attempt to r!lodel or explain
these traditional facets of musical comprehension. Forte's
intention was to develop ~ analogues of these traditional anc.lyi;:l.c
categories for application to the ne\'1 music, to which the old ones
do not apply. Nevertheless, music, however new, is to be heard

by people, and the netv theories must be· measured -against w:1.at t~1ey
hear, so it is fair to point out that the criterion for judging
the analyses of such ·programmes as this is exceedinfflY werucr as
the criterion for judging the well-forcedness or othenrise of the
generative programs was said to be. As an illustration of t~ois,
and of the extreme differences between tonal and atonal ~usic, we
can take Forte' s mm example of one of the analyses produced by a
further program, carrying out higher analysis on the output of the
'parser' already described.
},orte ( 1967) uses as his example of the p.rogra:.:-..I!le''s oper:.1tio11

. '
14
a piece for string quart~~ by Anton Webern, Op. 9/5. One of the
features of a piece \'lhich the parser' s description captures is the
si~ultaneous occurrence of notes in the various parts - what in
tonal music, at least, would be called a chord. Forte's further

analysis program is concerned with detecting the repetition of such
a coincidence of notes in the same interval relationship as the
first, although possibly \vi th different absolute pitch-values.
(This is perfectly familiar from tonal music, as when a chord G B D
is recognized. as the same configu-ration as a chord C E G at a
transposition of a fifth.) The way in which his programs represent

the.music is such that the two groups of three simultaneous notes
ringed in the fragment belmv are said to be related to each other
by na transposition ••• at the interval of seven half-steps" or

,, \
semi tones, that is, a fifth do-.;·m:
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It is not for so:r!leone who really does not understand t:~is ~·1usic to
comment upon the analyses of such an eminent authority as Forte, so

to point out that if this were a ~Jassage in tonal music this would
·not be a correct 'reading' of this score is merely to point out

the difference betvreen tonal and atonal music. Although ..Q!U!
~piano keyboard these groups of notes are related by a transposition
of a fifth, since the keyboard equates, (in this case), G~ with
F~~-, it is only: by making this equation that we can make Gp C B

.f-ro 'rl1
-int-o B F E by a transposition of a fifth. (It is a consequence
of the fact that the program 'reads' notes as their keyboard
equivalence classes that makes it produce this anallsis.) We
shall see in great detail later '\·That such distinctions as that we
have stated between G}· and F·\V- actually signify, and say that the
drawing of them is absolutely crucial to the business of conprehending
tonal music, that both in reading scores and listening to music, far
from ignoring such distinctions, we draw sone which are not even
apparent in the notation. For the moment, hovrever, vie shall just
note that there is a distinction and that one of the fevr really
solid pieces of information we have about t~e underlying structure
of a piece lies in its score, where at least the composer has
indicated his interpretation in his choice of key and time .
signatures, and notation. If vlebern had meant that transposition,

d
surely he \'Tould have written it, anj used an F-;;- , a notation he .has
no objection to using elsevThere in the ver-J same piece. On the

other hand, if the analysis does describe what we hear, and v/ebern
has written it dovrn 1vrongly, or for some other reason, then we
lose the only really solid criterion we have on which to judge the
1()
theory, and the main point, for our purposes of building '
psychological theories, of concerning ourselves with scores in
the first place.

This necessity of, on the one hand, using the structural
information in the score for all it is worth, and on the other,
of checking theories against it, is a very good reason for confining
our attentions to tonal music. vThatev2r we may think about the
Webern, th~re is no doubt at all about the notation of the first
two bars of the first F minor fugue subject of Bach's 'Well-
tempered Keyboard' :
The fourth notes ·,.for example, is clearly the leading-note (major
seventh) of the dominant, for such reasons as that the following
note is the leading-note, (followed by the tonic, as if there were
any doubt) ~nd the interval that the fourth note makes ''~i th it must
be a perfect fifth, or that (for stylistic reasons) it must be
related to its predecessor by a diatonic semitone. These are
among the facts that a musician would read from the score, and the
kind of stater:1ent that we might require from a 'score-reader' of
tonal music.
Winograd (1968) programmed such a tonal score-reader, again
\'Ti th an explicitly ' linguistic' approach. His concern "\ias vri th
one aspect of musical analysis, that of tonal harmony in polyphonic

17
music. vlhen a performer reads a passage of such music, one of the
thing8 he does is describe certain groups of notes 'iThich occur
simultaneously as chords, to assign certain functional descriptions
to them, in terms of their relation to some tonat centre, and to
describe sequences of such chords, in the rich structural-
descriptive vocabulary 9f harmony theory. If the piece were
Beethoven's 4th Piano Concertq for exanple (see below), he might
say that the first long drawn-out chord vias a ma,ior chord, identify
its ££Qi or centre as G, its inversion or arrangement of the notes
relative to the root as 'root position'. He would observe the
key-signature to be that of G major, and therefore describe the
function of the chord in the larger. context as that of tonic. He
would also say that this chord is.only a part of a sequence of G
major chords vThich can be considered as a whole as a statement of
that .tonic chord. The next group of chords are also major chords,
with root D and root position, and are related to the previous chord
and the key as their dominant, or chord of the fifth. This is
.followed by another sequence of tonic G major chords, and form a
higher harmonic unit 'vli th their predecessor, as a cadence, from
dominant to tonic, and if this cadence is taken together with the
ini tia). state:~ent of t~e tonic they make a still higher unit.
l -~~~~-+~-r-+~1-4~4+'~-~·~~~~+I_J~I'\__
..... - J c 1 ~ .... r .- , ....J rL ..
- r ur u ., .;---- , r;
If~ I
'\ } ~
~~ ~ ~ ~~ ~_:./ #
- ~ f'_ ~ ~ ,_ ..ooL _. J ...-, A ..;~ .o , -
I '-....L ....., • I I ~ t# !-'"'" I I

I/ ~~~- ·7 )
~
_ _-JII~...-_D___.II
'-_G- G- I I fvnl L. __Q....... _j t Din C:lt fl!2.J
18
vlinograd' s program 1·1as designed to carry out this kind of anal·rsis.
There are other things than chords in such ~usic, and analysis is
concerned with other things than their relations. Bars four and
five of the above i'ragment contain notes which do not occur
with other3, and must be described as scale mov~ments. Such
aspe.cts of the music were not his concern, and so the input to
his progra~ was provided by first converting the pieces concerned
into pure lists of chord groups of notes, either by omitting
non-chord notes, or including the~ in the surrounding chords.
Naturally this limited the range of the subject matter to those
pieces for which this could be done without doing intolerable
violence. Nevertheless, an attempt to do this in as stra'ightforwa.rd
and 'programme-like' manner as possible, and the work should still
be classed as a 'score-reader', since the result is input to the
program \tTith two kinds of information that are given in scores,
and not in :Jusic t~a t is simply heard. These are the key signature,
and the notation bf the notes on.the staff. This means that, as
in the description above of the Beethoven, the first chord can be
identified as tonic, and·for example, that the F~ of the second
chord is identified as .such, . rather than being possibly G.\7, a
possibility that someone who only heard the music \vould ~ave to
19
consider, no matter ho~T briefly. rThe identification as Fn ;:takes

..,
the identification of the chord simple. The effort of the program
is in deciding that the G and D chords are tonic and dominant of
a key or tonality, as opposed to, say, subdominant and tonic
respectively of G, or even as a non-harmonic passing chord onto
the major triad of the minor third of A minor. A musicians'reading'
of a score involves decisions between such alternatives, and this
is what Winograd's program did. It parsed the list of chords
in terms of the categories (cadence, modulation, etc.) of text-
book hannony, systematized within a gra~mar-like framework. As

we have seen, these descriptions of a given piece are ambiguous,
and the program compares the various descriptions on grounds of
complexity, and yields the simpl~::st reading. As a theory of tonal

harmony, or of perception of tonal harmony, the actual program
7
lonly adds to traditional theory a proof that it can be made for~nal,
as well as an illuminating systematization. The computer affords
an implementation of existing harmony theory, rather than helping
in its formulation. The main interest of the work is in the
extension of the definition of the parallel between language and
music by the identification of concepts correspondi~g to linguistic
syntax and semantics in music. For \tlinograd, a chord is a syntactic
category, (trivial in ~is system), and its function, as tonic of
one tonality, or dominant of another, say, is a semantic category;
or what it means. His implementation, lvh..ich foreshadows his
later work in natural language in its interactive use of rules

1.0
in the t\'TO domains in the form of systemic grammar, is not a direct
concern here, but the basic distinction, so intuitively clear in
the example of chord function, will be developed further in the
pages to follow: like ¥linograd, we shall consider such
specifications of relation as statements of the meaning of the
piece.
But perhaps this analogy between the 1-1ri tten forms of music
and language is misleading. A written sentence simply consists
of a segmentation of the utterance, with no explicit indication
of structure. A written piece of music contains much more
information than a mere 3eementation of the piece into notes, as
we have already seen. It also has all the structural information
that the above examples of 'score-reading' programs used, as people
use it, in 'interpreting' the events of the melody - the key-
signature, time-si~ature, and other notational information. But,
while a performer needs this structural information, say to sight-

read at a reasonable speed, the listener does not have it: the
key signature is not played, so he has to infer from the notes of
the piece which of them is the tonic, and whether the mode is major
or minor. He must do this, if he is to understand what the piece
means in the sense defined above, and it is clear that he does. It
is also clear that the listener infers other structural infon.1a tion
of the kind that is indicated in the score, for example the r.1etric
structure. Thus, while vt.ci tten language represents a rather
'primitive' level in the analysis of spoken language, the score
represents a more sophisticated analysis of the musical utterance.

1.1
(A more direct parallel to written language for music would be
a Pianola-roll. This is a paper-tape w~ich controls an automatic
piano. Each tape specifies the notes of a piece, as to their
piano-note pitch, thei~ duration, and the time or order i~ which
they occur. (On real pianola rolls there are a few more para~eters
controlled by the tape, but they will not concern us here.) Thus
the pianola-roll corresponds to the same kind of basic segmentation
of the 'utterance' as written language.)
\fe can take as a paradigm of t:hi~ kind of interpretative
activity in music the example of a class of students taking musical
dictation. These students are played a piece on the piano and
required to write it down in the standard notation. For the
purpose in hand vre assu;ue that the piece is played 'dead pan' , that
is, every note is played vTi th the same loudness, and \'Ti th phrasing,
and note-durations as exactly as written in the original score.
If we examined the results we should find complete unanimity upon
certain aspects of the structural descriptions of the piece as
revealed by each student's transcription. They might well have
written the piece in many different keys, but all would.agree as
to which degree of their key-scale the melody began. Similarly,
all would agree as to the positions of the bar-lines, the groupings
of the notes Within the bars, and w~ether the first note of tnc
piece fell on a dot-rnbeat or an upbeat of this metre. If there
were acci~~als, then they will agree in each case as to whether
it is a sharpened or flattened degree of the scale they have use~.•

22
In sllort, at this level of anal:rsis there is a clearly defined right
answer. The follo\·Ting tvTo scores are both 1

interpretations' of
the same 1
pianola-roll' utterance - the National Anthem. 1'he
first is clearly wrong, and the second is clearly right, and
reflects the way in vThich the r.1clody is perceived.
Ir Ff
The well-defined character of the task of writing down a piece
in standard musical notation, and the central role played in musical
perception·.(a.s. revealed by the other projects discussed above) by
the description of metre and key, provides the motivation for

. f ,..,.
concentrating on this aspect of musical perception. 'l'he 1n er,F.ence
by the listener of these two categories of description in yarticular,
metre on the one hand, and relative key-signature and notation on
the other, have been singled out as tasks for which rules have
been written. The remainder of the \'IOrk ·concerns these two problems.
But it might seem that 11e have just been· talked out of the
2.3
central arena of ps.rchology concerned with.faculties shared by
nearly all people, into a very restricted area, where the ability
being modelled is one that only a minute. highly skilled, proportion

of the population posse:Js. Nost people never l'Tri te down or read
the music that they deal with, and would be completely unable to
function in the situation of the musical dictation class, so at
first glance this paradigm does not seem to come under the heading
of a fact that is 'just lying about', or obvious. It seems rather
to be a very artificial and contrived situation, of doubtful
relevance to normal behaviour. However, this is not the case,
for having once produced this concrete example of the abilities
that the models concern, in sufficient detail to show that an
·(unnecessary) expe~iment could be done to demonstrate it, we can
readily generalise it to more 'everyday' abilities. For example,
it \vas said a vThile ago that an 'obvious' fact about e·Jeryone' s
dealings -..vi th music was that they could recognize the occurrence
of '\irong notes' even in unfamiliar pieces. But to sa.7 more
about this ability, it is necessary to have a definition of a
' \vrong note' . Some alterations we might make to melodies are
hardly 'wrong' at all, while others are quite unarguably incorrect.

But two ways in which notes ~ay be said to be 'wrong' whatever
other ways there may b~,are when they are inconsistent nith the
key or metre of their surroundings. So when these two parameters
of music are investigated in the context of the 'dictation-class'
paradigs, we are dealing \vi th tvlO aspect~ of musical ·structure that

are not confin(::d to written !Ilusic, but are fundamental to all
musical interpretation.
3. Two Problems.
The business of this thesis has now been defined as the writing
of rules for the inference of metre, and of key and associated
notation. These rules are to be written in t~e for.:n or eo ~~p~:.ter

programs that will carry out the tasks. The input to the programs
and the criterion upon which their performance will be judged are
taken from the paradigm of the musical dictation class. The input
is a representation of a 'deadpan' performance of the pieces as
something rather analogous to a pianola-roll, a simple se~entation
of the piece into notes, which are specified as to their Eitch,
identified as equally-tempered, or keyboard, value from 0 (for
C, B# etc.) to 11 (for B, Cp etc.) together with the octave in vh~.ch
they occur, and as to their duration_~xpressed as a multiple of
that for the students in the dictation class: they sl1ould reach
as their conclusions in their various domains the descriptiovs of
the pie<:e which the composer indicated on the origina.l sco:ce, in
his time signature, bar-lines, and rwte-grouping, and. in his ~:\:-y
signature and notation. This criterion restricts us in our choice

of data to written music for \vhich we can be reasonably sure the
composer has written it doWn correctly, and where distinct~o1:s he
makes are really reflected in the music. This leaves us with a vast
range of possible subject ro.atter, but in the event the music of
J .s. Bach has been chosen, as being rather .:1bove suspicion in th:Lf>
respect. In particular, since it was decided to cxa~i~e th~se

26
problems in the context of unaccomn"nied melody, it was decided to
use the subjects of the forty-eieht fugues of 'The Well-Tc~pered
Keyboard' as the data for both problems. The reasons for confining
the work to the field of melody, rather than harmonised or
polyphonic music will have to avrai t the detailed for.nula tio!l'S of

each problem. But since this is the data vThich lvill be used in
both, it is appropriate to describe it at this introductory
stage.
A fugue (Higgs) is a musical composition of at least two, and
in general more, instrumental parts, which may be played on
several instrwoents or on one. The point of the fugue is in the
relationships of harmony and counterpoint that hold between these
different melodic parts, or voices. Very little of this will be
concerned in the work in hand.

A fugue in general begins with a theme or subject stated by
one voice as an unaccompanied melody. This melody or melodic
fragment will form one of the bases for the development of the
fugue, and will recur in the various voices throughout the fugue.
\fuen it has been completely stated, the first voice continues
with further melodic material. At some point the second voice
joi.ns in with a transformation of the subject called the ans~ver.
It is a particularly simple transformation, being basically a
simple transposition of the subject into the region of the
dominant by a fifth upwards or a fourth downwards. ('rhere are
important exceptions to this rule, but they are of no conce:=-n
h_ere.) These are the only parts of fugue th~t are referred to
27
in \'That follows, and the answers will only be referred to incidentally.

is
The main concern and the subjects which are used as the unaccompanied
melodies for input to the programs.
The answer in many cases begins on or during the last note
of the subject.
lr
j J.
1'
However, the true subject, the material which appears again and
again in the development, may end before the entry of the answer,
the interval being filled by a quite separate fragment, called a
·codetta.
·- L svbje.c.t
The subject may also extend beyond the point at which the answer
enters.
18
In eeneral none of these strict definitions of the extent of these
melodies matter to the programs, and are not likely to until they
deal with much more sophisticated aspects of melody than they do
now. Rather than consider such subt~}ties, the subjects of the
forty-eight were just taken to be the melody of the first voice

. .
up until the note which includes the onset of the first note of
the answer.
The two problems were initially considered in isolation from

each other. That is, it was assumed that key and notation could
be decided without reference to rhythm, metre, or note-durations,
and that metre could be decided without reference to such properties

of notes as their status as tonic etc. li'or this reason the two
. are dealt ''~i th in separate parts, although tovrards the end of each
some qualifications v.rill be made to this extreme position. (In
particular, the later metrical rules make explicit reference to the
key of the piece.) Nevertheless,· these two parts can be read
almost entirely independently of one another. The treat~ent of
the problem of .metrical in.ference comes first, because it is the
simpler.
2.9
Part II. Netre.
1• Introduction. so
2. Rules li'or Inferring Netre Based Solely On Relative Durations. 36
3. }urther Rules For The Inference Of Metre Based On
Repetitions.
3.1 Introductory.
3.2 Figures And Repetitions.
3.21 Real Repetition.
3.22 Virtual Repetition.
3.23 Relation of Repetitions To Previously Established Metre. 56

3.3 Some Special Cases. 58
3.4 An Algorithm. G6
3.41 Re-formulation Of Rules. GG
3.42 Repetition Rules Restated~
3.421 Initial Conditions.
3.422 Virtual Repetition.
3.423 Real Repetit.ion.

3.424 Remarks. ~9
3.43 Other Rules Restated. 10

3.44 The Algorithm Itself. 70
3.441 Applying The Repetition Rules. 70
3.442 Applying The Alternation And Scale Rules. 74-

3.5 Results. 77
.,.
:.
30'
Metre
1• Introduction
The most 'deadpan' performance in the t-rorld of the following
melody will lead us inexorably to certain strong ideas about its
metre. Certain notes are felt to be 'accented' , hence to fall on
the stressed first beat of metric groups.
The fact that the third note is exactly twice as long as those thnt
precede it seem to tell us that they are to be s~oup0d as a pair,
with the stress on the first. This establishes a quaver met~c:
Anything else, such as
seems out of the question.
Those of the above groups which are occupied by th~ short

"31
semiquavers seem in the context of their neighbours to be comparatively
unaccented. The suggestion seems to be that they fall on an offbeat
of the higher metric unit, and that it is a binary, l·rhich establishes
the next higher level of the metre. Finally, the similarity of
the group of notes 10 to 14, both to the group 5 to 9 and to the
first four notes when the restrstablished in the last stage is
included with them, seem to establish two higher met~ic units,
both of them binary and vri th the stresses on the· beginning of the
'repeating' figures, establishing the half-bar and the whole-bar
respectively. This is sufficient to specify to the time
sigr..a ture exactly as Bach vrrote it:
In fact it also specifies a fact that Bach expressed in the
'bracketting' of t:he quavers and semiquavers, namely that the four
crochets, or quarter-notes, of his time signature are each made up
of pairs of quavers, and these in turn are made up of pairs of
semiquavers.
As in this example, we shall often be concerned with

f
statements ojmetre or time signature which are either more or
less detailed than the conventional time signature, expressed as
the ratio of t-vro nurr:bers. For example, for a time signature such
as 6/8, six quavers to the bar, it is al1-rayG understood that the

grouping within the bar is that of two eroups of three, rather than
the reverse, which would receive the time signature 3/4. ior the
purpose in hand a slightly more explicit notation vrill be useful.
We shall express these t\':o versions of a oetre l'li th six quavers to
the bar as 2.3/8 and 3.2/8 respectively. A time signature of say,
6/8 as a result of one of the programs will indicate that it has
failed to detect the detailed inner structure of sucl1 a metre.
Finally, if such a program yields a wrong analysis, either by
gro~ping the wrong number of subunits, or by getting the phase, or
position of the stress, of the group wrong, then the level of
grouping at l'Thich it ~rent wrong vTill be marked \·li th an asteri~k.
Thus the result 3* .2/8 means that the program erouped the quavar.s,
or eighth-notes, correctly in pairs, but \"las v:rong in grouping
the pairs into threes. In the case of the C minor fugue examined
above, we \'Tould say that the tim~-signature vra.s 2. 2 .. 2. 2/16, or
24/16 for short.

In that discussion,, it was implied that ra note whiGh is long
with respect to its predecessors sets up a metric unit, at least
when it is as simple a multiple of the previous unit as two or

,
three times. However, in the same melody, at note number 17, a
long note occu=s, in the shape of a crotchet which does not occupy
a crotchet metric unit, but rather straddles two of them. We
could r.ial;:e this absolutely explicit by \·Tri ting the crotchet as
two qw:tvers 'tie1', i.e. to be sounded continuously, across
the metric boundary.

LJ
But any p:'ogram which dre"i'f any inference from t!'lis long note \·lould
be wrong, and wrong in a way \'lhich people are not. We easily
recognise that crotchet as indicating an accent \-lhich is at odds
with the metric structure - a so-called syncopation. ~lhi.le the

we.
intuition, \vhichf..."i-rill eventually make into a fomal rul~, correctly
reflects the fact that we perceive the syncopated note as a
rhythmic accent, ,.,e need a further statement to say when a
rhythmic accent can be taken as implying a coincident accent of
the metre, and w~en, as in this case it is, it may not be coincident
with the metre. It turns out that the appropriate place fo-:· S 1.1Cn
a statement is as an aspect of an algorithm, or procedure, rather
than the above kind of .rule.
This principle was implicit in the earlier discussion, fo~ ue
talked about each piece of evidence under t\e assuraption that the
metre established by earlier evidence could be assumed to be
established. Moreover, we did not go on to talk about the evid~nce
that the crotchet at note 17 might offer, simply because we h~d
already established a crotchet Qetre against which it could be
seen to be a syncopation. We tacitly assumed that the earlier
information had precedence over the later. The earlier could be
assu~ned to be a rhythm consistent with, or (to use Cooper and

Neyer' s ( 1 96()) term) conrtruent to, the metre, even though this
caused later infonnntion to be non-congruent, or syncopated.
But it l'Tould be absurd to assume the reverse, where later
information established a mc~tre against which earlier rhythm
\·Tas seen as non-congruent.
This principle vTill be referred to as 'The Principle of
Congruence', and is stated in a general form, for simple as it
is to state j_n 'the cou ~ext of me ~re, 1 t 1s the principle under
which all of the algorith~s and corresponding prog~ams a~e
designed, in both the domains of metre and key-identification.
Both metre and key ar.e regarded as structur~"l '·t·rar:tm.,rorlcs', ag:.:1inst
vthich the rhythmic and har~or.J.c events of the piece a:::-e i:o be
respectively viewed. Rnythmic accents or pitches :nay be
congruent, or non-congruent to these framevrorks, but the
prtnciple of congruence states that
"No non-co:r;1gruent event will occur until such a po:i.~t in t!-:e
piece that the event can be perceived unanbiguousl:l to .9.£

non-congruent, by the prior establishment of sufficient
In other rTords, in a ''-:ell-formed' melody, the early rhythrnic (and
harmonic) events can be assumed to be congruent, for a melody t~nt
did not establish t:wse fra::1es before departing frora them coull not
be understood. It is a corollary of the Principle, that once a
frame or pa!'t 0f a fra;TJe is established, it can.llot be overthro1-1n,
(except by a completely fresh sta-:-t, as lihen a piece has a do"":l ~1?.

bar, or a modulation.)
The rest of tr~s section will be concerned with capturing
intuitions as to the featur-es used to infer metre in unaccompanied
melody, such as were offered above, using as subject matter the
fugue subjects of the Forty-eight as defined in Part I. In the

discussion of the C minor no appeal v;as made to features of the
notes such as their harmonic function in the key 1 for example, to
the fact that the tenth note of the subject is the d~wi:tant of t1te
key, and as such might be argued to be accented. In pa.!"ticular,

certain of those rem~rks were phrased entirely in terms of the
relative durations of the notes, completely ignori~g their pitch,
when it rlas said that the third note was long with respect to
its predecessors, .and the sixth and seventh were short with
respect to their neighbours. These and other purely dura tior!3.l
cues for the inference of metre will be discussed first, in tht~
section that follows. The kind of repetition of similar fragments
of melody that, it was suggested, lvas a cue for setting up such
high metric units as the whole bar, are considered separltel'{, in

I
a later section.
I 2. Rules r,or InferrinE; Hetre Based Solely Unon :tclattve Du!'ations.
All statements so far have been in terms of buildin~ ne'\'t

cetric units out of old. This process must have a starting
point, in a basic metric unit. We define the basic unit for a
melody by a general rule, which is a sp~cial case of the
Principle of Congruence. This is that, whatever its length, the
first note of a subject (or the fir3t two, if the second is shorter
than the first and third (see below)) ma·r alt,·m.ys ·be taken to define
a metrical unit at some level in the hierarchy.- though usually

at rather a loll level. This may be seen as a manifestation of
the rule of congruence, and would, for example, exclude the unli~ely
possibility that the first note of the subject occurred at ·the
end of a bar and ivas tied over the ba:r line. ronce a metrical unit
has been adopted it is never abandoned in favour of a shorter one,
or another one which cuts across it~ The only '\vay, then, in
lvhich the I!letrical hierarchy can be built up is by the p!·og.resSttJ.e.
grouping of. metrical units into ~igher units. Any rules for doing
this must clearly be framed with great circumspection, since any
mistake, once I!lade, will vitiate all that follo~·ts.
~That, then, is good evidence for enlarging a metrical unit
which has already been established? A natural sug5estion, offered
earlier, -r,.roul:i. be that if a note, falling at the beginning of a
metrical unit, lasts for two or three such units, t~ml tne i.7l.etri cal
unit should be doubled or trebled accordingly. This suet;es"t'i.on
would account ver.r neatly for our appreciation of the metre of t\e.~'"' t~
37
Fugue of Book I,
which begins with a quaver, establishing a quaver metre, and
continues with a crotchet, which lasts two quavers and therefore
becomes the new metric unit. And stated thus cautiously, the .
11
suggestion does not, i)f Fugue 8 of Book I
call upon us to abandon the crotchet metre established by the
first note in favour of a dotted crotchet metre, for which the
unit would be only 1t times as long. Nor do vre allow ourselves to
set up units of five, seven, etc., times the previous unit: Bach
nev:er used Stlch·. metres, and we shall see later that we must
disallolf them if the algorithm is not to make errors. But it
raises a serious problem in the familia~ Fugue 2 of Book I.
Here the semiquaver metre gives place to a quaver metre whe~1 t:1c
33 I
I third note is reached, and no problem arises for a while. But

eventually we come upon that crotchet, and the above suggestion
would lead us to adopt this as establishing a crotchet metre ·
which actually cuts across the bar lines in the score. In fact
no musician vrould be so deceived; but how does he avoid deception,
and come to realise that t~e crotchet is in fact a syncopation,

allowable under the principle of congruence?
The ansl'ler seems to lie in the early occurrence, in this
subject, of~ rhythnic figure. which seems to play a central role
not only in Bach's music but in the music of everi succeeding
generation. We name this figure the "dactyl" after its counter-

part in the met. re of poetry .1 (This usage differs from that of
Cooper and Neyer ( 1960)). It.consists- in its simplest
manifestation - of a note followed by b'lo equal notes of half the
length, these being follol'led by a longer note. With no exceptions
in the Forty-Eight we find that if the first note of suc:h a dac·tyl
occupies one unit of an already established metre, then the metrical
unit must be doubled so as to accommodate the dactyl. Thus in
Fugue 2 of Book I notes 5, 6 and 7 form a dactyl, establishing a
crotchet metre into vrhich the dactyl 10, 11, 12 fits neatly; there
is another dactyl 14, 15, 16 soon afterwards, which cuts ac=oss the
crotchet r.>.etre, but is powerless to overthrow· it. (There are a
few organ fugue subjects by Bach in which the dactyl figu=e occurs
in other metres, but these seem to be melodies which con:use us,
as well as the rules.)

There are, however, other sorts of dactyl to which l'le undoubtedly
pay attention in discerning metre. In the first fugue of Book I,
for example, v1e find a pair of demi-semiquavers preceded by a
dotted quaver and follovred by a quaver. It is difficult to resist
the view that the dotted. quaver and the two demi-semiquavers
provide the same metrical information as would a quaver and two
semiquavers, so we therefore count this figure as a dactyl too. As
a result, the initially established quaver metre is doubled so as to
accommodate the dactyl, and gives way to a crotchet metre.
~le may define a 'dactyl in general terms as rthe first three
notes in a sequence of four, suc!l that the second and third are
equal in length and shorter than the first or the fourth7 But we
must then be very careful ho\'1 \ore state the metrical implications
of its occurrence. Consider, for example, Fugue 14 of Book I.
':~tiJ rrrTt£f£4rtrf rttrcPfif·

! ")..· J !# ) f:. . 1_ ~ '} !0 Cl
The first two notes establish a crotchet metre, and are follo\'Ted
by a dactyl consisting of a semi b!"eve and two quavers ( follot-Ted by
a minim). The dactyl is five crotchets long, but we are not
allO\ied to group metric units into fives. At this point we could
of course draw in our horns and say that only the figures described.
earlier count as dactyls, but it is preferable to restrict t!~e r3.:nge
of the dactyl rule by a clause \'lhich says that when the general
dactyl under consideration occupies an "un~easonable~' number of
current metric unit, no ~igher grouping is to be attP-mpted. We
shall return belo1v to the question of what~ be inferred from
the occurrence of anrunreasonable dactyl;
Earlier it was suggested thatrif a note, falling at the
beginning of a metrical unit, lasted for two or three such units,
·then the metrical unit should be doubled or trebled accordingly.'
The natural generalisation of this would be to combine the metrical
units into sets of 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 9, 12, 16, etc. if any note
lasts for such a number of units. But then we run into immediate
trouble with Fu~e 5 in Book I.
After a flourish of eight demi-semiquavers lve come upon a dotted
quaver, of ~x times the length. If we take the dotted quaver as
the new metrical unit, we make·a mistake which is apparent ~s soon
as the follol'ling semiq_uaver is succeeded by another dotted quave~.
The root of the trouble, clearly, is that l'Te did not l·tai t long
enough to notice that the semiquaver follo\'ring 'the do:tted 1uav.ev:
was an isolated short note. For this particular f1;.gue subjE:ct --.:e
should obtain a correct result if we treated the semiquaver and
the preceding dotted quaver as a da.ctyl, occupying eight derni-
semiquaver units, and thereby establi~~ing a net·r crotchet reetr~ .

But this expedient would lead to trouble in other connections - for
example in ~1lgue 8 of Book I.
I ~
Perhaps erring on the side of caution, we therefore rule that rwhen
a note falling at the beginning of a metrical unit is followed by
a single shorter note (which is followed by a longer note) the
metrical unit is to be doubled, trebled, etc., only if~he length
of the first note minus that of the second exceeds the current
'"' metrical unit by a factor of 2, 3, etc7 Then in Fugue 5 of Book I
the demi-semiquaver unit is multiplied by 4 rather than by 6 on tb·s
~vidence of the dotted quaver-semiquaver pair.

At this point it is appropriate to return to the questiOJ) of
what conclusions can be drawn from the occur~ence of an "unreasonable

11
dactyl. The supplementary rule is proposed as a generalisation of
the aboYe idea, that ,.,hen a dactyl occupies an "unreasonable"

· number of current metrical units, then the metrical unit' is to be
doubled, trebled, etc., only if the length of the first note minus
the combined length of the two short notes exceeds the current
metrical unit by a factor of 2, 3, etc. If we re-examine Fugue
14 of Book I we find that this rule leads to a correct inference -
the metric signature that ir fi~ds is 3/4 consistent with the
actual time signature 2.3/4.

4-2
We are now in a position to state more precisely the conditions
under which a new metre can be inferred from tae lengt~!S of the
incoming notes and rests. If a note is the first note of the
subject, or falls at the beginning of a unit of the most recently·
established metre, then various possibilities must be explored.
(i) The note may be the first note of a dactyl - a fact which can
only be established by examining the durations of the following
three notes. If the total length of the dactyl is 2 or 3 ror ••• 7

times the current metric unit, then this must be adopted as the new
metric unit. If not, but the length <;>f the first note minus the
~
combined length of the shorter notes satisfies this condition, then
this difference in length is taken as the new metric unit (as in
Fugue 14 of Book I). Otherwise (but there are no such cases in the
Forty-Eight) things are left as they are. (ii) The note may be
followed by a single shorter note ( follow·ed in turn by a longer
note) - a fact which can only be established by examining the
followi~g two notes. If so, we subtract the length of the
short note from the end of its predecessor. If the result'is
2 or 3 for •• ·1 times the current metric unit, it is adopted as the
new metric unit; othe~vise (but again this does not occur) the
previous metre is caintained. (iii) The note may be of neither
of the above types, but may endure for 2 or more current metric
units. If so, these units are combined together in groups of n,

where n is the largest fround num.berl(2, 3, 4, 6, etc.) of units
which are filled by the note. (iv) If the note is not of types
I (i), (ii) or (iii), then the current metre is retained.
The above procedure enables us to take a step upwards in the
metrical hierarchy whenever we encounter an accented note or dactyl
of sufficient length, ran accented note being one which falls at the
beginning of a unit of the current metre7 But '\'Then applied to a
subject such as that of Fugue 15, Book I,
JJJ]J lfJJJ~J
it fails to indicate the triple groupging of the quavers in the
first bar - though· this is quite obvious to t~e hearer - so that
on reaching the crotchet in the second bar it incorrectly suggests
a crotchet grouping of the quavers. To deal with such cases we
need to extend the concept of an accent to metrical units as well
as to individual notes. fA metrical unit is "marked for accent"
if a note or dactyl begins at the beginning of it and lasts
throughout it7 We can now state a new rule for establishing
metre at a higher level, as follows: rif, in the current metre,
a unit which is marked for accent is followed by a number of
unmarked units, and then by another marked unit, which in turn is
followed by an unmarked unit, then the two marked units are taken
to establish a higher metre, in which they occur on successive
accents. In Fugue 15 of Book I the first two quavers of th~
subject are, according to this definition, both marked for accent,

and the seconi is f~anked by unmarked quaver units, as required for
the application of the rule, so the rulo establishes a high~r metre,
of dotted crotchets, in which the first and the fourth quaver units
of the subject occur as the first two accents. ' But there is an
important qualification to the rule, namely that if the higher
metrical unit so defined is an unreasonable multiple of the lower

one, it must not be adopted. With this qualification the new rule,
which we call the "isolated accent rule", can be applied without
absurdity.
\'le may illustrate the application of these ·rules in relation to

-F:
Fugue 2 of Book I.
1 l ..3 4- ~ 67 8 9 10 1112. 13 1+ 16" 16 17

~ l l
''-------1 .
The first note establishes a semi-quaver metre, to which the second
· note conforms. The third note converts this into a quaver metre,
fitting the fourth note. The fifth note is the first of a dactyl,
lasting a crotchet, establishing a crotchet metre in which the
dactyl is marked for accent. Notes 8 and. 9 constitute an un'llarked.
crotchet unit; notes 10, 11 and 12 constitute another dactyl, which
is also marked for accent. Notes 13 and 14 :nake up an urur.arked.
crotchet unit, so the isolated accent rule can be applied to the
two marked crotchet units, revealing a mini~ metre, which is ir;
fact the metre of Bach's half bars. The fact that 14 is t!1e fi.:::·~t
. ....._,
/ note of a dactyl does not disturb this analysis, since it is
unaccented in the crotchet metre which has been established by the

time it is sounded.
· ,.-This completes the oet of rules based on relative durations

-1
of notes in the melody. They were incorporated in a program
(Longuet-Higgins and Steedman ( 1971)) (See Appendix I, section § 1)

for assigning metrical structures to the 48 fug~e subjects; the
results are given in Table 1. By and large, the program avoids
mistakes, at the cost of a rather incomplete analysis; for
example, it is pmierless to deal with any subject in which all the
notes are of the same length, and where the musician would obviously
rely on harmonic clues or skillful

V
phrasing for discerning the
metre. But there are some interesting mistakes. (3ee Pieures
below) In Fugues 8, 14 and 19 in the second :Book the progr~m
makes just the sort Of mistake Which a musician l·TOUld probably make
in performing the same task • In all three Fugues the rhythm
. departs from the underlying metre before the latter has been made
explicit; ~y thus violating the rule of congruence Bach plainly
intends to throw the listener off the track: There are three
other subjects for which the program gives a wrong result. In
Fugue 6 of Book II it makes a ·mistake \vhic!l would probably not be
made by a musician who paid attention to the pi tc~'les of the notes.
In ~gue 22 of Book II the program places accents on the second and
· fifth minim unit rather than the first and fourth, and a musician
might vTell ma.k;~ the same mistake. And in Fugue 11 of Book II it

is rmisled by the sc~iquaver rest 51 l'Thich to a musician are merely
indications of phrasing and are equivalent to staccato markings of

cl
~otted quavers. In three Fugues (4 and 21 of Book I and 13 of
Book II) the program actually carries its analysis be;ond the
bar; the resulting bar groupings seem quite acceptable, though
they do not carry Bach's imprimatur. But one of these analyses
(of Fugue 21, Book I) must be regarded as a fluke, because all the
program does is to group quavers in tl'Telves, without specifying
whether the metrical structure.is 2.2~3/8 or 2.3.2/8 or 3.2.2/8.
It is· perhaps surprising that a program operating on so
little information, and embodying such sim~~·rules, can reveal
so much metrical structure.
1T 8 "
-$?-~;; J J3;n Jl!l J M BIE___,_J_
J[ fit :2=1:€ ~ 1 r;ey tltEf r· i rTr eGf \r
J1 19 ;J:;~ o/ UIttJ UJtU~ Gf£ kU t,
Tr 6 'c pjl fJ1 PJJ1JJ1JJJ ~-§I~

J11
JI2z§},~!g tf t f1t~r Et F!tcrJL
TABLE 1
Hetrical Analysis
Book I Book II
Correct Found Comment Correct Found Comment
23/8
.,
2/8 23/16 If 22/16
2 24/16 23/16 !AR 23/8 '+
l
2/8
3 23/8 2/8 23/8 1/8 =
4 1/1 . 2/1 > 2
2 .3/16 1/16 =
5 25/32 23/32 IAR 23/8 2/8,
6 3.2/8 2/8 23 .3/16 2* .3/16 *
7 24/16 22/16 1/1 1/1
2
8 2 /4 1/4 23/8 2*.2/8
9 23/8 2/8 2/1 1/1
10 3.2 2/16 2/16 2
2 .3/8 2.3/8 IAR
11 3/8 3/8 lAR 2.3/16 3.2/16 *,!AR
·12 22/4 2/4 22/8 2/8
13 23/8 2/4 24/16 25/16 >,.rAR
. 14 2.3/4 3/4 23/8 2*.2 2/8 * ,!AR
15 2.3/8 3/8 1AR 3.2/16 ? ~ 1/16 =
?
16 23/8 2/8 3/4 1/4

17 23/8 2/8 23/8 2/8
18 2
2 /4 1/4 2.3/8 1/8 =
2
19 3 /8 1/8 = 24/16 2* .2/16 * ,'IAR
20 24/16 22/16 2
2 /4 1/4
21 3.2/8 12/8 >,IAR 3.2/8 ·1/8 =
22 2/2 1/2 3/2 3*/2 *,IAR
2
23 23/s 2 /8 2/2 1/2
24 23/8 22/8 3/8 -~ 1/8
~ > means that whole bars are grouped together.

= means that notes are all equal in length.
* indicates an erroneous result.
. !AR means that that rule applied •
/
3. Further Rules For The Inference Of 1-letre
3.1 Introduction
The algorithm just described involved only ~ules concerned
with purely d~ational inforrr~tion, ignoring pitch or sequence of
pitch. The isolated accent rule is a crude identification of
what a musician would call a repetition of a "figure" in a melody.
It is crude because it only recognises a "figure" as a group of
units the first of which is marked for accent, and only counto an,
other "figure" of this kind which follows immediately as a repetition"
In this it is like a more general and less pow·erful version of the
dactyl rule. (It is more general because it does not demand any
particular configuration apart f~om the marking of the first
group, and less povTerful because it demands a repetition.) But
the musician's idea of a figure and repetition is more po·,Terful.
Consider Fugue 6 of Book II
~
\1 L ~ +~ 6 1 ) 7 B ~ 10 11 12.. {
The old algorithm finds that the semis are grouped in triplets
when it gets to the dotted quaver at note 13. But the ~oups of
six notes 1 to 6 and 7 to 12 also form a repeating serie~ of
intervals and interval durations, in that they are each made up
of three ascending scale steps and tvTO descending sc'lle ·steps,

(althoueh a major tone may be repeated by a minor tone or by a
semitone.) It s0erns clear that the human "interpreter" recognizes
this fact and infers the binary metric grouping of the triplets.
It is this idea of repetition of melodic figures and the metrical
inferences vrh.ich ma.Y be dra1vn from them vrhich the following
discussion tries to capture.
We note at this point that when in the following discussion
we refer to the "equivalence" of t\vo intervals we mean that they
are equivalent under the same rel~tion that makes two notes on
adjacent lines of a staff always some kind of third apart (be it
minor, major, imperfect, etc.). We shall see in a later section
concerning notation, that vre can map the pitches of a fugue subject
unambiguously onto the "functional" names (second, tl"'j_rd, etc.)
of these equivalence classes.
3.2 Figures and Repetitions

3.21 Real Repetition
In the above example of melodic repetition ~Te have tacitly
assumed a rule which says that a ne~·r level of metric group can be
set up having a period (or_extent in time) of the duration between
the start of the figure and of its repetition, and what we can call
·. ~-
phase (position of the downbeat) such that the accent falls on
their beginnings. This definition extends to non-immediate
repetition of a figure, _as in the following example of no. 15 of

:·
Book I.
N ')
if J ij j] ~] !)!_ i%lJ JF fb }F r Hg. I r rer. I
As in t~e old algorithm1 we ignore such evidence if it

proposes "unreasonable" groups \vi th prime factors other than
1, 2 or 3. In order to apply this first approximation to a
rule.for deriving metrical structure it is clear that we must

not allow any of the smaller repetitions among the first tl'ielve
notes to confuse the issue. Clearly notes 2 to 6 and 1o to 11
cons·ti tute a repetition, but the fact that e<"irlier notes .£.§:.!! be
included means that thev _

.. must be incl"..~ded. \'le may c.n.ll this the
"principle of earliest figures", and shall often invoke it in
describing the later ramifications of our rules. In effect, it
_is an aspect of the familiar Principle of Congruence.

Now if we look a little closer at the earlier example of no.
6 of Book II we see that in fact the figure can be extended by one
more note, running from note 1 to 7, and is repeated by notes 7 to

13, if we allovr the last note of a figure and repeti tj.on to differ
in duration. We do allow this, and for a very commonsense reason.
· The definition of a figure and its repetition is in terms of a

sequence of intervals and not of notes. fThe duration of the last
note does not affect the last interval1 and so does not co~e into
·- 'c-
the comparison between the figure and the repetition.
The rule outlined above for assigning period and phase of a·
51
metre to ~ melody applies to the overlapping figure and ·repetition

in exactly the same way. The period is the lapse of time between
the respective onsets of the pair (although it may, as here, be
less than the leneth of the figure); the phase is such that the
dolvnbeat falls on both these onsets.
With one more reservation we have the nucleus of a rule. · This

reservation is that the figure must include at least two
intervals (i.e. three notes). It is· obvious that the mere
recurrence of a single interval is ver.y weak evidence for structure.
It is in the context of this restriction that the overlapping
condition comes into importance. In the case of a long figure and

a (relatively) short overlap - as in the example no. 6 of Book II -
the fact that we are allowed to make figure and repetition overlap
c;f
does not afforjus any more information, as far as metre goes, than
.
~f we had prohibited this. However in the follo~ling artificial
example, in which all notes are of the same length, (and hence the
old algorithm does nothing) the use of the overlapping condition

all~ws us to establish a duplet. Otherwise we would miss this
metre because of the above restriction on the length of a figure.
However tbe importance of the overlap condition is much
greater than this, although this importance is not our immediate

/
concern here. The above example if encountered in a ~elody
would be recognized as parallel or con,junct sc·de movernen t by our
human 'interpreter'. In fact all occurrences of the-overlapping
repeat condition constitute such conjunct motion of several
'voices', and most commonly a conjunct scale movement. The
importance of the idea of oV•3rlap extends beyond the immediate
problem to this neat definition of this ki~ of constituent of
melodies.
It is in the light of the significance of the overlap
condition that we make the rather obvious point that a figure
is defined as extending for as long as possible, and if possible
into its repetition, rather· than just the minimum of notes (3)
which constitute a legal figure and all9w us a metrical inference.
This trivial point has relevance to an algorit~ for the rules. At
risk of increasing pomposity we might include it in the principle
of earliest figures, and rename it the "principle of earliest and
longest figures".
If we apply this nuclear rule we soon run up against problems.
3.22 Virtual Repetition
In Fugue 20 of Book I, /f.e of d metY;, a 1 a l 3 o.,..ilr, ,..,.1 'f,~0o< ..{ces t'n e.
M €.-h··~ In d ,·c. ated be. low by o{ ~ lte.£( b O,.y"' I ir'l es :

& 0 'f 1 I 3 + 0 6 7 8 ' 1
10 1'\ 11 13 J
Ti1cabove rule alone yields: l \ \·
and'virtualisation'yields:
'
1he old algorithm finds a metric unit of crotchet duration(from
the dactyl 5, 6, 7) andfthus finds the initial quaver rest oJ

The repetition rule as it stands finds the repetition of 1 to 5
in 6 to 10. Th~ ·period of two crotchets is right but the phase
is. absurd. Not only does it not reflect what we hear: we cannot
set up thio. phase which contradicts a lower metric unit under the
principle of congruence. Clearly in some sense note 5 belongs
in the repetition, but it has no "real" counterpart in the .fi5"'Ure.

But there is a sense in lihich the·~, establishe~ at the lo1vcr
level corresponds to note 5. We say that there is a figure made
._up of the notes (more s.trictly the intervals between them) 0 (the
rest) to 5 which is repeated over the notes 5 to 10 (overlapping)

et
with a minim period and t!:.e phase shown. We call such a repition
11
a virtual repetition and distinguish ·the "literal" repetition
of the early definitions by the name real repetitions. The
initial variable. secti·on, vthere the intervals of the figure are not
exactly repeated, is called the virtual part, and the literally
repetitious final section is called t~e ~ part. The establishment
of a virtual repetition demands the prior establishment of a real
repetition, subject to all the preViously stated restrictions.
The process of virtualisation does not alter the period sugT.ested

by the real repition, but only the phase, sinee the onsets of both
fi{~re and repetition move back by the same amount.
We must state some restrictions on this process of creating
virtual figures from established r.oc~l ones, or we shall lose many
of the successes of the early formulation.
Naturally the virtual part must have the same durational
composition in figure and repeat.
In the previous example of no. 20 Book I we saw that the
vi:rtual part of the figure vras an initial rest. · Clearly, though,
we cannot unrestrictedly virtualise back over more and more
initial rests,·for we need never stop. That very example suggests
the answer: the initial rest \vas independently established by
the old algorithm, and.hence mav take part in virtualisation of
the real repetition. Where no initial r~st has been previously
established, none may be constructed.
The intervals which form the virtual part are restricted in
another way. Each pair of corresponding intervals in the virtual
parts of figure and repeat must have the same sign (ascending or
descending). (Scale steps (seconds) are not distinguished from
other intervals for this purpose.) Thus in no. 17 of Boo~ II.
I I 1 I I l
0
1 2. 3 4- ~ 6 7 8 9 10 11 1 2.
l f~g. f I Yep. I
new rules: IL.---_ _ _ _ _ ,_1_ _ _ _ _ _J._I- - - - - - - - L
virtualisation to include note 3 in th·::: figure and 8 in the
repeat cannot occur, since the intervals betv1een notes 3 and 4,
and 8 and 9 are of opposite signs.
There are a few special cases!
1) A 11 tied fragment" of a long. note \1hich lasts over a metric
boundary may act as a note in its own right for these
purposes. Fugue 10 of ~ook II points out the necessity for
this: without this Qlause the repetition of bar 3 by bar 4
cannot be observed.
l. ftg. j
The interval between a note, (or a rest, because of Fugue 19,
Book II) and its tied fragment is, naturally enough, defined
to be unison.
As an aside, it should be mentioned that the clause just
stated leads to an unexpected bonus. The initial notes of
Fugue 5 of Book I are demi-~e~~iquavers, or thirty-second-
notes, so the dotted quavers of notes 9 and 11 are described in
terms of this small metric unit to be [ .]' J ~

[ .~ .~J •
..................
This
description in terms of a note and two tied fragments, {in
other words, two intervals) is enough to establish a repetition
when it reoccurs later, even though the 'figure' only really
consists of one note~ This is a little odd, but is not obviously

5{,
going to cause any errors, since by and large, long notes
will preempt its occurrence by establishing a higher metre,
and not getting broken up in this ltTay.
§Y1t t b[ t(tHx
2) The-pitch of a rest is undefined. We have seen that a rest
can behave in virtualisation like any other note but have not
yet said how the interval between a rest and a note is defined.
In virtualisation the value of this interval, which is initially.
undefined, is taken to be ~qual to the sign of its correspondent
in the repetition. The size of an interval to or from a rest
is undefined. So a rest is always allowed to take part in
the virtualisation. If both . sign.s in the figure and repeat
are undefined then they may be really equal if their sizes are
also the same.

3) The sign (ascending or descending) of a unison is undefined
like that of a rest, but its size of interval is defined (as 0).
In·real repetition only a unison may correspond with a unison,
but in virtual repetition any interval may.
3.23 Relation Of Repetitions To Previously Established Metre

So far we have said nothing about where a figure must fall
with respect to some established metrical grouping of the melody.
An:,r repeating figure, ltThether virtual or real, must, to make sense,

57
I start on the do~mbeat of the established metre. This fact has
very strong implications for the algorithm which will apply the
rules we are discussing. Iilost importantl:r it means that the
process af virtualisation ~ take us back to a previous dot-tnbeat,
or it must be abandoned. If the latter part only of a metric
group is involved in the be~inning of a repetition then it must
· not be considered as the true start of the figure, and must be

discal'·ded, whether its correspondence is virtual· or real. For
example in no. 1 of Book II crotchet units have b0en established
by the old algorithm:
old alg:l~--~--~--~--J---~:~'----~----~i_.____J -__~

. \
repeating series
figure &. rep.
the six notes 9 to 14 are repeated (really) at tne six notes 17 to
22: (dotte1 brackets above). However the first of these form the
last half of a crotchet group. Since virtualisation cannot take us
back to the do~tnbeat ( opposite~igns) note 9 is not part of the

figure and note 17 is .!lQ1 part of the repeat: (Solid brackets).
We here receive a solid hint about th~ form the algorit~m will take:
.-.
we are goir.L,5 to pay p;'lrticulur attention to the beginnipgD of
establiuhed groups. If rle don't find at loast a virtual
repetition bet"treon the beginnings of t~-10 groups then they caru1ot
be the starts of a fieure and its repetition, and we need not

examine that pair any further.
Within the above restrictions the rule is that, fonce a
real repetition has been established, we must virtualise as far
back in the melody as possible, un~ler the previously stated
principle of earliest figures. This will also be evident in the

algorithm~
3.3 Some Sp~cio.l Co.ses
Before discussing that algorit!un we must look at some special
cases. These will require special concider~tions beyond the frane
of the simple definitions of real and virtual repetitions and the
principle of earliest and longest figures.
Firstly a special statement oust be made about scale sequences
or .runs. Under t~e present sche~e such a sequence if it contains
more than three est;;;.blished metric units will alvTa.JS give an
overlagpins repetitiont of period one a.nd the obvious pha~e
This t;·:i.vial info:rr:i(.ition is a 1·rastG of time, nor must \iO av.to:::2.tically

S9·
assume n repetition of phase 2. We therefore make the rule that

when the note of the dovrnbeat of a group is continued by a scale
movement all suboequent groups up to but not including the last
to include any part of that scale movement are passed over in the
examination for figures and repeats. Tbis basically has the

I
follovling consequences: a) either the beginning of the run is
in a figure or repeat or none of it is; b) the above situation of
a figure and repeat both within a scale is avoided.
However there is a slight complication to be made to this
rule in respect of a situation illustrated by Fugue 18 of Book II.
"--~.. 3J+ S' '

~
r f~s I
The prohibition on starting a repetition in mid-sc~le correctly
prevents the establishment of notes 11, 12, 13 as a r::.!petition of a
figure made up of notee 9, 9, 10, which would give a wrong phase
for the triplet half-bar. The repetition we want to find is a

•'
later one, where the third bar of Bach's score repaats the first.
Howevar, the repeat, in notes 13 to 16, of the first six not er.;, which
we ourselves hear quite clearly, begins in the midst of the scule
comprising notes 12 to 15.t

The difference between these two situations is that, in the
latter case \'there we SQ. want to find t!1e repeat, it includes a

60
substantial part besides the notes of the run, whereas in the latter
case, where ou.r rule is correct in ruling out the repeat, it only
contains ~ repeating interval other than those inside the run.
In other '"ords if vie allow a repcti tion to begin at any point in a
run (instead of only at its begin~ing or after its end) but do

not count the intervala within the run towards the real part of
the repetition, (unless the repetition begins on the first part of
the run), but count them as cons·ti tuting the virtual part of a
virtual repetition, then we achieve the desired result. The
sequence of five notes at the beginning of the subject is repeated
virtually at note 13, but the sequence from 8, while at first it
looks as if it will be virtually repeated, does not in the end have
a large enough real part to establish the (wrong) repetition.
Intuitively this seems right. .The repetition of 1 et.seq.
by 13 et.seq. does seem to be established only in retrospect, when
the real part arrives.
While we are about it we may as well generalise this new 1ule
to include the possibility that a (virtual) figure should begin in
mid rWl. We do this simply on grounds of intuition and symmetry,
since the situation does not appear to arise in the 48 subjects.
.·
- ---
61
However we can_devise examples such as the above in which that

;
statement of the new rule allows of an ambiguity: there are
several possible phases forth~ virtual repeat (though of course

only one period). Which do we want? The answer is intuitively
obvious and is already established in the principle of earliest and
longest figures used in the old algorithm and embodied in the old
program. This principle implies a feature of the new rule, namely
that in seeking to establish one of these new virtual repetitions·
you examine all possible figures (in order from earliest to latest)
b~fore~considering the possibility that the repeat starts later in
the run. rWith this statement the rule is-complete. 1
Fugue 15 of Book II suggests another .similar kind of constituent,
or configuration that must receive special treatment, en bloc.
. 12 . . . • . '\8 . . . • . ~· •• So • . • ••
The old algorithm yieldD no metric structure above the note level.
The first repetition is 123/567. This gives a period of 4 sem)_s,
.·
62.
I
and that is wrong. It does not seem to be an error a person would
make: the repeated accent on the same note sounds very unlikely.
This is not the only place in w;1ich tf\..is happens, so we propose a
rule that \'then the same note alternates with others, (all being
of equal duration) and there are more than three such same notes
( cf·. Book I I, Fugue 4) !l binary metre with those notes falling

on the offbeat is set up. This rule must apply before the repetition
123/567 i~ found.
Fugue 4 of Book II, as well as the G#. minor gugue that was
discussed in the context of runs, show t~~t the above definition

of 'alternation sequences' must be refined.
In both cases, the sequences marked above are alternation sequences

according to the definition to date. · In fact, neither of them have
the bi~ary metre that such sequences were said to imply, nor is there
any temptation to suy that \'Te hear those sequences as units. We
could restrict tha definition further to only sequences in which the
non-same pitches are either all belo\i, or all above, th~ repeating
pitch. Th:i.s WOi.lJ.d avoid both the above errors, and still give the
desired rGault for the E minor, Fugue 10 of Book n, of establishing
the correct binary metro, b1J.t it would exclude Fueue 15 of Book I,
ar.d allo,l the consequent error described before to arise.
Instead, vie i'or.nulatr-: tl;e rule in the form of a h:rbrid of the tl-TO-
sided and one-sided fcnns of the alternation sequence's definition.

This is as follol·rs:
lAn a.l terna tion sequence is a se-1uence of notes, all of the
same duration, in w11ich every other note is of the same pitch, and
which'· includes a sequence of at least three such same pitches such
that the no~-snme pitches which intervene are oither all above or
all below the repeated pitch~
In othe.r 't'Tords the new definition amounts to saying t!1at an
alternation sequence may or may not be one sided, but must contain
~ithin it a one sided alten1ation.
The "interpretative" rules for alternations remain exactly as
before. · Under the new de~inition the opening sequence of Fugue
15, Book IT, is an alternation because notes 5 to 11 are a "one

sided" sequence, and the correct binary metre is established. 'l'he
opening sequence of Fugue 4 and the notes 1 to 13 of Fugue 18 of

the same book, are not alternations and the incorrect binary m~tres
are not establ1shed.

Ha,rlng defined. the alternation sequence a rule that uses it
ft:rth3r i~ sug.~es"ted by that same no. 15 of Book I!. Establishing
the binary met1.. e by the above rule ( t·t:.ich cst!lblishea the initial
rc~t 0) does not stop the application of the repetition rule, which
---
/
would construct a higher binary virtual repetition 0123/4567.
Thi~3 metre does not a.'{ree \tTith Bach's key signature 3.2/16. It
cannot be considered a failure of the rules, because /this rhythmic
structure is clearly tberc, and is clearly heard to be there: it is

in fact repeated in the nex~ four semis and in the four after that.
Two conclusions might be drawn. On,; the one hand we might prohibit
the repetition rule within the extent of alternation sequence, as we
do during a scale: hence the repetition rule would not apply within
the span of notes 0 to 11. This means that the program for these
rules would reach no conclusion before it reaches the real overlapping
repetition of notes 12 to 23 by no-tes 18 to 29, giving a metre or£
3.2/16 which is exactly right.

The alternative is to allm., the repetition within the alternating
sequence to establish its 2.2/16 metre and to have new kinds of
rules w:1ich allow the over-riding of previous conclusions by later
ones. Such rules are of a totally new kind and of an obscure

nature, so the first alternative \'Till be follol'Ted here. We may note
however that there is other material which strongly suggests that
rules of this kind will eventually be necessary, and that if such
rules produced the following structure for 15,II they would be
reflectinrr real facts about the melody.
note nu.Tlbcrs: (0.1)(2,3) ...... (8,9)(10,11)(12,13) ..... (t6)t?).(tS ... Z3)

: ! : . :
·2.2/16 2.2/16) 2.~/lb 3.2./16 ~ 3.Z/l6
3.2.Z./16 :<.J.Z/16 J.
~--------------------~----~~~~-------
6S
However we do not kno'IT hol-T to set about this vet.
In the light of choosing the first alternative we must further
note that we may not virtualise the overlapping repeat 12 •• , 23/18 ••
• 29 back into the alternating sequence (as we may with a run) as this
would give a l'rrong phase.
It is open to question 1r1hether in the light of the unity of the
alternation sequence in 15,II, we should allow inferences to be
drawn from the virtual repetition of the beginning of the sequence
in the notes 12 to 15. There is no evidence from the other fugue -

Number 10 of Book I - in which alternation occurs, so we may allow
it. It makes perfect good sense, although it yield.s a bar of
twice Bach's time signature.
While t·re are looking at special cases of the repetition rules'
applicability we should look at no. 16 of Book II •

.
(o) " 2- l +r ' 7 B 9 10 11 '11 1! 1f- 1S' 1' '\7 18 1' /JI :u
I -f•g · f
re.e c. '"•'h'on l
The old algorithm does nothing but establish crotchet groups. 'rhe
repetition rule yields 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8/5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12- a
triplet grouping of crotchets, with the wrong phase. This is a
revealing mistake because the human interpreter will probably make
the same mistake - but realize his error when he reaches the
repeating C which exactly fills the metric unit of the score, and
seems to establish it against all odds of repetition.

/
This chara~teristic of our own interpretative behaviour with
this subject is a very clear indication that our otm rules do
involve the possibility of over-riding early decisions by later
ones, and called the principle of congruence into open question,
at least in this field of metre. In an earlier discussion of
this point it \'las said that we would sidestep this issue for the
preoen.t. \Ye might do this here by adding a 11

glueing rule", (which
would say that successive groups entirely occupied by one pitch
tend to be "gluedn tog·ether into one higher group,) onto the old
algorithm. \·/e must hottever re~ se that this is only putting off
·this problem. We cannot seriously believe that our present
division of the metrical interpretative proces.s into tlvo "passes"
one for mainly durational_rules of the old algorith~ and one for the
nel-t melodic :repetition rules - is a true reflection of performance
· of the task by humans.
Strength is lent to this conjecture b I the fact ti1at an
extension of the "glueing rulen to trills as well as repeating
pitches in a rule \'Thich could .override earlier conclusions would
save the error made by the old algorithm in no. 14 of Book II, if
it \-re re included in it. This would again reflect our intui tions
about our own performnnce for this subject. But the rule has
never been programmed, for the above reasons.
3. 4 !!LA lgori thm

3.41 Re-formulation Of Rules
{,7'
Some rules hava been stated - the various .for.ns of repetitions,
the conclusions that can be drawn from them E!nd the two kinds of
'constituents', the run and alternation sequence. Some properties

of the algorithm have been suggested in the principles of congruence
and of earlies~ and longest figures. Before discussing the

algorithm \'Te "VTill restate the rules in a more appropriate way.
Since the most appealing kind of algorithm is one which works from
left to right in the simplest possible way, that is how we restate
the.rules. In the following statements it is assumed that the
input to this algorithm is the output of the old algorithm- that

is a) a list of metric groups which may themselves be lists of
metric groups or at the lowest level lists of notes and b) a
notation of the pitches of those notes as sharpened, flattened or

natural degrees of a key scale. · vlhen we talk about a group '~e mean
one at the highest level of metric grouping. Groups may be
identified by subscripts ordered from left to right. The groups
yielded by the old metric algorithm are (nested) lists of notGn.
For the purposes of this algorith~ we shall consider .~k~~~as (nested)
lists of intervals. An interval has a~, a sign and a duration.
Its~ is an integer representing unison (0), second (1) third (2)
etc.: its sign is 1 if ascending, 0 if descending; its durat!_~
is that of the first note of the pair of notes between lofhic!": t.~1e
interval passes. {Certain special cases of size and sign
concerning rests and tied notes were described before, in section 3.22)
-Intervals are derived from --

notes in the obvious vtay.
I
3.42 ReEeti tion Hules Restated
3.421 Initial Conditions
A pair of grovps [G. ,G.] (i<j) may respectively fall on the

]. J
downbeats of a figure and its repeat if and only if:
1) The time ~nterval j-i which will be the ~od of the proposed
repetition (expressed as a multiple of group length) has only
the prime factors 1, 2, and/or 3. (As in the previous algorithm)

2) The first interval r _ of each ~e the ~ in sign and duration.
1
If both these initial conditions are fulfilled, the analysis can
proceed. There are three possible continuations: G. and G. may

]. J
stand at the beginnings of a virtual or of a real repetition, or
neither.
3.422 Virtual Rapetition

If the initial intervals 1 1 of G. and G. are not equal as to
]. J
their third property of size then Gi and Gj ruay begin ~ virtual
repetition pair.
The next intervals must also be equal at least in sisn and
duration in order to establish a repetition. If they~ equal

in these tlV'O respects, but not in respect of size then ~his step
iterates with successive intervals. The iteration proceeds, and
may pg.ss on into successive pairs of groups [Gi+ 1 , Gj+1 ] , _etc; until
it terminates in one of two ways. Either a pair of intervals are
found which are not even virtuallY equivalent i.e. ther~ is no.
repetition- this eventuality has been·described; or a pair of

intervals are found l'thich are really equivalent in ~, as liell as
sien and duration. In tbis case the possibility that we are
dealing with a virtual repetition is still open and depends on the

extent of· the real part vThich '\'le have novt entered.
We look at successive intervals in an iteration exac~ly like

..
...
the one we did for the virtual part, checking this time that
successive pairs of corresponding intervals in the supposed figure
and repeat are equal in all three attributes. This iteration
ter:nina tes if such a pair of intervals are 1!Q! equal in this way.
and this event indicates that lt~e have found the end of the figo.re.
A final check is then made that the real part contains at least
two intervals.
3.423 Real Repetition

If the first intervals of G. and G. are equal in all three
~ J
attributes then the ~ossibility that these two groups are the
beginning of a real repetition is open. To find the extent of the
repetition we proceed exactly as for the real part of ~ virtual

repetition, making the same check at the end.
4.434 Remarks
In order to check the length of the real part of either kind of
repetition we must have a counter which is incremented at each
stage of the relevant iteration.

Once we have established that there is a 'legal' repetition the
70
I
subscripts of G. and G. provide all the information which is
J. J '
needed to deduce the metre. The rule is that a new metric group
is set up, having period j-i times the old metric group, and phase
such that old metric groups G. and G. both fall on the accent.
l. J
liol'rever if ~1e '\-rant more inform::ttion - such as \tThether the repeat
in question is real or virtual, overlapping or separate, or how
long the real or vir~ual part is - we can insert L'lore cou..."lters into
the above procedure. Such counters would mainly count groups
rather than intervals, and the way to introduce them into the
algorithm is obvious.
3.43 Other Rules Restated

The repetition·rules are naturally at the heart of the algorithm.
I.t remains to des cri be the "special case" rules for runs and
alternations.
To further define the alternation and running rules we must first
show a little of how this algorithm works. We have already stated
the condition for a pair G.,G. of groups to be the start of a

' J. J
repe,ti tion: the algorithm is just a sensible "t-tay of ordering a
search for such pairs.
3.44 The Algorithm Itself
).441 Applving The Repetition Rules
The algorithm passes o.long the melody from left to right in

71
"bi tes 11 of the current metric unit ( crro), or highest level of metric
grouping achieved to date. It is equipped with a store, which is
effectively a list, of previously-encountered units, onto the end of
'tThich it sticks each unit as it deals with it. Each newly-
encountered unit is compared ~ith each previously-encountered one

on the list in order; that is the earliest first and the latest
last. If this order of search seems less likely than the reverse
order, where the most recent figure would be looked for, ~ather.than
the ':least, ·Fugue· 4 of Book II shm-Ts that this is nevertheless the
right order.
The algorithm just suggested - searching from earliest to latest -
correctly associates triplets 1 and 5 as figure and repeat giving
a metre of 4.3/16, wher~as the alternative- later before earlier-

associates 2 and 5, and therefore wrongly produces the metre 3.3/16.
Theoretical considerations also show this to be the logical algorithm.

We can illustrate the argument_ by supposing that this. subject had
been
1 1 2 · l 3 4 \ s ' 6 7
"72.
By associating ? with 2 rather than 5 + 6 with 1 + 2, as repeat
and figure respectively, we should clearly have violated the
principle of earliest and longest figures.
Each previously encountered unit in the list may be the
beginning of a figure of whose repeat the unit in hand may be
the beginning. If this is so ( §3.1-tZ 1 ) the rest of that unit

and the one in hand are further examined ( § 3. Jt:l~ ) •· This
examination may continue to subsequent units ( § 3. 4ZZ). If either

the initial or the further examination fail to reveal a legal
repetition, then the next group on the list is examined. If no
repetitions are found over the whole of the melody to date, then
the unit in hand is tagged on the end of the list, and the process
repeats. If a repetition is found then the stored representation
of units at the CHU level n.re grouped into higher metric.units
according to the rule of § 3.4242. The analysis proceeds as
before, with the new ill·lU.
This procedure can result in a very la~ge metric unit - say
six times the Cl•!U. In this case \'re say that there is a "missing
level 11 in the time signature, for it is uncertain l·thether the metre
is 3.2 or 2.3. We should like our algorithm to give us the
rnissing information if it becomes available later. (It cannot have

b~en available earlier, or lve should have found it.) When we get
to the resultsof the algorithm we shall see that this is a

fa:rly com~on occurrence. ';Then we get a multiple 'ivi th only one p..-ime
f~ctor 4, 8, 9 etc. we could just auto~atically interpolate the
l!1issing levels. ~Yhere there is ambiguity ( 6, 12, etc.) we mi.ght

73
take each such group as it arrives and look for internal
repetitions. This clea~ly helps in the case of no. 15 of Book II,
but less obviously in the case of 21 ,ri (because,althouGh if we
were given the correct six quaver bars it would give the right
ans'\:Ter, we need to know the duplets in order to avoid the wrong

.
answer this algorithm yields.) It does not help at all in II, 18
which we quote here without any suegestion of how to deal lofith it,
since it is unique, and therefore inconclusive.
d
~i{;JJJJ l ~ J]J f}g jJJJ JJ J3]JJ1\j
f •If · L ~. ~
u • -. -- • • i re p
- ,_ -- - -- .?-- ---- ..';
:
The obviously binary st~cture should be derivable. No rules
for filling in "missing levels" of netric analysis have been
' included in the program. A convenien·t way of visualising the
algorithm outlines above,: and o£ .looking at the slightly tricky
operation of the run and altern~tion rules, is to think.of the
melody as a series of blocKS (represant~ng ~MUs) wh~ch the
algori tr..m takes one by one and places on t::.e top of a 'tower' of
previously dealt with blocks.

Every so often the program vrill truce the to\·TCr to bits, glue the
blocks into duplet, t!'iplet or higher blocks, then rebuild the

tower with these and proceed as before. From now on, however,
it will take neT.f blocks in t-vros, threes or more, or in mu.l tiples
thereof, according to the new CNU.
In the light of this analogy lie can describe the special
cases of alternation and scale sequences (cf § ·3.3)
3.442 APplying The Alternation And Scale J.ules

The way the algorithm realizes that it can glue blocks into
higher b~ocks .is by searching up the to1-rer from earliest to latest
and applying the test of § 3.42 to a block i!l t:1e tol·Ter and the
block in hand. Ho1-rever in our process up t!le store we should not
consider blocks which are in a scale or an alternation sequence,
except the earliest such (cr.§ 3.3). In this respect scale and
alternation sequences behave just like single blocks - as in the

rules of § 3.42 if \ie don't find the possibility of a repeti ~ion
7!
in the first part of t~e object, we may ignore the later part,
with the exception that was seen in the case of Fuh~e- 18 of Book
II: the later part of a run must be examined for the virtual
part of a repetition. Howeve_r, such a sequence is .!!Q.i like a
block in the sense that it does ~ot repesent a metric unit. For
the purpose of detecting a repetition such a sequence behaves like
a CNU block (though of· course its ano.ma.lous length· must be taken
into account); but in the process of building new metric units,
or gluing blocks together, it is no·more than its constituent
ordinary C!-1U blocks.

In our building block diagram we could represent an alternation
series or a scale as a horizontal sequence in the tower, to
represent the fact that in the sequence of blocks it has the
nature of a single step

76
Note that one of these special sequences includes only group or
blocks which are made up only of notes in the sequence. If some

but not all notes of the follol'ring group could be part of the
scale or alternation, nevertheless it is not i!lcluded.
But how is an alternation or·s·cale sequence detected in the
first place? \•Then the program takes a nel'T block or a number of
ne~1 blocks, before it examines the tower for it'epeti tion, it
examines the nevr unit (a.nd the succeeding blocks if necessary)
for such sequences. If it finds one such as in Fig. 3. then in
the case of an alternation, i~ updates the tower with a binary
metre, according to the alternation rule. It then, in either case,
examines the beginning of the sequence for repetition of earlier
material and acts accordingly. If tpe sequence is a run, the
remaining subunits are examined for the virtual part of a.virtual
repetition. Finally, in both cases, the tower is updated by
putting the who~ sequence on top, as in (b) below.
se.tt ve.nc.e.
•77
r---
~ '@!]
tE
tEr
F,8"3( b)
Note that in this case the sequence ended halfv1ay through a Cf·1U
pair ( 9, 1 0) • The unit placed on the tower does .!!Qi include 9,
and the next group examined for repetition is 9, ~ 1 o.· If an.
alternation sequence is fo~~d this i~dicates a binary metre, as
described before, and this evidence has precedence over any
evidence there may be in the group in hand for repGtition.
3.5 Results
This algorithm was prograiill!led and run on the fugue subjects
of the Forty-eight, lusing the earlier program as a\first pass;las
well as the first of two notation algorit~ms to be described in
the next section (See Appendix II for details of program and
~xamples.) The results can be summarised briefly as follow~.
(Subjects \·Thich contained no repetitions, hen(!e no further

metrical infor~ation omitted.)
Subjects for this algorithm produced ne!i, correct information:

~rhich
24
Book I, Nos. 2, 5, 15, 20fi Book II, Nos. 1, 4, 7, 10, 12, 15,17,18,24.
Tot~\ ~ 14-
Subjects for which this algorithm produced new incorrect information:
Book I, Nos. 3, 19; Book II, Nos. 16, 21.
Total:4
In addition to the above there are three subjects of interest.
Fueue 11, Book II lias incorrectl:'[ interpreted by the first

metrical algorithm. Accordingly, this one could not get it
right, but it behaved well given the prior mistake. The old
algorithm got Fugue 10 of Book I right, but for very shady
reasons (a late long note). · The new algorithm l'lould have got
the same result by the alter~~tion rule for a much better reason.
Similarly, in Fugue 21 of Book I the old algorithm produced its
very large metri·c unit upon a musically rather dubious application
of the 'Isolated Accent Rule', over a very long gap. If the nel·l
rules had not been pre-empted by the ~arge metric unit thus
established in the first pass, then. they would have got the ~rrong
ansl'ler.
~ b~
j) etc..
0 ., 2. "5 ~ ~ ' 7 8' 9 10 1'\ 'z.
J
'\3
1lj 1'
1+ 15"
(
The repetition rule would have found the repetition 4,5,6/13,14,15

which would have established a correct period of six quavers. No
virtualisa tion would have been possible so the phase vtould have
come out wrong. This is a consequence of the algorithm's lack
of rules which could recognize that the semiquavers 7 to 12 are
structurally a repetition of the quavers 1 to 3. Our rules are

not udequate to have identified the extent of the figure ana its
repetition. i·;ven if they were, there would still remain the prob-
lcm of identifying the virtual part - the initial rest in the figuru,
with note 6 as its r~peat - since the old. alcoritl:m does not est-
ablish that rest before the Isolated Accent Rule applies •
.All of the subjects for \'ihic!l ne':: information was forthcoming
are listed in Table .a. The conventions are the same as those for
~able 1 of this section. Asain, a star against a particular
grouping in one of these 'tirr.e signatures' indicates that the
progra~m made a v~ong analysis, either as to pe~icd or phase at that
level, and the sign 'greater than' in the margin J.ndica.tes a metre
which groups Bach' s own bars into an even larger metric unit.
Of the four errors'· one, ( I:o. 1 6 of Book II,) has already
been fully described. The three remaining require further
comnent. They are Fugues 3 and 19 of Book I, and 21 of Book II.
~l'he. successes that have r~ot been mentioned before, -Book I, Kos.
2, 3, 5, .1.9 .ail9. 24, and Book II, Nos. 7, 1 O, 12, 21, and 24,
are quite straightforward, and are better described by the 'l'able
and inspection than in words.)
No 21 of Book II reflects a real inadequacy in the rules: the
rep~tition is set up out of phase because tne lm·rcr-level grouping
of the quavers into pairs has not established the i~~tial rest,
to allow the correct virtual repetition of the first bar in tpe second.
Yet there is somethin~ clearly wrong with the grouping that the alg-
oritr.un sets up. It is particularly absurd in the
third bar, but the rules co!npletely fail to capture this fact.
so
Fugue Correct . "
New Remarks
PreVious
I Book I,
2 24 j16 23 I 16 ';}r- /16
3 23 ;13 2;8 2~2 "' /8 *

5 25 /32 2
31 32 2
4 /32
15 2.3;8 3/8 3.2.3/8 }

19 32/d 11 8 2· * /8 *
4 2
20 2 /16 2 / 16 23 116
2
24 23,8 2 ; 8 ·: 24 IB )
Book II,
2
1 2 3 /16 1 16 4/16
2 . 2
>
.4 2
2 .3 I 16 . 11 16 2
2 .3/16
7•
2
1 11 1j1 2/1
>
10 2 '.j 18 2
2.3/ 8 2 .318
12· . 2 2 /8 2/ 8 2 18
2
15 3.2 116 11 16 6.2/16

·•. ):<
>
16 3/4 .11 4 ~;3 I 4 ~' >
'
17 2318 218 -2 2I 8
18 2.3 18 1 18 12/8 >

21 3.2 /8 1 /8 6*I a *
24 3/8 1 /8 318
Table ?.!.-
81
In Fugue 3, (see Table l) the first pass sets up a metre
of crotchets (qu~rtcr notes) by the 'dactyl' at the beginning of
bar 2. This preeopts the need for the overlapping sequence of the
rest of the bar to est9.blish the same thing. HO\·rever the
overlapping sequence is just long enoueh to allow a repeat at the
next level, of the half-bar. Unfortunately this is out of
phase. T.he overlap condition was really designed t>Ti th the
lower level of such 'conjunct movement' a.s we see here in mind and
not for this sort of t~ing. It looks as thoug~ we should treat
such sequences as this rather as \•Te did tuns, and prohibit further
establishment of repetitions, once the basic metre has been
established, for the duration of the conjunct sequence. This
would have the attraction of reflecting the feeling that the
sequence in Fugue 3 is a kind of run or scale movement.
In Fugue 19 of the same book, the error does not so 1:1uch reflect
a lack in the rules, as a deliberate attempt by Bach to mislead ..
In this subject, ·the conjunct ascending scale is not in a bina~y,
but in a ternary metre. Bach violates the rule of congruence,
and people show t!leir adherence to that principle by being completely
misled, and mightily surprised when the ans\'rer comes in and sets the
record straight. We should not be surprised, for it is the
business of the artist to take liberties with the rules, whether
they nre programmes', or ovrn own.

:
rep.
L j l r __ , \
~ ~......·-.\ ~e.y.
83
Part III. Key 3nd Notation
1• The Concept Of Key. 85"
2. A Theory Of Harmonic 2elations. ~s
2.1 The Three Dimensions Of H~rmony. 's

2.2 Earlier Theories. 111
2.3 Music In Three T>i:nensions. 11J.
3. 'l'wo '\'1 rong Algori ·thms For Identifying Key. 1.33
3.1 Clustering. 155"
3.2 The 'Hr6' Algori t~.m. 140

4. The Triangle Game o 15"6
4.1 Introduction. 156
4.11 Introductory Proposal •. 1~b
4.12 Three Interesting Errors. 1~1
4.121 Initial Ascending Tone. 161

4.122 Tonic Dominant Hypothesis. 1'4
4.2 Playing Games "tli th Intervals. 1~
4.21 The Concept Of Key And Triad. 1'S
4.22 Implication Of Triads. 1f>G
4.221 Introductory Examples.· 167
4.222 Interpretative Rules. 173
4.2221 Transitio~s As Chord-Diads.
4.2222 Further Int~rpretive· Rule for nRun'' ·:rran.si tior..s&
4.3 11
Syntactic" !lules. 1&1
Int~~·o1uctory. 1B1
8f
/
4.32 Further Syntax. 153
4.321 ,1\lcthodological. 183
4.322 Further Definitions. 15G
4.4~ Notation. 19.2.

4.41 Equal T~mperament As A ~eparable Problem. 191
4.42 Notation In A Key. 194-
4.421 Key Fr~es Again Plus Melodic Convention. ,~
4.422 The Ne'\'T Semi tone Rule. 1~)
4.4221 The Old Rule.

4.4222 The New Rule.
4.423 Accidentals. 2.07..
4.43 Notation Algorithm. 'l.05

4.5 Interpretati9n And Identifying Key. /..o5
4.51 Introd:uctory. 205"
4". 511 Recap Parsing, Notation. 2o6

4.512 Recap Interpretation. 2o6
4.52 Interpreting A Parse In Some Key. ?.!>?
4.521 Implied Intervals And "Virtual" Notes. 7..o7

~11
4.522 Ambiguity Of 2nds And 7ths.
4.6 Determining Key By Comparing Interpretations. 2.1~
. '
S6
... I
PART Ill
Key and Notation
1• The Conccpt Of Key
Two problems were posed at the end of Part I as being fundamental

in people's interpretation of music. The second of .these v1as that
. of identifying the key of ~ novel melody input in equal temperament,
together w:i.th the associated task of resolving the ambiguities
engendered b7 that temperament in tne notes as to their harmonic

I
function, by writing them dolvn in traditional notation. In that
earlier discussion the problem of accounting for such everyday
musical capabilities as the detection of 'wrong notes' was
reformulated in terms of this traditional .musicological term, via

-the paradigm of the musical dictation class. The next task is to
refo~mulate this traditional musicological term with·another one -
hamony.
There is more to the idea of key than just a set of note-values
'expected' or 'permitted' to occur in the melody! a key is

associated with three· triad chords \-rhich specify a certain kind
of relationship over these 'expected' notes. This relation is a
part of the idea of a key.

These three chords of a key contain between them all the seven
notes of the scale of that key. They overlap in this respact:
some ·notes or degrees of the scale are included in more tP~ one
of the se three chords. In particular, the chord of the
subdominant (that is Fin the key of C) and the chord of the
dominant (G in the key of C) both-have one of their notes in
common with the chord of the tonic or keynote (in C, 'obviously,

the chord of c). For this key of C, we can illustrate this
property of key, either in st~~dard musical notation -
~
~ shares witli <2
or sinply by representing the chords as overlapping sets of notes.
This latter representation shows that being in the key of C means
more than a simple state~ent that we expect such notes as D, and do

·notes
not expect jsuch as D# • It also means that a D will, so long as
we are in the key of C, make us think of a certain har!.'lony - that
of th~ chord of G, the dominant, in which it occurs.

This commonplace of music has very far reaching implications
87
for the definition of the term key which we are looking for. The
figure above does not only suggest that every note of the scale
can be identified with one or more of the common chords or harmonies.
of the key. It further suggests that there are different kinds
or deP,rees of relationship between the various notes of the scale.
The relationship between G and D in· the key of C is a "c:tose"

INT(. cl
one- they~oth
J-..
involve'in
,...
the same harmony, the dominant chord of
G major. On the other hand, the relationship of the A and the D
in the same key seems to ·be of a totally different· character.
Not only are they in different chords - the qhords that include
them do not share any notes in cownon, and to get from one to the
other we must pass through all three of the triad 11
sets" that make
up the scale. In fact the relationship of D to A i~ this key looks
a very "distant" one, compared to that of the same D to its
neighbour, G.
~his is a musical fact, not a theory or a consequence of the
representation in the above figure. That figure just illustrates

what musicians~ by the term "harmonic relationship" as applied
to pairs of notes in a key. The example given of the difference
in the relation of G to D from that of D to A in the key of C simply

states in a convenient way a fact of music that any musician l'rould
confirm, even to the extent of using some term such as "distance"
to refer to the difference. He would say that the former was

a "perfect fifth" l-Thile the latter was an "imperfect fifth",
a quite different sort of interval, and a more 11 remote 11 one.
But \'that does all this have to do with the problem in hand,
that of defining the concept of key sufficiently clearly for a
discussion of how people identify it in a melody to get ·otf the

ground? The point here is to associate the idea of a set of these
harmonic relations upon the set of notes of a scale, with the idea
of a key. In the next example we see that a choice of key is

inextricably involved with this choice of harmonic relations.
The key (as opposed to the chord) of the dominant of C (that is,
G) also contains three notes called ~' D and A, as we see by

drawing the same kind of picture of its three chords of C major,
G major and D major.
When the same comparison·as before is made between the relationships
of G to D, and of D to A, there is a different result~ This time
the relation between the D and the A is a close one, rather than
the remote "ir.tperfect fifth" relationship that they held in the
key of c. In fact, their relation, being that between tonic and

dominant of the same chord of D major, is the sawe as that of G and
Din both of those keys- the "perfect fifth".
Since the two keys are closely related, with two of their
three chords in common, the tw·o diaerams can be conflated by

superimposing the chord sets that they share.
T\'10 points corresponding to the' note A appear in this diagram.
Once again, the diagram merely describes·a musical fact, and this
fact can be seen in two ways.
We might say th;at the two positions labelled "A" in the
diagram correspond to different notes, that despite being l~belled
the same, the "A" in the key of C is a different note from that in
the closely related key of G. This indeed is one of the musical
facts of life. If two violin players, one thi~~in~ that he was

in the key of C while the other believed the key was G, were asked
to play a descending scale from E to A, they would play all of ~he
notes in tune with one another, except the final A. (Helmholtz
( 1862) reports a sim.~·la~ experiment to show that string pla;rers do
observe such distinctions.) As the diagram indicates, all t_he

90
harmonic relations defined b7 the two keys are identical, until.

the A is reached. At this point the player in C must reason
"A is related to my C by the fact that both are in the chord of
F. They are therefore separated by a major sixth, minus an
octave. Therefore I must play a note 5/6ths of the frequency
of our C." But the player who thinks of the key as G must
reason that "A is in the chord of D major, and is therefore a
perfect fifth away from.the D that I just played. But D is

related to our C by two perfect fifths minus an octave. Therefore
I must play a note (3/2? x (1/2) 2 of the frequency of the C, which
'
is 27/32nds of the frequency of our C." These frequencies are
not identical: they differ in the ratio 80:81, so the two
performers will play this note perceptibly out of tune.
But there is another way of looking at the fact that the
diagram points out by having two positions for the note called A,
one for the key of C and another for that of G. The piano
keyboard only has~ note called A in each octave, so perhaps
it does not quite make sense in this context to talk about different
notes with the same name. On the piano they are all replaced by
a single note whose pitch represents a compromise between the
~everal different versions involved in different keys. However,

the fact that the different versions all sound alike, whichever
key is involved, does not affect the fact that the harnony , or
chord l'Ti th w3ich the note is associated .!!ill depend upon the key
in the way described. This in turn implies that such distinctions

9~.
as that which the diagram draws betl'reen the "A" notes in the keys·
of C and G will still be dra"\trn by different keys. The only

difference is that in the situation above, where a performance in
equal temperament obscures the.distinctionsof frequency that are
associated with different keys, the diff~rent sets of harmonic
relations associated with each are~ to be viewed ·as different sets
· of harmonic interpretations which will be placed on a given equally

tempered interval.
Thus, looking aga~n at the previous case of the fifth· between
D and A in the keys of C and G, ~i'e may view the diagram as -illustr{:lting
the fact that the former key is associated with the interpretation
of that fifth as the remote "imperfect" fifth, while the latter is
associated vli th the interpretation of .that same equally-tempered

fifth as the perfect fifth;
It is just such a question of the interpretation of that very

interval, from second to major sixth, that gives the fifth note of
the _follovTing fa'11iliar melody its peculiar quality.
~
~· r F cJ r :J 1
j !
1 2 3 4- s-
' 7
The long duration of the major sixth note, number 6, before the
rather anticlimatic resolution of this remote excursion back to
the right, .i.n the dominant region li'here it started, and the
consequent ·difficulty of singing it co~ectly, make the special
imperfect nature of trris interval embarrassingly clear.

92..
\ie might call these notes l'Thich are given the same name and
sound the same in equal temperament "homonyra1s 11 , by analogy with
language. There is a similar class, l'thich by the same analogy
we should call "homophones", of notes and intervals l-rhich are also
not distinguished in equal temperament. Again they sound alike,
though this class of intervals are "spelt" differently - they
have different names and are written differently in musical
notation, unlike pairs of homonyms. An example of such a pair
is offered by Dl't and BF. If we represent the key of C mi~or by
dral'ring its three overlapping chords
and do the sane for the related key of E minor-
and then superimpose the notes that they share in common, again as
befo!'e - ( \eeo.";"'e: ·so"""'~ oo~ 1 {o'( ~'ne s~~c 4 c.ll>-r:'r/ .)
we see just as in the case of the "ho!llonym" pair of As, t'he t't-ro
93
functions of the note three semi tones a·bove C are· each associated with.
one of the keys. In the key of C the note is in the same chord as
the C, in the key of E minor it is in a separate chord, and stands
in a quite different harmonic relationship to the same C - and
in this case traditional notation reflects the distinction by

giving the tl'lO notes different names.
Fo~ the present purposes of modelling the student taking
musical dictation, th~ term ·•notatjon' will be .taken in the fuller
sense to include the distinction of homonym pairs, as well as the
distinction of homophones made by standard 'notation'. This
fuller sense of the 't'lord. i·s to be understood throughout t when
reference is made to algori thrns for achieving the' 'notation' of
a piece.
In short, lvhile the ambiguous eqU;'"\l temperament obscur·es these

distinctions of hannonic function, as for ex.::tmple betvreen thr1
perfect and imperfect fifths, nevertheless, a.given key .is
associated with a single harmonic interpretation for each interval

between·all the degrees of its scale. To identify the key of a
melody if~ to identify these harmonic relationships. To attain
th·) goal of specifying rules by which people might carry out this
essential part of musical interpretation, we must therefore begin
by accounting fol·mally for the nature of harmonic relation between
notes of nusic, and explain the data which were used descriptively
above in setting up the current definition of key.
In view of the vast amou~t of musical literature concerning

harmony, invol yj_nJ so many centuries and such great traditions, ·it
might be reasonably supposed that at this point we· could automatically
round off the definition of key in terms. of har:nony, by appeal to
that body of theory. 'r his is not the case' and. it will be
interesting to ask "t-Thy not, 'i:p. the light of a recent theory of
. harmony vThiqh is adequate for the purpose _in hand. The theory in
question was originally formulated by Professor Christopher Longuet-
Higgins, the o":t~iginator of the project of 1-1hich this thesis
concerns a part, and.it is the main concern of the~next section.
'
2. A Theory Of Harmonic Relations.
2.1 The Three Dimensions Of Harmony
In three papers published in the early sixties, Longuet-Hig~ns
(1962(a), 1962(b), 1965) presented various aspects of a theory of
the fundamental bases of tonal harmony. The work related in this -
part of th~ thesis rests e~tirely on this theoretical foundation,

.so it will be necessary to describe that theory in some detail.
It will be easier to see why some traditional theories are inadequate
for our purposes in the light of that description, tr~n to develop
it in terms of that tradition, since the chief virtue of Longuet-
Higgins' theory is its extreme sinplicity •

. It is not the case that any pair of frequencies, in any ratio,
constitute a musical interval, as will be shown below. A minimum
requirement for a theory of relation~ between notes of music is

that it shou@ydefine and denumerate the set of such relations
- the set of intervals of r.m.sic from among the _larger general set
of frequency ratios. '·le can arrive at such a definition by
looking at a sample of some of the simpler frequency ratips, and

observing a simple rule that distributes them correctly as between
the tw·o sets, musical versus non-musical intervals.
The simplest frequency ratios are to be found in those made
between a fundamental and its individual overtones.. These are
simp1~ integer ratios, set out in order below. If we look at
each in turn we find that they are of two kinds.

96
f,req. I fundPn~entHl :1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 1h 15 16
/
notooe. me rcl. to C: C C C C E G C D 1 G B C
.J
If people are asked to sing ther intervals, or to tune tr1o strings
of an instrument to thern, they find some of the~ yery easy. For
,example, the first six in the series.above are like this: as the
note-names of the overtones of C that are written below them show,
they are some of the simplest and most common of musical intervals,
the tonic or fundamental, and its fifth and third, transposed by
various nut:tbers of octaves. On the other hand, soce, such as

the seventh in thG series, arc qualitatively different. People
find it difficult or impossible to sing these intervals, or tune
an instrument to them. In pt9)J)ce of the note-name for the overtone
relative to c the symbol ~ appears - to indicate that this ratio,

which has no place at all in music, cannot be named musically.
(In fact its frequency relative to C is that of a rather flat Bp

but as "Te shall see, the genuine minor seventh has absolutely
nothi!'lg to do with the seventh overtone.) Such intervals do not
occur in Western tonal music; except as a joke.
If we continue to examine the series in order after this
fashion we find more intervals of each of these two quite different
types. The eig~th, ninth and tenth harmonics are all of the
'musical' variety: they can all be easily tuned, and are
the fundamental, the note, a major tone above it; and another .major
91
/
third, again at various octaves which we can·ignore (for now). The
-
eleventh harmonic is another 'non-musical' .noise - a flat F# ·, if ·
the fundamental is C. The twelfth is another version of the·
easily-tunable fifth. The·thirtcent~ and fourteenth are
untuneable noises, while the fifteenth and sixteenth are the
leading note and fundamental respectively ~ again readily tuned •

.We don't need to look any further in order
. :
to frame a definition
which turns out to be completely general, for the. class of
intervals which occur in tonal ~usic. It is that the set of
intervals that occur in western tonal music are those between
notes whose frequencies are in a ratio expressible as the product
of three prime factors, namely tvTo, three and five, and no others.
Thus in the limited set of simple ratios that we exal!lined in the
harmonic series, the 'musical' intervals \vere those whose frequencies

were expressible as a r.tultiple of the fundamental by the formula
frequency= 2xx3Yx5z, where x y and z are whole nmnbers. Ratios
involving higher primes, such as the seventh, eleventh and
fourteenth harmonics, shoNed the qualitative difference of being

extremely hard to tune,·and were labelled ·~on-musical'.
Although the rule was induced on a very small sample of
frequency ratios, in ~act on those with positive indices in the

above equation. it is quite general. Assigning negative indices
corresponds to carrying out the above experiment, where people are
asked to tune an int~rval, bebreen two harmonics in the series,
rather tha!: between a harmonic and the fundamental: it is clear

ttl
/ that if each of the harmonics is of the 'muGical' variety, and they
can be tuned l'Tith the fundamental, then they can be tur.:.ed with each
other, if only by goine via that fundamental. (~le quie ~ly took
this for granted in the previous discussion, when we ignored the
extra octatrcs labelling the ratios of the harmonics to a fundamental

. ·.
C ··1' 1\
A
tov'
·'"'".
· ~
Implicitly we were using negative powers of 2.)
ri\cnr
'Armed with tids more general statemtns, we can draw up a .table of·
some of the more common musical intervals, ident:lfying the values
of the indices x, y and z for each.
Interval ~tatio X V z
Octave 2:1 2·0 1 0 0

Perfect 5th 3:2 i. > -1 1 0.
Major 3rd 5:4 I .. 2. ,- -2 0 1
Perfect 4.th 4:3 /.'333 2 -1 0
I.~ajor 6th 5:3 I: fob ft, 0 -1 1
Minor 6th 8:5 t· ~ 3 0 -1
Minor 3rd 6:5 j.2 1 1 -1
.X
Any.reputable tectbook of Harmony, such as Hindemit~s (1937), let
alone our "experiment 11 on people's ability to tune intervals, will
confirm that these ratios are correct .•
But the above statement.4oes more trmn si~ply dentunerate the
set of musical intervals. It further implies that there are ~hree
degrees of freedom~ corresponding to the three parameters x, y and

z in the equation above, to the relationship• of two pitches that form
a musical interval.· This is to say that the intervals may 1>e
represented as ~e~tors in a three-dimensional space whose axes
correspond to the notes reached by thpse interval-vectors from
the origin.
The unit ratios along the three axes of this space can be
·identified vli th three unit intervals, the fa~ tor of two \'Ti th the
octave; the factor of three with a fifth plus ari. octave and the
factor five with a third plus two octaves. If this space is
projected along the "times trlo 11 asis, then the result is the
following two-dimensional space, where the points are labelled

with note-names relative to an original C, but not distinguished
as to octave.
Glt
E
D*
B
.Af='
rJF
J:.-lt
c#
B~
cfiF
p.X
n:fF ,
cJ< c.x
br#. ~
n>e
""·i· c G D A E B 'cr./F
.I
c-:tt: a=f'l=
3ti\s A~ E~ B~ F c G D A E
F~ c~ G~ D~ A~ E~ B~ F c
D~ A~b ]:;~~ B~~ F~ c~ G~ DP ~ A~
)
per-f. 5ths
Ftg·, . "4-
This two-dimensional projection is the.version that we shall use in
the rest of the discussion. We console ourselves for the loss of
one of the three-dimensions by observing, in figure 4, ttat the
missing one corresponds to intervals which are octaves or multiples
of octaves. What we have done in suppressing this dimension is in

1oo
effect to say that all such intervals are equiv~lent, to the unison,
and that an interval plus an octave, (e.g. an interval of a fifth
and of a t\'lelfth) are harmonically speaking, equiv~lent. From a
musical point of view, this makes perfectly good sense. Having

,.
identified the x dimension with the octave, and agreed to disregard
it, then the remaining y and z axes can be associated with steps of
a perfect fifth and a major third respectively~ (It is just bad

luck that the interval called a "fifth" is as·sociated with the
fac-eor three, and the interval called a "third" is perversely
associated with the factor of five. To avoid this confusion in

future we shall refer to the horizontal axis either as such, or as
the "fifth axis", and the vertical one, similarly, as the "third
axis".)
Having dra\m the "harmonic space" un this "fray, we are in a
position to make so~e observations about its prope!ties which will
be relevant .to the problems in hand.

Firstly, it is indefinitely extending in all directions.
Secondly, any of the points cnn be considered as the origin.

The neighbours of any point stand in the same relation to it as those
of any other, and although note-names were attached to the points
in terms of an origin of C, any other origin would have resulted
in the sa.:!le diagram.

It is a consequence of the Fundamental Theorem of Arithu~etic,
which states that every integer can be expressed in one and only
one way as a product of prime f~ctors, that every integer ratio can
101
also be expressed uniquely as a product of prita~ factors. In
particular, the particular ratios that we are concerned with in
music, which as w~ have seen involve only the three prime factors
identified above, also are expressible as the product of those

•'
factors in one and only one way. Thus, since every point or
vector in the space corresponds to a different product of the
·three factors, and there is n. one-to-one correspo~dence betl'l'een such
expressions and musical intervals, it follo1t1s t.hat ~';very point in
the space corresponds to the result of passing throu~h a different
·musical interval, and each is frrusicaHv .chstlv.ct-f-ro~ every other. 7
Looking back at Figure 4, where we labelled the points of
the space vTi th their note-names in normal musical notation, this

result appears to be contradicted: several positions with the
same name appear, in fact there appears to be a periodic repetition
of the \'thole space in a direction dolotn and to the right" Nevertheless
the foregoing result is true, and trcis occurrence reflects an
ambiguity in our traditional notation, rather than one of the

space. The Fundamental Theorem assures us of this. What then
is the force of this di~tinction that is made in the space but not
in our standard notation?

It i~ exactly the kind of distinction that was associated earlier
with a distinction of key. We saw that the definition of a given
key in terms of the three basic chords forced us to r~~ize that,
although the tw·o keys of C and G major are closely related, and
both contain an A note and a D note, nevertheless the harmonic

102.
relation between the D l'thi"ch they have in common and A is quite

different in the two keys. In fact in the "experiment" with two
violin players we saw that, notwithstanding that in musical.
terminology the A in C has the same name as the A ·in its dominant
G, in just intonation they are in fact different notes.
Looking for conve~~nce at a rather smaller area of the harmonic
.space, we can see that that argument and those facts are reflected
cle~rly and concipely.
pi= c4 rjlf D"'tf A'fi: E*'

D A E B F# c#=F
B~ F c G D A
G~ D~ A~ E~ E~ F
f.~. 5:
"
There is a close similarity to the set diagrams that were used.
earlier to convey those simple facts. The representation used

there of a chord as a set of notes is replaced by the representation
as a cluster of notes in the space. For example, the chord of C
major~ containing the notes C, E and G, appears as the L-shaped
cluster,
and in fact it is an obvious consequence o~ the way the space was
generated, and of the observation that any.point in it can be
considered as the origin, that any major triad will appear as an

t
.·
I L-shaped cluster, with the keynote at the corner. (It is an

equally obvious consequence that the minor triad will appear as a
rotated L, with the dominant at the corner, ·as for example 'the C
minor t;iad C, Er, G)
G
E~
1fhereas. the fullharmonic relations between all of the three notes
·were not spelled out in the previous presentation, they are made
fully explicit here. The fact that the scale of a key is the
·v h \. o t"'\ •. :o·f · ' three triads is ae-ain captured, and moreover the
relations between all the-notes are expressed in their simplest
way.
Each major and each minor scale also form a consistent shape
or cluster in the space. The major scale is quite straightforward
-it is the intersection of three major triads, each ·separated
from the last by one step along the fifth axis.
A E E
F C .G D
~
tc>Wl'C. F·a. ~
The minor~ig. ?)scale is also formed by the intersection of three
triads • In different contexts different notes are taken to ~elong

.,
to the mi#<l scale, as we sball see later, but for the body of
10+
work that •ne ~re chiefly concerned \oTi th here, the basic minor scale,
of. "'Thich others are but temporary variations, seems to be the one
made up of the minor triad a fourth to the left of the tonic, the
minor triad of the tonic itself, and t~e major triad of the note
a fifth to the rieht. For the familiar keJ of C, this gives

the follo"VTine "frame" of notes for the minor scale.
B
F c G D
/A E
t;on\c.
This is of course not quite tte same scale as is identified in the
traditional key signature. .A cinor key is always l'Tritten as the
union of three minor triads. The A mj_nor key-signature identifies
the frame a3
E B
/
\ ~""'I
c G (D)
So the key si.gnature is the same as that of C major, since both this
scale and C major have seven notes with the same names. Ho\'Iever,
we have already seen hovT misleading thie can. be~ only six of
I
these are really~he same, while the 11 D"s disguif.}e·a "homonym" pair.
It is exactly this kind of musical distia(!tion that the
harmonic space makes clear. Following the nomenclature of
Longuet-Higcins (1962 (b)), all of these distinctions which are
not so wildly remote as to be of little interest can be shown by

'
lC5 ·
re-drawing the space of Figure+, with the addition of the names of
t!le intervals made by each position \'li th the central origin, here
taken to be C• (Since any point can be considered as the origin,
th~ same arrangement of interval-names wo11ld result for any other
origin. Only the note-names, here :included, would differ.)
Avgt¥t.f.r\ ~eel A'5~c.ntcJ. S~all Au8t¥t.e"~eJ A~MenfcJ f\~lf'O\tc~ A_;r~.J

5e.'IC:.t'\ t"" four~ Hl\l~ ~ Tot\C . f,f~h «.C..Ot\c.\ lx~~ trc!
B f# e,# (r# D# A.# .E..:fT
\ M f (.rfec.t- Mt.nor M.a..j or l'tajbr Major Dtr.~of\ ~c. s""'2.u

f\.~f:.h Tone. Six~ lh~ ..J Sc.vc:"'~ Tl'-~~Of\f.. L'-W\""a
G- D A E ·B f# (#
(1t«:.r~t- bc"""'r\l't~r
i. v-J_ Sc:.vc.YI..~
P~rfar
t"eur-\1...
\)1"\ISOI'\ P4e,.fc.c.t"
F\tt'-'
Mbo'}or
To"'c:.
'sc.. ~~c.~
'tx \-'-'
Et, Bb f c Cr D A
F~IS\: M, nc>w" J>ia~o¥\.".c. M; "o..- M~nc;ot"' M~"er \~etr.rtc.c.r
Od·a"e. F,ft-k Se.w\,f:-6"" s-.,.~ ~t~J 5~"en~h fo\)..-r~
. C\, &~ D'P /\~ E~ Bb F

j),M'"'''"'c! D,Mif\ 1~"'c.A D,•M.c..l\·,~ "c! Diw\,n'tio~(J. D,·~'"'s "(.~ D\ W\\WI.'C" c:J.. G-,..ea.t
Sar.t'-' lh·,f"~ ~c."~"'~ Fo~.>r~ Cc..l-a." e. R~~k l-l '""'""""'
A~~ G-b \)~
E~~ B~~ F~ ~~
\
The somewhat complicated nomenclature simply reflects traditi~nal
usage, which is rather unsystematic. This constitutes an account
of the intervals usually recognis.ed in musi~, and Longu.et-Higgins
(1962(b)) gives examples of the u.se of all of them. li'or the present
we shall just look at a couple, which will serve to show the

straightforward manner in which the space reflects the kind of
things that a musician says about tunes. The first of these is
the example that was used before to illustrate the inperfect fourth
106'
Elgar's "Land of !lope and Glory".

I
E~~
• ~D --c:o~A
We can see at a glance the remote nature of the imperfect interval,
the strong temptation for the sineer to misinterpret it as fthe
adjacent per.fect version;' the fact that ·this hugely e~phasised
excursion :returns to the region in which ·it started, and that it does
this via the ha!·monically rather indefinite minor tone, wh:.ch does
no thing to disabuse the interpreter \>Tho mistook the descending
fifth for a pefect inter-val. Yle mj.ght cont1·ast this use of a
remote interval, so "'lell suited to its subject of Por!lp and
Circumstance, with another.
~· ~r F I 0
J~,.~~ .. ;, J.~,.,_~o ...:c

£t'Mtl'e\\C. ~e""""t-o~~
,.
'
.107
The harmonically re~ote diminished fourth between the leading note
and the minor third is absolutely uruniotakeable, solidly anchored

at each end by close and unambiguous semitones:
By now it should be clear that we can attach an objective
meaning to the term ·"remote", which we have ju~t. been applying
to the imperfect fourth and the diminished fo~th, and the converse
.term "close" which was used of such intervals as the diatonic
semitone. As we move away.from the central point of the s~~~ in

fig. g. , the unison, or interval of zero harmonic "distance", in
all directions· toward the periphery of the region illustrated,
the intervals through which we move become increasingly "remote",

in the sense in 'vhi·ch the musician uses the vrord to des cri be the
intervals which are most difficult to pitch correctly in a
performance. Thus the space not only distinguishes the variety
of musical intervals which traditional ~otation and equal temperament
(and some theorists} tend to obscure: it also affo~ds a measure
of their difference in equating distance in the space with the
subjective harmonic distance.
The simplest definition in the discrete space of harmonic
relations defined by Longuet-Higgins is as the "I~anhattan" distance

,
between the points concerned - that is the sum of the ~umber of
steps in any sense on the two axes that are made in travelling along
a minimal path from one to the other. This meas~e seems to mirror
the· intuitive musical di~ension accurately, and in all the work to

be described here, it has never seemed necessary to use any more
complicated metric.
Thus, for example we see that the major third and the perfect
fifth are intervals of size 1, and very different from such
"homophd>nic" relatives as the diminished fourth of ·size· 2, and the
even more remote imperfect fifth, of size 4. Their inverses, the
minor sixth and the perfect fourth, are intervals of the same size,
since it is a consequence of the '\tay the space vras generated that an
interval and its inverse appear in symmetrical positions relative
to the origin. The two principal versions of the tone, on the
other hand, seem likely to be a much more confusable pair. One,
the major tone, has size 2, while the other, the minor .tone, is
of size 3. The major sixth and the ~ajar seventh complete the
set of intervals that the degrees of the major scale· make with the
tonic: they are of size 2. .
Whilst in the earlier stages of the argument, we appealed tp
musical facts which everyone. must agree~· true stateiaents of
the case, many people might not regard the above statements as
obvious. It might see~ surprising to suggest that the major seventh
and the minor third are intervals of equal harmonic distance, since
in terms of other musical qualities such as conson.aY.l.ce they are so
different, one being popularly viewed as a harsh sound, the other
as sweet. Nevertheless, consonance, which is a property concerned
in such phenomena as the "sweetn(;)ss" or otherwise of an interval

-10~
I
or cho·cd, the diifercnt character that they take on 1 n various
inversions, and the differin~ degree to whicl1 we can tolerate
inexactness in their tuning, is a quite separate aspect, and is
explained quite differently.
At no stage in formulating his theory did Loneuet-Higgins
appeal to any intui tions _concerning the closeness or distance of
intervals on the dimension of consonance or dissonance •. The
separation of consonance and dissonance from harmony is continued
in the theory itself. The major seventh is like the major sixth
in that it is a very unambiguous interval "\'Then played in Equal
Temperament: there is little danger of confusing the diminished
octave with the major seventh, (see ~be\~w ,) just as there is
little chance of confusing the imperfe-ct sixth l'Ti th the major
sixth. The harmonic space tells us mo:.-e than just that they .Q£.~e- ~t.\.1'\: tha close
·I
version.
Similarly, although the very concordant major and minor triads
appear in the sr~e as the closest of clusters' the.r:: are t\'10 other
equally close clusters \'lhich r.1any 11ould regard as discordant.
Nevertheless, these clusters~ extremely ha!"monically close and

.110
unambiguous, as the theory suggests. In fact, with the benefit

of this theory which clearly distinguishes harmony from the
secondary phenomena of· concord, tre are in a ·very good position to
appreciate so:ne facts whic'h would otherl'lise be puzzling, such as
the wide variability of conventions as to what is and is not
considered concordant. There are plentiful examples of music
\'lhich uses the two "mirror images 11 of the major and minor triads
mentioned above as concords as stable and resolv.ed as the triads
th.emsel ves, and many of them. are quite acceptable to the general
public, as for example, the Bossa-Nova tune 1

The Girl Fro!ll I penena 1 •
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So~e modern jazz has t~ken the matter even further, and often appears
to have co.n~Jletely subordi:~ated concord to pure .harmony as it
appears in the space. Thus Hiles Da·iis, in his theme 'So \•That' ,
feels free to treat a chord progression fro!:'l tonic mino~ to
flattened supertonic minor, a moveraent along t?le diago:nc.l in

much the same way as more con·Jentional music treats a chord
progression along the horizontal, say from tonic to subdominant.
Havine described Longuet-lliggins 1 theory of harmony, and made the
all importa~t distinction between harmony and concord, the way is
prepared for an examination of some earlier theories, and of the

111 ,·
reasons vlhY. they are unusable for the purpose. in hand. • I
2. 2 Earl i.er Theories ·
The theory described here is so simple that i.t is hard to

believe that it has never been formulated before. The facts that
it accounts for have been known at least since the time of
l>lorley ( 1597). Nevertheless, the article on Harmony in Grove
(1940) is not only of a p~incipally historical nature, but seems

explicit;Ly to abjure the construction of a system~tic set of
principles for harmony, when its author says (pres~mably with
such theorists as Rameau or, more recently,,Hindemith in mind)
"The theory of the generation of cho.rds and·harmon-, from the
harmonic series ••• must be discarded· once and for all."
Some ·early formulations come rather close. In particular

the phonetician and translator of Helmhol tz.' s ( 1862) work on tone::
perception, Ellis ( 1874, 1875, 1885) used exactly tlte same diagram·
as Longuet-Higgins, in talking about the various temperaments,
which were his ~ain concern in the field. He also described
modulation, and ideas close to the idea of key-frames, in terms

s .
of thijf dia.gram, which he termed the "Duodenarium". He did not,
however, appear to thiruc of it as a theory of harmony, nor as
addinff anything to :ael thol tz' s account (see bel~w) except in
providing a diagram in which to illustrate the details of
temperaments.
Ellis ( 1885) acknowledges the influence of Weber ( 1-317), \\'ho

112.
also produced a similar diagram. In his case however the diagr~m
was. of kets, rather than their notes, and again his concern was with.
modulation. But if major and minor l:::eys are rolled.into one, the
tlto diagrams becoi'le identical, with two ~1.xes corresponding to the
fifth and the third. It may be that this theorist i·nfluenced not
only Ellis, but Schoenberg (1954) who also expressed the degrees
of freedom in the relation between the harmonic 'regions' with a

similar diagram. H0\1/ever, this last theory is really very distant.
from the one in ~and.
Weber is also of interest in the present context in that he
thought that the kind of questions that hc;ve been ~n;1estigated here
were important, and tried to ansl'rer them, and make his theories
relevant to the simple tasks involved. Thus, he asks (pp.332)

"how ••• ·is -the ear determined to p·~rceive this or that harmony as
the tonic harmony", and asks ~ow,

afterwards, a mod~lation is
..
detected. He couches his ans\'lers in terms that are sta.::·tlingly
close to the kind of procedural. principles that are embraced in
this 'lvork, when he says that such definitions are based on
simplicity of de~)cri uti on, and a p!'inciple of inertia, or
insistence on very compelling evidence before the necessity for a

change will be accepted. These statements amount. to something
rather like the Principle of Congruence, as he shows when he
invokes them to explain why pieces so often begin with the tonic.
He remarks with some surprise t_ha t this approach has not been taken
11J
before. A hundred and fifty years later,_ we might feel the same
surp.:-ise that this straightforuard approach is just as rare.
There have been attempts to produce systematic accounts of
Harmony from first principles after the same fashion as Longuet-Higgins,
by first accounting for the relationships benreen the notes. of

music, and building on that sure foundation an account of chord
function, then of chord sequence. One of the more recent ones

is Hindemith's (1937).
Like Longuet-Higgins, Hindemith's first step is to infer a
definition of the set of musical intervals, and to be able to
assign to each its exact frequency ratio in Just Intonation.
Both of them do this in exactly the saoe way, in1erring the
definition from the same set of simple ratios, the harmonic series,
making the srune observationr that ratios involving such factors as
seven are not part of western tonal music, and generalising in the
same liay, from the set of int"ervals made by thG harmonics whose
ratios to the funia~ental involve only factors of tw4 three and
five, to intervals bet\'reen those harmonics. In pa:::·ticular, the
six ratios allow llindemith to explain and identify the frequency
ratios of the t~·:el ve semi tone degrees of the diato!"lic scale. He

does, and \'dth the possible exception of. his assertion that the
minor seYenth" must always be the dominant seventh (which he justifies
11
in terms of relations in a chromatic scale, rather than to the tonic)
or subdominant or subdominant, any musician ~ust agree with his
statements, as Longuet-Higgins certainly does. (We shall see later

and can see now, just by looking at the space of figure 4, that
the"minor seventh" (e.g. C tQ B~ ) is a particularly a!'Ilbiguous
interval harmonically). He calls the list of tl-relve ratios
that results "Series 111 (Hindemith (1937)p.56). Hindemith does

this by using-·the ratios of the first six harmonics as factors in
generating the full set of mt~.sical ratios. Tbese are only a

red~ndant specification of the three dimensions, so it is clear
that he can use them to correctly identify the full range of
musical inter-vn.ls of the other theory, and assign the corre9t
frequency ratio to each, altbough since there will be more than
one derivation for each, we may anticipate trouble when we get to
the question of a metric upon the intervals he has defined. If
we look upon S.:;ries 1 simply as a set of musical·~elationships,
then, on the te·cms of Longuet-Higgins' theory, it is a small
region of the set of all possible r:1uaical relationehips defined by
the three dimensions of harmony. Thus ''~e can say that the two
theories p~oceed so fa~ in a parallel fashion, with the definition
of the set of musical relationships as their first concern. Hol-tever.
as its name implies, there is '!nqre to Series l than that: it is
not just a set, but an ordered set.
For both theories the next concern is to establish a formal

corr0late of the musical idea of harmonic distance. We saw that,.
in Longuet-iiiggins' theory, once he had identified the fact that
there were exactly tP~ee degrees of freedom to the frequency ratios

115'
of intervals in music, and ~ence made .the identification of a
musical interval as a vector in the three-dir:1ensional space, then
the definition of harmonic dis tnnce follol-red willy-nilly, as· the
si~plest possible property of the space of harmonic relations

thus defined. But Hin1emith has not drawn from his original
definition of musical reln.tionships in terms of the first six harmonic
ratios the further conclusion t'!'lat the relation is one in several

dimensions. In an unstated assumption as to the nature of harmony,
I
he reduced the relation to essentially .2.!1~ dimension - the
ordering of Series 1. ·The reduction is accomplished by means of
ari algorithm for generating the intervals in order from a
fundamental. This algo!.'ithm corresponds to a "walk" in the
harmonic sp.~ce, start:i.ng from the tonic o1.'itiin. Series
c?rresponds to the order in which the various points near the
origin are encountered during this \'Tall::. Since he has not
expressed his six ratios in terms of their pri:ne factors, the walk
visits the same points several times.· In general this does not
matter, for he just ignores the later red~~dant derivations. In
one case, however, an early derivation of B is passed over, and the
later derivation, ~1ence a later position in the order, substituted

without explanation. This~however is much less serious than the
fact that the algorithm contains several P,ssu.-nptions which are
nowhere justified, the basic one being that a line~r :·ordering-. is
appropriate. The fact that the major sixth appears so early in

116
the series, earlier than the major seventh, and even earlier than
the major third, is purely as a result of these assu.raptions which,
in the lieht of Longuet-Higgins' theory, can be seen to be wrong.
It is not surprising that a theory so insecurely founded
proceeds to get more and more complex, with the introduction of
another series, 'Series 2', and a seemingly arbitrary choice of
which series is to explain which phenomena.
The key to the confusion may be that Hindemith does not appear
to separate the phenomena of Harmony from those of Consonance,
the effect "sweet 11 or otherwise", of an inter'lal. ·As we sal-T in
the previous theory, the two are quite distinct: the minor
seventh is harmonically close, but also rather dissonant, or
"harsh". H.indemith never quite ident:j.fies the phenomena that he
is account~~ for, but the distinction does not appear to be
maintained in his theory. Tlds would explain why he considered
the linear ordering to be approp~te, and why he was content to
pass over the earliest derivation of the major seventh. It would
also explain t-Thy his Series 1 is identic'al with Helmholtz' s

ordering of the intervals as to consonance, of whose work a brief
account follo\'1S.
It two tones are sounde~ together, ~~d the result examined with
some non-linear device, such as the human ear or any real-life
resonator, several additional "combination~!" tones will in
general be found besides t~e original two and any overto~es that
might have been introduced with them. In particular, there will

117
he tonos of frequenr;y gi vo:1 b.'! various function:J of the orieinal
tv1o among· which the difference, and to a lesser extent the su::1,
are the significan~ ones. Additional weaker co~binational
tones will result fro~ the same non-linear combination of the
drivine tones, th ;ir harmoYlics and the co:1binatio:n tones
themselves. IIelmholtz produced an ex!laustive and systematic
account of the phenomena of consonance in terms of the interaction
of all these cor1ponents of m'J.sicc.l intervals. In the vlords of
his ov1n su..rnrnary, his "analysis of ••• sound under ••• principles
cited leads to precisely the same distinctions between
consonant and dissonant intervals and chords as the old
theory of harmon:r." 1:n Helmhol tz' s t::wory the set of ;nusical
intervals are both distinguished from the general :.~:et of arbitrary
frequency ratios, and ordered among themselves as to consonance, by
t~ro principles.
The set of musical interval ratios arc those made up of t"r.·lo
frequencies some of 1'lhose harmonics ( 1vhere present) and. difference
tones coincide exactly 1'li th each other anra/or ':;i tll t!':.r.: (~'ri.:; !.n~11
tNo fundamentals. By definition this limits the set of frequency
ratios under di~~cussion to the rational fractions.
Among this set there are h·ro ord.erint; principles. Hclnl:ol tz
sef~S these as i:-rtposed· on the simple rule that ratione.l nunbe:r.s al."'e
\..(_
musical intervals, asf. oho~;s by calling t:1is section of the book
118
/ "The Di st urban cc:.; of Har~tony"·l-. 'rhc first is the degree to which
the funcla:J<?.nLals and the various "by-product_s" - the ha"!:'monics c.nd
combinational tones - coincide omone t~emselvcs. (If the harmonics
of a funda~:lentnl are assu.med to decrease in energy Hith their
position in tl1e harmonic series, then a measure of the influence of
a particular coincidence of t-vro ho.rmoni<~S can be deri Yed frora the
inverse of the sum of their orders.)
The strongest co:11bina tion tones arc the various difference tcne3
between the ha.cmonics and the funda:.1ental::l of the two notes. 1'hese,
and by extension any other co;ilbi::l~J.tion tones, a.nd thr;ir coincicleiJccs,
can be ordereQ as to their influence in a Slmllar way.
The second princ~.ple of o-::·Jerin~ the intervals -~~s to dissOl!::.t:).C8
is the degree to u:-Jic;h all these variou.s !reqt~encies interact to
produce be.s. t s.
by a small number of cycles are rnon-linearly combined;' .1~
difference frequency is produced 1·rhich is so low as to be percei vr.::d
not as a note, but as &. rattle, disrupting \·rbatever conson<~nt
qualit:r the interval ~ight have. (Helmholtz says that the
disruptive nffect is at a I!laximum when t:-1e beats a:..~e at the rate
of about ~;3 a second, though to some extent thi~~ depend.3 0!1 the
fundarncn tc.J.s. )
'l'hus, for example, the semi tone is both 1·1ea.l'::ly conso~ant, sine~,
a~~ the ratio in·;ol vel ( 1 6/15) shc\ls, only ve-::y high and i'real·:
* Die StBl"'ungen des Zus~r..r.!.enkla.nges"

11~
hannoni·~s coincide, and al:)O st.rongl~r diJ::;onant, since the t~·ro
funda ~entaln t:wr:L:elves, (in the usual musical ran~Jes, produce
beats. On t~lo othGr ':and, the perfect fifth ( 3/2) has coL'lcidences
between its most povwrful and diffc~:.:·encE=; tones, and only the \'Teakest
interactions are close enough to produce beats.
Naturally, the details of consonance and disscnance depend
upon the instrument involved, since different instru.rnents have
harmonics of different strengths. An attractive feature of this
theory is t~at it explains how it i~ that we tolerate different
degrees of imprecision in the intonation of ~nusical intervals •.
If we chanGe one frequency of an interval by a small amount,
then all the by-products that were coincident will th2n boat.
These beats \'Till strongl,y disturb a consonant interval, \-There they
~nvolve high-energy tones,. but -vrill affect dissonant intervals much
less, since they involve less energy and do not add sienj_ficantly
to the dissonance already present. This is the fact that the
·piano tuner takes advantage of, vrhen he puts most of t1·1e
i:nprecision of equal ter:1peramen t into the thirds and more dissonant
intervals, but keeps the fifths and particula::-ly the octaves r.ruch
more exactly intoned.
Throughout IIelmh~l tz' s develop:nent of the theory the ratir1s
invol vine the pri~ne factors seven and higher are treated just like
the other3. Ho\·Teve~.. \'Then he ~oes on to build an account of cho!"~l
function upon the basis of the foregoing, he needs to include some
special remarks about tones derived from the seventh har~onic, since
/ in his sytem t~e "subminor seventh" (4/7) and the "aubminor
tenth'' (3/7) a~e rather more consonant th~n the mi~or sixth and
minor tenth. · The special pleadi~g he i!1troduccs is that the
nature of chordal or harmonised music introduces a ne·d constraint
into pla.:r, namely that the relation of the consonances of C to each
other must be reasonably consonant, and in particular that the
inversion should be so. This is the case with the ratios
involving only ti·To, three and five but not for those i:nvolvine
hiffher primes. G.'1!us in sor.1e sense he produces a reasog in ter:ns
of consonance for the limitation to three di:nensions that Longuct-
. · ' t' 7
·neory d e r·1.nos.-
H1.gg1.ns However, he does not make this extension.
Helmholtz further develops his accotmt to Jeal with the function
of chords, in particular vrith the changes that the process of
inversion introduces, and \·Ti th the reason for the perception of one
pa:::-ticular note as the root or ha~onic centre of th.:: chord.
However ho never identifies the harmo~1ic relation in its ovm
right, ·as distinct from the consonance re.lation, so his theory
continues to be COL1plementary to that of Longuet-Hiee,-ins, and
cannot deal ,.Ti th the same phenomena. Most notably, he cannot deal
vri th ambiguous cho~:-ds, nor \-:i th the fact that the arr1biguous intervals
of equally temp-~rGd intonation are perceived in t~e full :le tail
of their harmonic function) be it as the siYJplest or the most
remote of interpretatio~.. As we shall see, it is exactly theoe
pointo \·Thich t:1e rla=monic spa~e illuminates most clearly. It is
HeJ.mhol tz hims~lf who reco;_;!-Ji zes thj_ s limit on the po\·iE:r of his
1).1
theory, and poses the very problem that has bnen tackled in this
project, when he says, in his examination of t:·!e consonant triads,
and spca;<:inG of the triad C E li.P , "On the pianoforte it \-TOul<l
seem as if this triad ... r:-~ust be consonant, since each one of its
tones forms with each of the others an interval \·Thi eh is considered
as consonant on the piano, and yet this chord is one of the harshest
dissonances • • • This chord is \'Tell adapted for shmving that the
original meaning of the intervals asserts~ tself even \·li th the
i~porfect tunine of the piano, and determines the judeement of the
ear."
It is only by identifying the three-dimensional space as the
domain of harmonic relations implied by a chord that it can be seen
how "the original meaning of the intervals"~ "assert itself", and
S$3e \iha t Helmhol tz means by meaning. Although each interval in
isolation could be interpreted as a major third or minor si.xth,
if they are examined together in the space it becornes clear that
there is no way in VThich they can all "mean" major thirds: even
when Ap is taken to "mean" G~ · , one ~1f the intervals has to be
understood as a harmonically rer:10te augmented fifth.
,,
A ,;:.
F G
Horeover Helmholtz' s phrase "the harsh0st of di~.:!sonances" is raade
clearer in t:1is light: the configuration by tal:ing Gti vTith C and
E looks very much like the one obtained by tn.kinrr it as Ap • In
short, the "meaning" of the Al:>/cJr with respect to the other two
seem to be amb·i.r-;uo~~, and of cbu!'se any musician is familiar with
this ambiguous nature of the "augmented fifth" chord, and would
agree that this is \ihat gives it its distinctive character.
This kind of analysis, of purely harmonic phenomena, is very
close to the kind that will berequired for the-identification of
key, and is the next concern.
2.3 Music In Three Dimensions - The Disambiguation of Eaual

rremperament
So far, vthen we have talked about the nature of such things as
i~perfect intervals and chords, it has been more or less taken for
granted in each case that each note could be una:nbiguousl.Y
associated with a single position in th~ space. But when music is
played in equal temperament each note is a~bi~tous, and is, at first
glance, associated with several positions in the space (.indeed with
infinitely many, since the space is indefinitely extending). Our
musical notation maps the points of the harmonic space onto points~
on·a cylinder, by equating the points of figure 4 vlhich have the
same na:ne. gq'.lal tempera:nent maps the space onto a torus of ti'>'elve
points, butfurther equating those points separated by three majo!'

11.3
thirds, or three ve:ctical steps. 'l'he rnappin~ can be represented
by redra:·ring the harmonic srace \vj th the positions l8belled
according to the ~eys that vTould be used to play them on an
equally-te:Jpered keyboard. A convenient la b~-:lling is p.covided
by the numbers 0 (for C, B~ etc) to 11 ( B, np

'J etc.) as shown in
Fig. g.
n 3 10 c:
./ 0 7 I')
{_
9 h 11 b 1 ~
J, 11 6 1 8 3 10 ) 0 7 -z... s '-1
0 7 2 9 4 11 6 1 8 3 ID s 0
8 3 10 5 0 7 2 9 h 11 to 8
)+ 11 6 1 8 3 10 5 0 7 '2 1 r..r
0 7 2 9 4 11 6 1 d 3 10 ._5" 0
0 2 4 5 7 9 11 0 2 45 79
Major And ;~inor Key Fre~es:
11
9 4 11 0 7 2
r·
I 0 7 8 3
/
li'rom. the discussion of that i;-nperfect interval in E1ear' s L'lelody,
it is clear that people do interpret the notes of 1:1elodies played
in ambiguou::~ equal tcmpera!"ncnt in the full space of ha!'r:ionic
relations. ·And 'tlhcn the concept of key vTas defined earlie·.r,
this was in terms of the l1arrnonic interpretations that would
be laid upon equally tenpered notes. The task in hand is that
of modelling people's ability to identify the key of a melody.
If we can write rules that will disambi~1ate the notes of equal
temper9.ment, and assign th·:m to unique positions in the sp"J.ce,
then l'Te shall be at le:::.st on the "I:Tay to achieving that goal.

. afford~5
The measure of he>yrmonic distance that the space/ o:f:'fo:c8 an
obvious suggestion as to how this disambiguation maJ be achieved.
fit is simply that an interval or a chord or other group of notes
heard in equal tempera;r.en t are to be assigned positions in the
space in such a way as to minimize the sum of their distances from
e~ch other:l
('
This idea can be applied to ~herds, when it leads to a simple
account of chord function and perception in equal te::!pera!'llent. For
example, the common majo:c chord, familiar by no\v as an 1-shaped
group in the space, is clearly in no danger of losing its identity
when subjected to the ambieuities of equal temperament, if the
notes are tiisambiguated in th2 above way.

115
B 3 10 5 \.9-71 ,....
r:. 9 "h
~
() 1 e "":?
~ 10 5 0
~
,.., /"
9 l) 1 ~
'
0 ......
..) 10 5 7 I")
,-
9
r;
~
6 1 8 3 10 5
7 •")
c.. 9 m 11 6 1 "
(.;
Relative to an arbitrary chosen intel""'pretation of the note 0, there
is an obvious interpretation for the notes 4 and 7, as its

i~nediate neighbours. In other words, looking back to the space
of note nar:!es of ],ieure 4, havin.:s once interpreted 0 as the
central C, we are very unlikely to want to interpret the other
I}otes as F~ or Fx · , ''~hich would involve very strange interpretations
of the chords functioi1, but will rather inte:::·pret them as the
straightforl'lard major third E and fifth G in the si:rnple major
triad. The same is true for any major or minor tri2..d, and
reflects the musical coL'1monplace that the common triads are solid,
unambiguous chords. Cho:cds such as the dominant seventh or
ninth, vrhich the musician might describe as "unresolved", appear

. .
as more diffuse configurations, while for certain ot:1ers the
algorithrn stated above gives no sin.c;le clos~est

,_ grouping, but many,
all of vrhich are equally close. The principal examples are the .
1lb
diminished and augmented chords. Th>?. d.;m ;r, ish~d is shown bi-.low:
'8
ill 10 5 [Q] '( ? [}] l,
J~ 11 CD 1 8
m [D 10 r.
.)
G
[Q] 7 ?. w l, 11 1 8
8
4
Q]
11
10
rn
5
1
0
8
7
·w
2
10
m [9]
5
4
(]] 7 2
0 4 11 CO 1 8
The fact that these chords above all are recognized by the musician
as completely ambiguous and dependent on their context for their
interpretation lends extra support to this theory, and to the
measure of harmonic proximitJ.
\•le shall see that such chords, vT!lether they are truly
ambiguous or just.rather vague, require further rules for their
interpretation in actual melodies. But the harmonic space
identifies their ambiguous nature, as opposed to the u1~am~iguous
major triad.
The way in vrhich our vision organises points arranged on a
square lattice,. in perceiving them as forming groups, is so \vell
matched to the aooV'e 'cluster-forming' algorith!n, that we have b.~en
able to take advantage of it in arrru1ging a real-time display of
the harmonic events of music played on a keyboa:d. ·This has been
done, simply by making each key of an el3ctronic organ operate a
switch connected to those of a square array of light-bulbs \'Those

position in the array correspoD.ris vTi th the vur-iou.o i.nterpretat:.ons
/
of the note in question.
;'[hen a note is played 011 tlH~ j_nstrur:i8nt, its int:Jr_p:cotati~!l2 are
shown in the array. \'Then tvTO or mo~e are played, they a.::-e
perceived as clusters in the WaJS that have been described.
This machine offers a rich vein of intuitions about our
perceptions of harmonic music. All th8 algorithms that vrill be
discussed in later sections sta-ct from the ass-..HaptioYJ. that, vrhen
we listen to music, we identify the pitches of each note to tha
nearest semitone, then map then onto the full harmonic Sp2-CG in
exactly the lvay that the 'light organ' maps the keys onto its
display of the space.· Our interpretation of the harmonic aspects
of the piece are then carried out in the space.
Armed with the space, or its embodiment in the 'light organ',
and these naive ideas about harmonic analjrsis in terns of pro:.;:imi ty
in the sp-3.ce, '.,re are alre·-:dy in a position to say some quite.
interesting things about real live music. There is a rather odd
harwonic effect achieved "Ti th a si!!l ?le sequence of major chords in

I
the open in:~ tut ti of Beethoven's 4th ·9iano concerto. \/hen·
examined in the harmonic space it beco1~1es quite cletlr ho'tr the
trick is done. After the solo piano has est~blisheJ a fir~
footing in thu key of G in the first few bars,

,.......
11 J _L -· _I' I I )
'l_ I • I ~ l lr
-~ . / ~· .._ z-
c-.. l l / ~ r
the strings come in with the chord of the major third, B major,
emphasize the shift in tonality with a brief excursion to its
dominant, :&""it and back to B, than proceed in unmistakeable
leftward steps throu:~h the major chords of E, A and D, to the
chord of G major - but it is a different G. It is tTi th some

1
surprise that we find that t~is tremendous journey has taken us
to what the next fe".'l bars clearly treat as the tonic, and the
surprise is well-founded as we see in the 'strip cartoon' of
Fig. 11.
Precisely the same device is common in early Jazz and 3wing
music, and the middle section of Basin Street Blues, and 3weot
Georgia Brown ar-e only t\·To of countless pieces involving such a

sequenc(~. Perhaps the analysis sugeests a reson for its
immediate success and interest at the time.

119
• 0. • • • • •
• • • • • 0
• • 0 0
• f1to 0 0 0
• • 0 Bo 0 0 0
0
• c • D .A 0 0
• • (C) G- D •
0
• • 0
• • • • • 0 0
• • •
;~ncl of solo: D7
• • 0 • • • (0. • • • •
• • • • IYF. • •
• • F. • • • • .B fiF. • 0
• • • DA 0
• • • • • • • •
• • • • • • • • • • • • • •
D B
• • @). • 0
• • • • •
• • • • • 0 0
• • • • • • • • • • • • • •
• • • • • • • . . • • • • • • 0 0
1~ B
(j) 0
• • • 0
•
• • G#. • • • c-Jt. • • • • •
• 0 E. ~. 0
• • • AE • ..
,
• • • • • • • • • • • • •
• 0
• 0
• • • 0
• • • • • 0
• • •
E A
• • 0
• @. • • •
• • • • • B 0
• •
• G-D . .. 0
•
• • • • • • • • • • •
..
0 0
• • • • • • • • • • • • • '
D G
Fig 11 • narmcr:lc space or ~'

Th e progrc 3::: J.n L
l.De
•. '1
o~,emns
•
of beetnoven's l.;.t~l pj_e.no Ccncerto.

130
J,J 1 Jj
However the algorithm that tne above remarks imply for the
analysis of chords and cho:::-d sequences, interpretill:g ch.ords in the
way which gives the tightest clusters, and in the position closest
~o their predecessors in the space, will n9t do in general. In

the above case, all the chords are the unambiguous major triads,
and all the movements are by one step horizontally er vertically.

With the more ambiguous chords, ho,·lever, other t~ngs must be
taken into consideration if our aleorit~ is not do violence to
musical good sense.. For example, if the above algorithm,using

,.
simple Hanhattan distances, is applied to the First Prelude of
Bach's "\'lell Tempered Keyboard", treating each arpeggio as a ch0rd,
the very first bars illustrate the deficiency. The first chord is
a simple triad - that of the key, C major. The second is the
major triad of the subdominant,_ or fourth, F major, with an extra
note, D• It is clear where the three notes of the triad belong.
.The question is, which D? The algorith~ pick~ the D which is

closest to the other notes of the chord - the version related to
the F by a Uorth-V[esterly major sixth. Ho'trever, we might sus pe et

1J1
that we have not yet left the key of C, in which case the D should
be notated as the supertonic of C, off to the East of the
subdominant. The suspicion would immediately be strengthened
by the next chord, that of the dominant of C, G major, with an
extra F. This chord also contains a D,. one which is unambiguously
thc·supertonic of F. But there is no reason to ~uppose that it
is not the same as the D in the preceding chord, so it seems
likely that the previous interpretation was wrong - and the fourth
bar, a repetition of the original C major chord, makes this quite
certain. In fact, the second bar represented a 'passing chord',
a· transition between the chords of the first and third bars, and
'·
not the independent harmonic statement that our naive algorithm
took it as. On the other hand, if there had been some reason to
suspect a modulation or shift of key to the subdominant then the
other analysis of the D would have been right. If we are to
write better rules ror the analysis of such music, then they will
have to recognise such 'passing chords', and embody the kinds of ideas
that were implicitly invoked when it was said that we might suspect
the analysis because we were in a particular key, and t~at the piece
involved a transi ti.on bet·~·;een the tonic and dominant, in which the
second bar was just a Rassing chord, in the absence of any evidence
of a modulation. In short, we have been trying to run before we
can walk in the foregoing analyses, and we ·look at some more
elementary phenomena of music before we can return to these ·
interesting problems. In particular, \'Te see yet another reason to

132.
believe that the problemsconnected with the nature of key, and with
its identification arc of central importance in our interpretation
of music, so 'tie shall get back to them imr.1ediatcly.

3. First Ideas For Key Identification In Sole I•telodies: T"io
Wronr. Algorithms.
3.1 Introductory
In section § 2 of Part II the Principle of Congruence was

formulated, as the guiding principle of all the algorithms
advanced in this work. The principle casts such properties of
a piece of music as its metre and key in the role of nfrar.1e\'rorks"
of "expectations", against which the actual events of the piece
are viewed and interpreted. When events conform to the framework

\
, are as predicted, they are said to be "congruent"; otherV"rise they
are "non-congruent". The principle then states that, if the
events of the piece are thought of as arriving for interpretation
in order,
"No non-congruent event will occur until such a point in
the piece that the event can be perceived unambiguous:;t:y to
be non-congruent."
This is to say that our algorithms for discovering these frame\'rorks
will ass~me the earliest events in the melody to be consistent
with, or congruent to, the framework that is really there. In

other words, it is of the nature of the music we are discussing,
that syncopations will not occur until such time as the earlier
events of the piece have established sufficient metrical framevrork
for the syncopation to be Rerceived as such, and similarly, that
accidentals will not occur until it has been made clear that they
~ accidentals. Therefore (once we define the cri: terion cf

congruence in question) we can dra'\-T strong inferences from t.he early.
events of the tune, orles that perhaps we could not draw from those
in.an arbitrary section of the piece. (The reader ~s referred back

to Part II for examples.)
This principle may be simp~e, but .i.l-- is not n truism. There

are conceivable algorithms for key identific~tion ~hat would
implicitly deny it -an identification of the tonic based on a
simple frequency count,for instance. If it is obvious, then this
is all to the good, since it is the principle that supplies the
methodology for the investigation.
The principle is not a theory. vie get a theory from it \'Then
we produce a definition of congruence, and this theory can be
falsified if, when vTe examine pieces of music according to the
definition we find that the definition does not ascribe conformity
with the principle to the melody. In that case, since the

principle is a statement of the nature of the music, and the T!lodel
that we .have enshrined in a definition of congruence does not

reflect that nature, we must abandon the model in favour of a new
one, and a new and better definition of congruence.
Thus the principle itself is not directly falsified upon the
9utcome of the predictions on an individual theory, but only insofar

as a persistent failure to produce successful theories under it leads
us to suppose that it does not represent the nature of the music

under discussion. This somehow ceases to be worrying wnen we
reflect that it is really a sketch of the algorithms and prog~ams·
that we are going to produce as theories, a sort of control routine.

We have already seen it in this guise, in' those parts of the
metrical algorithms which assQ~ed that early long-notes, dactyls
and so on, could be used with confidence to infer metre, that is,
could not under the principles be non-congruent syncopations.
Later events could not contradict these inferences, since under

the same principle, they could be non-congruent. In the algorithms
·that follow for the.task of key-identification we shall see a very
similar control structure, and shall find no reason to suppose that

the Principle of Congruence does not reflect the very nature of at
least the kind of music that we have chosen to test our theories
against.
The far-reaching consequences of the principle, both as to
the methodology outlined above, a~d as to the actual form that the
theories resulting from it take on, constitutes the 'Artificial
Intelligence' content of the research. The computer, besides
acting as a fast and reliable version of pencil and paper
verification, and besides providing a formal language for the

expression of the theory, also provides the form of the theory
itself.
3.2 Clustering
The earlier discussion of spatial clustering in the Harmonic
I
space as a rationale for anal:rsis of chord function and chord
sequence, although it had to be aba~doned as being an over-
simplification for that purpose, offers a suggestion that key-
identification miGht be done by a simple procedure of clustering.
The algorithm would run something like this.
"As each note arrives, identified to within equal temperament;
write dol'Tn the corresponding set. of possible interpretations

in the space. Choose an arbitrary interpretation (position)
for the first note. Take as a·set of hypotheses all those
keys for which this position is non-accidental, tha.t is, falls
within the major or minor frame corresponding to the notes of

. th~ key, as \n. r\f!S 6 uJ-7. Choose interpretations for
succeeding notes so as to minimise the sum of their distances.

'·
from the cluster of predecessors. vlhen each succeeding note
has been interpreted and added to the cluster, reject thoae
keys for wluch the new position falls outside the frame, under
the Principle of Congruence, If only one hypothesis sur.viv·es,
then that is taken to be established as the key of the piece,
and the procedure terminates. Otherwise the next note is
examined.
(We should bave to spell out some further conditions as to cases

where a. note is accidental to all going key hypotheses, and where
the end of the melody is reached before a unique hypothesis has
been arrived at. We should also have to slightly refine ·the
definition of a minor key. All of these questions ~11 be dealt

157
"'er
with later, in the context of another algorithm. To bothI' with
them now would be to overcomplicate an algorithm which is only
being set up in order to be knocked dovrn.) This attractively
simple algorithm would also solve the other half of the original
problem, that of notating the melody, since it notates the melody

.,
once and for all, and infers the key of the m~lody from that
notation. For Fugue 10 of Book I, the fi:-st four !lot-es ar-3

correctly clustered as the minor triad, while the fifth note,
placed closely beside them, is identified as the leading note,
and leaves E minor as the only key containing all of these
notes in these relations within its frame.
Just previously, .the Principle of Congruence lras described
as providing a general framework for the algorithms to be discussed,
·and that they could be compared on the basis of various definitions
of congruence that they involved. The congruence in question here
is basically whether or not the interpretation of the note

involved which the clustering procedure assigns to it is in the key
frame (non-accidental) or accidental. However the matter is

I
complicated ·slightly b? the fact that this interpretation. is
carried out indupendently of any hypotheses as to the identipy
of the ke;yj the clustering procedure itself involves a part of
the congruence component. ·This par~ is a little hard to state
in musical terms - which in itself might make us smell a rat -

,
but it adds up to something like a rule saying that the closest
interpretation of an interval must be the right one, until sufficient

context has been given, in the form of a "cluster." of preceding
notes, to force such an interpretation. For example, it is
......
only with some preparation by such a full context as a maj~r
triad that the imperfect fifth down from the major sixth to the
second can occur.
A----!_____ .
C G~
The fugue subjects of the for~y-eight·offer several examples of
melodies to which the algorithm assigns the wrong interpretation,
and hence the wrong key. l·lore needs to be said about tones, for
example,since it is~ the case that a subject never begins with

the marginally more remote minor tone, rather than the closer
major tone (Fugue 11 of Book I has an initial minor tone).
I1oreover, if we continue the operation after the key decision, to

carry out the second part of the task in notating the melody, we
find that more must be said about the notation of s~~tones. But
one of the algorithm's wrong decisions in particular demonstrates

its basic shortcoming. The A minor subject, no. 20 of Book II pf
the fortY-eight,. includes an early diminished :S·eve.ntlj between the

\ .
third and fo~rth notes.
Notation· of the fourth note, ni n.e keyboard semi tones a'lray from its
predecessor,by clustering with respect to the first three notes, '
has to choose between the two starred positions (among others) in
interpreting the note.

I *
4
5 0
*
.
By the clustering measure, the lovrer al terna ti ve is chosen. Thereupon,
the only key-frame which fits is that of F minor,
*
5
•
and the true solution, A minor, is rej.ect~d •
•
5
This j.s a very unsatisfactory state of affairs, because this is not ·
a mistake that a human interpreter would be likely to m~ke: . there,
seems to be little temptation to think of the melody as b~ginning

\
on the major seventh, or leading note of F, and every reason to
feel that the first note is the dominant of A,_notwithstanding,the
rather remote diWJinish.e~ sev.enth that such an interpretation implies·.
In other words, while there may be some errors· that we would be
prepared to put up with from the algorithm, there ~re strong
musical reasons why ~his should not b~ one of "them.
What appears to be wrong is th~t part of the definition of

congruence that militates so over-confidently against early
imperfect intervals. The two alternatives that were investigated
in argorithms for key identification are described ih the following
sections.
3.2 The 'M.I.6' Algorithm
In the Clustering 'algorithm', the e~bodiment of the idea of
key was as a very 'passive' sort.of thing, a conclusion drawn at
some stage from an interpretation of the notes in the m~king of

which it played no part at all. But when the concept of ke.:r was
discussed earlier, it was defined in a very 'active' sense as a
definition of the vray in which a piece was to be interpreted, as
regards the harmonic.relations of its notes. The clustering
algorithm,while it represented a key as a set ·of such relations

in the fonn of a ke.v frame, was at the same time less than "faithful
I
to this definition in that it carried out the business of
interpretation in the harmonic space ,.,i thout any reference to .the
particular key-hypotheses in hand. In the case of that A minor
subject, No. 20 of Book II for example, it seems a little odd to
hold the hypothesis that the key might be A minor, .yet to reject
it out of hand,simply because the clo£est interpretation in the
space ..is not the interpretation that it involves. It would
perhaps be more reasonable to associate the pusiness of interpretation
in. the space with the keys that are being considered, '\'There we have
said that it belongs - in short, to associate an interpretation,

in the form of a list of positions in the space, with each key
hypothesis.
This was the solution adopted in the a1gorith:n desaribed in
the second part of Longuet-Higgins and s·teedman ( 1971), . In t~d.s
algorithm the order of the two parts ~f the task, notation of the
melody and key decision, were reversed: notation was made
completely contingent upon the decision as to key, rather than the
other way round as in the previous algorithm. Like that algorithm,
this one examines a set of key hypotheses under a criterion of
congruence w~th respect to the notes of the melody taken in order,
until only one survives. At each stage in the decision, a
separate interpretation or notation is associated -;ri th each of

the key-hypotheses. As before, hypotheses may be rejected '\·Then'
141
'
they impute a non-congruence to the melody, in favour of ones wh1ch
do not, under the f~1iliar principle. However, ~n this case, the
criterion of congruence is much weaker. It is simply that a note
is congruent to a key if ir ~ be interpreted as being in its
scale, and non-congruent only if it ~be accidental. In other

words, as far as the algorithm for key identification goes it might
just as well ignore the space altogether and work in equal
temperament. ~·le only bother to keep an interpretation in
association with each key because we shall be concerned later with
what now becomes the separate problem of carrying out this notation.
In th~ clustering algorithm, a note had to be not only possible to

.interpret in the key, but actually interprete4 as being in the
1 key by the independent process of clustering. So, for example,
t-lnen the algorithm deals vTith the A minor subject that. proved such
a stumbling block for the previous algorithm., since the fourth note
could be in both A minor and F major, albeit with different
interpretations of its relation to its predecessors, both
hypotheses are maintained, in association with those different
interpretations. It is only with the fifth note that one of the
ttTo is rejected by the Principle of Congruence. The fifth note,

of value 2, can only be accidental to F minor. It can be
interpreted as D, the fourth of A minor, so A minor survives at
the expense of F minor.

·.
To make the algorithm work in general for melodies of this
kind in minor keys, there is ·a slight complication to be made to
the simple picture of the minor key as the fraoe familiar from
such examples as that above. In Bach's time, if a composer
wished to write an ascending or a descending scale in a minor
key he ltTould use the major sixth in place of the m1nor sixth
of the frame, if the scale were ascend~ng, and would use the
minor seventh in place of the major version, if the scale were a

.·
descending one. That is to say, in 0 minor (c mino~) the upward
scale 7, 8, 11, (G,Ap,B) lvould become 7, 9, .11 (G, A, B) and the

dol·lnward scale O, 11 , 8 ( C, B A~) would become 0, 1 0, 8 ( C, Bp, Ap).
This convention, which we call the 'melodic convention', means
that the major sixth may be considered as belonging to the minor
key if it is preceded by the fifth, and succeeded by the major
seventh.
I
9
0
8
An example is offered in the C~ minor subject·of Book II. The

•
eighth note is the major sixth (10) of the true key,11 minor. It
iS essential to the success of the algori thr:t on this subject that
the non-accidental nature of that major sixth be appreciated,
since there is another key which includes all of these first eight
notes, namely that of the dominant 8 major.
03 J) 1 J11 fE1K-
I~
0
8
Similarly, the minor seventh may be considered as belonging to the
minor key whe~ it is preceded by the tonic and succeeded by the
minor sixth, when its normal interpretation would be as 'minor

third of dominant' •
So far we have chosen examples .whero the key can be determined by
this process of elirninatio!l - ones where enougl1 of the notes of
the scale are used to uniquely determine one key-frame, by
the time that either the first accidental or the end of the subject
is reached. This is not generally the case, and the·rules as
stated so far may leave us in a dilemr.1a of choice in one of two
ways. First, it may happen that the end of the piece is reached
before sufficient notes have been given to discriminate between two.
or more keys. This ambigu~ ty vtill com:nonly hold as betvteen
closely related keys which differ only by one or two notes in
equal temperament, such as the true tonic and its subdominant,
its dominant and its relative minor, and an example is Fugue 9 of
Book II. At the end of the subject the key could still be 4
major, or 9 major, or minor. ··~
,~~ Q
FE
\
\
·~
rf
-=
~
l
9
8
4 6] I 9
8
4
SJ
Secondly, a note may be encountered lihich; does not fit into any
9
of the going key hypothese.s. This is allovred under the Principle

the ·note
of Congruence, since it can be seen by the fact thatjis congruent·
it-
to no hypothesis t~at~~ no~~~ongru~nt, and_it happens more than
once in the forty-eight. In Fugue 14 of Book I, the fifth note is

accidental to all the keys which have been maintained up.to that
point, 9 !"lB.jdr, 6 !:tinor, 1 minor and 4 major.
In this latter case there is little point in waiting for further
information from the rest of the melody, since it soon ~anders off
into even more remote regions. Instead we deal with both of these
kinds of ambiguity with a supplementary rule. This says.that, in
such dilemmas, if there is a hypothesis that interprets the first
note of the melod;y: as its rtonicl then that pypothesis is to be '

chosen. Failing that, one l'lhich in t~rprets the first note as
the domina~t is picked • This rule was called the 'tonic-dominant
.preference rule', because it turns out that we do not need to
elaborate .it any further: in the forty-eight, all the subjects that
invoke it begin on one or the· other. Later on some strong
criticisms of this rule will be voiced, based on the fact that it

involves an underhand appeal to rules of the nature of fueue,
rather than a general rule of melodies and their key~identification.
A program embodying these rules alone assigns all forty-eight
fugue subjects to the keys that Bach indicated in his key-signatures,
in the way summarised in Table 3. (See Appendix III for details
and worked examples of many of the subjects that.have been mentioned).
For the moment we note just two things about the operation of this
141
Book I Book II
:B'UEUe Key Number of Decision . Number of Decision
found notes ·at note notes at note
:1 0 major 16 16):C 24 24*

2 0 minor 22 5 9 9*
3 1 major 22 16 4 4*
4 1 minor 5 4 22 12
5 2 major 15 15'-'t 9· 9*
6 2·minor 12 8 24 15
7 3 major 25 12"" . 21 21 *
8 3 minor 13 13,." 14 9
9 4 major 13 12. 6 6*
10 4 minor 25 T'" 46 18
11 5 major 19 6 23 19
12 5 minor 1Y: 4* 27 7
6 major 18 8 29. 13,~
13
14 6 minor 18 5* 18 18*
15 7 major 31 15 43 16
16 7 minor 12 4 21 . 21 :,'t
. 8 major 7J'{. 22 22f,:
17 7
18' 8 minor 17 5 25 25*
19 9 major 8 8 20 20*
20 9·:minor 32 5 11 6
21 10 major 38 14 24 9
22 10 minor 1' 7* 30. 6
23 11 major 14 11 ~2 12,:C
24 11 minor~ 21 7 25 6
Table 3.
* indicates that the tonic-dominant preference rule was invoked.

This table diff'ers from tha~ in Longuet-Higgins & Steedman(1971)
in that rests ure taken into account in totals of notes.
I part of the program, concerning ke.?-identification. Firstly,
the tonic-dominant preference rule operates in nearly half of
them, that is in tvrenty-t't10 cases, of which seventeen are brought ·

about by the end of the tune being reached before the rule of
congruence has reached a unique conclusion. (This is a

consequence of the more general property of the algori tl;m vrhich is
the price we pay in avoiding the hasty conclusions of a clustering
procedure: the aleorithm tends to reach its decisions at a very
late stage in the tune.) The frequency Ttri th which it is used

suggests that it needs a rather more searching examination than it
received when it \'1SS so airily introduced •.
This suspicion hardens into alarm if we reflect that the rule
implies that no fugue subject may both start on the dominant and not
contain the subdominant to obviate the possibility that the .. key
could be that of the dominant. If there is such a subject,, t~en
the rule will deliver the wrong answer. rvirtually the first Bach
fugue that one thin:~s of outside the Forty-eight - the 3t. Anne·
organ fU@le - has a subject of this kind, and the algorithm gets
it wrong.
c G D
» E~ B~ F (C)
\
I This is a particularly damning error, since the human interprete~
that we are claiming to model would never make this particu.lar

error. Among other things, he would find it quite impossible
to believe that the interval bet~Teen the second and third notes
was an imperfect fourth, which is the interpretation associated with

the key of the dominant, Bp •.
In short, the h~ndred percent success of the algorithm in
identifying key signatures for the Forty-eight is rather a fluke.
One thing that is at fault is the tonic-dominant preference rule,
which, as the St. Anne fugue makes clear, is not a statei:1cnt about
the nature of melody, but rather an inaccurate statement about the
statistics of fugue subjects. The development of· a subject in a
fugue is to a great extent 'about' the relationship of tonic to
dominant. The demands of the coUnterpoint ~ake it extremely
likelx that the subject will begin on one or the other, and n?re
likely the·. former, but it is' not a requirement, even of fugue,
and much less of melodies in general, or of our ability to
interpret them. Even among the Fort.y-eight, one of the subjects

begins on the supertonic; fortunately for the algorithm, it does
not require any appeal to the preference rule.

Since it is used so very frequen~ly in the algorithm's dealing
with the subjects, tc1early som~t~ing must take its place~ An
examination of the finer details of the program's analyses

suggests that what is needed is a completely different ~i~d of
algorithmJrather than a similar rule to be used in conjunction

1~0
with this one.
For exa::~ple, in the case of the E minor subject, No. 10 of
Book I, besides the correct hypothesis, which involves the
interpretation of the first interval as a minor third, there is
an incorrect hypothesis, of GU · minor,w~ich is maintained, since

both of the notes could be in the key. Hol-rever in the associated ·.
interpretation, the interval is the rather remote augmented second.
,;;?~
)
,...._
,....,.
IJ ...,, .-:?
-"'
A
A ..H- .I 1,_
'1
#J
or.-
·~ ,J -,....
..
This is a very unlikely interpretation, in the absence of any
preceding context to establish it, and particularly in view of the
fact that it also demands that the~ interval be interpreted as

I
a diminished fourth, an even more remote version of the interval
which under the correct hypothesis is interpreted as a completely
straightforward major third. This extraordinary idea is maintained

until the seventh note precipitates the infamous preference rule.
It seems scarcely credible to think that people are so very cautious
in their dealings with tunes that they en~ertain for a moment. any
hypotheses which interpret those four notes as anything but a minor
triad, or to think that they are in any doubt as to the key after
the first three notes. Perhaps in that case, rather than finding
15'1 ·-.
a replacement for the preference r..tle in order to bolster up the
existing algorithm, we should formulate a new kind of algorithm
which will match our intuitions more. In particular, we might

look for some kind of middle ground betvreen the clustering
algorithm, (which in its ~im·;,le fonn ttas as over-hasty in

rejecting as an interpretatio~ exactly the same pons asinor~,
of the augmented second in Fugue 20 of Book II as this algorithm is
over-eau tious in ~nter~a~ni~)) avJ ~\s o"' 1!! •
But before turning to this, tha algorithm of section § 4, we
must pay some attention to the second part of the problem that was
set at the begin:1ing, that ·part dealing l'Tith the problem of
notating a melody.
The notation, or interpretation in the full harmonic space,
of t~e ambiguous intonation of equal temperament is trivial vrhile
the key is being decided, since by definition all n~tes up to that
point must be non-accidental, and we have seen that for each key,
including the one which will eventually prove correct, the notes
are interpreted according to the frame. But{oN:~ the key has
been established then accidentals may occur, and must be interpreted
in their re.lation to the notes of the key, if the program is to cone
up to the standard of the music student in our p3 radigm of the
dictation class. A striking example of the kind of problem

facinff us is in the subject of the great B minor fugue, No, 24 of
Book I. The first part of the program has no difficulty in

1C.2.. .·
I identifying the key corroctly.from the notes of the first bar, but
in the next bar there a~e three notes - 3, 0 and 5 - which do not
belong to the key, and which the composer has written as D# , · cq
and E~· respectively. In the third bar there are three more
extraneous notes - 0, 9 and 8 - of l'Thich the 0 has been written
this time· as Bit • The que3tion arises: holt can the listener
tell these six notes are to be interpreted as Bach wrote them,
and in particular that the first 0 is a C~ and the second a ~ ? ' '
6 2. 11 7 b 11,10 8 6
er*
For the first four of the notes under consideration the solution is
provided by ranother rule, which seems to describe Bach's use of
chromatic sc~les, that is, note sequences of the form (n, n+1, n+2,
..,
••• , n+m) or (n, n-1, n-2, ••• n-m). We state this rule- the
r .• semitone' rule -as follot-rs: in a chromatic scale the first tvro
notes are always related by a diatonic demitone, and so are the
last two. A 'diatonic:semitone' is an inte1~al such as that
between the B and the C in C major - a move in harmonic space of
one step to the left and one dmYn, or its inverse.

There is a further discussion of the status of this rule in a
later section§ 3.41. There are three chromatic scales in the
second bar of th8 subject above, namely (4,3), (0,11) and (6,5).
155
By the above rule, these are certainly diatonic semiton~s, and

moreover the notes 4, 11 and 6 are all within the established key
of 11 minor. !Therefore the 3, the 0, and the 5 are to be

. -,
interpreted as D# , C~ , and Ej/: respectively. But in the third
bar the 0 is the last note of the chro~atic scale (2,1,0) ~nd the
first note of the scale (0,1). It must therefore be related to
1, which belongs to the key, by a diatonic semitone, and this
demands the quite different interpretation as B~ , rather than cq
9 A
A problem arises tvith the first 9 in the third bar, 1·1hich must
be accide~tal to 11 minor, but is not part of a chromatic scale.

l(le need one more rule - our last - for such an eventu.a.li ty. vle
.
find it in the old idea of clustering: the accidental is placed
as closely as possible to the preceding ~~-positions in the

-~·· ';.
t:. .
space. tThis is the rule also used ih notati:ng accidentals in the
~
middle of chror.:tatic scales1 For lack of a bettex! formulation, the
~
'~
clustering is taken to include al~the preceding notes of. the tune.
This is far too extended a context. Al th01~gh it correctly
j_nterprets the 9 in question as .the lo\lrer right-hand ~, when we

try to give the 8 in the saoe b~r the same treatment, lTe find that
there ate two different readings of the note which are equally close
to the already-occupied positions in the space. Both the right-
hand or the left-hand G:# in the above diagram give the same
. ...:
measure. This is the only case among the forty-eight in which
I
this clustering by the 1~1anhattan distance measure fails to settle
the interpretation of an accidental - t:t'}oilgh even here, it tells ·,
us hmt to write it dO\tn in .the traditional notation (and, .further-.
more, would have settled the· matter correctly if vle had given
it all the notes of the trill that Bach wrote on the note).
However, ·to say this is really to quibble, since everybody knows
that that note is not really ambiguous. By thi~ time ~he piece
has modulated solidly into the. key of the dominan~, and the program
isamply an inadequate reflection of our interpretative perforrr1ance
when it includes the part of the ~elody that precedes the modulation
in the context of t~e note. In another case where this rule
applies its inadequacy is revealed in actual error, albeit one of

a rather fine distinction. In the E minor fugue of Book I that 'VTe
looked at before'there is a long descending sequence which.!:!§.
. realise is a·chromatic scale, although it is interleaved with
repetitions of the top E, and the program cannot recognise it as
such.
1' 1' 1'

3 1 0
2 1 D
When the program gets to the minor seventh 2, the key having been
decided by the preference rule, it places this accidental by
clustering with respect to the preceding six notes. The resulting

interpretation is as the lol-Ter righ:thand D. However there are
compelling musical reasons to believe that this is wron~, and .it
causes a further conclusion by the algorithm that certainly is •

.
We know it is really part of a descending scale and therefore
likely to be associated with the next note in that sequence, 1,

as a diatonic semitone. This note h~s to be the major sixth c~ ,
both because the key we are in is E, and because otherwise the
adjacent E notes will be related to it by distant imperfect
intervals. However, not only does the program take no account
of these facts, but when it comes to interpret that 1, has so
biased the cluster tovtard· the right, by choosing the not_ation of
the previous minor seventh, that the note is interpreted as ·the

imnerfect major sixth, notwithstanding the consequent wild
imperfection ascribed to its relation with the surrounding E notes.

In short, the real m1~ical context in which this interpretation
should be carried out is very much more local than that used by
the clustering rule. When we next look at the notation.problem
in the context of another algorithm, we:: shall make a great deal of
this failure. It sho~ also be remembered that, because of the
nature of the semitone rule, the same result would have occured if
the descending sequence had been a simple chromatic scale, without
the alternating E notes. Thus both the notation of accidantals and
of chromatic scales are less than perfect in these forms.

166
I 4. The Triangle Game
4.1 Introduction
4.11 Introductory Proposal
The Y~nds of miotgke that the previous algorithm made suggest
that a completely different kind of algorithm was required as its
successor. Just as the 'Clustering' procedure was introduced as
an introduction to that algorithm, a simple example. of its type,
so there is an extremely simple idea of the new kind, which will
illustrate the nature of the second algorithm for key-identification.
This idea attempts to capture the remarks mad~arlier ,about the
'obvious' interpretations of the first few intervals in theE
minor, Fugue 10 of Book I, and the St. Anne fugue, although it

does include an asownption that the melodies it deals with will
begin either With tonic or with dom.inant. This is an even stron5er

assumption than that involved in the old tonic-dominant preference
rule, and will be one of the first features of this simple algorithm
to be discarded. The idea is put for1vard in Longuet-Higgins (1972)
as an outline, without the rather odd extra rules that will be

included here to make·a.complcte algorithm, as a suggestion as to
the form of such theories, rather than as a serious algorithm. It

will be used for the sa~e purpose here, though with certain
liberties taken wit~ the original form of the proposal, in order
to make points clearer.

The intervals between the verJ first two notes of the E minor
and the st. Anne fugues both have obvious interpretations relative
1S7
to the tonic, since the/ arc in its c~1ord, a:-1d it is the failure
of the algori t!u:1 to emb•)dy this r0alisation that ma}:es its
analyses so unlil~e our O\m. The new p~oposal is to capture in
rules the idea t:1at the first interval can be associated with a
particular interpretation, say as moving from domina.nt to mediant,
as in the St. Anne, relative to an implied key centre. That key
centre is to be taken as the key of the piece. l;ot all the
subjects begin with the particularly clearly interpretable intervals
rri thin ~ho:-ds. Some begin with seconds and sevenths, but perhaps
'iTe can make some st~:·ong assmnptions about the interpretations
relative to a tonic that should be laid upon them,in some set of
rules such as the following.
1. Two hypotheses are to be ente~tained:
a) the first note is the tonic, and the key is that key, in
either minor or major mode.
b) the first note is the dominant, and the lcey is that of the
tonic a fourth belo';-T, again in either mode.
2. The first interval, made by the first b·1o notes of the melody·,
or in certain cases another early interval, confirr:1s one or other
of these t1<To hypotheses (the mode may be decided fo:cthwi th or later).
It does this in the follol'Ting way. (And here vTe go beyond the
outlines of Longuet-Higgins ( 1 9'/2) for the sake of illustra tio!l.)
a) if the interval is a unison, then it is passed over, and this
procedure is applied to the succeedine interval. If the
interval is a..Yl ascending tone, and is follo1·red. by a descending

tone, th~n both arc passed over an~l this p·."occdure is applied
to the next interval after the pair. ~his is necessa:y in
l~guc 21, Book I.
r-
j
b) Othe~jise the interval is interpreted as perfect, including
the tone (interpreted as a ~ajor tone). (The minor tone is
the only "imperfect" version of an interval l·Thich could have
been entertained under the two hypotheses.)
c) Given the two initial hypotheses, and thr:! interval selected
by (a) and (b) above, the rules for confir.:1ing a hypothesis
are as follo"iTS. Each class of interval is identified by its
size in keyboard semitones, ignoring octaves, so that, for
exanple, a descending semi tone is identified \'Tith the r.1ajor
seventh, of size 11.

159
size of vector implica. tion

interval in notation as a cho-r·d interpretation mode
semitones in harmonic in }larrnonic of first note
space space
oJ/o
:1 dom minor
2 •-o~ .. .--? • ton
3 . ;;: OJ ton minor
4 t t-o ton major
5
·~ ~ do m -
6 • ~·
0
7 ~ ~r ton
• ~I
8 1 do m minor
9 ~ b-. dom major
10 o(:--0-•
, b-. dom
l
l 0
11 :~ ~
ton
So, for example, in Fue-ue 17 of Book I, since the first
interval is a ascending fifth, se"'1en semi tones in size, and as the
table shows, a perfect fifth is alw~s interpreted as b}.ng fro:n
tonic to dominant, then the first note must be the keynote. As it

happens, the next note is the major third of t}'].e scale, so the
further question of •·rhether the key is major or minor is sett led.
then: the key is AP major.

160
. ~
to1ut. Jo,... 3J .
Less obviously, the first interral of Fueue 9 of the same book
is a tone. The table shov1s that every ascending tone is to be
interpreted as starting on the tonic v1hen it is not followed by a
descending tone, so that the key of this .:U..~·bject must be E. This
is right, although because of the melodic convention, the decision
as to t!1c major or minor character has to "'Tait u..'Yltil tl1e second bar.
In general this nodel would 1vork '\'Tell on the subjects of the
forty-eight and it gets theJl all right, except for t\'IO. It also does
fairly well on subjects of Bach's organ fugues. But its errors are
more revealing than its successes. We can disregard its error in
believing that II, 5 starts on the dominant rather t1·:an the tonic
nothing short of a full-blown analysis of the subject including
the important and still untouched concept of cadence is going to
get this right, since it starts with the notes of the subdominant
triad.
1£1
~
\ J
Other errors are more serious.
4.12 Three Interesting Errors Of The Introductory Proposals
4.121 The Initial Ascending Tone
In section 2, (b) of Jlt. u~ it was stated that, in addition to
the constraint ex hypothesis of section 1(a) and (b) that all first
intervals other than the tone ~ust be perfect, the tone must also
be perfect (the major tone) rather than imperfect (the minor tone,
say from dominant to submediant). Unless one takes the curious
view that the rules one uses for fugue are radically different from
those for other melodies, this is intuitively very odd. There are
countless examples outside fugue Hhere a melody begins on the
dominant, goes to the submediant (a minor tone) and thence to the
tonic. Such melodies are, for exar.tple, September in the R::tin,
3he' 11 be Coming Round the Eountain, A .2.oo~"1 vrith a Vi e¥r and Pop
tunes too numerous and trivial to ~ention. Fortunately thcro are
also so:-:1·:: Bach fugues begiP~'1ine on the do:ninant wi ti., an ascending
minor tone:
16Z
~
~ T
s=:-
n -~ I
I
'I
.Lt , C?k_
}L ""-- "1 ... 4 J
--
-
-~
\. .}
In all of these examples there is no question of the melody being in
the key of the dominant: in all cases their various opening sequences
are equivalent to a movement from Dominant to tonic. In other rlords,
I
I
T
I ,
j
..J. ;
-
I f
Conveniently enough, the fu:;ues state this nost clearly of all ..
There is no doubt in the hearer's mind that these sequences'stat~
the triad of the true key note, C, and no amount of success on
other material should persuade him that there is anything out of
the way about these melodies ..

Can we explain 1-1hy this evidence should be taken seriously, and
why the rarity of such sequences among fugue subjects should not
determine the form of our model? A central idea in fugue is the
reflection of tonic by dominant and doillinant by tonic among the
various voices. T~1is is the principle which underlies the phenomenon
of tonal answer, (iliggs). In the ans1·rer, {c,.f. Part I) to a· given
fuglie subject, early and salient do~inants in the subject are

ansvrered by the tonic a fourth abo~Je (or a fifth bGloir) rThile
other notes are generally ans\'Tered at a fifth above (or a fourth
belovT). Such subjects as t!1e above pres'-:nt a probler:1 for the
composer in \-Tri ting his answer, for the ansvrer should reflect
the structure of the subject as closely as possible in a good
fugue. A tonal :mswer to the above subject l·Tould destroy the·
structure of the ru..Yl, since the initial tone \voula be replaced
by a third. '
On the other hand a real ansv:er \-Tould contradict the
basis·of fugue by not reflecting dominant by tonic. (In this
case Bach chooses the latter alternative, presur:tably because the
initial dominant is short and the run only a grace to t~1c tonic.)
In this light 1-1e can see that an initial minor tone vrill be
a rare occurrence in fugue, but that this is an artifact of the
form, and may have nothing to do with the -vray in -vrhich ue establish
a s~nse of the key in a melody.
If we accept this view then \'le must accept the fact that lie
may have to look further into the tune than the first tltlo notes
to establish the key, and may have to entertain more than one
hypothesis as to the harmonic function of the notes, (e.g.

'
minor tone versus major tone) \•(1ile we are doing it. T?lis can
hardly surprise us. Moreover if we are to capture that
description of the above fugue subjects \·T2!ich rre claimed \·Tas
intuitively obviou.s, VIe sh3ll have to talk about such constituents

16!\-
of melodier:: as runs, and consider them as units.
4.122 The Tonic/Dominant IIynothc:>is
It is a consequen~e of such aspects of fugue as tnose discussed
above, that fugue subjects \'Till have a stronzs tendency to begin
on tonic or do~inant. '

However, just as in the case of the initial
minor tone, a hug~ range of melodies from all periods suggest that
this is not in general true of melodies, and makes our chosen,
subjects an unrepresentative sample. Such melodies as the carol
In the Deep Eidvrinter, \·Thence is that Goojl y Favour Flm·rinr;?,
Jeannie vri th the Lieht BroHn Hair, Chattanoo:--·a Choo C>oo, etc. start
on such degrees as the mediant and subrrwdiant and seem to present
no complcxi ty in their implication of ke.{. For this reason, if
we are goinr; to continue to use fugue subjects ( i·Ihich \·ie Hant to
do for othe::... r:easons) then we must pay quite considerable
attention to the fevr \·.r~ich do not start on tonic or d.or:rinant.
For tuna teJ.y Bach provides us vTi th a fer;r. Anong the forty-8igbt,
Book~ 21 has the supertonic as its first note. Intt.:.i tively it
is clear that the four notes of which this is the first constitute
11
mere decoration to the tonic, and that what the first bar raGans"
is a tonic, major, triad arpeggio. It is clear fro~ this that
we are goine to .,,an 't to recog:-~ise such deCOl"'a ti ve sequences in a
special way. The idea of "parsing" a melody into sequences that
are treated as units is familiar fro:n the earlier worl: on 8etre.,
\~c must break the tune up inP~ 8uch constituents in order to

1b5"
understand the l:annonic sequence of events.
IIaving r8duced this subject's beeinning to a special case of
startinr; on the tonic, vTe have not adv~!nced \the cause of a truly
general key idcntifica tion algoi·i thm, for this feature could easily
be incorporated into the tonic/do~-:r:.~ant algorith1, just as the
repeated unison already is. The next example, a C minor organ
fugue, is not so easily dealt Hith.
\ve vlill not attempt to deal with t~1is fugu.e at this stage, r:c.:.~ely
point out that is begins on the minor submediant, that the first
note is not in any simple sense part of a decoration or either
domiYlant or tonic, and that the initial seoi tone ~-rill be completely
misleading under the tonic dominant rules. We now proceed to s~ne
positive proposals.
4.2 Playing G~mos With Intervals
4.21 The Concont of Key
The idea behind the :nodel which folloi·Ts is that the concept of
tor!n.li.ty of a sequ.ence of notes is intimately involved with ~he
concept of the triad of tl1a t tor-1ali ty. That is to say that when a
scqu~nce of notes sugeests a tonic to us, in ter:-:1s of i·Thich its
interval relatio::.ships are inte:-preted, the Hay it does this is by

1bb
implying a triad. 'rhe most obvious case in point is lvhen ·the

/
sequence begins with an urpecrGio and actually states a triad, as
does the i~ minor fugue 10, Book I of the forty-eight. In this case
\'le clearly vTant to say that the first three or fcur noten wa~c
us certain that v!e are in the minor key of tl~J.e first note, for
tho~~e notes u.re all in that triad and no other. By the third
note we no longer vtant to enetjtain the possibility that ;re are
in the closely related major of Hhich the first note is the mediant,
c.
mu~h less in the absurd key of Gt m.ilj.or l'lhich the old algorithm
allowed. Ho\.·ever, few melodies are as obliging as to start vti th
an arpeggio, and many do not even start with one of the ir.tervals
within the triad. vle shall see that lie can v:ri te rules vlhich
interpret the actual intervals of the melody in terms of the
intervals vrhich make up triads, the 5th, the 3rd and the minor
3rd, and their inversions.
Of course most melodies pass through many "triad regions", or
tonalities, whilst remaining in one key. It is an assumption of
the following model that the first tonality established in the
melody is that of the·key signature. This is of cours8 an over-
simplification, aeain ta~d.ng unfair advantage of the fact that \'le
are dealing Hi th fugue subjects, but it is very often true. vie
shall see that w·hen it lets us do'im vTe can draw some inferences
concerning the nature of a better nodel.
4.22 Imulication And Confir~ation Of Triads

167
/ 4.221 Some Introdu~torz Examules
To describe the assu~ptions and nature of an algorith~ f0r key
identification -vre can bec~in by looking at three fueue ·subjects -
the B minor :(ugue 24 and theE major fugue 7, both of Book I,and
the C major subject already quoted earlier in ttis section.
The B minor begins \'li th an arpeggio, and this seems to
establish the key. It must, because the accidentals soon bo~in
and we must have a key frarr;.e'lrork lvi thin 1-1hich to interpret them ..
(\fe kno1-; that the tonic dominant rule from the old alt;ori thr:.:. is
inadequate because of the '3t. Anne' .) We have already shown
that the tonic/ dom.inant hypothesis l·Till not do, so the initial
descending major third (from li'f. to D) cannot simply be interpretc~d
as dominant to minor mediant of the keynote B: it could be
interpreted as mediant to tonic of D major. On the other hand
no other interprets.tions of this first event of the melody seem
remotely likely. It 1vas noted in the discussion of the previous
algori thin's analysis of the E minor fu~~,ue 10, Book I t!u1 t t!iO
interpretation of the, in that case, minor third as a!l aug::1ented
sec0nd SE"~eEed ridiculous. Here no such~mpertec~ interp~etation
is possible.) We express these state~ents in the following
tentative rule:
168
The first interval is perfect ( 1·re 1-rill deal Hi th the tone la tcr).
If it is a 5th, 3rd, rninor 3rd (or their inversions) then it
proposes for the firnt tonality of the melody (an9- hence the
key) the tv:o triads in \vhich it occurs.
A.lthoJgh the first interval of Book I, 24 does not uniquely
detennine the key, the second interval seems to settle the matter.
It confirr:1s one of the tHo hypotheses, because it completes its
triad, and it rejects the other. \·le express the idea that the
second interval 'confirms' a hypothesis proposed by the first
interval in the follo1·1ing equally ten ta ti ve rule:
If the sec,~nd i.nterval is a perfect 5th, 3rd or minor 3rd, which
~ies in a triad proposed by the first interval then that
' proposal is· confirmed.
It seems as if the E~major fugue no. 7 of Book I of the forty-eight
is a similar case, having an initial broken chord, (albeit a major
one) rrl:ich es ta bli shes the key beyond further doubt:
t ~. on1c arpegg1o
This is because notes 2, 3 and 4 seem to constitute a decoration of
G, rather than having any particular force of their o1vn. The
"meaning" of the first five notes seems to be Bp - G - E, 1vi th t!'le
li, in some rm.y subordinated to the Gs whi eh surround it. We capture
this intuition by sayine that the configuration:

behaves like a single notP., ( vTe are not at t:v? I!lOI11en t concerned
\ii th the: duration of this implied note) and \·te c~ll it nn infJ ection.
It is a rather ":!ell-behaved" constituent of melodies, and vle found
it necessary in talking about answers. Later in this section we
shall consider some contextual restrictions on its definition ..
The C major fu.::;ue ~·Thich was introduced earlier in t!"lis se\.~tion,
to sho\·T that the first t~·To notes of a Bach fueue suhj eet might be
a minor tone apart, suggests another- constituent of melodies,
another kind of sequence which must be considered as ~ whole. This
time the constituent corresponds not to a sing~·J; note, as did the
inflection, but to a single tranoition between two notes, or
constituents corresponding to single notes.
It \ias said in the introduction that ue cannot make a hard and
fast rule as to the major ver~;us minor character of an ini t:Lal tone.
Noreove~ there is nothing in the first few ascending seconds to
determine \·rhich "re are dealing with in this case.
that the question \vas settled rather later, b.! the fact that the
first bar seems to simply state the tonic triad. r.I.'o ca:pture th:Ls
intuition we say that t?le initial sequence of rising Sf.:conds is
treated in a block as a movement or transition from the first note
of the sequence, C, to the last, G. This kind .of transition is
termed a .r.illl, for obvious reasons. It is treated as a block
just like the simple first interval of the B minor: that is, it
170
propoocs hypot1ICnes for later confirmation. Not only is the. idea
of this kind of constituent familiar from the earlier work: this
very category \·ras required in the treatment of metre. Thus the ~
can 'be said to be "~:TelJ -bc>avcd acros:J these tHo do:nains. 'l1 he first
fu&"'Ue of Book I shm·Is that this account of runs is not yet complete.
Book I, 1 , also starts vri th a run of an ascending 4th, but from
tonic to su~dominant, not dominant to tonic.
With the simple de:fini tion of a run as a transition, to be tre~tf:.:d
just lil{:e a simple interval, the true hypothesis t~~at the fugue
begins on the tonic is never advanced, so we can never get the
right answer by the process of confirmation outlined earlier. \•ie
could make a special rule that whatever happens the keys of the
first note are alvrays included in the set of hypotheses set up for
decision. But this seems a bit arbitrary, and still leaves
unexplained the events in the C minor organ fugue quoted before.
This does not beein on tonic or dominant, neither does the first
run, between AP and Ep, propose the triad of C minor. There
does not seern to be anything \·lildly out of the ordinary about this
subject: its settling down into C minor does not come as a groat
surprise, so vre \vould like it to be subsui11cd under the rules we

1 71
need for the othur fu[~es. Until vre h<1ve amplifi~d our rules for
proposing triads on the basin of intervals to include thc~rnplications
of seconds, He cannot define t~~e rules for 'implications of runs~ ~·le
shall do this next, and fo1~ t:1e moment merely say t~1at the
implications of runs are more complicated than those of simple
intervals, and that, besides the implications of the transition
between the end notes of the run, its internal structure may
propose some further hypotheses, by rules of implication and
confirmation similar to those \'le have already dealt \·tith.
Some tentative rules have been phrased for key decision in
terms of the successive transitions bet~·recn notes in the melody.
The first transition pro-:-Joses hypotheses as to the key of tho
melody, subsequent transitions decide beb-Teen these until only
one is either confirmed or maintained. We have seen informally
that transitions may be of t~1o kinds: the lJill, an ascendin~ or
descending sequence of seconds, and the .ju:1p, an interval \·Tllich is
not a second involved in a run. \·le have also seen that the end
points of transitions can be of more than one kind, can be more
complicated than just a single note. The necessity of ?onsidering
the inflections as such a point-configuration has already been
suggested, and others Hill be introduced bclo'''· 'l'hese definitions
of constituents are logically separate fro::1 the ir:te.!."pretative
rules of hypothesis proposal and confir:1a tion. l~e might therefore
identify the::1 v;i th a partial syntax of melody. In the following
discussion both of the aleoritho and the program Hhich enbodies it

17 2-
we shall r.1aintain this distinction of the syntactic and interpretative

components.
This business of pro_posal and confinnation of h·1potheses r:light
bn seen as a board game, in l'lhich fthe players are the hypotheses
proposed in the first stage as to the ke; of the melody. Each p\ays
on the 'board' of the haroonic snace of Fi!!ure

L Q
LLI • 'rhey each have
a number of ' sticks 1 , corres pondine to the diads of the t:1irds and
the fifth '\'thich occur in triads. rThe aim is for a player to put
sticks down corresponding to his key: The few syntactic rules
described so far say ho,., he may do this. We shall see more in
the sections that follow. If a player is unable to put a stic~~
do'\'Tn on one or another side of his triangle, then he is elit1ina tsd,
under the principle of Congruence. Play continues until only one
player is left: 'he' is the key of the piece.

Because of this metaphor, the algorithm being developed here
is called "The Triangle Game". In the sections that follow it
will be shown that the events of the melody nay be such that
several 'players' of this game can take then as support, and even
that new players 1:1ay be created to join the game in the middle.
In the interpretative domain we have only considered the
prop~rties for implication and confirmation of t~iads for the
major and minor 3rds and the 5th tranGitions.
In fact transitions of all sizes are associated with tri~d
implications, although since the rest of the intervals are not

173
I
directly p~·esont \·Tithin triads, t~:is a~:wociation is less· direct.
In the next tvo sections the definitions of these two

<..e~>~poY\c..""ts- 1.0dl .be. flll~"' out-.. S't'v-.c.< 't-he.. sy"ta)( de.-\-\V\ll-'o""...s o\-
constituents of melodies arise out of the desire to si~plify
the interpretative conponont, we shall look at interpretation
first.
4.222 Interpretative Rules
~.2221 Interpretation Of Transitions As One Of The Chord Dinds
The thirds and the perfect fifth, (and their inversions)
imply the t1·ro triads apiece l'Thich they take part in. '.Phe rer~:w.inlne
intervals are the minor and r.1aj or tones, and the semi tone, and
thej_r inversioi"..s the sevenths. (Imperfect intervals other
than the minor tone have no implications. lience if a hypothesis
:r:equires an interval to be imperfect then it Hill tend. to be
eli~inated at the expense of any l·Thich do not.)
Th~se seconds and sevenths are interpreted as imp]vi~g thirds
and fifths 1vhich in their turn imply the triads in Hhich they
occur. Unlike the intervals of the triads, the seconds arc not all
identical in their implications ~·li th their inversions the seven·t11s.
'l'he implications are based on the harmonic sp.~ce.
The major second - tvT': steps to the right in the harmonic
space - implies the perfect fifth - one step to t:1e right. T!!us
the initial tone of Book I, 9 'Proposes a perfect fifth and hence
t~e ninor and ~ajar triads of the first note.

/
Its inversion the minor srJventh - t . . TO steps to the left -
implies the perfect fourth - one step to the left.
The minor second and the corresponding .in~Tersion, the "rain.or 11
seventh offer a sliehtly tricky problem. The ascending second -
• , t> o·
one step up and t1·1o to the left - clearly ir.1plies tl1e fou1·th -
one step to the left. 3o in fugue I, 21 the ninor tone domil1-:J.nt
to subraediant sets up the true hypothesis that the melody bee;·ins on
the do:11inan t.
The inverse, the "minor" oinor seventh is more complieated.
T1vo st2ps right and one doi·rn, it c.:1n function as a g-.cace note to
the lo\'ter note, as in th ..: first interval of., Jeannie \·Ti th t~e Light
Brov~n Hair' •
In this case its impli.cation _i_s the fifth from the note one to the
left of the lower notes:
~0 • 0
i
i
0
f) ~. b--.
impl--ring in turn the above major triad. But because of ~he
melodic convention in scales, "'Te shall see \vhen we co;.1e to deal
with runs that the implication
0 C)
must also be entertained in order that the internal structure of a
run shall al,iays suggest the key of its first end point.
There is yet another interpretation t~at ~ust be included for
t~e minor seventh. 1-'ugue 1 9 of Book II beeins vri th several
transitions betvreen t~e tonic and the ~e<.liant of t:·1e true k.cy, A
major.
1?6
The first t!u·ce transi t:Lons, therefore, leave the true !{cy and its
rola ti ve r:linor, F'tr r:Li nor, still. 'in the ea~:w 1 • These t\·:o keys
1
differ as to t~1c intorpreta tion of the~ ~:tinor seventh'' betuoen cJ1
and B.
B oil
A E B
As was seen above, the 'major' version is interp~eted as a fourth,
so the F~ hypothesis is ~aaintained. In order that A ~ajor should
live to fi({ht another day (and 1·Tin) the third implication of this
interval
~ 0 0
i
b-o •
rnu3t be included.
As w·ith the major tone and its inversion there is so::1e
temptation to restore the symmetry He see in t!1e other intervals,
and include all of t[lese intervals amone the implications of the
minor tone (above). \'le do not do so because i:'l Bach 1 s ·:;.usic
the implication
o-o 0
0 0
can·ncver be true, not even by melodic convention.
The ser::i tonG. is the :::ost 9.I!lbiguous interval of all.· Both it

177
and i Ls i;~versc, the ma,jor seventh, each have four implied r:-1ajor
thi:-.."ds and fifths, those ~·(nich in the :·:p;.ce surround the diae-onal
step of a diatonic nemitone.
0 •
0--e
~,210 ~
0 0
f}.C>
~--o
' '
•
r 0
0
• I
'
Thus there are six implied tr·iads. (This prolife:cation 2-s n~cessary:
see for instance tr1e vTOrked example of C mi~or Organ fue-ue. ~'le
can sum~arise all these rules for the ir:1pli ea tions of trCJ.nsi tions
'
of vnrious sizes in the follo 1;Ting table (see Table 5 and Appendix
IV section § 1)
A full exanple of the ne rul9s in action -:,rill :have to Hai t a
bit, until the further question of what effect such an i~plied
interval has on the rest of the analysis is ansHered. In particular,

the question is uhether the transition t::a t follovrs the implied diad
is to be interpreted just as it stands, or whether it should be
interpl~eted _in the light of the previo1.1s ir:lplication. Fugue 4
of Book I offers a hint.

17~
I
Size Of 1:ota.tion Di&.d
/
rrruns. In space· Interpret e.tions

In f3pece
---·-···--···----I
1,11
0 •
l 0
j
------()-· 0-'
i
.- .-- - o-:--:o__•
2 a) ·-b-.::,.. •--o
b)
-~ ••
0 •
o-•.
3,9
r 4,8 j
•
5,7
"-
10 a) o~o-• o-•
b) •~o a) • 0
0 ~.
0
--bT-
0
•
:-c r· --- --·-····-.-: •
~
•
All Others
I!!lplicaticns Of Transitions Throurh Variotts Intervr:ls !'..s

'rhe Chord Di ads, er Perfect 5th, 3rds, etc.
TD"hle 4- .
179
The t rtlG key of C:ft minor is su>portcd in particular by an
interpretation of the initi~l descendinc semitone as the
nciehbouri!l{~ perfect fifth from Cif to G}~ , because it is in the
chord of c~ minor. IlaYine once made t!1is interpretation, it
is only natural. to regard the next tr3nsi tion, to ~, as being j_n
.,
the sa.me harr.1ony, and to disregard tne fact that the first note
of the transition is' B'Jt , since it has ul~eady been interpreted as
a dominant G!): • This idea 'ITill be elaborated 'later. For the
moment it is just said that such an 'implied' end-p 9 int of a
transition is called a virtual note, snd that every transition
is to be taken as beginning en the virtual end point of its
predecessor, '\'lhether or not t :1a. t is the ~ note ,.Ti th which it
begins.
4. 222 l!urther Int.erprcta ti ve Rule for 11 ::un" Transi t:L:1:1s

\'le are nou, having set up. the rules for inter:)reting seconds
as implying triads, in a position to desc::;:-ibe the rule for
j_nterprcting ~ as internally impl·1in::; triads over and above
those already resulting from the status of a run as a ~si tion.
Al thoue!: we. ohall not for;~lally define runs until the later s·~ction
on syntax, we can use a wor!{ing defi!'li tion as follo~;s:· ra ~un is

a s~quence of L'ltervals suc!l that each i!".l''.;erv.al is a second, eaeh
interval is of the same du.r~tion, and each in"~erval is in the
same direction)
The basic idea is that a run is'illustrated just like a

1 ~0 .
separate melody. 1'li thin the main body of the tune. That is, the
first second of the run propoDcs a number of h:rpotheses and the
later ones may confirm one or more of the:n. Houevor, the triads
"confirmed" v:i.thin the :.:-un a:::-e merely irJplications ou~side in the
context of the uhol~ melody. They are like any other implication
in that they m3.y propose hypotheses (if the run is the first
transition of the melody) or confir.11 those already proposed
(if the run occurs later).
Hol-Tever, since the s~conds and sevenths are ambiguous, both as
to their notation and as to their i:nplications, the,internal
implications of scales are many and complicated. Accordingly, a

. .
si:npler statement, which amounts to much the same thing, is made.
It is that, in addition to the implications set up by the transitiQn
of a run bet\veen its tv10 end points, the run carrir~e the further
implications of its first second or seventh, each such irlplication
being sub,ject to the usual requirement that the· notes that r.1al-:e uu
the run are notationally consistent uit~ 1·~...
A full illustration of this rule of 'internal i::nplication' of
runs lvill have to avTai t a fuller description of the alg~ri thm H:1ich
applies it. For the moment it is just noted that in the casec of
the C najor :!fugue 1 of Book I,

and the C minor organ fut3Ue ( vThich \·tas used to show that even Bach
fugue subjects £~ begin on the submodiant, and be left high and
dry by the tonic dominant assuctption),
the 'internal implication' from the first inter.ral of the run in
both cases is that of the fifth from tonic to dominant of the true
key. In both cases this allows the true hypothesis to be at
least advanced, so that, (as we shall eventually s~e) it may be
in the end confir~ed in both these case~.
As in the case of si:nple seconds and sevenths, we have to say
what effect such an implicit·interpretation of the transition has on
the further interpretation of the piece, and in particular whether
the next transition is to be considered in its O'im rieht, or as
start~ng on the implicit end-point of the former. As in· the
previous case a full discussion is postponed, but there is a clear
hint from the argu'Clent· concerning seconds and sevenths that the
. successor ~Till be considered as beginning on the implied, or virtual
note.
4.3 "Svntactic" Rules

4.31 Introductory
In section iJ 2.21 we saw the lineaments of a.· synt!lx: of melodies,
132-.
a set of constituents upon 1trhich t~1e interpretative rules operate.
vle saw that there arc two kinds of constituent we need for the
task in hand: groups of notes equivalent to a single note, rThicli
lie called points, (e.g. the inflection) and groups of notes
correspondin·~ to a movor;lcnt betlieen tvro point:J. \'le called these
latter transitions, and the two kidns lve tal~ed about rrere ~
and simple .jumps. In this section this "syntax" is filled out
further.
In the introduction He sa,·i another example of a configuration
of several notes acting as a single point, in II, 21. We called

this configuration the turn:
and add this to the list of points. The f o11 m·ring organ fugue,
one of many similar, shovts the necessity of yet another ~:ind, also
implicitly mentioned in the introductory section, when it vras sa~d
that, if the first interval l·rere a· ·:ani son, further evidence had to.
be sought.
triad
Under the interpretative rules, in order to h-:tve any hypotheses at
all we must wait until the descending m'"· 3rd, G to E, and pass
over the successive unisons bet1r1een the first four notes. The most
natural vray to do this in thfJ present fra;r.ework is to make them a
point. We do so, and call this t::,rpe a repetition, . though with
so1:te rcserva tion as to whether a transition is never a unison.
Any sequence of t"viO or more notes of the same pitch (or at the
octave'I . .... ... . ~ . count as such a point, so the first
bar of the above example is describable as a triad sequence of
repetitions. The four types of point - the turn, the inflection,
the rcuetition and the single~ where it is not involved in
one of the above - complete the class of points,
We have already i~formally identified the only two types of
transition that concern us in the task of key identification. They
are just the m and the jump • Having est~tblished the two classes
of object and their members, and~ havi.ng shol'rn in conmon-sense terms
\vhy 'tve need them, 'tPTe must refine their definitions. ·.
4.32 Further Svnte.x
4,321 I·lethodolordcal
The above rough definition of points and transitions overlap.
For example, '\ve have so far made so fel-·1 restrictions on the
definitions of~ and i!~flections that it is unclear \vhether
a)
should be parsed as 11
a £.1!!! froiil a .D..Q.~ · on d dovrn to a note of F,
followed by a 13!!1 from that F note to a C note", or as "a..!:!!.!!
from a C note to an inflection on G, etc.", or even as "a .!:!ill
from a C note to an F ~' 11

or as all of th~se. Wben vre have
decided _:that question, He shall similarly have to make the
definitions clear in such cases as
b)
and
c)
It is now the time to do this.

We would-like to make these decisions in the kind of way in_
which \'le set up these syiltactic categories in the first placa. That
is to say in such a way as to make the rules for inferring key as
simple as possib~e, and in fact confine them to the single one of
triad completion. However, the evidence concerning these finer
points is very much slighter, at least among the forty-eight fugJ.e
subjects, ani is really inadequate to decide many of them. This
does not matter very much, for the followinJ reasons.

In the '\'thole approach to the problem of :nodelling k~_y.:..inference
presented ,vJre several simplifyine assumptions have been made. The
most gross of these t'lan to assume that the metric st.ructure of the
mel_ody could be igr~ored by· the aleori thms for this task. The
assumption stan~ls or fA.lls on the performance of these. algorithms,
but whatever their success, it is nevertheless clear that a theory
\1hich maices no distinction between
. (o\)
and
(e) '
lacks something in descriptive power. In the latter' case it may

well be ·· that the initial notes stand as a unit for C, but in
the torme.r it is clearly not so. This evident incompleteness,
even at this very lo-vr level of melodic anal·rsis, coupled with
the lack of any syntactic categories abo"'e this level of the
minuJ;~:~ Of r1elody, mea!lS that the syntax has a rather odd status
in the r.1odel. The best that can be expec·ted is that we may lay
hands on a fe"tt of the :.tore well-behaved ea tegories, with simple
definitions, in the full expectation that these may be a little
vague. ".ve shall just have to put up trl th the vagueness, at
least until new evidence is forthcoming. This nevr evidence is
most likely to emerge froo the operation of t~e full algorithm

for key~in£'erence, whj.ch can be regarded more as a testbed for
such oubcot'lponents as tlus, than as being defined by theJa. (In
the end, it turned out that the rest of the ·algoritrrJ had sufficient
power to eet .the right answers (for the forty-eight at least) ey-en
l'Theh the inflect~on ea tegory of point l'Tas missed out altogether 1
although at the cost of some speed and perspicuity in its analyses.)
4.322 Definitions
In keeping with this light-hearted approach the questions
raised above are decided as follows.
All ambig11ity in the definitions is to be removed: t~e syntax
will always define a unique derivation for every tune. This is
done by restricting the conditions under 1-.r!1ich the point
~onfigu.rations were to be parsed ~ points, in the f'ollo-t-."ing wuyso
In all cases except one, (discussed beloir) the .rnn definition

takes precedence over that of the inflection: that is to say
that in all cases such as the above examples a and b, where the
inflection configuration
jjJ
occurs in a context where one or more of the seconds that it
comprises could. be incl1ded in a run, they~ to be included
in the run, and the configuration in question is l!.Qi a~ inflection.
The exception to this general rule is for setluences of the follow·ing
kind.
167
\v":1ere the inflection configuration is succeeded by_t not p:-eceded
by an ascending second of the same duration as-the seeend a~ tfi~
oa:!fte dure:ti-GR as the seconds of that configuration, (when it would

come within the scope of the above rule) it is nevertheless to
be parsed as an inflection. (This inflection will 9egin a

transition of type jump if there is only~ such succeeding·
second, but will begin a~ if there are more than one such.)
This exception to the generai rule "if it'coul,d be a run then it
is", is included for reasons vrhich can only be fully explained
in the contact of the full al£Orithm inlts application to our

• I
subject ma ttcr, the forty-eight. Hot·Tever so~1e intuitive support
can be drawn from examination of the following two fugue subjects,
numbers 4 and 6 of Book II.
, ,:r:JJ m-rn tfl m . 1
~~® j Ji ;rll tJ7J J1J~ ~r·

In no. 4 the first four notes constitute a case of the exception,
w~ich is made more plausible in that a descripti?n of the first

138
six noteo a3 "a triplet standing f.or C!t , followed by a triplet
standing for DU, in a step of an ascending second" conforms trti th
oui, intui tions as to the structure of the fragment. Similarly,

the first b~1r of no. 6 affords. two examples of the g·::meral case,
with the sixth and tt-Ielfth notes of the sequence having the
character cf solid destination for the scale runs that precede
them, and seeming not to be in any danger of being doruinate·.:l by

the s;.trrc:_;u!lding notes. Unfortunately the effectiveness of this
ar~uent in favour of these rules in considerably weakened by the
fact that our intuitions as to. the structure of these melodies are
probably strongly influenced by their metric structure. :r t has
already been admitted that the omission of any metric considerations
from these definitions is a serious lack, and a limit on the

se::iousness with w:--!iCh they can be regarded. They stand only
as working definitions.
Similar restrictions must be made on the definitions of turns
in the context of seconds of the same du~ation. In this case'
the need is to capture the idea that such sequences as that which
surrounds the. sixth note of fugue no. 6 above must not be parsed
as turns. For simplicity's sake the turn is restricted to those
contexts in which it is neither preceied nor succeeded by a run
of seconds of the aame duration and where none of the seconds which
make it up could pos3ibly be part of a run.
In a si!Ili.lar spirit of si:tplification the definition of the
inflection is restricted so as not to overlap that of the turn.
Tnat is to say that if the descending and a~cending seconds of·
the inflection occur in a situation in which they could be part
of a turn, then they are to be parsed as such.
Many of the above contextual restrictions on defi1utions of

points and transitions are most naturally expressed (with an eye
to a parsing algorithm) as precedences of one definition over
another. In pc9:rticular, the restriction of the inflection

definition to contexts where it cannot be defined as part of a
turn is easily expressed as a pr·ecedence of the latter definition
over the fomer. Both they and the repetition take precedence
in their definitions over that of the single~ or interval.
Similarly a rule which has so far been left unexplicit, P~mely
that a second is to be parsed as a ,ium12 only in contexts l'1he:re it
cannot b~ included in a ~' is most naturally expressed as a
precedence of the definition of the~ over that of the j~nJ2.
In a parsing algorithm this idea of precedence orderillff in the
definitions will be e~pressed in an ordering of tes~ing for

the constituents of the structural description.
This cor.tpletes the informal account of the syntactic definitions,

and the next task is to restate them simply and form~lly, in the
form in which an obvious parsing algorith~ tdll need then. T~is
rather tedious business, together with that obvious algorithm, is
treated in Appendix IV, section§ 2.

1<10
4.333 Parsine Algoritan

Once the definitions have been cast in this form it is
straightfor-ward to specify the parsine algorithm for the syntax.
To parse a melody according to the gram~ar, is to repeatedly
fill out the structure ·of fig. 11 by assigning values to the
features of its nodes that \IT ere specified in section § 2. 21 , ·

Appendix IV, according to the constraints set out in section§ 2.22
of the same Appendix.
However, the te~inals of the 'gra~~ar', the intervals of
various sizes, (unison, second, third, • ~.) a:ce not the eleh!ents
of. the input string. An interval of a certain §ize such as a
second, is an equivalence class over the musical intervals
defined by the harmonic space. "'le can sho\v th3 mapping from
vectors in the harmonic space onto these equivalence clas3es quite
simply by showing side by side a region of the space aro~~d ~
central origin, and the same region with each point re-labelled
with the interval equivalence. class of the vector that it
defines relative to that origin. (In the follO\-Ting figure, Of\ H..-r M~1.t r~·:.~·,<")
interval classes are represented l'Ti th the integers 0 ta 6, ~I here
0 is "uni.so:1'' , 1 is 11 second". ~d so on.)

1 5 2 6 3 0 4
6 3 0 4 1 5 2
4 1 5 2 6 3 0
2 6 3 0 4 1 5
0 4 1 5 2 6 3
5 2 6 3 0 4 ·1
We can clearly define this mapping fro~ vectors in the space onto
interval names as a simple rule.

If the in~.>ut to the algo~i th~ 1·tere a melody i• nlayed" in just
intonation, then this ::--ule -vrould be the only additional CO:!iponent
that the par sine algoTi thm \vould need in order to· parse the string.
However, the task in hand is slightly more complicated than this.
The task is to produce an algorithm, of \V'hich thio parser is a
part, that will decide l{ey from an input "played" in the ambieuous
equal temperament, ''~here each interval. of the string maps onto severa!
vectors in the harmonic space, and hence onto several equivalence
classes. (For exrunple, th~ equally-te£:1pered interval from keyboar-d
note 0, (c, B#, Dpp; etc.) maps (among more remote alternatives) both
onto the class of seconds, as the au.guonted second C to D# ~ and
onto the class of thirds, as the minor third C to E~ ). It is
at this point that we become aware of the decomp2osition of the

problem that was hinted at earlier. The problem of key decision,
and that of ~~sing are logically quite separate from the further
problems raised by th·: am.bigui ty of eaual tenperament. In this
section and previous ones vTe have discussed parsing and key
decision independently of the problems that equal temperar.1ent
~ntroduces - such problems as that of identifying an interval
as a second or a third, or a perfect fifth, \>Thich carries
implications of tonality, from·the i:nperfect., 1>1hich does not. In
the next section, concerning notation, we shall see that we can
look at the problems that the ~~biguity of equal-temperament introduces,
quite independent of the problem cf deciding a key, and of such

things as par~ine.
4.4 Notation
4~41 Notation Of E•lual-Tempered :iiielody As a Separable Problen
All of the preceding discussion of interpretative rules and
parsing only makes sense "''hen applied to melodies input in just
intonation, whose notes are identified unambiguously as to pitch,
and therefore as to position in the harmonic space, so that the
class of the intervals (second etc.) can be identified. It was
assumed that the additional problem that lie have set ourselves
aan be identified in tr~ang to model key id~ntification in the

ambiguous equal temperament could be assumed to be the separable
one, that is the problem of getting fro~ equal temperament to
just intonation. This is the problem of 'notating' the nelody,
trhere1 as usual here, the term is used in its fullest sense of

193
cor:r;,lete harmonic identification.
\·lhcn the concept of key \'ras beine refined, in the introduction
to this part, it was said that a key defines a set of expected
pitches,. and the .harmonic functions of those pitches as defined
by the harmonic space~ \·le saltr there that another way of putting
it \'Tas to say that a key defined the l'lay in which an interval in
ambiguous equal temperament would be .interpreted, or disambiguated.

The example given was that of the interpretation· of the tone from
C to D in the light of the two keys of C major and A minor. Each
key meant a different interpretation of the ambieuous interval in
the harmonic spece,t'a:nd in just intonation~ This means, conversely,
that the idea of notation of a melody is ine~tricably bound up

with the idea of its key, to such an extent that l·Te can only talk
about rules fo::: notating a melody a~cording to a give;t key. (This
complet~ identification .of. the key 1·1i th the notation 1-ras involved in
the first key identification algorithm, in that it associated a
separate notation with each hypothesis it held as to the key of the
piece. Ho·.-:ever, as \ve shall see in a moment, the identification
was not complete, and in particular, the old semitone rule, (which
defined the notation of semitone sequences independently of any key
hypothesis was inconsistent in this respect.) In the following
discussion we shell look at the problem of notation according to a
cav~n key, quite independently of our larger purpose of deciding

that key. After\·Tards we shall return to that problem, and resolve
19+
the difficulty of how we can decide a key on the basis of a r.arse
and a notation vlhich we can only ma..l{e in the light of already
(in some sense) knowing the key. (Clearly ,w~ shall get ~round
this problem as \tTe did in the first program, by having several
"hypotheses", and carrying a separate notation along \vi th each

I
of them, but that is getting ahead of the story.)
4.42 Notation In A Ke,;y;
4.421 Key F-rames Aeain.
To identify the idea of notation, o:· disa.'l'Jbiguation of equa.l
temperament,· '\·Ti th that of key, the Ja tter idea r.1ust be clear. In
the introduction, a key \'las defined as a set of notes, specified
as to relative position in the harmonic space.· The idea of t>:is
•t frame" of notes in the scale is already familiar from the
discussion of the earlier algorithm. If l'le are thiP-!cing of tunes
in just notation, then t11e frame is a set of exncctations as to
the notes, and the harmonic relations between them, tbat may occur
in the melody. In t.he realm of equal te~perament~ tho frame
defines . ~ the interpretations that will be chosen to resolve the
the relational ambigu'i ty of those notes. The first and sil!lplcst rule
for achieving the notation of a melody in a given key ~bodies this
idea of key. It is that if for some note of the nelody one of the
alternatives onto vrhich it 1nans in th'3 hareonic srAlce is uithin the

195"
I
frame of seven scnlc dee;recn, then that is the notation adopted.
lt,or example, when in th·.: key of C minor, it is not necessary to
look any further for an interpretation of the Equally 'l'e;:lpered note-
value 3 than to the Ep l'Thich is in the associated key frame, for
this iD what it r.1eans to be in this key ..
In additions the melodic convention applies here as it
did in the old algorithm: in the appropriate contexts of

~)
ascending and descending minor scales, the major·sixtb and I!linor
seventh.are included in the fra~o, and therefore in the above rule,
as the mediant of the subdominant, and the minor mediant of the
dominant respectively.
4.422 The Net-T Semi tone Rule
4.4221 The Old Rule

In the· first al.:;ori thm for the identification of key,
accidnntals li'ere treated in two '!,·rays. Those which occurcd in the
context of ch~~Jatic scales, ascending or descending sequences or

'·
semitones, were treated separately from ordinary accidontals, and
their nctation was actieved ~ccording to a special rule, the

semi tone rule. '!'his rule said that "in any sequence of notes
separated by semi tones, the first two are altvays separated by a
diatonic sem:i tone, and so are the last tv1o 11 , As has been hinted
already, this rule has two serious inadequacies, vThich will be
revealed by a good hard look at it in' the light of our new
decomposition of the problem into two domains of key decision
and notation in that key.
Firstly, ·we can now see that this form of the semitone rule
obscures the distinction drawn above, as between the business· of
key decision on the one hand, and notation on the other, and which
is otherl'lise preserved for the most part in the early algorithm.
~econdly, it is incomplete, in that it ~imply will not deal

with all possible chromatic scales bett'leen all degrees of the
scale. Some of these, for example the descending or.es onto
the minor submediant, do not end with a diatonic se~itcnet and
hence would be wrongly notated under this rule. Admi ttcdl~r, it
seems to be a feature of Bach's style that he never in fact does

have such a sequence. That is one reason \·Thy the rule works,
des.pite the confusion of its status, remarked upon above.
However, this is not a sufficient excuse to maintain this

formulation. Ue knorl that this rule is not a feature of composers'
style in general, even ones as close to Bach's otvn period as
Beethoven, as can be seen frore one of his fugues for Piano and
String Trio, where the first three notes, played in various

octaves by the are a chromatic sequence beeinning with a
chromatic semitone.
SW\a\t"
h,.{r
ro,'\e....
!t is as unsatisfactory to appeal to features of Bach's style at
this very trivial level, before deciding the in terp:ceta tion, as it
was to appeal to the features of fugue that they start on eith0r

"'ic
tonic or dominant) in ·the old ton-dominant
,., rule. It is one
thing to say that Bach could never have composed the ~bove - it
is quite another to say that he could not have 1·!:::-i ttcn it do\m •
If we take the tw·o complaints together then it is clear that
this formulation must be abandoned. If tie are to acc(JL~t the first
objection, then vTe have to tiake a semi tone rule, 1-r!~ere the rule for
notating the semi tones is separated froo the criterion for dec:Lding
key on the basis of that notation. But if the notation ;nust be

198
done before decidine vrhether or not the key is a reasonable one,

I
then the rule rnay !1ave.to notate sequences according to some
very unreasonable ke:rs. In othe:c 'VTords, it .must be comolcte

and cover any sequences of semitones for a given key. Some of
these may be unreaGonable enough as to require ~-diatonic semitones
at the end of chromatic sequences. (An example from the forty-eight
l'There an imtermediate hypothesis, ,later rejected, requires this,
will be given in due course.) Although it has already been said
that Bach's style ensures that such keys vrill immediately after-rrards
be rejected, if the above objections to the old semitone rule are
valid, then it is necessary to have a much more po,-:erful and
general semitone-notating rule, and consider stylistics later wnen
a full description of the melody has been formed. Fortunately,
it is possible to formulate such a rule.
4.4222 The Ne\·T Rule
The way this rule l'las derived was by separating two components
of the old rule. On the one han~ there is a component wr~ch
reflects the fact that there are cons~raints in interpreting
semi tone sequences, and in partic_ular that certain semitones are

interpreted, with respect to a given key, as diatonic. On the
other hand, there is a stylistic component, which says something
like "If a melody has been interpreted as having a chro~tic
sequence which begins or ends w:i:th a chror:1atic semitone? then it
probably l-Tasn' t l'lri tten by Bach." We keep the former part, but
leave out the latter, on the grounds that when people· deal "tii th
melodies, they do thing3 like deciding key and harmonic
interpretation first, then decide on t>:is bn.sis \.;ho the cor1poser
mieht be, ra thcr than ne'eding to knovT the cor.:. poser in order to
be able to interpret these simple aspGcts of the piece.
This former part is reflected in a much st:::·onger st:a.t·J~'lent aoout
chromatic scales than the old semitone rule. Every noto in a
chromatic scale except the first and last is involveo. i!l t1-ro
semi tones, ·one on each side of it. The n-:~w idea is that ever''
note in such a scale, except the first and last, is i_nvol ied :i j£ 1
at leaot one diatonic semitone.
The reasoning behind this suggestion is twofold.
all paths in the space mad-:.; by two semi tones vrhich do not _i_nvolve
at least on~ diatonic semitone are very long and rambling.
S~condly, because of this they imply that the hnrmony as8ociatcd
with the interpretation contains some wild leaps: in the follo~·ring
example of a descending chromatic scale from tonic throueh ma.jor
sixth in C minor the interpretation which involves the B~ in t\·!O
chromatic semi tones implies an implausible and unsupported mo:nentary
dominant harmony bet\t1een th<: tonic and subdominant harmonies 1-rhich
really ~ implied. The interpretation of the Bp as related to

one.
the r~ajor Dixth by a diatonic seiLit, subsuming it
~
,._,i thin· the
sil.1ele harmony of the subdominant., is the right one.
l.OO
Thus the problem in notating a chro!natic sequence is to decide
which of each pair of ~emitones if any is chromatic. This depends
on the key. In the previous example, if the key had been G minor,
1
the 'South-Easterly'
~ B.hy would have been right., and t~e ' \~este:?.·ly
one \'lrong. \·That is the nature of a rule to nota te chro!Ila tic
scales in a given key?
The old semi tone rule \tTas desi~ed to cater for such notatj onal
contingencies as shown in the tl'TO semi tone pairs ma:cked belo':·T in the
subject of the B minor fugue, Book I.
-,
f>..H'"
..,,
~ f\
I
~
I
I'l_
I I
~
{....y
~~ -
fl "\
~/"'
\_... (~
"· I
;. I
c:.l-' J.
J
'! "-!~ ~ (.-
\ VJ
.
I
~
• .! 4/J.k \
I-'
' -~ :it' 1C
The keyboard note-value 0 appears in both pairs, but in one case it
is to be interpreted as.' cq and in the other Bjt •. The old algori thn
was designed to notate these two differently l'li th respect to the
sinele key of B minor. It achieved this by invo~ing the se~itone
rule to say that each pair had to be a diatonic semitone. O:.·lhile
there is complete trut}: in tne statement that those semi tones nn:Jt
be diatonic, there is also a cooplete nonsense about notating

2.01
the latter pair uith respect to the same key-centre as the forl':!er:
a modulation to the dominant has already been signalled, by its
leading note, so ·the 0 is to be interp::·eted relative to that, as
the leading-note B:ft of .ll.§.. dol:!linant C~ , rather than in the key
od B minor.
The solution adopted in this algorithm is to ~ake the rule
for notating semitone sequences very simple indeed - so simple
in fact that we have to pay the price of .!l.Q1 being able to notate
that last passaee of the B minor using it alone, but must rather
have a 3epa.rate rule for detecting modulation, a!1d notate such
passages lri.th respect to the new tonal centre, rather than to a
single key sig!lature for the 1·:rhole piece.
We do this by simply prescribing the notation of any note in
a chromatic scale for a given key ,.Ti th a frame, li1~e a key fr~e, of
all twelve notes.
4. 11
0 1
8 3
For a given key, th~) notes of the scale are notatcd in this \'fay.
Rules for detecting l'!lodulations (or for defining '\·rell-formed'
Bach) should be l'Tri tten to apply to the result of this notation.
Thus, in the B minor a modulation might be detect:ed by the
o~cufence of the leading note of dominant, causing a shift of the

"
tonal centre t0 t~c doninant, and allo~oJ"ing the correct notation to
be derived from the frame, rela-tive to th.:•.t new tonal centre. It

is only, fair to state i~ediately t~!at such rules have not been
vrri tten, so tha.t this algorithm, for melodies t~1at !!lodulate at
least, vrill not carry out the notation part of the problem as
originally framed. All that can be said is that perhaps it
-constitutes more sensible framing of the guestion, even if it
does not give the anm•Ter.
It should also be noted in this connection that the task that
the algori th:-:1 is performing in :·athcr different in p::inciplc from
that attempted by the old algorithm. The prograr.1 no longer
de·tects the kev of the piece, nor _notates the piece in that key.
Rather, it detects a har:11ony: associ.~ted i'Ti th a sequence of notes,
a much more local tonal cenb."e vlhich mic;h t be. termed a tonali t~r
rather than a key, and notatcs t:::1e sequence wit11 respect to the
local tonality, rather than '·ri th respect to a global key. The
algorithtl only functiono as a key-identifier by grace of a loe:Lcally
quite separate assu:1ptiqn that t~1e first tonalit_y is the sarae as
the key of the piece.
· If it seems that a great deal of pot-rer has been sacrificed., it
sho.uid be reflected that the old algori t:-m' s po~rer in this respect
was to some ext~nt illusory. It did make errors in the notation
of semi tone sequences, and 't·ras not, in such analyses as that of
the B minor of Book I, reflecting the 1d.!1ds of facts about the
melody that it should have done.
4.423 Accidentals
In the first aleori thr1 for key identification, o.ccirlentals not
not included in semi tone sequences ;-rere nota-~ed by c};oosing the
interpretation \'Thich had the least total of its I-:anha tt.!in distr4nces
in the harmonic s~:l.cc to .tl!, the previously encountered notes of
the tune. It l·Tas clear all alone that, ,.,hatcve:::- the extent of
the context that should be taken into account, it •,.;as more
restricted t!lu.n this rule \'lould imply. In one case, \-There the
extent of previous :melody ~ras large, the algo.ci tr.:.::1 ~;;as led .1 ~to a
situation in l'lhich ttro interpretations ivere equal-val"J.cd Sii:!ply
because it took into account notes from a previous nodula.tion,
\'Thich l·rere in no --::usical sense the context of the note in question.
!·~uch more seriously, any errors in notation induced by this
algori thn lt~ill tend to be CU!Jlulative. The old algorithr.l prod.uced
a particularly sad case of this in its analysis of the E minor

.
fugue of Book II, as uas described at the very end of section § 3.2.
In that case, a trivial error caused by the old rule, that of
notating the ninor sev~nth as ninor third of dominant, instead of
the correct subdo!!tinant of subdor.1inant, so shifted the centre of
gravity of the tune to date to the East of the harmonic space that
the next note but one, the major sixth, was notated as the
extremely remote easterly i~perfect sixth. Accordingly, in this
new algoritlm it was decided to avoid this danger of cuoulative
errors by simply placing accident.:tls as closel 'I as possi bla to the
previous note. ·.re r:t.ay expect that in the case· of the rather
I ambiguous tone this may lead to errors, since it will always not-
ate an accidental which is a tone from t!Ja preced.ing note as being a
p1ajor tone from it. (This is correct in the case of• the E minor ·:
fugue.)
'fhis rule is a little odd. Intuition would suggest that accid-
ent£!ls should be notated with respect to their successor(s), since
usually an accidental signals a chanGe of tonality, in relation to
which it is to be understood. But at present we have no rules to
express this, and so make do with this admittedly unsatisfactory ruleo
If there ~ an error arising from this rule, it will only lead
to further errors when there are long sequences of accidentals. Once
again, this will only be the case when a modulation has taken place,
and, as han been argued above, there is no reason why this algorithm
should work when it is mistnken as to the true tonal centre.
There is one interval for which this rule for notating accid.cnt-
als does not yield a unique answer. This is the interval made up
of six keyboard serr.i tones, and it has two interpretations with
the same minimum Manhattan distance in tne space, those of the aug-
mented fourth and the diminished fifth. If there is such an int-
erval, and its second note is an accidental, then clearly the alg-
orithm must take some futther context into account. The question
is, ~ f1:rthcr context? Since we saw in the case of the E minor

that notation really depends on such staterr.ents of structural
description as "this note is in··the middle of a broken ·chromatic

~~1\\' "'"Jr.•\•.:'-l •Y'· ~~ ... V'c.ll~'
/
scale", rather than such an arbi tra~y context as/it
,_ might be. said
that there is no useful an0'.·1er to the last question. In the
actual imple::1entation the algorithm is simply arranged to d:rau
th~; use:c' s attention to the fact that it cannot decicic the
notation. In the event it turns out that the questi()n does not
arise: none of the fugue subjects used contc..ins an augrucnted
fourth endi!'..g on an accidc:LLtal, tho,;.gh there is no ~rticular
reason l>Thy tunes in general shouldn't.
4.43 Notation Alr;orithm

Because the new semitone rule notates all semitones by rote,
wi t::~out reference to any context, the sub-algori thr!i for nota.ting
·intervals in general is extr·emely simple. It simply checks
first to see w·hether the interval is a serai tone or not, and if it

.
is, notates acco~ding to the semitone-rule frrune. If not, th·Jtt
if the note is non-accidental, including being in tl1e local context
of melodic convention, then it is notated aeco~ding to that
frame, otherwise the interpretation closest to the predecessor is
chosen. Since the notation proceeds by interval; and each no-te
takes part in tw·o intervals, at each stage (except for the first
interval) the first of the tvro notes has already been decided.
(See Appendix IV, Section fi 3 for details.)
4.5 Jnterprctation And Identifyin0 Ke~
4.51 Introductory
106
4.511 llcc.'lpitulation Of Pa~si.nra And Notation

... ("f
We havo just seen in Sections S 3 and S 4.4, that for so~e given
ke7r, a un::_que notation, that is a disambiguation in full of
};.arr.toni.c function in the ctontext of that key, can be assigned to
each of any string of notes, input in equal temperament. When

this notation is known, a syntactic descriution of that string
for that key: can be derived. This desc~iption consists of a
se~nentation of the tune into its constituent transitions. E~ch
tr&nsition defines a vector in the harmonic space (among other
tni~gs).
4.512 Recapit~lation Of Interpretation
In section 8 4.222 we saw how to get from the vector in

..
harmonic space defined by a transition to one of the three diad~,
the major t:'lird, minor third and perfect fifth, plus their
inversions, that occur in the major triads, (see section§ 4.2221).
We also sai'r, in section § 4. 221 hmv to get fro~ these diads to
implied triads, which vrere identified with the idea of a tonality,
by the single obvious inference rule that~ diad carries the
implication of the t~·lO triads in \'Thich it occurs.

, In the
immediately succeedincr section, S 4.52 we shall ~ook again at these
two kind3 of interpretive rules, define them bet~er, and look at
an algorithm for app:.!.ying them to oelodies.
Th·.:se rules of notati6n, parsi!lg, and interpretation all apply

~07
to a melody whose key is known (or assur1ed). They only tell us

\'lhat the melody would convey if it "irere in that key. · There are
quite separate :cu.les w!J.ich, given such an interpretation of the
melody, concern the deg-.r.ee to which this messaee makes "good sense".
These rules, given several interpretations (corresponding to
several different keys) l-Till say which of those make most "sense".
This is clearly going to be at the heart of the algorithm for
key-identification.
4.52 Interprotin~ A Parse In Some Given Key
4.521 Irn"Qlied Intel""lra.l8 A.nd "Virtual :Notes"

This and the follow·ing section, S 4. 522 are an extension of
section § 4.2221 concerning the inter·pretation of transitions as
the diads that t!lake up the major and minor triads.
In that earlier section the idea was advanced that transitions
of seconds and sevenths, through intervals other than the fifth,
the thirds, and their inversions, were to be interpreted as
impl·.ring transitions through those intervals. In some case, notably
that of the semitone, the original transition would imply several
such diads. In these sections the concern will be to fill out
these two aspects of the implication on diads by transitions - in
defining what is m~ant by implication, and how often multiple
ambieuity of this implication can be handled.

To say that a transition, which defines a vector in harmonic
space, is to be t9.ken as implyine another' vector in that sp3:ce
is -to say sor.1othing about the possible harr!lonies of 'IT hi eh tl-!8. t
orieinal interv-~1 is a rcalisa tion. T!1us if we say t!~a t the
perfect fifth ir.rplies the 11a.ior and minor triads of i t3 lol.,.er

I
note, then 1·1e are tal~cing about the harmonies of ~·thich the fi.fth
is a realisation.
If l'Te vtant a .melody to "state" sone other harmony then we had
better not uoe that interval. ~,·hen it is said that the major
tone implies the perfect fifth, which in its turn has the
implications that ·l·te have just seen, a similar thin[S' is meant: .:..f
you want a subdoninant harmony, say, then don't use the maj'Jr to~e
fTom tonic to su:pertonic, _because that isn't \·that it r1uans •
•
(.'
I "\
.---'o~
I '
To say that a major tone from the supertonic implies a perfcet
fifth from tonic to doninant raises a further problem. ~·raere is
the succeeding transition to be C':nside:::-ed as starting frou.,!'
It was shown in section 4.221 that to be consistent with the
idea that the earlier transition stood for a fifth to the

domina!'lt, we should consider the next transition as beginnin5' on
the dominant. The example given there was th~t of fueue 4 of
Book I,
where the 'reading ' of the first semitone as a fifth to a 'v:l.rtua.l'
G~ , and of the subsequent diminished fourth as a "mino:L' si.xth"
from the virtual-note toE, leads to an interp~etation of the first
three notes as 'meaning' the tonic triad, and hence correctly
establishes the key.

Such an implied note. as this dominant, t'lhich does not appear in
the melody, but only e:~is.ts as .a consequence of interpreting t:1e
~ajor tone as a fifth, was called a virtual note. Since a
virtual note derived fron some such interpretive process must form
the starting point for the next transition, the algo:ci thm raust
keep a record of such a virtual end point in order to cor~cctly
analyise the next transition. It goes witnout sayinG that this
extra storage requirement -r,riJ-1(_~:1J like the notation and the

description, k·...rnsociated with the particular hypothesis under
l'thich this interpretation is :nade.

In the table of implications of Section § 4.22 the imperfect
intervals have undefined implications. They correspondingly

7.10
give rise to undefined virtual. notes. These are dealt with in a
special way, as described in § 4.6 below.
It \·Tas said in the earlier section § 4. 222 that the same thing
applie3 to the 'intcrrml implications' of runs: since a virtual
note generated by such an implication is really an identification
of the harmony \·Thich the hypo-'~hesis implies, it is natural to
take the virtual note as the·beginning of the next transition for
that hypothesis, disregarding the 'real' end point of the run.
It can happen that the 'virtual interval' set up in this way

.'
is itself a second etc. In this case the· j_nterpretation of the
virtual interval is exactly.as if it were a real one.

In all cases, if the nevT transition is a run, the internal
implication is taken on the basis of .the first of its seconds etcll
as it really is, regardless of virtual beginnihgs, on grounds of
simplification.
One more observation the details of virtual notes.
co~pletes
IS
It may happen, as in tuguejof Book I, that a sedond etc., implying
a virtual note, is ir:-:mediately follo\-Ted by its inverse, in a
return to the original note. r:J
:fJ~c f J;[fl ,
There is an additional constraint that the interpretation of t:18
inverse interval must be the sa~:1e as the former. The point of

/
.1.11
the restriction is to prevent vrholesale proliferation of hypotheses·
from these ambiguous intervals, in a :nan..'ler discussed in the
next section. It also applies when the interval which is the
inverse of its predecessor begins a run.
4.522 The Ambiguity Of Implications Of Seconds And Sevenths
On the above vievr of what virtual notes really~ in the
theory, it should. be clear that when it is said that the vector
corresponding to a transition through a second ~r seventh can stand

for several diad vectors, this is simply,to say that it can be the
realisation of several harmonies. For example,. among the

alternatives that the diatonic semitone of a transition from a
.
to B can stand for are the following:
o B
c. ~ ()
It can be interp~eted as the major third fro~ C to (virtual) E, or
as the perfect fifth from C to ..( virtual) G. · In the first case
the associated triad harmonies are C major and A minor, in the
second case they are C !>!ajor and C minor.-

Each of these corresponds to a different description of the
melody. When we are for~ing a description of a melody according
to a kef the ambig~ity of the interpretation of the transition
Jaust be reflected in an ambig·.Uty in description: there \'Till be

as many dencriptions as there are diads that the ·tra~si tion ma.7
stand for, and \'Then "le come to such ·an interval in the formation
of a des~iption, a copy of the description nust be created for each
such alternative interuretation. (Sec Appendix IV Section§ 4.)

In terms of the metaphor of the '"rriangle Game" it can now be
seen that the "players" are interpretations of the melody, and
that an ambiguous second or seventh causes ne;r 'players' to
enter the game, each a copy of so;ne earlier one.
For exaTJple in Fugue 4 of Book I,.
~/ .
for. the true key-hypothesis,- C~minor, as for nany others, the
initial descending semitone is diatonic, and therefore has four
interpretations. A copy of the original hypothesis is I!lade for
each, and associated with each interpretation of the interval i . .n
that key. Of the four, one interpretation.: actually supports the
key hypothesis, and ·is p!'eserved while the others are discarded.
As we have seen, the 'virtual' interpretqtion of the next interval
is un~mbiguous support for thiS hypothesis and no others, and

}TliS ltave..s C1J: ~s nl~ 0\":l::t .rv..rvivor .
since ~tF:.ey ropFenel=lt t'~te ~3:Ae ~(95', the problem is taken as solved.
4.6 Determining Xey By ComE§rin) Descrintions In Different Keys -

The Principle Of Con~ruence Again.
(It,or all 'ltorked examples belo1·1 see Append.ix IV Section 5 for
corrcspondinr; program output and· detailed ann.l.yses.) In previous

sections a certain t.{pe of algori,thm will have bccor.te familiar.
It runs as follovTS. "Examine the nelodf fron left to rigi1t under
all going hypotheses in ~rallel. If at some stage in the left-
right progress one hypothesis is contradicted under sone cri te:'5.on,
l'Thile another is maintained, then the former is rejected and is

not considered further."
This kind of algorithm has been typical.of.all stages of the
work, and was enshrined in the even more general "Principle of
Congruence", l'lhich states that a non-congrue!'lce, be it of rhyth~:l
or harmony, may no~ occur in the melody before a point at l'lllich it

can be unambiguously ~ :o be a non congruence; The algorit!i:n
presently under discussion is of this· type. Like the earlier

algorith~, at each stage of the key identification there are a
number of hypotheses as to the key. The tune is exa~ined under all
of these in parallel, and at each stage in the pass frow left to
right the attempt is to eliminate some of these according to the
Principle of Congruence. The process as usual ter.ninutes when
only one hypothesis survives.

In such algorith:1s there are two important para"!l·eters •. Firstly,
how are the hypotheses first proposed? Secondly, what is ~he
criterion under Y.Thich congruence is assessed, and hypotheses
rejected or maintained? In earl:i.er algorithms, bot!'l for identification

a
of key and metre,· there has beenAconsiderable variety uf 1-1ays of
handling these questions. In the netrical algorithms the
Principle applied in its stroneest form: only one hypothesis
was ever entertained at one ti::r.e, e.rected and elaborated upon

th:.~ earlieat pieces of evidence that the algori th!n came across.
In the early key-identifier, the set of hypotheses was originally
set up as the set of all possible keys, and the criterion for
the application of the Principle 1vas the l-leak one that the
occurrence of a:1 acc:i.den tal U..""lder some hypothesi a l'Tas to be taken
as a non-congruence, and the hypothesis elioinated. ·(Ho have
seen that this is too vTeak a criterion. · The point of the current
algorithm is to establish a better sense of c~r..gruenco.)
The algori t:b.m under discussion here is like the ea-:.."' lie(·
algori thr.l in reaching its conclusion by ·Ghe gradual elinLrn tion cf
a set of initial hypotheses. As in the earlier ~ersion, these
are the set of all possible keys, (more exactly '"~11 tho~;e keys
to which t!l.e first note of the raelody is not ac:!<.!ir.ient.::!.l.) Em.ve"'ler·,
its criterion of congruence is very rauch more po>'."er-fnl, and. in
particular, means that near~y all of these e.re ir:uaed.i2.tel:r
eliminated upom the examination of the first trnnsi tio:r~.
This criterion is twofold.· Firstly, exactly as in the old
algorith~, accidentals constitute non-congruence, and hypotheses
which involved early accidentals in their description of the melody
are rejected in favour of those which do :1ot.
hypotheses involve accidentals, as happens in fugue 12 of Book I,

..
thon ~are maintained under this part of the criterion.) But the
strength of the ne1v nlgori th.11 lies in a furthe= assw:1ptio!; of
congruence. vle have talked earlier about the harmon-r or triad
that a traPsi tion iinplies. The further definition of congruence
io that a harr::ton'r is conr;ruent to a l::ev if it is t~at of the triad
of the key concerned. This is the assQ~ption introduced tn
DS>ction § 4.21. Under the Principle o~ Congruence it follm·rs that
the first harmony of the nelod.y 1·iill be that of its key, and tl1at
j;j1e subsequent events l'Till contin~1e to imnly harnonies con;;ruent_
to tbe key until t!-la.t l~ey is uniauely established, (and non-
congruence can hence be seen as such).
This is an extremely strong assumption, and tve shall see that it

h .
is somet}ng.of an over-sinplification and causes the only erro~s
that the algorithm makes. Fo,·;ever, in a huge majo:city of cases
it seems to hold good.
If transitions had unique implications of harmony/triad, then
the very first transition of the melody ~,Tould usually settle the
question of key, since there t·Tould usually be only on8. hypotheeis
maint~ined under the Principle: the one vrhose triad vras implied
by that first transition. All others tvould be eliminated as non-
congruent. This occasionally happens. If the firs.t transition
is an ascending ru!l fro:a the tonic to minor third, as in Fugue 14,
of Book I , then the only hypothc3iS \·Thich both contains all t:hree
notes as non-accidentals, and contains the minor third in its t1·iad
is the true ~·-;.ey of F~ mino:-.

·.
(In fact Fit minor is also confirr.1ed b{ the internal implication
of the first interval of t~e run. Th~ major tone l~ to G#
implies the perfect fifth Fft to ctt · also confirming l!,j:f. minor.
The algorithm is designed to note tne fact that the two interpretations
both arise from the same hypothesis as to the key, and to terminate,
giving that as the answer. See Append~x IV Section 5, as for all

examples here.)
A similar thing happens in 1To.7 of Book I, where the first

transition is a jump from dominant to a ~ediant inflection. There
is only one key in which all of these notes can be accommodated,
and it is also one \'lhich the transition supports, so it is

immediatelu returned as the answer.
'&c JIIDLttl D 1 J,
More generally, even the simplest jllllp of a fifth betvTeen two simple
notes ca~~ies the implicatio~ of two triads, let alone the further
proliferation of implications introduced by runs and jumps
i~1vol vinz ambiguous seconds and sevenths~ This means that in
general the first transition l'lill not settle the question of key,
/
111
and t:1c earliest possibilj.ty of n decision will be at the sicond
transition. An e:mmpJ.e is the Ap major no. 17 of Book I.
The initial fifth causes two hypotheses of Ap minor and major to
be set up. One of these is imrnedia tely .confir~aed by the second
interval to the major t.:~ird, at the expense of the other, and since
it is the only survivor, the corres por:d:i.ng key is yielded as the
ansvrer.
''ihere the first transition is highly ambigu_ous, the· analysis
may need to be extended th:cough several more t:cansi tion. The
strongly ch;roma tic subject of the F minor, Fu5-ue 1 2 of Book I,
is a striking exan?le.
·The first transition, being a single semi tone jump, advances many
hypot>escs as to the key, of the piece, including two interpretations
of the i~ter7nl associated with F ~inor. The second transition
is the chrorr~atic scale fron the minor s:.xth to t~c leadin.; note
of the dor:;ir.ant of the true ke·r. This is interpreted in various

218
'frays accordine to the various hypotheses, but in all case-, the
transition contains an accide~"1tal to the !-:ey involved. T!~is
case raises some details of the algorith~ that has not been
mentioned so far.
Transitions which include an accidental, or are through
imperfect intervals, have undefined ilnplications, and therefore
give rise to undefined virtual notes. In such cases the point
at which the next transition should be considered to start is
therefore undefined. In such cases, n:···.turally enough the ~
starting point of the· next transition is taken.
The second point raised at this point is that, just as in the
first key a~gori tbn, it may @@?pen that all going ~:ypotheses are
eliminated b"{ the criterion. T:1is is allow-ed under the Principle
of Congruence and, in this algorithm as in its predecessor,
hypotheses are reinstated when this happens. Ho~evar, just as
the criterion of congruence in this algori tlL'D. is t·1;e t\·Tofold one
where transitions must a) be non-accidental and b) actively support
the hypothesis, so this reinstatement of failed hypothP.ses may
happen in two ways. If~ hypotheses invol~e the attribution of
accidental status to the transition, as well as all being
unsupported by it, then~ are restored.
This last is l·rhat happens at this stage in the F minor, so
it goes on to the next transition still with many hypotheses going.
But the a0cidental that ca~sed t~is sit~tion was the last
note of the chromatic scale, so it is the first note of this

·.
I third transition, and so this transition too is accidental to all

hypotheses. All are restored with the value of their current
virtual note undefined, to indicate that it failed to dral'T any
strong interpretation of that interval.
The next interval is really from the ~eading note of F to its
tonic. Under all other hypotheses this semitone is chromatic
wi~ no implications, so although this semitone is as ambiguous
in its implications as those that went before - out of the many
hypotheses that have been maintained up to this point, only 6rio
is confirmed by one interpretation of tl:is note, as the fifth
.from dominant to tonic of the true key, F minor.
The working of the algorithm on such a complicated example

is far too complicated by the the number of different possibilities
involved, and for th.e more detailed i'torking of this exaople the
reader is referred to Appendix IV, section 5. Hot·Tever, the

•reasoning' involved in the particular interpretation that serves
as the key can be readily parj:,hrased as follo"i'IS
"The first interval is a semitone from dominant to minor
sixth, implying the har@ony of the tonic minor. It is follo-vred
by a chromatic scale onto the leading note of the dominant, wnose
harmony :i.s uncertain, but which does not suggest that this
hypothesis is wrong. The next interval is also of uncertain
harmony, but goes onto the leading note.. The resolution of the
leading note onto the tonic, ttith its cadential flavo~ of the
fifth to the tonic, confirmed the :i,.dea that this is the right key.-"
220
'!'his is adrni ttedly a pretty 'free' tra ·.alation from machine
terms, but is intended to sugg-est that this analysis corresponds
rather closely to the way in l-Thich a person would perceive this
tune, and to suggest that, al th:)ugh the l~ey decision required 6
notes, in 4 transitions, this must be about the time it takes
us to really 'understand' this complex melody, and get our
harmonic bearings.
The C minor organ fugue was originally. introduced as an exam.ple

of ho\IT even a Bach fugue subject could begin other than on the
tonic or dominant.
~&b&e f JJJ
l_____(vJ~~
in ~j 2ft 1 !c=
The first transition is a run, beginning with a semitone~ Of
..
the many implications, the non-accidental ones arc concerned with
the keys 3 major and 8 major, besides tt.e co:rrect 0 minor~ The
second transition of a tone from E~ to F lends support to
3 major (because it is virtual in that interpretation, with three.

implications. 8 major is supported directly, and 0 minor is
supported by a 'virtual' interval G to F, interpre~d as G to C.
Since a decision tas not yet been rea.ched,the next transition is
examined, and onl·,r the hypotheses involving 0 mino::.:o and.- '3 ·f"'tajo< S&)ru~"c.,
since the transition is accidental to 8 major. lhc. F"\etl:- \encls no

5"ffe>r-t to 5 m"J.iDr 1 lh.l\;, f'llair'\tl\ln5 C W\~no(' t>nJer ·"l""~"o \.. \f)r~,.~~~ct.h'oV\ 1
The results of·the program corresponding to this algoritbm
are su:nmarised in Table 6, and further examples of its operation

2l1
are given in Section § 5 of Appendix IV. The details of the program
are further elaborated in Sectipn § 4 of the na~e Appendix. The
remaining concern :i.n this section will be to deal \'Ti th two errors
that the progrt~m !.lakes. ·These tvto errors are both very similar, ·
both arise from the same assur:1ption of the algorithm, and suggest
the forrn that its successor may take. Curiously enough, the
trouble does not arise from,the complicated. rules for runs and
ambiguous intervals, but from the simplest and most primitive
assumption of the 1vhole algori tlun.
l I
It \'Tas remarked even for the simple proposals tha·t formed the
introduction to this· algori t1~, that once vTe count the first
three notes of the D major of Book II as one, (as we must) the
subject begins tvi th the notes of the subdominant triad. The
algori thro is squarely misled, becaue it al\'Tays assumes that the
first harmony to be established is that of the tonic, and this
harmony could hardly have been mo~e directly established. Its
analrsis is in fact very reasonable: it thinks it's listening
to something like this:

'La Cucaracha' differs only in that the repeated first note is at
the lower octave, yet in t~1is case the first few notes do describe
the tonic. The different interpretation can only be arrived at
by taking into account the further develop:nent of the nelodies, and
in particular the fact that the whole of this subject is an
extended resolution, or cadence, onto tl1e final harmony, vrhich is
then seen to be the tonic. Such an analysis; in terms of
progressions of tonalities is beyond the scope of this vrork, but
offers a strong hint aboui the natrire of better algorithms.
In the rather similar case of the B major of Book II, the
first few ihtervals are again the most straightforvTard of thirds
and fifths, and again the first ttlO bet\'leen them make up a triad
which is not that of the key, but of its relative minor. ltlhereas
in the last case it seened that the program correctly identified
the harmony, but oisinterpret·ed it as the tonic, in this case the
limitation see!!lS to be in the way it identifies the extent of the
harmony. The third note does not belong with t:1a first tl·lo,
but rather with those that follow it, in the triad of the
subdominant. This again raises the question of analJsis of
sequences of ha1~onies, but in a different way. It shovTs that

I tlie way of identifying notes with a harmony which this algorith:'1
uses, w':lich is that if a note·.£§:.g be interp:-eted in the current
harmony then it must be, will also have to be revised. Such a
proposal, like the last one, also implies a quite different order
of rules, in particul;tr, ones taking account of contexts at least ·

as extensive as those needed to explain these two melodies.
.Z2~
li'ur;ue Number Notes 'l'ransi tions Key Remarks

of notes examined examined rour-rl
1 24 5 2 0 major
2 9 5 J 0 minor
3 lr- l .. 3 1 major
4 22 15 3 1 minor
5 9 5 2 7 major *
6 24 4 1. 2 mitj.or
7 21 5 11- 3 major
8 14 9 5 3 minor
9 6 6 4 4 maj ./9.. maj. ambo
10 46 3 1 4 minor
11 23 8 3 5 major
. 12 27 5 2. 5minor
13 29 18. 9 6 m~jor
14 18 3 2 6 min'or
15 43 l .. 3 7 major
16 21 11 10 7 minor
17. 22 4 _;: 8 major
18 25 3 1 8 minor
19 20 8 5 9 major
20 11 l .. 3 9 minor
21 24 6 2 ·1 0 major
22 30 )+ 3 10 minor
12 2 8 minor t:C
23 3
24 25 5 2 11 minor
Table 5 {contdo}
(b) Book II
* indicate.s an erroneous result, amb. an ~~biguo~s one.

').2.~
Fueue Number Nqtes Transitions Key 'Remarks

of notes examined examined found
I
1 16 9 5 .0 major
2 22 5 2 0 minor
3- 22. 6 2 1 major
4 5 3 2 1 minor
5 15 71 3 2 major
6 12 ·4 t 2 minor
7 25 4 1 3 major
8 13 3 2 3 minor
9 13 13. 5 4 major
'10 25 3 2 4 minor
11 19 6 2 5 major
12 14 6 4 5 minor
13 18 7 3· 6 major ·
14 18 3 1 6 minor
15 31 -? 4 7 major
16 12 4 3 7 }Ilinor
17 7 3 2 8 major
18 17 5 3 8 minor
19 8 8 8 9 maJ o/6 'min. ~"llb 0
20 32 6 1. 9 mino:b
21 38 4 3 1O•.'.major
22 7 4 3 10 minor
23 14 6 3 11 major
24 21 3 2 11 'minor
Table 5 •
(a) Book Io
2.26
APPENDICBS.
Appendix I First metrical lugorlthm.
Appendix II Second J,~etrical .Algorithm •.
Append.ix III : First Key Algorithm.
Appendix IV Second Key Jugorithme

Appendix V Musical Terms.
References.
.A:·ppend.ix I 1.?...7
First MGtrical Algorithm
1• Principal Functiono.
I
This Section is referred to ~n Section § 2 of Part II.
· Function SUBJ~XEC is the principal function. It examines the
melody TlH1ELIST, a list of N'OTES, first for purely durational
inforraation, such as is give~ by the 'dactyl' configuration, under
function MAIN. Then, in conjunction with the stored representation
of the metrical aspects of the tune in METRIC, it examines f'OI' the
r isolated accent' condition, under function IISR..
A MOTE ~ a POP2 recordo
A NOTE ~ a V.ALU'.t;, a DURATIOH, and ?.n OCTAVE.

~ h~ C I I ·.);'J S lH~ E XEC TUN F. L I S T ;
t-
VA1<:) V F" LA() r 1 0 T 1 f: X f ~A tl W X)( ; ;
L1 : I f r U \J F. L I S T • tJ UL L 1 Ht: N '1 E I r? I C f X I f ;
t_LL->V;.
iiJ( ru.~tLIST>->T1;
r U·~ :~ Y< T 1. > - >IJ T1 ;
1- >F L 1\ (i;
I V •'' 0 T < V:: U\J Df. F )
I HE .\J I F VAL lJ E < T 1 > :; " T" 0 :~ VAL U~ < T 1 > =UN 0 t: F
THEN n->FL/\G; ~010 L3
Ct.OSE;
IF DTl<V lrlEN il->FLAG
CLOSF.;
CL:)S~;
·1 A I .·J < TL < TlJ Nl~ L 1 S T > > - >V;
:·H: S :·J A ~i L 2 < V , L L L >- >L L L ;
. JL ( .~ ) ; • t·J F ~.; P H ;
L .') : ! F !··J 0 T < s.- L J\ ~·: > T Hi.: i'l J 1 S R C~ i: T ~i 1 C > - >wW- >X X;
IF "':l Ai\ f1 ii E s,.~A RL 1 ( XXI V )
T HE \J L AS T <i'1 1..: ll? I C > : : TJ t.l :: L 1 S T - >T Ur·lE L I S T i
A1.. L RUTL ( f·1 E TR I C > - >:·1 E l R I G ;
RE S ;~ At3 L ? ( XX , V > - >L L L ;
NL { ,s ) ; p j( ( ~· * I A~ App L 1 E s \ ) ;
I
• NF i·IPR;
CLO~E;CLOSE;
I F C r~ J • \1 ULI.
0 i~ T L ( Gi'-~ U > • f\i UL L T H i: N G~ J- >t: X T q A ; G0 T 0 L 2 CL 0 S:: ;
If L L L =d !1 < C:·HJ > T HF N l L < C ·"1U) ->EXTRA FL·S ~ CMU->~: X1 RA; CL 0 SE;
L ?.·:
:tf:: T rf. ~~SUBS T H UC C\10 V E < L L L , FLAG ) , ~X T HA ) %J- >11 t: r H 1C ;
··H: f t-< d ~, 0 (f-1 E r ~ I C ) - >Mt TR I C ;
GUTU L1.;
t: .'J u
.'
t .J; J C I I u :·J Mt\ I :--J T U ~·J F. L I S f ;

V AI <~; T~ T ~S T4 d T 2 iJ T:' f) T4 ;
1 F T t J :.J t: L I S f • Nll L L T HE N D T 1 E X I T;
d i1 < f u '·J 1: L I S T > - >T2 ;

u:J 1<:\ 1 I u ·J < T2 > - >D r ?. ;
lF VALllE< r;~>=UNOEF THf~ Drt EXI I;

1F i.) T 2 >=;-, T 1 THE N D T1 t: X I T ;
1 F TL ( f U~4 E L I S T > • NUL. L TH f ~ J DT f E X I l ;
Hi)( TL( ru.~t:LIST> >->T3;
U!Jt<A f IUN< r .~)->DT3;
1 F '" A l d F. < T. S ) =~ t Nll E F T H E \J D r 1 [ X i .i ;
1 F J l 3 >JJ T 2 .T H;:· ~J nT1 - nT 2 E X I T ;
I F J T 3 <D r 2 T i~ f ·'J 0 Tl r: X I T ;
l F" TL ( f L CTU~J f: l. I S T ) > • NUL L l Hc N ll r 1 E XI T ;

T UN;.: L 1 S T ) ) ) - >T4 ;
t1 i) ( r L ( I L (
T 4 >- >0 T4 ;
U U r~ ,'\ f I UN<
l F VA l uF. ( r 4 > =Uf··J Dt: F TH E \J 1J r 1 f: XI 1: ;
1F J I 4=<DT3 THt.:N DT1 Fx IT;
J F !1 t: S ·~A 8 L 1 < n f 1 +UT 2 + fl T 3, L L L > rH t: N D T1 + D T 2 + lJ T :s ; 1 ·- >F L :-. G ;
· El.St: DT1-!1T2-f)T3;
t x1 r;
t= .·I iJ
~ UN C T I v ,\J I I S r~ ME T RE ;
VAtC5 TV L SLI'·H.;
F 'J; J. J Y ( H D C1·1 T :~ F J ) - >S UGL ;
c
u->rv;
StJBL->L;
L 1 : I F ,·1 E T :=l E.• NL! L L 0 R T L < ME n~ t: ) • i'~ UL L T HE N lP.J DE I='" : F AL S E
c:
XI I ;
I ~ r L <TL C:·H~ r RE > > • ·~ lJ LL
A 'J n If 0 ) • S r Ri: S S =1
A ~J 0 H ') ( :-1 i:: T R1-: ) • S T ~ f SS= 0
A'~;) TV
THE: ~~ L + S U i_~ I. ; T IHI~ r- X J f ;
I F 11 D < 1'1 ~ T ~h.· > • S T t\ t: SS :: 1 THEN S U8 L- >L ; TRUE- >T V
eLSE: i_+SLI8L->L
~~L :J ~E;
TL(METR~>->METRE;
• . ~UTU l l i
,..,
f-. Examples
This Section is referred to in Section § 2 of Part II.
I
The output yielded by the program as a •trace of its workings
follous, for the expamples of Fugues 2 arid 15 of Book I, which illus.- ~
trate the effect of both the durational rules, (both for 'long hotes•
and for 'dactyle' ), and the 'Isolated Accent Rule'. In the traces
that follO\·T, the result of a successful application of the dura.tional
rules of function }liUN is indicated by the message "~TEW METRE AT'u,
follow~d by a number indicating the number of old groups tlmt make

up the nel't unit, followed by the wor9.s "AT GROUP11 , and a number
identifying the ordinal number of the group of the old metre at
which the new evidence was forthcoming, ~nd hence identifying the
(The first group is numbered 1)~ A. successful application
of the Isolated Accent Rule is indicated in the same way, except that
·~he message ie prefixed w·i th the message "**IAR APPLIES.".
·~ -.. -,~~,
•.·· j
-·· j
·-
I ; .J t: A '1 t: T RE IJ ~- \ 2 I A T GH J up \ 3
I tH \I 16
. ;
I ··J t: ~,, :·ll: T ~ E 0 F \ ?. I AT Cl fU')lJ p \ 4

':)~· \ ~.1 16
.....
'n··~[A·~ APPLIES'
':Jt.:A ~t:TRE 0F' 2'AT GROUP'. 5
I :H \ ~ • 2 • I _16
...
~
f 1r-t E 5 I G~J A TU RE IS ' ~ 2• 2• 2 •I 1. 6
[[l(U·J:JF.F 4))!'[( 0 2)][( 11 2>JJ][[( 0 4}][( 7 4))))

~ [([( ~ ~)Jf((
0 ~))[( 11 2)]])[((_0 4J][( 2 4)]]]
[[[[{ .7 4)]ff( 0 2)](( 11 ?)]JJJ[[( 0 4)][( 2 4}]]]
CL[(< ? ~>lr< 1 ~>JJr< a·4>JJL[L< 7 2>Jf< 5 2>JJCl< 3
L < ll .~ > J
1
**11\i~ A;:>PLTt:S'
I ;.J r: ,, :1 t:: T RE 0 F \ ~3 I A T GRDu p \ 4
I ~.l F \I 8
T 1 :1 t: S I G~~A T lJ ~ E I S
i·i L T ~ I C S T rH J C TUF F !S
( l ( 1 4 ) J[ [ ( '.J :::! ) ( 7 2 ) .1 ) lJ ( 6 2 ) ( 7 2 ) J J ]
C[L< J 4lJlr< 11 ~>c 9 2>Jr< 1 ~>< 9 2>JJ
f.(( 11 4l]f( 9 4)][( 7 4)]]
[[( 2 1)][< 0 4)J[<T 4>JJ ....
·
[[( 11 4)][( 9 4)1[( 7 4)]]

L [ < r; 'l > .l E < 4 4 > ·1 [ ( T 4 > J ]
L f < / •f > J [ C 4 ~? > < 2 ? ) J L < 0 2 > < 11 2 > J J
L [ ( 1.J •4 ) .J [ C 0 ~> > < 11 !: ). J [ ( 9 2 ) < 7 2 > "J J
l ( 6 4 ) ( uN I) f. ~· ·~~ ) J
Appendix II
Seco~d Metrical Al,Tori th:n
1• Principal F1u1ctions.
I This Section is referred to in Section·§ 3.4 of Part II.
........ _
r
t<[:CJi<.lF~Li("~IOTt-:",[0 0 0 Cl OJ>->Tit::->SPACt:POS->OCTAVE->DURATION
- >v AL u.: - > DF. s r 'l or ~ - >c J 1'J ~ N~ r F. ;
I ,~ t.: c >·~ o1 ~ "J.~ ( G; ~ 0 U P " , [ ll 0 J > - >r; L I S T- >S T HcS S - >DE S f G~ 0 lJ - >C0 ~ S GR0 U ;
11
r<t: C: Jl~ !) F .L) - >~ lJ NL I S T- >uEST RUi\J- >C0 NS ~ IJ .-.J }
K·f: t_; . J 1~ 'J ~ 'J S ( .A L l " , [ 0 ] > - >4 L T L J S T - >i) ES T AL T- >ClJ \J S AL T :
11
Kt: C:) t<. l ~ 'J :; < " 1 N r " , [ 0 0 0 0 J ) - >0 l ~~- >DlH~- >S I zE- >S TART V Al- >[1 F. S T I N T- >C0 NS I ~ T ·
~ U; JG I I U ~~ R \1 A i \! Rt 1'-'1 L I S T RE GL I S r CMUS I G;
V A :~ ·.) F S T P f :~ I '.1 ~) H UN S A V :: R J N RE S ;
~IL-)~UNSAVF; .
f AL':H:->HLJNrtE.:S;
l r i ~ U·'J r f: S T Cq F r1 L I S T , C NtJ S I G > T :-1 t ;-J
L t : r 1 t~ ~ TCM U < H f :1 L. I S T , CM J S I S > - >F ,:; I ; • ER ASE ;
JF ISRU\JCRtiNSAVE,HD<FSf))
T~E~ l~F?TEST<RF~Ll~T,~~CLIST,CMUSIG,RUNRES>->PERIOD;
s
fHF'~ 11 E + 1- li J NRC: > s; I
1 F PE R I ~l 0 >1
THElJ qECUPJ<Rt:-1LIST ,HECLI3T<>RUNSAVF,PERIOD,C'·1USIG. j
. RUNUPOFN>;
EX J f;
H f CUP Il < RE r-.1l I S T , RUN~ A VE , PER I 0 D , C "1 US I G , F I H S T C~·1 U >
->~EMLIST->~UNSAVE->CMUS1G;
G:JTO L1.;
CLOSE;
Gi'hJ~ I G;
·H: CL I S T <>r %C0 NS H Ui.J< ~ U:J~ AVE > ;~ ] ;

·~ t: :1 L I S T ;
t:: X 1 f i
1 F rH: CL [ S T • \J UL L
Tt-fE \J I F AL T H T C: S T Ct. 0 \J S R t S T ( !\J J L > : : RE 1"1 L l S T , C ~ lJ S I G )
THEN CONSRESTC~IL>::~EMLIST->REMLIST;
CLOSE;
CLLi<-)t::;
lf AL TKTf.ST cRFt-1L I ST, cr·tus·I G >
7 ,; ~ .~ 1F T L ( J L Ll S 1 C l • 'J Ul L A ~j D Cr1 US I G • NUL L
r 11 ': i" HE c u o n < Re . ., L I s r , K EcL I s r , 2 1 c !wi us I G, AL r uP FN1 >
· - >r~ E•·! L I S f - >q E CL I S f - >C~1 US I G; .o
CLOSE;
~ Ep TE s T ( i lE ~H. l s T I Rr: c L I s T , c ~us I G , F AL sE ) - >p E I~ I 0 !1 ;
~ E CUP 0 <RE i·1 L I S T , R: CL 1 S f , PER I 0 D , C ~US I G , A LT' JP F N2 >
l:X!f;
K~~r~sl<~E~Llsr,RECLIST,c~~siG,FALSE>.->PERioo:
~ t: .; '.J ,.> :J <~~ 1:: ~il. I S T , HE CL I S T , P t: R 1 0 lJ , CMU S I G , F I RS TC"1l! )
t- ·J d t~ r l 1) ,\J !( 1:: P ~ t- cL 1 ~ 1 c ~1 us In M1 o1-nr~ 2;
rEs 1 lit::;'' 1 s r
v:,,<.; '11U~FJ:·!::>t,
C:·1U IC~:lJ'Jf JCDlJ~T I'JOTECOUNT CU'"lRLIST'PRf:VLlST
JVf: ~Lt,i-"' ··11 Dr~U 1 JJ A·IEDL I ST l~t~L I ST3 RtML I ~T?}
11- > J ~; ~J tJ :J T
:-< r: c '_
t: :J l; rH < ~-< r-~ cL. 1 s T > + l·i 1u :~ u n 2- >.J c u u N r ;
U-) ..11 dr~U.\Jl;
L I d I r 1 ,, L : I F nf ~HJ c~ r H E '' t,~ L < 1 >; :=> R { ' ~~ L1: , >; cLusE ;
! F •< F. CL I S T • "' 1.J L L T 11 [ ~J 0
r; XI I·;
Q->UVEHLAP;
:1. - >.·-J o r E cn u;'.) r ;
:~ 1:- :•1 L I :->T- >RE t"l L I S T ~~ ;
i1t-:GLIST-)A4f-lllfST;
r I :~ ~ r ci·t u c RF 1.-1 L I s T , r. ~·EJ s 1 _; > - >c :'1 u- >RE ML I s r 2 :
l I .S r Nll TL:: <!I;:) < C!·HJ >>- >~ UH 1~ L. 1 S r ;
L I S Ti·~ i) TE CH0 < Hf: CL I S T ) > - >P li F VL I S T ;
I F .\J 0 T < S t\ ~·I E D!1 <H D CP R F. V l 1 S T > , MD < Gli H i~ L l S T >. ) )
·1 ;.p: N F U r~ ~'~ Yl EN CYD < R t CL I S l ) > + 1 C0 U~~ T - >I G0 Ui\! f ;
TL < r< E r. L I S T > - >Rt: r. L I S T ;
GOl'O LINITIAL;
CLOS~; _
I F ;J 0 T < :-J l C F ( .J r. Gl H~ T - I C fL..I \J f > )
r Ht: N I F HD( " ECL I S T > • i) AT J\ ,.J 0 RD:: " RLl N"
THEN 1 r· ~ U ~-J L I S T ( H l1 ( R F. CL I S T ) } • L E ;~ G f I ! >1
T HE;''J 1 - >i-11 0 RlJ N :l.
ELSe O->M!ORUN1
Ct OSE;
F U~~ \J YT L < ·~ E CL 1S T > - >t~ E CL I S T ;
1+ICOU\JT->1C0lJ~T;
GOTO LI.\JI TJt,L;.
CLOSE;
F U~! \1 YL E i'J ( 1-1 D < RF CL 1 S r > > + I G0 UN T- >I C0 UN T ;
TL<~FCLIST>-~R~CLIST~
G0 T D L I i~ I T I A L
CLOSE;
Comment The above loop te·sts fol'' tha rr,ird.rr·al condi tior.&t. und~:... which
a repetition might be entertained fot- the note at the head of' IiliMLIS1',
the remainder of the tune, the f'iBure starting en a group of thE: pre-
ceding tune, held in RECI,IST, whose nt:mber is given by ICOUET. It-a
these minical conditions arc not satisfied, attention passes to tbe
successor in RECLIST. Othervdse a test is wade for ~~ actual repetit-
ion, as follows.
· L V1 ;~ I , J 4 L : · 1 F Dr:· 'HH j THr \J NL < 1 > ; tJ R < ' * ~- LV: MR1 , MK?. t '-1 R?. A-.' ) ;
I ;I K:_t ~'~ 1 > ; P H < M I Ui ~ J .'J 2 ) ; P ri < ~1 I Drt UN2 A > ;
t.J R < 1-1 Cl 0 SE :
I F' ,·Jl.J f < SA :-..p: nD < HD< ~ H:: VL l S f > , d D < Cd RRL 1 S T ) ) )
I ; ~ t: N F U :,l ~ YI_ EiJ ( H D < R F: CL I S r ) ) + 1 CU U f\j T - >I C0 tJ N T;
T L < t~ ( CL I S l ) - >H~ CL J S T i
GOTO LINITIAL
cL L) ~; E ;
I ~ . !) A .-1 E S I Z:: < ~t D( PR E VL I S r > , HtJ ( CURRL I S T > >
A ~~ J NU T ( M I DRLPJ 1 > AN n N0 T ( ·'1 1 Drt UN ? )
IHEN GOTO LHEAL
CLOSE;
fL(PREVLISf>->?REVLIST:
fl ( CU·~RL I ST > ->CURRL I ST;
If ~Ji~EVLIST.NULL
THE: i~ FUN N YTL < AHE 0 L I ~ T) - >AHE 0 L I S T ;
IF AHl:DLIST,NlJLL THt:N
FUr J:\! YlE N ( HD < ~~ t: r; L I S T ) > + I C0 UN T- >I C0 U'J T ;
TL<RECLIST>->~fCLlST;
GOTO LINITIAL CLOSE;
LISTNOTE<HI1(AHt:OLI'::iT~>->PRl:VLIST;
J F qA T AW0 R0 < HD < AHE DL l S T > > = " RU ;~ 11
THEN 1->vtiD~LJN1 tLSE O->MIDRUN1
CLOSE;
CL~J:)E;
IF CtJRHLIST.f'.JtJLL
lrlEN IF NOT<MlDRUN~A> THEN O->MIDRUN2 CLOSF;
IF M I IH~UN?
T HF. f·J 1 F N 0 T < --l LP.J T t: S 1 < RE' ML I S T2 • C11 US I G ) >
f 1-i EN 0- >~-1 I 0 i~ UN 2 A ;
·CLOSF.;
CLOSE;
F 1 (~ S T(.; MU ( HE 1·1 L I S T 2 , .C Ml J S I G >- >C:v1 U- >r~ ENL I $ T ?. ;
LISTNOTE<HDCCMJ>>->CURRLIST;
CLUSF.;
IUTU LVIRTUAL;
Commento Starting from the point in ~CLIST indicated by ICuu~~,
the function examines the tune R~LIS7 in 'bites' of a current metric

unit, taken by the function FIHSTCM1J. £!ach bite is examinai t•i.r.::.:t
for being at least a virtual repent of the earlier sequen·:;e, the~, in
the mext loop, t•or being a real. repe~t. Severa.l. virtual ~nits mey-
neen ~o be examined before a real part is found in the next loop,
~ld attention may pass back and forth between the two for nome tin:a.
L :~ t: "L : J r u ~ F~ ~ 1n rH EN NL < l. > ; P ~ < ' * * LH : ' > ; cLosE ; ·
I
I ~ ·J i) 1' < SA "1 !~!JP < HD Ci-""~ HE VL l S T > , H U <GlJ RH L 1 S T) ) )
. f~fi:N IF" ~·Jl>TECdUI~T>2
T H:~. !\I • REP~~ I \1 J ;
J CfhHJ T - I C0 U NT i RE T'J K i'J ;
F L SE I C0 J N f + F J N.\J YL E N < H0 < RE CL I 5 T > > - >I C0 UN T ;
TL(R~CLIST>->RECLIST;
GOTQ·L!NlTlAL; ·
CLOSE;
IF T ( SA:·~ ES I ZE < Hn ( => HF. VL I S T > , HJl (CUR RL I S l > ) )

f\J 0
THEN IF >JOTI:COUNT>2
T HE ~ ~ • R EP I - >P fH: VL I S T ;
TL ( ClJ ~~ HL I S T ) - >CUK!~ L I S T :
1"": Ju T E Cn'.! \i 1 - >~j 0 T E C0 UN T ;
IF tJr~tVL I ST. NtJLL
TI~ i: N F U~,J NYTL ( AH1: DL I S T)- >A HE DLIST;
IF AHEDLIST.NULL
THEN FIRSTC~U<f~~MLIST3,CMUSIG>->AHFDLIST->REMLIST3;
1->DVE~LAP;
CLO~E;
LISTNOTE<HD<AH=nLI~T>>->PREVL:IST;
CLiJ:1E;
JF CURHLJSf.h!ULL
rH!:: N F 1RS T GM IJ .< RE ~t L 1 S T 2 , CM LJ S I G) ->CM "I-> K EM L l S T2 ;

l I S Ti J 0 TE CH u < CM J > > ·- >CUR i~ L I S T ;
CL:J~E;
;.1 U f tJ L R E AL ;
t:: 'J iJ
Commento .An exact repetition may nevertheless be a !)art of' the

·virtual part if it vontair.s very few notes, and so attention may return
the the loop LVIRTui:.L. It, the exact repetition ~ lor~ cnou:..;h: then
it is t~:en to be the required repetition, under the j3rincip~ of
earliest and longest figureso
J
_j
j
2. Examples.
This section is referred to in Sectio~s § 3.2, 3.3 and 3.5 0f

Part III.
T~1e output yidldcd by the program as a trace of its wo:drings
folJ.ous, for the examples of Fugues 15 and 20 of :Book I and 4, 15 end
18 of Book I I. \'lhenever a repetition is succe3sfully es·:abli ~~led,
the message "REPEfiTION OF FIGUR.t~ AT" is ·printed, foll01fled by a
number identifying the group of the old metre at \vhich the figlJre,
whether virtual or real, begins. (Again, the first group is
numbered 1). This in turn is ~ollorred by the message "l3Y GROUP .. ,
again follot-;ed by a number, which identifies in the same -.;~ay the
· group a.t which the repetition. begins. If .the repetition is over··
lapping, then the vrhole message is prefaced vri th the adjective
" OVERLAPPING •••• 11 •

f '· 12
'
' ~H: ;:> t: T I T I 0 N 0 F F I GU Hi~ A T GR 0 U P ' 1 ' 8 Y GR0 UP ' 3
T 1 '1 F S I S ~ ~ A TlJ RE I S \' ~.* 2. 2. 2./ 16
. 1c T1~ I C S T i~ U C f U Hf: IS
[ [ L [ ( J''.J fl E F 4 ) J [ ( ( 0 ? ) ] ( ( 11 2 ) J J ] [ [ ( 0 4 ) ] [ ( 7 4 ) ] J ] [ [ [ { 8 .4 ) J [ [ ( 0 2 ) J [ ( 11 2 )
I_
JlJCC< n 4>J[( ;> 4)]JJl
l [ [ [ L< 7 4 ) JLf ( u 2) J [ < 11 ~ ) J J J J [ [ ( 0 4 ) J [ ( 2-'. 4 ) J 1 ] ( [ [ [ C 5 ~ ) J [ ( 7 ? ) J J [ ( 8 4 ) ]
J[E[< 1 ~>Jr·c 5 ?>JJrcc 3 2>JC< o 2>JJJJJ
( ( < 11 2 > ( U ~~ [l E F 1 4 > J r JJ
1;1~
·.·~ 'RtPtTlTION OF FIGURE AT GROUP' 3'BY GROUP' 5
'Kt:Pt:TITIO~ OF FIGURE AT GROUP' 1'BY GROUP' 4
~-._!
(.·
TIME SIG~ATURE IS \ .s. 2.* 3./ 8
:1t:TRIC STKUCTURr: IS
[(([( I 4>JrE< 9 2>< 7 ?>JJ[(( 6 2>< 7 2)JJ)[[(( 9 4)]J[C 11 2>< 9 2)](( 7 2>< 9
2>JJJl[({ 11 4)](( 9 4)](( 7 4)JJ[[( 2 4)][( 0 4>JC<T 4>JJJ[([( 11 4)][( 9 4).J[
< 7 4)JJ[[(- 6 4))(( 4 4)J(<T 4>JJJJ
[ ( [ [ ( 2 4 ) J [ ( 4 2 ) ( ? 2 ) ] ( ( . 0 2 ) ( 11 2 ) J ] [ [ ( 9 4) ] [ ( 0 2 ) ( 1 j_ 2) J ( ( 9 ?. ) ( 7 ?. ) J J
J[(( 6 4><UNOEF a>JC<U~DEP 12>JJ[(UNDEF 24>JJ
\·
/.
\
•
1 2°
~/·.,
0(
'
' .J v ~: r-< L AP ;J 1N G ' , '~ EP E: r 1 r I J N oF F I Gu HE A r Glrn uP ' 1 , R v GRo u P ' 3
T l.1E SIG·\fATUt~E IS ' 2.* 2. 2./ 16
~~T~IC STRUCTURF IS
L(((ll\J;Jt:F 4>Jl [( 9 2)][( 8 2>JJ][[( 9 4)][( 11 4}]]]
[([( 4)J[[{ t1 2)][( 11
i.) 2 ) ] ] ] ( [ ( u 4)][( 2 4)]]]
l(l[( 4 2}][( ? ?)]][[( 0 2)][( 2 2)])][({ 4 4)·][( 5 4)]]]
L[l< ~ 4>J[( 4 4)J][[(UNDEF 4)][{ 9 4)]]]
[ cc[ < 11 2 >·J r < o 2 > J J cc < 9 ~ > J c < 11 2 > J J J ccc < o 2 > J c < 2 2 > J J cc c 11 2 > J c < . o 2 >J J J
J
([(( ?. '})][( J 4)]][[( 1.1 4)]l{ 4 4)]]]
L[ < 9 ~i > J [ < l! ~~ DE F 8 > J J
~
IJ
. ,.
, .
JI,4
. ~-.
'Ht.:,>t:TlTION OF FIGURF AT :lROUI-'\ l'BY GROUP' 4
......
'Rt~tTlTION 0~ FIGURE AT GROUP' l'BY GROUP' 5
~ ' T!~E SIGNATURE IS \ 4. 3.*/ 16
'·H: T !~ I C S f R UCT UR F I S
[[L( 1 2)][( ~ ?)][( 1 ~)JJ([( 3 2>J[( 1 2)](( 3 2>JJ[[( 8 2l](( 10 2)][( 0 2)])
l[( 1 ~))[( 3 2)][( 4 2)]]] .
l[(( ~ 2)][( 4 2)][( 6 ~)])[[( 3 2)][( 8 2)][( 6 2)]]([( 4 2>][( 8 2))[( 6 2>JJ(
?. > J [ <U~! nF. F 2 ) J [
I. < 'l J J J
~
,_
~··
-,
'lf 15
*' .,~t~tTlTION OF FIGURE AT GROUP' l'BY GROUP' 7
.I
Tl~E SIG~ATURE IS . \ 6. 2 • .a. ~.tJ 16
. 'j
I
MtT~IC SfRUCTURE IS
l((JNJtF 2)][( 2 2)]][[( 11 2)][( 2 2)]]([( 7 2)][( 2 2)]][(( 11 2)][( 2 2)]]([(
7 ~)][( 2 ?)]][[( ll 2)](( 2 2)]] .
l[l( 4 2>J(( D 2)]][[( 9 2)][( 0 2)]][[( 6 2)][( 9 2)]][(( 2 2)](( 11 2)]][[( 7
~>Jr< 11 2>JJ(E< 4 2>JC< 7 2>JJJ
[[(( 0 2)][( Q 2)]][f( 6 2)][( 9 2)))[(( 2 2)](( 6 2)]][(( 11 2)][( 9 ?)]]([( 7 ~
~>JC< 9 ?>JJEr< ·11 2>JE< 1 2>JJJ
lCL< 9 2>JE< 11 2>JJ[[( 1 2)][( 2 2>J)[(( \2 2>JE< 4 2>JJ[[( 6 2)J[C 4 2)JJ[(UNDE
~ 4>J[<UNDEF 4)]]
•
....
-}
.~
rr
)
18
'R~D~flTIUN OF FIGURF AT GROUP' 1'8Y GROUP' 13
'\
)
T 1 ~I E S I G"J A TU RE IS \ 12.*/ 8
M~TRIC STRUCTURE IS
lC< H 4)J(C 10 4)][( 11 4)](( 10 4)][( 3 4)][( 3 4)][( 8 4)J[t 11 4)][( 10 4)][(
11 4)J[( 10 4)](( 8 4)]]
l[( 11) 4)][( 11 4)][( 1 4)](( 11 4)][( 4 4))[( 8 4)][( 10.4)][( 1 4)][( 11 4)][{
1 4>JL< 11 4>][( 10 4)]]
[[{ 11 4)J[CUNtlFF 4)J[<UNDEF 4)][(UNDEF 4)J[CUNDEF 4>JECUNDEF 4))[CUNOEF 4)J(CUN
IJEF 4 > J [ < UN DE F 4 > J [ < l.JfbD EF 4 > J [ < UN DE F 4 > J [ < UN 0 EF 4 > J J
,_..J
'.J
•
A'pp~ndix III
:F''irst Harmonic _!lgori thm
1• Principal ~1nctions.
I
This Sect~on is referred to in Section § 3.2 of Part Ill.
1 I
11 11
,
t-: EL lr-CH :J S ( :.( FY , 0 , ( () 0 0 0 U J > ->KEY V AL- > :-1 UfH:- > K P 0 SN- >KEY L 1 S T
->HELSPACE->DE:SfKEY->CONSKEY;
~ J ,~ C I I d J I~ 1: \C F. r. T U;.J f: L I S T K CH 0 I C1: 1 K CH0 I CF. 2 F U \J 0 T A Tf ;
V A t <:·> H YP L I S T r; U U~ ~ T E ~ T 0 P N J T t:: P FU: V I 0 U S V 1 ;
1 - >:_:; U d :~ r F H ;
h:l < ru H.:L IS T > -> rOPNOTE;
u J iJ f. f· - >P rH: V I nll S ;
L ~~ '' ::> t) L 1 s r < cn 1 2 3 '1 5 6 7 cs -1 1 o 11 J ,
L A:--H~ DA X ; C0 ~J SK r: Y < ,\J I L , MA J 0 R , K E YP 0 S ( X ) ,
t-1 A J 0 R 11 , X ) ;
11
CONSKEY< \JJL,~1INDR,KEYPOS(X), "MINOR 11 ,X);
;END>%J->HYPL1Sr;
L1: I ~ T U :~ E L T S T • N lJ L L N >J L ( ?. > ; P R ( ' E N D 0 F T U NE ' ) ; C 0 UN f F. R - 1 - >C 0 U N T E R ;

TH t
K Crl.O I r; t: 2 ( H YP L I S T , T UP N0 T t > - >H YP L J S T ;
OUTPUT~I(~YPLIST > ;OUTPUT2<HYPL1ST> ;HYI)LIST;
EX I r;
IF I RACE 1 THE iJ S P < 1 ) ; N L ( 1 > i PR ( C 0 UN T L H > ; N0 rEP RC H fJ (TUNE L IS T ) ) ;
S P ( 1 > ; CL 0 S ~ ; .! .
I ~ VAL lJ [ < HD ( TU :.J t: L I S l ) )'.=' lJ \J D1:: F T H1:.: N l + C0 UN T ER-> C0 UN T t: R ;
T L ( TU:~ r:: L I S T > ->TU :J ~ L I S T ; GJ f CJ L 1 ; CL 0 SE ;
t<CH!JICf1CHYPLIST,Pf?~VIJUS)->V1;
I~ V!. ~I.ILL THEN
KCHOICE2CHYPLIST,fOPNDTt:>->HYPLJST;
OUTPUTri(HYPLIST>;
(; 0 T 0 L 2;
CL o~)E;
IF 1-tf)(TUNF.LIST>.VALUE::JNIJEF fH!:N TLCTUt\IELIST>->TUNELIST;
CL :JS~;
1 F f l ( V1 ) . :,Jlll. L T HF I'J
IF SS f G\J < V AL U f: -VALUE< H ll < T lJ N t LIST> > , 1 >
Ut~ SSIGN(VALU~(P~EVIOUS)-VALUE<HD(TUNELIST)), -:1.>
rH F. N V AL 0 F.( "V 1" ) - >4 YP L I S f ; 0 UT P lJ T H ( i { YP L I S 1 ) ;
I ~~ V T L ( RE L SP ACE ( HD < d YP L 1 S T > > > - >RE L SP A CE ( H D ( H YPL 1 S T ) >:
GOTO L2; .
CLOSe; ·
GLO:,E; .
H)( fU\JELJST>->PREVIOUSi
fl( fu·~t:LIST>->TU!'ii·L1ST;
V '' L t J F ( " V 1_ '' > - >H YP L I S T ;
I ~ I l < r1 YP L I '.:) T > • ~~ U 1.. L r H ::: N 0 U T P U T 1-{ ( H YP L I S T > ; C 0 U ~J 1 f R + 1 - >CU UN T t: r'? ; G0 T0 L~
C L u ~) t: ; CCh.J N T E H + 1 - >C0 J N f E ~~ ;
;~ IJ T J L 1 :
i
Comment. Until a decision as to key is reached atte:1tion remt=.ans

within Li loop.
.
The tune is examined note by note, ar:d hypotheses
selected by KGHOICE1 , v1hich eliz:inates accidental keys, and kCHOICE2
the toi.1ic dominant rule. :2he f\:.nction r:ill either exit at the end of
the tune , or having t•ound one key, pass to 12 o
·L?:Ir ltFJELIST.NULL THt:N '.JL(2>;PR<'END OF TU\JE">;
OUTPUT~(H'r'PLIST>;HYPLIST;
t.: X 1 I ;
I F :, S I t:i Nc V AL lJ[ - V ALUE <H 0 < f UNE L I 5 T > > , 1 >
(J i-~ SS I G\J CV AL Ur: < PH 1:: V I JUS> -V. A L UE CH D ( TUNE L I S T > > , -1 )
T rl E i·J I F r·J CJ T ( TL < H Y0 L I :) T ) •. ~ uL L ) f HEN G0 TU L 3 r, L 0 SF. ;
PR~VIOUS::TU~=L1Sf->TUNELIST; .
C 0 U N T F: R - 1 - >C0 U ~ T cI< ;
I 1\1 V T L ( I"? E L S P A :; r. < d lJ ( H YP L I S T > ) > - >RE L S P A CE <H n ( H YP L I S T > > ;
GLO~E;
L .) : I ~ T lJ ·~ 1:: l J S T • NUL L T HEN \J l ( ?. ) ; P H C' E ND 0 F TlJ :'.J E ' ) ;

OUTPUT2CHYPLISf>;HYPLIST;
L: XI I ;
IF I H ACE 1 T HE N i~ L ( 1 > ; P rt < C0 UN TE r~ ) ; ; N0 TE PR < H0 ( TU~ 1- L I S T ) ) ;
SP<t>;CLOSE;
I F . H 1J ( T UN E L 1 S T ) • V AL Ul: =J N Df F TH E: N 1 + C0 U \J T t: R- >C0 UN T E R ;
lL<TUNELIST>->TU~~LlSf;
GUTO L3;
CLO=->E;
r u ;·J d T A T E < TUN E L I S T > - >TU \1 F. L I S T ; .
IF ·'IIOT < TL < HYPL I ST >. \JULL > THEN GOTO Ll CLOSE;
GOTJ L3;
l:iJD ·~
(
....
Comment. In the loop 12, the special cane f9r notation of the semi-
tone. sequence is tested for. If this is the start of a semitone
sequence, then notation of the sequence is carried out by the function
SE1a~'ffi.Y, which follows. Otherwise attention passes to L3, where
the note is notuted normally.
- ----- j
~ . J1\j ~~ r llP·J SE M [ F tHJ S I GN ;
VAt< 3 V ;
1 r c
r t< A 1: 1 T'' F \J r~ L < ? > ; PR c , t: N TE K s s
1:: M I FuN ' > ; cLosE;
L ~~ t~ :) < TLJ \J t L I S T ) , IlD ( TL < T J NE L I :> T ) ) Yo J - >V ;
J r fi~ACE1. THt.-:·\J APPL l ST (V, LA.'11~JA X; SP ( 1);
N D T F p 1{ ( X ) ; s p ( 1 .) ; E t.JL) ) ;
CLUSI:;
HYPdP)( 1YPLJSf ,V);
->IIYPLlST;
I L ( f U ·Jt= L I S T ) - >TlJi'J t: L 1 S T :
1 F TL ( f U\J t: L I S f > • i-J UL L T H F: \J S F M I 0 UT < TLJ :~ t L I S T , S I GN > f X I T ;
1F ·~lJ ( I L CTUN EL I ST >>.VALUE= LJ \JDt::F THEN COU\JTEii+ 1->COUNTt:R;
fL( fL(TUNELIST> >->TL<TJN!::LIST);
cL. 0 :~f. ;
1 F TL ( fU:'~EL I ST). NULL
0 t~ .'J 0 T( SS I G.\J ( VAL U[ ( H 0 ( TU :\J EL I S T ) > -VALUE ( HD ( TL ( TUN I: l I S T >) ) , S I GN > )
TH~~ SE~IOUT(TUNELIST,SIGN> ~XIT;
L 1 : I F I L < TL ( TU;>J E l I S T > ) • NUL L T rl E N G0 T0 L ?. Cl USE ;

I F H D ( TL ( TL. ( TU ~·J E L I S T > ) ) • V A L U 1:: =U N 0 EF
THEN 1.+COlJ>~TER->COU\JTER;
lL<TL<TL<TU~ELJS~>>>->TL<TL<TUNELIST>>;
llOTO l.li
CLOSE; •
I F .'J 0 T ( S S I Gi\1 <VAL UF. ( rl D < r L ( TJ N t L l S T >) ) - VAl UE ( HD < TL <TL ( TlJ NE L I S T ) >> > , .?
SIGN>> }
TH :: N L 2 : ['~~ H D < TU \J E L I S T ) , H 0 < TL ( T UNE L 1 S T ) ) %J - >V ;
I N VT L CHE L SPACE < H0 ( HYP L I S T ) ) >->I< E= L SPACE <HD < HYP L I S T > > ;
IF TRACE! T~EN APP~JST<TL<V>,LAMHOA X;NLC1);
t1
j
~OTEPR{X);SP<t>;t::NU); ~
CLOSE; .I
HYPU~LHHYP~ISI ,~)->rlYPLIST; 1
C 0 l.l N T L: R - 1 - >
l, U U \J T t H i . !
SEMIOUT<TLCTUN~LIST>,SIGN>; ~
t: X I I ;
[~~HlJCTL<TU~JELIST> >%J->V;
IF TR~CE1 THFN NL<l>;NJTEP~<HD<V>>;SP<l>i
CLO~E;
H YP UP i) CH YP. L I S T , V > - >~ Y P L I S T ;
TL ( fd\IEL f ST > ->TUNFL I ST;
G\JfU Ll;
. t: :·J u
~ :.J1~C f I ,p~ MAPVAL X Y;
c l.lr-1' t t: •J
I I G I V E s p I Id~ u K F. y V AL lH: 0 F A
~~l S I l 1 U ··J < X , Y > Rl: LA T I V t: T J UR 1 G 1 N C ' ;
M0 IJ ( 1 4 '+ + ·~ 0 D ( 7 ·-:. X , 1 ?. )
+ '·1 0 D < tl ~· Y , 1 2 > , 12 >;
1:.- :·J tJ
FdNCflUN PDSISHS \JOTEVAL KPOS;

C 0 11 r'-11:: :'~ I ' G I VE S T Ht S r:: T 0 F I :-..i T E t=PLJSrtLIST;
- ( XL l :1 1 T > - >Y ;
L1 : I r Y >Y L I t·1 I T T HE N P 0 S HL 1S f
EX I r ;
( - XL I :-.1 I T ) - >X ;
L2: l~ X>XLIMJT TIIEN Y+t->Y;30f0 L1;CLOSE;
I~ •'1 AP V AL (X+ F H 0 r~ T <K o 0 S) , Y + 8 ACK ( K P 0 S) > =N 0 T E V AL
T HE 1'J C0 NS P 1\. l H ( X , Y ) : : P 0 SHL I S T - >P 0 S HL I S T ;
CLO~E;
X+1->X;
GOTU L2i
1: :·J lJ
- 160
2. Examples.
This Section is referred to in Section ~ 3.2 of P&rt III.
The output ~lelded by the program as a trace of its workings
;· follows for the examples of Fugues 10, 12 and 24 of Book I.
In the first stage, of key-identification, the melody is examined _
note by note. At each note, its ordinal number in the melody is
printed, followed by its keyboard pitch-value as an integer from 0,
(c, B.:..;; etc.,) to 11, (B, et; etc.,). 0!1. the succeeding lines, the
keys if any which are eliminated by its occurrence, if any are printed,
each follovred by the word "ELIMINATED". This continues note by note
until one of three things happens. Either all the keys are elimin-
ated, or the end of the time is reached. (In both cases the tonic
dominant rule applied, and a message to that effect is output. In
the latter case it is preceded by a message to the effect that t~e
tune has ended). The laot alternative is that only one key remains,
vThich is then adopted as the ans-:,rer. In all cases a message ..
nrn.ECISION AT NOTE NUMBER" is output, follo~ved by the number of the
note at liThich the decision vras reached, and the key.
If any tune reamins, it is notated eccordir-g to that key. The
trace of this merely identifies 1vhich note is being examined, and its
keyboard value, and whether it is part of a semitone sequence.
\vi thin such sequences are preceded by the message "ENTERS SErJIIFTJ~".
They are not n~~bered, to avoid confusion, since they always beein
with the note just preceding, but the numbering is obvious.
In all cases when the end of the tQ~e is reached a message to
that effect is output, follo~ed by a sketch of the har~o~c space
around/
around the tonic as origin, points corresponding to notes that have
occured being marked with o.n X. Finally, a list of the not9s of the
tune with their notations in that space, relat~ve to that origin, is
printed, to b"i ve "the same informe. tion more completely, although less
I
transparently.
~- l ., .J
I tO
i) ' i ! '\ ' '\ I 1.: L 1 . t f ,I ,\ j' =-~ j) \ '
~- I ; •\ j - ~ I i-.: i.. I . ; . ·.: ,'\ j t~ : 1 \
,) ,-L\ .hJ. \ I ~ L I ,:j ' ·~A ; ~: l} \
:_) i 1 I 1\l I) ! ( I t L I ;.1 I ~ t\ Tf: iJ '
j
t,t-lf\ ..JJr<l l:Li"1li·~ATED'

(> i·l I N _Jf< ' ~: L f 1--i f ~- !1'. T t: i) '
7 d I ~~ .J t ~~ ' E L I ~1 I ;\J I\ T ~ D '
1u .1r, J;_) f ~ I t: t I ' t 1 r,u, r 1.: n ,
1 L) 11 J u I ~ I L I >l I N/\ Tl-.: I) \
;:
2L /J
111 r ~\J lH< I 1:: L I r-1 r NAT en '
4 :-1/\ J 0; ~ I EL I t-1 f ;'~A T1:: fJ \
<J i·l A,J oH I E L I ~i r :~ ATF n '
9 ;1 I j\J i] I< I E L I :-1 I "J ATE D \
11 :-t A .. J u r~ I t: L I H I 1\J A rED ,
:)l 11J
2 i1 I t'J d IL ~3J
n111\ J d, ~ I EL I :--1 I :·u~. TED '
2 t-'1 J .J ~
1\ E L I >'t I ;· J ATt: l'l \
.. I
1 i'1 A .J o~~ I t '- r H I 1..:. Ar t-: u ,

11 '11 ,,Ji) R I EL I \1 I i·~ AT[f) \
6L 4J
,
7[ ~J
1 n r N .J '~ I E L I ~~ I ,-. j AT E D '
. L·1 I t'; J i IJ 1 H uL t- '
4Mli\JOR
l l ,; J
J l ·~ J
'-) L 1 J
1 u! ·l j
.·u- 1
11[ t)}
.12[ 'lJ
1.51: 1.1]
I 14[ 4J
' E N Tt: i~ => S f. "1 I F l I 1\i ' [ 41 [ 3]
1 ~ [ .3 J
ENft;~S SE:~IFlJN'
1
[ 3J [ 4]
1/[ 1U]
1~r 1 1
19[ 7J
'ENT~RS SEMIFUN' [ 7] [ 6]
2ur 6J
' E f~ T t: t-~ S S E M I F UN ' [ 6J [ 7J
22[ 10]
2j[ 6J
24[ 4J
2~[ 2J
I l~ 1\J [) iJF TUNE'.
X X
X X X X
X X X
I 'HJ T ~ T 1 D.\J 0 r:- s;J R j Ec T \

[ 4[ J 1]] [ /[ 1 -1]) [ 11[ 1 . 0]]
[ 'l l 'J • r:; ] "1 [ 3[ 1 • 1] ] [ 4[ 0 • 0] J
[ ~?[ 2 . -1]:1 [ 4[ 0 . 0]] [ 1[ 3 . 0]]
[ 4L J • CJl [ 0[ 0 . -1JJ [ 4[ 0 . OJJ
[ 11c 1 • o~~ r 4C o • OJJ c 3[ 1 . lJJ
[ 4 I. i) • (l 1 :1 r. 1 0 [ 2 . 1 ] ] [ 1[ 3 • 0JJ
[ 7[ 1 . -1]] [ 6[ 2 . 0]] [ /[ 1 . -1)]
[ tu[?.. liJ ( 6[ 2 . OJJ [ 4[ 0 . OJJ
[ ~?[ 2 • -1]]
It?.·
)
1 L tJ J
2:1" j () H I EL I ~11 NATE 0 \
?. M I N iJ r< 1
EL I :-1 I ~J A T E D '
3 11 I N J H I E L I ~1 I ~~ ATE [) \
4 r'1 A ,J 0 t~ I EL I ~, I i\f A T t: n \
6MAJJHI ELI~l~ATEU'
6 M I N l) t< E L I M I . ~A TE D \
I
iJ M r N J H E L I M I ;\) A TEn '

I
9 i"l Aj uI< E L TM I r~ A T r= D \
I
11 '1 Aj L) R EL I t-1 I NATF. D \

I
111~ 1 :~ L) R EL I i-1 I N A T E D \
I
2[ 1]
OMAJUt<' ELIMINATED'
OMJNOR' ELIMINATED'
3MAJOH' ELIMINATED' I
4 N I N n.~ r:: L r ,. , 1 NATE n '

I
.j
5 MAJ 0 I~ EL I MI N AT f [) '
I .!
7MAJUH ELIMI~ATED' 1
i
7 M I N 0 I~ EL I M I NAT F. D\
I
9MINOH ELIMINATED'
1
1U~AJUR 1
ELIMINAfED' . \
·~··
3[ 0]
• 4[ 11]
111 Aj 0 K I E L I MI NATE 0 \
1MINOH' ELIMINATED'
5 11 I N 0 H I E L I t-1 I N ATE I) \
8MAJ0H' ELIMINATED'
10Ml~UR 1
ELIMINATED'
I Tu:'JI c. D0 MI NAt\J T RuL E \
I !J t: c 1 s I 0 :-J AT N0 T f: NuMBER \ 4 5MINOR
3[ U]
I E ··~ Tt t~ ::; s E M I F lJ N .\ [ 0] [ 11. ]
5[ 4]
1
ENTt~~ SEMIFUN' [ 4] [ SJ
,.
7[ 10J
J
---~,'t.··
' E i\J T t: R ~ St:= M 1 F UN ' [ l 0J [ 9J
i
! •
I. u]
[ I J
I
11 [ 5 J
12[ 5]
1j( 7.J
'ENT~RS SEMIFUN' [ 7J ( 8]
I END OF fUi\IE \
• r; • X X X
X X X X
X X
'NUTATION OF SUBJECT'
[ 0[ 1 • 0]1 ( 1[ 0 ' -1]] [ 0[ 1 . 0]]
[ 11[ 2 . tlJ r 4E 1 . 1JJ c se o . OJJ
[ 10[-1 . 01] [ 9[ 0 . 1]] [ 8[ 1 . -1]]
• [ 7[ 2 • OJJ [ 5[ 0 • OJJ [ ~[ 0 • OJJ
[ 7[ 2 . 0)] [ 8[ 1 . -1)]
I .
....
1[ 6 J
J :1 J\ j ) I ~ I F: L J M I ,' J A T E IJ \
01·1 J i~:)l< I EL J M I j•J/\ Tt;D \
2 r1 r Nu~~ I t: L 1MI .-~"rE n '
:s 1-1 :, .J ,.J I < I E I_ J :--1 I i\! A T E IJ \
'j ··1 " J ll 1 I N A Tr- n '
1 0'·1 A .J u ~~ I EL I '1 I NATE!) \
2[ ?-J
111 A ,J 1.) H F: L Jt·1 I N A T E D \
I
1 i1 I N :1 I< EL 1 i--1 I NATE I) \

I
4 M A,J i J H E L I MJ NAT E. D \
I
4 i1 r N i.) HI EL 1M1 r~ ATE D'

6MAJJH 1 ELIMINATED'
1 d ·1 1 ; Jd H EL I t-t I NAT r: u '
I
11 '-1 AJ \) ~~ E I_ I ~~ I NA T t 1) \
I
..
:fI
-.~[ 11J
.I
7 i~ I N J r< I EL I N I NATE D \ I I
iI
!
4[ 7] :
. ..) MI ,\J i) K I EL I t·1 I j\j ATE D \
6MI~JHI ELIMINATED'
9•'11\JO~ I EL r :--11 ~ATED'
~..
J.
'j [ 6J
6[ 11J
ll 10~
?. '"' AJ t) K I EL I ~I I i\j" TE IJ '
7df\J,)t sE :·1 I F Lt.\l ' [ 11 J [ 1o J
f
i
~
~ll. 4] --- ! (
!.
I t: j\j r r: ~~ s sE M1ruN ' r: 4 J [ ~s J
I F. N r t: ~~ ~J sE ;-11 r u i'J ' c oJ L 11 J
1~[ 6J
I t ,.~ T1: I~ ::; s t: ~ I F u~-~ \ [ 6J [ '5 ]
14[ 2J
I f i"•J fl: ~~.:) sE MI F u ;\J \ [ 2J [ 1J

l uJ
16r oJ
I E i·J T t:: Hs sE M J F !_1,\j \ [ 0J [ 1]
ld[ t).J
1lJ[ 6J
2lJ[ 8]
~~UTATIONAL A~~IGUITY IN ' 11MINOR

I Nu Tt: ( ~") ) \ [ 8 16 3 uN DEF B]
X X X X
X X X X
X X X X
~1[ 6]/
I E j~ ") J ~ TlPJ E \
X X X X
X X X X
X X X X
,.,lJiArin\J or ctJn.JECf'
[ ~) I. l J1 f.' [ 2c 1 - 1 1 J ( 11 ( 0 0J]
r 71. u • -:lJl r 6( :1 • UJJ l 11c o • OJJ
...,. .
r.
[
itJ[ 1.
•.) [ -1
1. J]
. • -1 J ·1 [
[ 4[-1
11[ o.
.
.
.-~ [
0]]
OJJ
6[ 1
[
[
0 1JJ
0]]
..
I
[
[
~·:; [
()l
2
.~
. 1. ] :1
:1 J.
r
[
?.[ 1.
1[ ?
.
-1]] [ 1[ 2
.0]] [ Y( 2
.
0]]
.
-1]]
[ :) [ 1 C' J [ HlJI\DE~="J [ 6[ 1 0]].
. \
App_endix IV
Second Harmonic Algorithm
This function, referred to in Section § 4.2221 of Part III, taYes
vectors in the space onto a list of possible interpretations as the
special diad vectors, cot'responding to the perfe9t fifth and m~jor
and minor thirds which are involved in.the two co~on chords •
..
(
:·.,
~ . . J, Jr. 1 1 ~ J \J fJ 1 A n:; x1 Y1 x~ Yc ;
c J i 1 11:: ·J 1 I I :· 1r L I c Ar I J ~~ s o F A 1R A.'J s I T 1 o~J
Tr-1 ~=-
I :·(f t: ~~V 1\ L F I~: lt·1 A p (1 I \j T ( X 1 , y 1 ) T0 A p 0 I N T
( X. <, Y? > AR:: Y I EL rn:.= fJ A S A L. I S 1 0 F" L I S T S
r: A CH ll F F n: H~ I f E I·~ S I DL: \I T I F Y l i\J G A D I AD
I t\J I Hi~ HJ\l~~:OI'J I C SPACE' i
V 1\ !\ :·i X Y;
x~-X1->X;
Y?.-Yl->Y;
c J i1 ·1 t ~ I I p E RF • 5 T H , MA J R t-i I N -~ r< 0 s & I N V E H s F. s \ j

IF X=(-1) A~n Y>=O AND Y=<1 TH~N [%[%X1 ,Yt,X2,Y2%J%J EXIT;
1 F X :: tJ A ~~ t) Y >= ( - 1 ) A N D Y =<1 I' Ht: N [ %[ %X1 , Y1 , X?. , Y?. %J >~ J E X 1 T ;
1 F X=1 A :'~ !) y >:- (- 1 } A,~ 0 y =<() T -1 E N [ %[ %X j , y 1 , X 2 I y 2 %] %] r: X I T ;
C.Jf1'1t-\jr 'DIAT')NJC MA.I 7TH & SEMfTONE';
1 F :] U tJ L 0 i ~ ( 8 0 0 !. A N D ( X =1. , Y =1 ) , :i 0 0 L A N fJ ( X = ( - 1 ) , Y =(- 1 ) ) )
I ' fl:: '.J [ :t, [ In X 1 , Y 1 , X ;.~ , Y 1 }~ J ,
[ Yo X 1 , Y 1. , X 1 , Y 2 ~~ J ,
[~X2,Yl,X?,Y2i.:l,
[~Xi,Y2,X2,Y2%J%J
l:XlT;
c I] ;H1t: J I I MA J 0 i~ T 0 NE: \ ;
1 F X =2 A :-.J tJ Y =0
I ·It '·J [ lo [ ;~X 1 , Y 1 , X1 + 1 , Y 1 }~ J%]
1: X I T ;
coM\1 t: ~ r 1NvF. R sE oF I Mr ~oF~ r J Nt: ';

lF ·x=< A'JD Y=<-1.>
~~~~ [~[%X1+1,Y?,X2,Y2%J,
[~X1,Yl,Xlil,Y1%],
[%X1,Y2,X1+1~Y2%J%]
t:XIT;
I
COi•P,lr:i~ r ' I i\JVERSr: OF !'-lA JOR TON!::'; )
lF Y.=<-2> A~D Y=O
1 :f t: 'J [ .'~ [ ~~X 1 , Yl , X1 -1 , Y1 X. J %J 1
t:: XI f ;
c. )f 1 H- '·J I H I \J ~): ~ T 0 '~ E \ ;

I
IF X=(-2j A~O Y=l

I · H: ·J [ ;~ [ ~~ X 1 , Y 1 , X 1 - 1 , Y 1. :~ J l ]
t· X 1 T ;
c .1 N \H: ·~ r I A ;\J v r ·-; 1 N.i~ · r: L s F ' ;
i. .:; L -~ l J ·P J L: F I IJ 1\j p •:: F ' l t 'J Dh F , ;J N 0 t F %] A J ;
1- ·J tJ
2. Syntax and Parsing
2.1 Terminolog-.f.
This Section is referred to in Section § 4.3 of Part III. The
natural way to ~alk about the syntax definitions has been in terms of
a. hierarchical structure of transitions and points, and, (in the case
of, for example, the rules which restrict the definitions of inflec-
tions in the context of runs), in terms of 'contex sensitivity'.

Hmv-ever, there are no ·.recursive definitions among the rules, and the
contexts that have to be examined are extremely loeal. Although,
therefore, the parsi~g can be carried out by a finite-state machine,
that would be an unrevealing way of presenting the definitions.
Instead, they are presented below in a form which relates closely
both to the informal definitions that were used to introduce the ideas,
and to a simple algorithm for parsing according to the definitions.
In order to present it in this tTay a fe'v- preliminary remarks are

necessary.
Amo~1g the informal definitions given so far, some have been made
in terms of the notes which make up the melody, while others have been
made in terms of the types of int·ervals (second, etc.,) b8t1-1een the
notes of the melody. From now on all definitions 1vill be made in
terms of intervals between notes. This simplifies some rules, but
there is an obvious correspondence betw·een intervals and notes, and

it l'lill usually do no harm to think of the i:cte!:'Vals as notes in
considering the rules.
In the definitions below certain abridgements have been nade
upon earlier defini tj_ons. In particular, where for example a

definition/
definition rentricts a constituent to a context vlhich is neither o.ny
second nor an ascendinG run, (say), we can express this completely
by merely making the prohibited context that of the second, since the
· run is made up of such.
The follo•,ring connectives are used to express the syntux defini-
tionn.
iR macle up of: This corresponds clo3ely to the rev1ri te arr0\1 of
immediate consti.t-.;.ent gram:nars of n.:ttural language. L:i_ke the rewrite~.
arrow, it defines a set of structural desGriptions fo·r the strings of
a language, and defines the set of l9gn.l 'sentances' of the langu.r.tge.
Unlike the cases usually involved in the study of natural languaee,
the one 111e are concerned w·i th here is the 'lL.J.ivers9.l language of all
possible strings on the alphabet UJ."'lison, second, etc., of terminal
symbols. Another difference bet't-:een this syntax and the usu9.l
gram.rnatical paradigm, (but a trivial one), is that the structures
generated are not strictly trees, since the e!ld :QOint of a transition
is the same as the beginning point of its successor~
This relation is used to define one skeleton description of
melodies, in '~hich the string is mack_"!:ill,_of units called transitions
each conforming to the following pattern.
<-- - - - t\1\.~e_rvo.l..s- _ ------)

·.·
Each node in the above descriptions has features attached to it,
and it is upon the values of these features that the different
descriptions of• the transi ti.ons depend. These are dealt with next,
~: The relation of a syrf!bol to the features associated with it.

/
Each feature is further defined by the following term.
~: Applied to a feature name, this identifies the values that the
feature may take as members of a given set of such va~ues.
2.2 Syntax
2.21 Part I. Definitions
A transition is made up of a Eoint, (from w~~ch it starts), a middl~,
(through which it moves), and a point, (to which it moves).
A transition ~ a ~·
A~~ frun, jump1
A point is made up of a sequence of intervals.
A point ~ a ~' a ~~' a unit duration and a direction.

A~~ [turn, inf, rep, simplej.
A duration is a positive integer.
A~~[o, 1, •• o, 6J.
A direction is [-1, 0, 1J.
An interval ~ a ~' a duration and a direction.
A~~ to, 1, 2,.o., 6}.

·A _d_u~rMat_~_·o_n_ ~a positive integer.
A direction~ {-1, 0, 1~.
A middle is made un of a sequence of intervals.

2o22 Part II: Constraints.
Some shorthand conventions are used here. ..t~ interval whose ~ is 1
is referred to as a second; . if its direction is 1 it is ref'erred to
as an ascending second; if it is -1 the~ as a descending one.
Similarly, points and transitions are occasionally referred to
just by their ~· It will be clear from the underlining of such
{e~g. run) that they are sJ~tactic objects, not just feature values.
A transition of ~ run has its first point of ~ 1 (a seoon9-)
(and that point is of ~ other than turn) (followed by at least one
second of the same duration and direction.) (Its last point is not a ~·)
A transiti~ of ~ jump has as its first and last points ones

whose features are ~~constrained (except that they do not involve it
in the above definition).·
A point of ~turn is a sequence of four intervals, constrained
as follows. The f'irst two are descending seconds, the third is an

ascending ~~; the secoP..d and· third seconds have the same duration
as the first. The fourth interv...a;J.. of the ~ can take any

value for its feature, except that it must not be an ascending second
with duration equal to that of the first three. The turn may not be
preceded by a transition of~ run, the'first of whose seconds are of
the same duration as those of the ~·
A point of ~ inflection is a sequence of three intervals,
constrained as follows. The first is a descending second, the secor~
is an ascending second, and the latter has the same duration as the
first. The inflection may not be ~preceded by a descending second
of the same duration as the first interval of the putative i~lection

point, ~ such that the third interval is an ascending second of
the same duration. It may not be preceded by a ~ whose seconds
are of duration equal to that of the first interval of the inflection.
A. point of~ repetition is a sequence of any nu~ber greater
than 1 of intervals, subject to the constraint that all except
the last have size 0, and ·. ·. have the same duration as the first.
A..middle is a sequence of seconds, each of the same direction
and duration as that: of the preceding point if the transition tnat
contains it is a~· OtherNise it is the nUll sequence.
.A.. point of ~ simple is a single interval whose feature values

are unconstrained (except that they do not involve it in ·any of the
above definitions).
2.3 Implementation.
~n the above definitions, the statements appended to each within
brackets, usually of the form "(except where the values (of the
features in question) would involve the constituent in question in
one of the previous definitions)", are most natura-lly handled in the
parsing algorithm by precedence. Thus by testing, (for example),
for the presence of an inflection before testing for a point of ~
simple, (the unconstrained single interval), it is made impossible
that an interval properly belonging to the point of higher precedence
should be parsed as belonging to that of the lm·ter precedence.
In the sections of proeram that follow, the constraints·
oracketted in the a.bove definitions "':Till be handled in this vTay 1 by
precedence, and will be reflected in the programs as an ordering of

certain tests. For example, since a. ,jumu is ~ -!;ransi tion "\'Those
only constraint is that it should not be part of a~' the function
TRANS corresponding to the definition of a transition ~bove simply
consists of a test for ~ run, follOl·:ed by tl?c test for ~ jump.
(See section I 2.4 below).
In .the ~qo s~~tactic categories, of transitions and points, the
precedences of Yarious types of each ca.n be simply expressed, vrhere
the symbol >· is to be read as "is greater precedence than'.'.
Among transitions,
run> jump
Arr.ong points,
turn, 'inflection, repetition > simple
It/
It has already been mentioned how function TRANS below reflects the
first of these orderings. The function POINTS. in the same Section
~ 2.~ reflects the second.
Once having stated the definitions in teres of precedence, the
algorithm to parRc strings according to the:n is straightforv.·ard, and
involves "filling in" the feature values of tP.e constituent-structure
framework of Figure For some trc..nsition in the melody, other than
the first, its startinz point has already been parsed, since it is also
the end point of its predecessor. The~ of the transition, its

middl6 and end point are then established. This is done by the
principal p3.rsing function NEXTRANS:, in S.:ection §j 2.4, w·hich corresponds
exactly to the aforesaid Figure
It will be noted that, while the integrity of the various cat-
egories of consti tuer..t and feature are preserved in tl1is selection of
functions, (they all appear as identifiable bits of program,) the
distinction between constituents and certain of their feature values
is·not, in-as-far as 1oth appear as POP2 functions. For example, both
the syntA-ctic category tr~sition, and the values of its featu::-e ~run
and jump, appear as functions, TRJ~S, and RUN and JUMF, respectively.
The distiYJ.ction ~;as only introduced in the first place fcl" reasm~s of
exposi tj.on to make it BS clear as possible that this synt~.x is -..rery
simple. ~:far as its mere definition is concerned, eitper cateJory
could r..ave been ex]::anded at the exper.se of the other, and tl:e proe:;raw. merely
reflects the vacuousness of the distinction hy re!lresenting "then in t:h.e
same t.-way.
I
The f\mctions corresponding to the v~rious vBlues of the ~ for
16&
points are TURN, INF, REP, and. NOTE, corresponding to the t.yp~s turn,
inflection, repetition and simple, respectively. Together ~ith the
transition types, functions RUN and ~1JNP, and given the ioplicit
conRtraints of precedence, their form corresponds closely with the

I
definitions of Section § 2.2.
i·
!.
...
(
t.·
l
rl .
t·
2.4 Princip::tl Functions.
In the follo\'ring parsing fu.."l.ctio:J.s, at any stage there is generally

11
partial parse 11 ' of soiUc low-level constituent t-Thi~h muet be repeatedly
exami11ed in the pEt.rsine of its higher-level parent-constituent. This
lo1'ler object may either be some intermediate point or a terminal of the
syntax, an int8rval. It is convenient to keep the partial parse at the
head of the remeinder of the Melody, and to access it with the general
function INEXTHING, 1-rhich islike the standard function HD, except that
where the next interval has not yet been defined, by the "notation"
procedures of the next Section §. 3 of this .&ppenJ.ix, the function
involves those procedures.
-~~.....:
·
.
-~·
'
.:·!
t;..t
·.r.
2'70
~ ·. I 1J .: >I I J .'-J T i (/1 N <.; ;

c·l·'l-H:-Jr I A r:~A~!S IS or- Trr>= ~u.~ OR JUMP';.
1 F • t< tJ J T HI: t\J F )( I T ;
I
, ..JU 1P;
1:: ·J fJ
1-tJiH;I Id:~ POINr;

c D1-1 '1 1: -~ I I A p !'_) I HT I s 0 F T y p c .I uHN I I NF I
t H: P, Ut~ S I .'v!IJ L E ' ;
V A1<':-i . . J t: 1·l ;
... Jt: X T li 1 "J (i- >\J E '.·! ;
1 F hl ( rH: A ) :: " P 0 I NT 11
1 H.: J c u .'·1 "' t: :··J r , rH r: ~J t- xr P o 1 N r ~'1 AY A L RE AnY sE
Plu-<S'~O'; TL <TUN~); '~t: .~:
t:X1T;
1 F • T d t <:-.J T H~ N
~:LSc IF . I NF THEN
t: L ~> E l F • ·< E P THt: r.J
1:.: L ~E • 1-.JO Tl::
CLU3t-:;
t. :J 1J '
F Ui'<J r; T I lHJ i\J 1-: XT RA ~·IS T LHH:: KEY ;

(; (li-1 '11: :·J I A T r,' A ;· J s J T I 0 ;~ I s MA n::: up 0 F A B E G I ~~
I
P U I ·J T , A M I [) DL E 8. A \J F. .\J D P D I N T ' ;
V/.\ 1~ ~ q t: G I i~ T Yr> t: :·11 nIJ LE ~- I ·~ 1 ::> H LAST DU R LAST YPE LA S I f1 ! R ;
I ~ I. U ·J f . :-.J U~- L T HL ~I F AL S e c X I f ;
• P U I ;·~ T ;
->IH:G IN-> T!JNF;
• T IU\ ;\J s;
- >:11 iJ '.1 L E - >T YP I:: - >TUN E ;
I F I U~J F. • f\1 UL L T rH: 1\J N I L ; J NUE F
t:L~E
• f) i.J I N T ;
ct_u=;t:;
- >F 1 ·~ I S :-1 - > T U ~J [ ;
I~ ~ I r.J I S H=d :J i1 l: F T Ht 'J N1 L EL S t:
f I I'J J ~ : I : : T U 'J F· ;
f";L·J~t:;;
f. ·; 11 THA t'J s 11 I T y p E I 8 ~ (] I N , :1 I DIJ LE I F I N I s H/, J ;
I ~tJE;
t-. Ju
Z.71
L I J S T 'C.) i\ V;: ;
1 F ·1u r C;~ E G I ~ • P 0 I NTS I Z E =1 >
I i ~ t: ..J F /~ L S F.
b.X!T;
1 t. t: .\J l.i T rl ( TUNt: > <2 T HF N F AL S E
r t: x I T ;
HE G IN. P 0 It'~ T] I f~- >~l I H;
l~ E li I I'J • P l) I NT ~) U~~- >DU H ;
• H: X f H { ~~ n- >N r:: ~J ;
S0UC~Erl>->NEWSIZE->NEWDUR->~E~DIR;
1F ~.JuT < • SEC 0 N i) )
(J R NU T < i~ E W'1 UH =DUR )
0 R i'J u T C NE WD I H=D I R
I H t: '-J F A L SE
t: X I f; .
L1 : .'J i:: ·.J : : S AVE - >S AVF. ;
T L c r t J :'J t: > - >Tu r·n: ;
IF ltJ~\jE.\!ULL THEN GufO L2 CLuSE;
• NE X T H I N G- >I~ E ~·J ;
SI'Jil < .~EW) -> \JE:HS I ZE-> \J[:WtJUK->Ni:.WD I R;
IF , SECOND
Ai\! iJ i~ t W0 UR = iJ UR
AND NE~DIR=DIH
THEN GOTO Ll
• CLOSF.;
L 2 : ~l I ~->LAST 0 I R ;
'DUK->LASTDUR;
"liUN"->LASTYPE;
TlJNl:;
IIHaJ,·JII;
RtV<SAVE>;
TR U~:;
l: >J lJ
~ · J ~~ C T I d 'J J U MP :
t: t:: (; I I'J • P::> 1NT~ 1 .~- >1. As r n I q ;
b E: ti 1 •. ; • " :J 1 ~~ Tnu ~? - >L A s r nu ~ ;
" JU HJ " - >LA S T Y P f. ;
1 :.J 1·~ r: ;
"Ju ··tP .. ;
NIl;
t: N tJ
""' '•
~ I j Ji~ I I (J :·J Ti.Ji~ :'J :

I
VAi <·) ~H: ;·I N ~~ ·~· fJ ~ h~ ~J f y.J S 1 Z ~ N:: w0 I i~ DU R SA VE ;

• J1: \ I d 1 .'J\ ~ - >\J [ '.o! ;
r~IL->SAV~;
j F l. t: ~ t.; T H ( T '·' ~ F > <4 TH r r·~ F AL S t: t: XI T ;
!::, J iJ < 1\J E tJ > - >:'J F ~1:.; i ZF - >D1J t\ - >i~ ~ Wn I ~ ;
1 F I. AS 1 YPE:= "H t.t .\J" A:·J 1J LAST 0 U ~=DU R THEN FALSE EX I T ;
1r \I U f < • SEC nE S C > T lit~ N F" A L S1-: f X I 1 ;
Nt:w::SAVI-->SAVE:.;
I L < T lJ . Jt:. > - >f 1.1 \J :~ ;
• 11::';{ f •i 1 NG->hll-;~..J;
S 1l IJ ( •" E ~~ ) - >.\J E wS I Z E - >N !:= W0 Uf? - >\J E A0 I R ;
lF 'JOT<.SECDESC>
U H :· J0 T ( \J t: t,t DU f{ =0 IJ H >
f ~n: '·J R1:: V < SA V f.: > <>TU i~ E- >TUNE ;
FALSE
t X IT;
S '" V F - >S A V t: ;
I'J f.: l-1 : :
I L ( TU ··H: > - >T !J NE :
• 'H: X TH 1 :'J f;- >\J F: A ; ·
::, !l U< N f.: vi) - >Nf·: ~~SI Z[- >1\J F. W0 Uf~- >:~ EwDI R;
1 r i·J o T ( • S EC A S C >
u :~ ·JUT ( :'JEWDUR= OUt<)
·1 : If: :··J Rt: V < S A V f. ) <>T UNt - >T UNc ;
FALSE FXfT;
r\J E t~ : : S A V t - >S A Vt ;
IL(ftJJL:>->TUNl.::;
• '-J L: X J rl l:·J {~ - >NE tJ ;
S lJ LJ ( ;\J E w > - >\J F ~~ '3 I Z E - >r•J E ~~ 0 U R - >N E wlJ 1 R ;
1 F • S t: C·A S C AN ~) NE ~J UU~~ = UUH T ~-1 E i\1 RE V < SA Vt: > <>T UN E- >TUN E ; F ALSE
t:XlT;
I L ( TlL~c) ;
I N T 11
[ ~ ,, ! ) lJ , " Tu HN 11
I RF V( Nf:: w: : sA Vt: ) %] j
., H t IF:;
t: ·J u
~ d NC J I d N I ~-J F ; .
V AI~:> 'H: 11 i\1 t '.\DU ti t·H: ~J S I Z E N t: WD 1 t~ DU R SAVE;
1 F r_ t: :··HiT -1 ( Tll t~ ·::) <3 f HEN FA L S i:: X I T; c
• .H: X J H 1 "J r, - >f\ I E'tJ :
NIL->SAV~~;
~ J !l ( N t: 1-J ) - >N[ •.J S 1 Z F - >Ll U1-? - >:,J WlJ I ·~ ; c
t:
1 F .J lJ l < • S C i1 F S C ) T i H:. N F AL SE E X 1 f ;
f>J t-: •~ : : S A V t-= - >S A V E ;
r I_< T ci·H: >- >r:.l~lt:;
• .Jt: ( J '~ 1 :J.~-)!, 1 F-:W i
~lUC~EW)->NFWSIZ~->NFWnUR->NE~UIR;
1 r 'J ur < • ~> r.- c As c >
lJ . ~ Jd T ( .~ t tE1 uR = t1 u~ )
I ~t: J rh.:V(SI\VE><>TU;Jt--->TUNE;
F 4 L ~;E
t: ~ 1 r;
I'J L: w: : S A V f - >S A V t: ;
IL l H: ) - >T t J t\!f:~ ;
T iJ
•. Jt: X I H 1 i'h;- >''! F '" ;
S !.l IJ <N t .~ > - >'J F(.! S I ZE- >NFWDU H- >NF. wU 1 H ;
1F • s:: ~A se
J\ !·HI i'l evJihl K =1J U I{
J\:J!J LA:-lTYPE="i~J~I"
J\ . I tJ L A~ T i) Ut~ = 11 lJ r~
A ·.Ji) L A ~ T DI ~ =< - 1 >
1 ;~ t: ·I R t: V ( S A V ~ > <>T lJ fH: - >T UNt: ;
FAL~E
l:XlT;
'IL(TU>H:);
l .Ya P l l I i'J T 11
11
, " I NF " , RE V < NE W: : S AvE ) %J ;
I t~UE;
I::··JU
F Ut'l C 1 I U ,\J li EP ;
V AI'< S .~ t: W i\l E :..! S I ZF: ,\J E WnU q N;::: w0 I R 0 UR S AV t ;
NIL->SI\VE;
1 F TU;·J t: • L E NGT'I <1. THE: N F AL SE E X I T ;
, :·H: X I H 1 ~'J G- >NE W;
~ 0 d < ;·~ t:: ~~ >- >~ E 'A S I Z E - >DUR - >Ni:: W0 I R ;
1F ·Jl J T < • UN I S 0 N ) T HE N F A L S t: · E X 1 T ;
L !1 : :H: ;~ : : S A VE - >S A VE ;
• TL< lUNE>->TUNF;
If TUiE.NULL THEN GOTO Ll CLOSE;
• I'J t: XT q I ;...j G- >i-.J 1:: W;
S 11 D ( •\I c ...J ) - >\J F WS I Z ~ - >NF 11 DUH - >NE v.J D 1R ;
I~ NOT(.UNISON> OR ~OT< NE~DUR=DUR>
THEN Li:TUNI::.TL;
[% 11 POINT", "HEP",RtVCNE~~: :SAVE)%];·
TRUE;
f;Xl I;
GUTl) LO;
l:: .'J u
~ :JI~~ 1 1 J N i~ 0 T f. j
VAt<S Jt:w;
• Jt: X I •t l ;-J;-; - >NE ~J ;
f L ( Td -~ t: > ;
l ~ .. f> \J I ·\IT " , " '\) 0 T l: .. , [ %NEW >~ J ~~ J ;
t: -~ 8 ..
This S~ction is referred to in Section § 4.4 of Part III.
..
·
17s-
. L :1J.:.i Tr< I ANGLr. NEW IN T1]
~.J ,·J C I l u ~ N17 XT I NT TUN r: i{ E Y ;

C J f·i 1t .'J I 1 Y I EL J S Trl E:: ~~EX T I 'J T t:: RV A L 0 F THE TUN F. ,
Tlh]t:T··IE,~ wI r~ THE: HF.~1A 1 NDF -~';
V .4 H 3 !) 1 R N 1 ~J') V AL 1 V A L 2 DlJ ~ 1 DUH2 0 C T 1 0 C T 2 NL I S ;
1 F T lJ' ~ 1: • ;\i UL L rHE ~ J UN Pf: F ; J N 0 F F ; i:: X I T ;
t>J t1 ··1 t:- ·J I 1 I T :VI A Y AL Hl A D Y H A V t: 8 E t: N P ARS E 0 ' ;

I )I'J F. • H I J- >N 1 ;
1 F ·'J :J.• H u= 11 I t\i T"
· ·1 H1:: -~ TL ( T U\J E ) ; N1 ; C: X I T ;
> > >

N 1 , !) t: S f • nt:: S T • 1-f D- 0 C T 1 - lJ U ~ 1 - V AL 1 ;
I F f U ·-J I: , TL • N UL L
TH;: i'J C0 MM1: N T 1 T Ht L A S T I N f E R V AL 0 F THE T UN E
·IS A SPECIAL CASE ' ; .
N I L ; [ %" r N T " , V A l 1 ,· P lJ ri 1 , U :\1 0 t: F , UN 0 E F , UN Dt: F %J ;
t:xlr;
c J M: 1t ·J r , K F: y BoAR IJ s.r: M1 r oN t: s ARE Nor Eo s Y

S~~l~OTE, OTHE~S ~y NOfATE';
Td '" £: • TL • rf IJ - >\J :) ;
I) I rl 'l F ( ,,J 1 , i\J? ) - >i.l I H ;
N 2 • IH: S I • DE S T • HD- >0 C T ? - >DlJ R ? - >VAL ?. ;
I F =) t: :11 S I Z f:: < N 1 , t~ 2 ) =1
U~ S~i1SIZE <~1,~2>=C-1>
r Hl: ·J St:::'-11 NOTF. <V ALl, VAL?.)
1:: L ~ ~ ·'J l) T AT E ( V.A L 1 , VAL ?. )
GLuSt; .
->NI_ IS;
NLI3.TL.rlD::P0SLlST<KEY>->POSLJST<KEY>;
lL< ru:Jt:>;
[:~"I NT", VAL 1, DUR1, NL IS, NL IS. S 171:0F, D I R% J;
CJ,·1~1t: ~ r AN INTERVAL HAS A VALUE= A DURA.T I ON A i\10 TAT I ON
1
A SIZE ANO A Dli~ECTIO~J';

zi,
~ i.JrJC f I UN NOTATl:: \J1 N?.;

C ) M ~1t: ·J I ' N f) T/1. r r; S T H F J N T cR VA L tj t: f Wt E N T iJ 0 N 0 T ES
I !.) l 11 t:: H T 11 t\ \J h 1\ F. Y 8 0 A~ 0 SE '-11 f' 0 NE APART \ ;
V A r< ') v P :J S L 1 S T? P 0 S 1 P 0 S?. P L I ;:) T K L I S T T R.U TH;
1 F J ~ =U ~'J :J E F T I I E N [ ~~ H D < ::> 0 S L I S T <K E Y ) > , UN DE F %J E X I T ;
l F Kt: Y =J.H)l:F
frH:·J GLOSEST<POSISHSCN1), [%CONSPAIRCO,O>%J > .HO,HO->POS1;
GtJTO LL;
CL u :> t ;
PUS I S·f.J { ,\J2 > -)PUSL I ST2;
P :J S L I S l ( K E Y > - >P L I S T ;
KEYLISI CKEY>->KLIST;
(; 0 i'-1:11: ;J T I N 0 TAT I 0 ~J 0 F r I Rs T 1 s K N0 rl ~ F R 0 M p RE: V I 0 us \;

. t'i 1J P 0 S 1 ;
CJM'H:-:~J 'MELODIC CONVENTION\;

J F '11: L C 0 :~ 0 Cn I h' >
f ~ t: 'J t< L I S T <>ME L C 0 NV CKEY, D I R ) - >t\ L· I S T ;
CLUSt:; .
c 0 i1 'H: ··J I I TE s T I F sE c 0 \J D c 0 u '- j) dE I N K E y \ ;

APt.)L IS I ( POSL I ST2, LAMBDA Xi IF NUT< THUTH > TH::N EXIT;
IF F1NDCX,KLISf>
THti\J X->POS2 ;·
FALSE ->TRUTH;
EXIT;
END>;
1 r. ;·JoT c T ;~ u rH > T 11 F. N [ %P os 1 1 P os;! x J Ex I· T ;
COr·1:'1b.Nr 'IF O~IT l1F KFY, CrlOuSE CLOSEST\;

L L : I F P J S 1 =I J:,H_) F_ F
THEN CLOSEST ( POSL·I ST2 I [ ~~rtO ( TL ( PL I ST) >%]).HO Hr> I
tLSE CL0SEST<POSLIST2,[%?0S1/o])
->Vi
It-. V.LFNGTH>1 THE\J NL<1>i
PR('+++++NOTATIONAL AM81GUITY+++++');
·CLOSE; .
V.HD.HD;
~; l il ~ J: ; - ) P 0 r.; 2 ;
L :~" n~ 1 I P os 2% 1 ;
t:'JtJ
~ :JI'J C f I U N S F. ~I I ~··J 0 T E V ft. L 1 V AL 2 ;
c J !1 H.:.~ 1 ' ;\J;:: •..: v' l:: R s I tn~ s:: PT 16 7 2 • s I N c E NEw F HA r~ E:
,~ t: h1 f t~ S A. Ll. SI~ M I T ~NE:; C0 MP LE fLY
t J"~ 1\ ~1 ;3 J f! '.J 0 US , THE F lJ '.J C r I UN
!··J t.: E [l 0 N L Y N 0 TAT E UN SE "11 ruNE AT .A. T I ME , ' ;
V A K ~) f r< UT H V Al S rH I r RA t-1 ~ K i:> 0 S K X K Y P 0 S 2 P 0 S L I S T2 ;

KEY • Kt YL I S T • H !) ->I~ P 0 S;
Kf.l u ~ • F ·~ ·J ;·J T- >KX;
K?U3,JACr\-)~y;
lJ :'J 1 d I .J ( '-1 A j 0 ~~ ( : [.~cor·~ SPA I R ( KX-2, KY >,CO '.JSPA l H <KX-1, KY-1),
C0 !'I SPA I H{ KX+ 2, KY+ 1 >% J
-> S E MI F R A t~ 1-: ;
. PDSI~dS{V/\L?.>->PUSLIST?;
AP f> L 1 ? I ( P 0 S L I S T2 , L A ~~ RDA X ; I F TRU TH V A L • N0 T TH E N E X I T ;

IF FINO(X,SEMIFRAME>
THFN X->POS2;0->TRUTHVAL;
EX I T;
E.N D > ;
l. :~ H :"l (" P LJ S L I S T < K t:: Y )") , P 0 S 2 %1 i
l:. J iJ
4. Other Interpretative Functior-s.
This s.ectior.. is ref~rred to in Section §> 4.5 of Part III. ·
I
·.
I,
219
•<t.: c ·l '~ in .'J s c.. t< E v " , cn o o o o o o J > - > KE vRt: c- >v I ~ T L As T- > Kc YT ·~ I A o- >K E vllJ N
->POSLIST->KEYMOOE->KEYLIST
-··->DES fKEY->CONSKEY;
~ I I U U MA I N TU~.J E i
.J j ~ :;
F I \J Ds T HE K F y 0 F T J Nt: \ ;
c \) .1:'1F: ,.~ 1 I
VAr<S Kt:YL;
1F ·1 I i~ ACF THF'I NL (.) ) ;
LE ,·~ '1 f d ( T J ,\J E ) - >f lJ i\J EL 1:: t\1 GT H ; 'J L ( 1 ) ;
CL U ~) t: ;
c (J t>.l·1 E \J T F ~HJ R TE E N K ~ y s I ,'J c L ui) E s 0 ME
I
1 ;.J f Ei~ P r~ f T A T I 0 1\: 0 F T rl F. F 1 i~ S T N0 T E= ' ;

t-J.J:;,31 :iLE (HO< TUNE)) ->I~EYL;
c u:1 !·1 E :'J r so.~ E oF T HEs F. ARF s uP P.oR r Eo
I
HY THE FIRST THA:\JSII'ION'; _

P ~~ u? US t: ( r< f. YL , T ~PH: >->KEY L ;
GU:vJr1ENT 'THeSE ARJ:= 1 TE.~A T I VEL Y EXAMINED FOR
SUPPORT FROM FURTHER TRANSITIONS, UNTIL
U \1 L Y (H~ E S lJ RV 1 V f:: S • ' ;
C PJ F I ~ r·l < K t: YL , T UN E ) ;
t: . j L)
~ •J ' .J r. I l U ~\J KEYLC XI T ; ·

1 F K1:: YL • HD • Kf Y TLH JF. • N UL L T 11 E \J T RUE E L S t F AL S E E X 1 T ;
t: :J tJ
F (J rJ C f I UN C0 ~~ F I R t-1 KE: YL TUN:: ;

c iY1"'H: .·J r T AKE s .A L I s r oF r< t: Ys , KEYL , Ar-..; o
I
I rt:r<AflVFLY FXAHINf.S THF Oi\JE::> GIVEN

ACT L VC. SUPPORT IJY fHE I U·\JE';
1 F I I K ACi: TLf E'J NL { ~S ) ; p ~ ( 11 * * * 11 )
; : >t< { " CU ,, r I ~~ !v1" > ; S T A HL I N~ ( 5 0 ) i C L 0 S f: ;
VA L'J 5 AV ;:. ;
I
•'J I L - >:> '' V•: ;

Ld!T~ .r<t:YLFXIT ..... ·
r H f. ~~ c u~·.P·~ f. ~~ r ' E~ D oF TuN E ' ; KE yL E x 1 T ;
IF KEYL.fL..NULL
=-·
f ·il: N K~ YL E X 1 f ; ./
K~YL.TCO~PL~T->KEYLi
IF ~EYL.TL.NlJLL THt:\J KcYL t:Xli;
ft:SIKEYSCKfYL>->Kt?YL;
·3 uT lJ L u ;
t ., iJ
..
.
iso
f .J I~ c I I d :\j T~ s TK E y s K E. y L j
c 0 1·1 '·1 t ; J I . I T A~ f: s A L I s T .( F y L 0 F K t: y s , G I VEs
L I :-> T 0 F S U:> P 0 1~ TF: IJ 0 \J E S , ' ;
1 F ·1 I .~ 1\ C t: 11! E \1 NL ( 2 } ; p ~ ( 11 * * 11 ) • ;
c
~-' i~ < " 1 f :J T .<: E YS" ) ; STAR L IN < S 0 ) ; Nl ( 2) ;
CLUit-.:;;
Vh~~ ~AVE2 SAVE;NIL->SAVE;~IL->SAV~2;
AP P L 1 S r ( K E Yl, L At 1q D A X ; V A r~ ~ f R TU /l CCF l A G : 0 - >ACC F L A G ;
c .J n;-1 t: J1 I FoPl\ L 1. , PARs:: ~~ t: x r r RAN s 1 r I oN ,
•J ll T1: I F ACC I DF: NTAL , & I F NtJ T Kt E P IN
LISI2. TF.ST THE I'1PLICATIONS OF THE
T~ANSITIQN, ADDING SUPPO~T~D HYPOTHESES
TU SAVE';
~fXfRANS<KEYTUNE<X>,X>.~RASE->T~->TU;
IF TISIN((f:Y<I'R>.t..JOT
THEN 1->ACCFLAG;
ELSf X::SAVF2->S~VE2; CLOSE;
.SU~TEST;
F.ND);
c 1.) M:·ll: \J l I uNsup p 0 R Tt: D y I EL 0 T H0 sE
IF A'- L
;·I H ( CH ARE N 0 N- A CC J D EN T AL I F AN Y , EL SE
ALL';
1.F S A Vt: • ;·J UL L T HE N S A Vt 2 •.V Ir~ T F li I G E L SE S A VE E X I T ;
l:: .•J tJ
.f.·. .
l ~ .• lL,
'·
L:-1 J :) Tr< I·l\ NGl. E :1 AIN TA IN J

I
v l\1-< S 0 tJ E ~~ A T I 0 \J 7 <=>;
t- J ··~ C 1 1U '~ P A I R F {J P 1 P ~ ;
1 F P 1 • F t ~ 0 ~~ T =P ') • F R UN T A. \J 0 P 1 • R A CK =P ? • 8 A CK T Ht: N T R UE
t:.LS~ FALSE;
CLUSt:;
t: .1 U
tJ A 1 i~ t: ;J- > NU \J 0 P <=>; .
~ J ,..,J C 1 I l1 N MA I ~ f A I N I f-1 P L I S T Kt: Y ;

T A K Es L I s T .I MD L I ~ T lJ s u A L L y c 0 N TA i N I ~ G
c f)t1 :·1 t :~ I I
TWJ KEY J~?LICATIONS , AND C0MPAriES EACH ~ITH

A Kr.:Y, GIVES TRUf: IF· SA~1t:, t:LSE FALSE.';
VAKS GUNFIR~O;
U- >Go:~ F I RMD ;
iF ~~~LIST.~ULL THEN FALSE ExiT;
l>H-1 H- (~ T I s p Fc I AL
cAs F s F 0 'i ri E') Ts AND u N1 s 0 N' ;
iF IMPLIST.HD="HFSTFRIG"
THE N H 0 < TL : : V I ~ T L AS T ( KE ? ) - >V ~ R TL AS T ( KE Y> ; TRUE F. XI T ;
I F I r1 P L I S T • Hf) =" Ui~ I F R I G"
TH t: N H D ( TL ( I :·1 P L I S T > > : : V I RT L AS T ( 1\ E Y ) - >V I RT L A S T < Kf Y> ; T RIJ E E X I 1 ;
IF 1\CCfLAG
i\J 0 K E Y I S SUP P 0 R f 1: D ti Y A T RA~ S I T I 0 N
I rH: >J C LJ '1 MEN T '
CUNTAI\JJ:\JG AN ACCIDE\lfAL'
; FALSF tXIT;
APPLIST( IMPLISl ,LA~180A XXi
IF CONFIR'1U THEN EXIT;
~ IF NOT<TYPE1<XX,KEY>>
fl-lf:N· EXIT;
UNIONC[%1Slnt::cXX>%J,KFYTRIAD<KEY>>
->KFYTRIAD<KI::Y>;
JVLASTl<XX>->HUCVIRTLAST<KfY>>;
JVLAST(XX>::VIRJLAST<KEY>->VIRTLAST<K~Y);
T H UE - >C0 NF I ~ ~I fJ ;
I: !'J D> ;
CJIJf 1 ~."1!);
t: h)
F J~~ •; I I d '-J I M:.> L I CA T S T HA \J S I f K E Y ;

C ·l •"I 1t: ··J I 1 F 0 R A G I VE ~ K ~ Y , A TR A riJ S I T ( I 0 N) Y I EL 0 S . A l I S T
H "DIAD I"~TFRPRETATIO\JS .. , THE~SELVES LISTS,
J ll ~ i·1 A L L Y r. 0 '~ T A I ~ I ~ G T WJ I MP L 1 E D K E Y S ' ;
VAt<S tlLI5T FSTPT SECPT X1 X2 Yl. Y2 IMPS VLAST; '
H :) < V 1 ·~ f L A S T ( K E Y ) ) - ) V 1.. A S T ;
•" I L - >I r-t P S ;
I'
1 ·~ A 'J :-> t: .'I ll 5 ( f R A "-I S I T ) - >r S T P T- >SE C P T ;
---4
IF VLI\ST:ll:-.JQEr ~ l
I · i l: J I f F S TP T =U~~ DE F T1-1 E N [ ;~ [ ~'o " Hi: S T F R I G11 , U.\1 11 t r:% 1 %] t X I 1 ; lj
C J ,·1 h: J T 1 TH I S ...J 1 l L HI= V R ARE - AN ACC • F Q L L 0 tJ 1:: 0 8 Y A REST ' i .
/ .. ... ..
FRONTCFSTPT>->Xli
v
J '' ~ < F S T P T > - >Y1 :
t: LS r: F1< CJ .\J f < V LAST ) ->X 1. ;
1 ~ACK<VLAST>->Y1;
GllJSt:;
t F St: C~) T =U \J TJ F. F . T HE N r %[ }~ " ~ E S T F K 1 G " , C0 NSP A 1 R ( X1 , Y1 ) %J %J E X I T ;
G:.H1'•1 t: .\J ,. THIs HA pp[-: Ns. w1 T H A ~ t ~ T \ ;
I
c ~) i'1 H: I J ,. I () T HE HwI s t \ ;
~Ru·IJ(:)ECPT>->X?;.
t~ A (; K < S1.: CP T > - >Y2 ;
0JAJ~CXl,Y1,X2,Y2>->nLIST:CON~ENT 'DIAD INTERPRETNS';
1F :11 RACE THEN 0 L I S T • HE V-> D I A 0 PR I NT ; CL 0 SE ;
1 F '1 T I~ ACt: .
r.~l:: .. J i~L(l); IF DLIST.HO.HD=J:\JDE:F
I . i t: ··J P I~ ( Q ) F: L SE P R < L ~ N GTH < DL I S T > ) .; CL 0 S E ;
s p ( 1 ) ; p R ( I EX TEH NAL D I AI) s '.> ;
CLUSt:i
L u1 1\ tJ s : coM.~ EN r , r oR AL L · o 1 Au I i\J r E r~ P s , Pu r r HE T wo
t<EY IN THE LIST "IMPS"';
I~PLICJ\TIO~S
If ULIST.~ULL THFN GOTJ LRUN CLOSE;
QLIST.HO.DJ:"ST.DEST.DESf,OE=ST.ERASf->Y2->X?->Y1->X1;
I ~ X ?. =UNnE F THEi~
CUH;1ENT 'N'J DIAD INTEH:::>S FROM AN
li-1 P f RF EC. T THAtJ S I T I 0 '~ ' ; .
. NIL EXIT; .
IMP1~9LECX1,Y1,X2,Y2)::I~PS->IMPS;
TLCDLIST>->ilLIST;
. ~~OTO LD J ADS;
'\
L RU 'J : I t1 P S <>f~ lJ ;..J I t·1 P L Y ( T R ANS f T , K 1:: Y ) ;
(; 0 11.·11:: .~ T ' I ~ T EH ,\J AL I riP L 1 CA f I 0 NS 0 F HUN S ' ;
t~U .
f" ..JN r; I I U 'J K F Y C'1 P Y '< E Y ;
c ~) L) K F. y (
I
1\ E YL I ~; l Cr\ E Y ) ,
I~ t: y.' I u ! ll: ( I( E y ) ,
POSLI$1 C-<t:Y>,
Kl-:Y TU H.: ( ~EY >. TUNECQPY;,
r< ~ YT t ,
VlKTLAST<KEY>.TUf~ECOPY, ~
KE YtH-: C CK1-: Y ) );
t: iJ u
t- ~Ji'..J C 1 I u t'J S U8 T f.: S T ;

c 0 M-~ t: ;~ r I F 0 R 1:: VE R y D J A0 I z'J TE Rp . , I F A\J y ,
TR ~ H I CH S uP P 0 ~ TS A K E Y X ,
0 ~ A TR A ~I S I T I 0 :'1
A CUPY OF X IS ADnED TJ A LIST OF ~UPPORTED KEYS~
I t~ ·1 HE- GL 0 3 Al- " S A VE " , t3 Y S U8 CAL L 0 F S U8 SU ·3 T ' ;
VAr<S
Q 1 1\ 0 P ;~ I T F S r PT P 0 S I T S r~ J N f NP F LA G
:-..J LA S T ART L A S f F 1N
Tri!SfA~f TYISFIN lMPLL DJPLICAT;
tJ -'.J U~ ~ - >D I J\ DPR I N T ;
IF ·1IR1~CF. T~F.~J NL<3>;P~<"*");CLOSE;
IF ~~~ACE THE~ STARLIN~<40>;PH<KEYNAMECX>>;
_P R ( 11 * •'• ) ; :\~ L ( ? > ;
(;LUSI::; ·
lF· X.I'(!::YREC.\IULL.i~OT THF:\J
rf~ A -'J ::> E ;'J I) S < H D < ~ t YRE C < X > ) } - >L AS f A ti T - >L AS T F I N ;
l R A 'I ;-, E •'H) S < T q ) - >T H I S T Ai ~ T - >f H I' S F I N ;
1F 1 Tt~ ACt: THEN NL < 1 ) ; PR C" V I R TU AL " ) ; S P < 1 >;
1\ 4 P 'i I ·J T < V I R TL A S T ( X ) • RE V , 1 2 ) ;
i\IL(~);
CLlJSt::;
IF MT~ACE ANO PROPTRACE
Trlf:i'J
PR( 1
TRANS , TYPE ');
p ~ ( T ~ • TL • H J) ) ; p q ( I , F ~ 0 :. 1 \ ) ; s p ( 2 ) ; p R ( TH 1 s T AR T ) ;
S P ( t> > i ~' R < 11 T 0 " ) ; S P ( 2 ) ; P =? < T H 1 S r I N ) ;
!F Ar.GfLAG
1 , i t: ·J ~ L c1 > ; P R c r R Aj-~ s 1 r I o~J
I c uN r A 1Ns Acc r oE r..J T AL ' > ;
f i~ : : Kt Y' ~:: C ( X ) - >K F: Yi~ E C ( X ) ;
t J- >r< E '( T I J .~ f ( X ) ;
·~ L ( 1 ) ; t-1 ·~ ( " F A I L S " ) ;
t X l T; ......
CLUSt:;
I F 'J d T < Td I SF J "! =lr'~ Df. f' >

A·~1 Jdf<LAST.,\RT=U~JIJCF>
Ar'J J I ! ~ I S f I N <=>l AS 1 AR T
AND f~ 0 T < A C r. F L A (; >
ldt: J fr<: :t(f:YHFC<X>->;<EYRF.C<X>;
Tl J - >KE y T'. I ~; r: ( X ) ;
:iU( fl.<VIHTl ASf< V.))>: :viHrLASf<X>->VIt<TLASTCX);
X:: SAVr:->~AV!:;
•
1f ·I f ~"A CF.:
.., ~: .·:.
l • ;..1
' l 1
. . '
- :
t..N~{
r li 1:: -~ :·JL. < 1 > ; PH ;

c.; L tLi t: ;
t·Xlfi
C{u:1t:; ! •
cJ i·1 1r:- J r 1
T H l S P AHA f·i F A~ S THAT A T RANS · WH I C H I S THE I NVF. R SE
0 F I TS P tH: li r: C b SS l), ~ 1 ·1 P L I ~ S 0 ".! L Y WHA T T HA T PR E CE U I NG
T ti h. N S T'·1 P L I E D • . J J I. Y ? ' ;
1r r ~~ • 1 L • Ho= " r."' uN ..

1 ·ll: ~J T ~~ • T L • r L • Ho-> r !:> r P r ;
F ~; TP T • TL • T L • H11 • L AS T • I N f P ~ S - >P 0 S I T S ;
I F ··~ 0 1 ( L A S T A R T =U \J Uf F )
A iJ D P 0 S l T S • T L • H 0 <=>L A S T A t{ T
1\,\JD NOT< ACCFLAG >
TtiEN 0 ->:?UN I MPFL.AG;
KEYCOPY<X>->DUPLICAT;
TR: :KEYHEC<DUPLICAT>->KEYREC<DUPLICAT>; ·
TU->KEYTUNECOUPLlCAT>; .
OUPLICAT.VJRTLAST.TL,HO::OUPLICAT.VIRTLAST
->DUPLICAT.VIRTLAST;
OUPLICAT::SAVE->SAVE;
I~ 1-1TH ACf TH~.N ·\1 L ( 2 ) ; PR ( 1
M~ I NTA IN aY I r~ TF f~ NAL I NVER SF: I N RUN ' ) ;
CLOSE;
CLOSE:
t;L 0 S t: ;
G:PI'·1l:: >J r ' 1 -f E SA MF. T H I NG F J R I ~\1 Tt: R :\J AL I MPS • . 0 F R lJ tJ S ' ;
c~)M : 11- ;J r I or HE 9 A 1 sE 1 r H ~::

L 1 s r or P A r Rs oF KE Ys
1\ ~-> S UC I ATF 11 wI T H i: AC:-1
D I A0 I ,\j TE RP RF T AT I 0 N
:) F f ~~ ~ TR A\1 S Ai-~ E P UT I :'J I t·1 P L L ' ;
l '1 P L J Cf\ T S (· f R , X ) - >I MF L L ;
IF l Mr>LL • .\JtJLL
I d t: ~-J I H : : :< E Yf·H: C CX > - >K :: YR C: C < X ) ;
TU->KEYTUNE (X.>;
I ~ MT i~ A C r: A N 0 P R 0 ~ Ti~ A. C c
rHfN NL<l>;PR<'FAIL NO IMPS');
GLOSE;
EX I I ;
LO: COMMENT·'FOR EACH ~AI~ .OF KEYS IN IMPLL
I.E. EACH D I AO, CRt:t, ff A COPY OF THE
KF.'f Ar\Jf) TEST JT Ar,AI~Sr THE DIAD IN
•.J J r: S T I '1 ....; WI T 11 S J 8 S J g f 1 f"J H I CH
P J r S S' I PP 0 R f E: D :l :-.J E ~ 1 N T HE GL 0 B Al
S"Vt':
Ir I :-1 P L L • T L • ,'J d L L
T~i r. N S:J !.1 SUi-~ T ( X > ;
F.X{I;
{ t: YG0 i' Y < Y > - >DUP L I C A T ;
· i I J: J :-, d '~ f ( ~~)I' l J C A i ) ;
TL ( 1 .-·1 P L L > - > I ~"i P L L ;
.1•.) Td L 0 ;
. t JIJ
- ------ i
. I
f· !.) N C T 1U N :-; U ?. S '· I~ T K F: Y:
C:l f·1 1t . J"l ' P:: S T S K F Y A r; A I ~ S f A D I A 0 I. N T t-: RP RE TA T I 0 N
~J r " r ri A-'-' s r r I o~.J r ~~ , 1 ~~ 1 :-1 P L L • tt o , HY "1;... I :~ r A1 N ' ;
T~::KEYq[C<~fY>->KEYRECCK~Y);
=
r u . r d ,·Jt: c () o v- >KEy 11 j ~.: ~ c t< y > ;
V AiC) Dl A') T0 PR ;
u :Ju r.: r - >DI A L1 r oP K ;
1 F .vJ f R A Ct A'J D i\l 0 T < D I A0 P R I .\J T:: LF~ Dt F )
T I i r: 1\J ri f) ( D I A I)? ti I rJ T) ->f) I A, D r Cl? R i
T L ( D I An° R I .'J T > - >n 1 ApP R I N T ;
r:L~f:IF MTHACE AND PROPTRACE TticN NL(1);PR<"REST");
CLUSt:;
1F ~~AI ,·J TA I \J l I "~ P L L • H0, K'.: Y) Trl E :\J K 1: Y: : SA VF.:-> SAVE ;
I F M T ~ ACF T d E ~~ t-.J L ( 1. > ;
I F :·~ 0 T < D I AD T 0 ? R=J N1J E F > T HE N D I ADPR <0 I A IJ T 0 P R > ;? .
CL 0 SE ;.N l ( 1 >; P ~ C11 ~1 A I N TA 1 N S •r) ;
CLO~E;
I::X!T;
IF ~l~AC~ A~D PROPTRACE
f ..H:,J :~L(l}i
IF NOT (DJ ADTOPt~=U\JDEF)
T HE N tJ I ADP f~ < D I ADT 0 P R ) ; ~ l < 1. ) ; CL 0 SE ; PR < 11 F A I L S " ) ;
t:LSEIF "ITRACf THEN NL(1);?RCO>;
CLUSt:;
•E: ~ I.J
,..-"'.
--
5. Examples.
This Section is referred to in Section § 4.6 of Part III.
The output yielded as a trace of its workings by the program follows,

I
for the exanples of Fugues 17 of Book I, 4 of Book II, 12 of Book I, the
C minor organ f~e, introduced at the beginning _of Section§ ~.~, and·
the •st. Anne' orga.n fugueo
In each case, the first stage of the process, announced by the
messages "PROPOSE" and "l'ESI'l(EYS", in which all fourteen keys for .which
the first note is not accidental are e~ned, can be ignored, since it
largely consists of indications as to why silly hypotheses~ silly,
and the interesting part of its outcome is available from the next
part of the trace.
The entry to the principal iterativ~ function CONFIRM for the
subject in question is announced. Every time in the iteration that the

main function for testing key hypotheses against the current transitions,
TES-rKEYS, is entered, during the course ~f CONFIRM, a message is outputo

W~thin TESTKEYS each hypothesis which has survived this far is examined
in turn. For each, a message identifying its tonic and minor versus
major character is output. There follows on the next li~a label
11 VIRTUAL", vrhich con.<3ti tutes the past history of the piece, according to
the hypothesis being consi~ered, as a sequence of virtual notes. In
particular the last of these will form the virtual beginning of the
transition currently being studied for its support or otherwise of the
key. There then follows a trace of the analysis of that key for the
current/
--
current transition, couched in the following terms~
]'irs1l a message identifies the~ of transition in question as
a m or _jum:g, and its ~ end points .!1expressed as coordinates in ..-{;he

. space re1 a t 1. ve t o an
h armon~c .
or~g~n
~ of CJ ;-tfo(Nl(!)~t
ex , . L· f th e t ~·ans3:. t.~on
. • .
contains a note which, to that key, is an accidental, then a message to
that effect is printed. If the key is accidental, then no further

investigation of it is made: the program prints a further message_FAIL,
and passes on to the next key-hypothesis.
For a key under which interpretation the transition does not involve
an accidental, the diad interpretations of the transition as one or more
of the thirds, fifths etc. which compose chords, are examined in turn.
If t.lJ.ere are no such interpr~tations, when the transition is through an
imperfect or otherwise remote interval, then the message "F.AIL NO IMPS"

is printed, and the program pass~s to the next hypothesis. Otherwise
a message identifying the number of external interpretations of the

tnterval between the end points of the transition is printed, then, in
the case of a~ only, a message indicates how many inte~ i~ter- •
pretations there are from the run, and the fact that they follQ!! the
former. Having thus identified the origin of all the diad interpretations,
a message is output for each one indicating whether it supports the key-
hypothesis, or does not. If the hypothesis is suppo~ted by that inter-
pretation, then the message 11

M.AINT.AIN11 is printed. Otherwise, 11
F.AILtt
is the message.
Wnen all interpretations h9. ve been examined in this way, the program
indicates that it has passed on to the next key hypothesis by printing a
message identifying the new k~, and proceeds as for the last.
When all keys have been examined, the program has a .list of key
hypotheses/
,
--
hypotheses that have been actively maintained. T'nis may be empty. If
it is, then the message "NONE CONFIRMED" is printed. . If some of the
rejected keys none-the-less contained no accidentals, then these are
resto.red at the expense of any that did, and the further message "NON
ASC. KEYS RESTORED" is output. If, as happens in Fugue 12 or' B.ook. I
below, all the keys were acci.dental, then the further message ".ALL KEYS
ACC. .ALL RESTOREDn is printed.
.If the end of the tune has been reached, or there is only one k~
still represented in the resulting list of keys, the program exits from
this confirmation stage. Otherwise it iterates the step that has just
been described, prefacing the trace again with the name of the main
hypothesis-testing function TESTK1YS.
When the program has exited from the confirmation stage, it prints
its conclusion, which in general will be a single key, although occasion-
ally the end of a melody may be reached before a unique key has been
found, in which case all are printed, according -6o tne following
conventions.
It identifies the key(s) that it has founi by printing their.~·--~·~~
~1.,?-r.v€;.~ two pieces of technical information ca.ll.ed SIDES andVIRTUAJ.~,
which are of no generaJ. concern, although the latter has as has been
seen before, to do with the history of the piece as a series of vir~ual
notes, a message statin3 the number of notes that were examined in
reaching the decision, a message giving the nu:nber of notes there are
in the whole IJ!elody, and finally, one giving the nwnber o:~· transi tio.ns
that were examined in arriving at the decisiono
This is followed by a print labelled npARSE", of the parse of the
melo~ up until the decision. This is printed as a seq'..lence of
transitions/
transitions • Each is identified by its type - 11
RU:Nu or 11
JUMP" -
followed by the type of its start point - "TURN", "II'f.F", "REP", or
"NOTE". Each of these is followed by an identification of the intervals

that compose it, represented as lists containing in order, the word "INT",
the ke~yboard value of the note with which the intez:val b-egins'· its duration,
the notation of the interval as a pair of x,y coordinates in harmonic
space, its interval class, (second third, etc.) represented as an integer
from 0 (unison, octave etc.) ·to 6 (seventh, etc.) and finally the
direction of the interval as -1, (descending), 1·, (ascending, or 0
. neither). ~nis list structure is suitable indented and arranged as
to make it clear what is a part of what else.
The end-points of each transition are not printed, except in the
case of the last, since they form the beginning of the next transition.
In the case of a run the seconds other than those of its first point
are printed immeatately below those with ~o special marking other than
Qf INTS. They are, of course, of size 1.
I
-"·
.~
-~
--- /
c ti 4 ;. "J 3 4 3J r c u 4 3 J[ B 4 2J c 5 4 3J c 1 4 3J
L ..5 :l.d 3J
* ~ * ~ 1-< !J ~) 0 si:
**r~sr~EYS*••=******~**~*~**********************************
******~******~*****~*********************[ 11 MAJOR]•
1 'l-XTEiiN.l\L ~11ADS'
0
**********~*********~****************~***[ 9 MINOR]*
1 'f:XlERNAL !)!ADS'
0 .
1 I f >{ 1 E RI~ A. L } I ADs \

a
i 't:XTE~~NAL ;liA!lS'
'Jl,"\ll' ( (),-1.) ro ( 1,-1)

MAl·JJ~IN
1 't:l(IERNAL niAnS'
o.-t> TO
':)lt,u'
f1 A 1 ·J I
Al N
< ( 1,-t)
--
...... -
1 '1-:XIE~NAL DIADS'
·J
*****~*****»*~**~*****~****************~*[ 6 MAJORJ•
0 'l:XIF.:i!\JAl. QIAiJS'
********~**~*~******a******************~*[ ~ MINORJ•
1 '~XfERNAL DIADS'
l)
**********~**~»*****~********************[ 4 MAJOR)*
1 '~XIERNAL DIAUS'
0
.·
***********~*=***************************[ J MINORJ•
1 'f.:XfERNAL DIADS'
0
1 '~X!~~NAL DIADS'
0
***********************~**************~**[ 1 MINOR]•
1 ' 1:: X f F.:~ NAL D I ADS '

a
*~***~*****~*~***************************[ 1 MAJOR]*
1 ' t: X I E ;·u.J AL. ill All S '

u
1 ' t-. l( rE,~ N At. D I An s '

--
~
.
- '
* * *GlJ ~ F I ~ M* ·~ * ~· * * '.:· * * * ~ * 1:- * * * * * * * * * * * * ~ ~ u- * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * A * *··*

**fEST~EYS~************~************************************
I
*~********~**~*******************~*****~*( .8 ~AJORJ*
Vlt<TUAL [ 0 • -1][ 1 • -1J
' r t< AN s , r
yp F ' J u MP ' , r ~ o~~ ' c 1 • -1 J r o c o • oJ
1 't:XIER:\JAL DIADS'
'DlJ\JJ' C 1,-t) TO ( O, 0)
M A1 ·J l A 1 •'J
* * * * * * * * * ·* *. * -~ * * * * * * * * * * * * -~~ * * * * * * *· * * * * ·* * * .[
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Vlt<TUAL [ 0 • -1][ 1 . -1]
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' THAN S 1 T I 0 :·~ C0 N TA J i~ S ACC I DE ·\l T AL '
~A 1 L~
[ d f-1 A J 0 ;~ J
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[. ~s 1 J
VIHTUAL [ 0 • -1)[ 1 • -1][ 0 , 0]
I .) 1: r, I s 1 Cl ;\j AT \! u TE Nut·H:3 E R \ 3
'Lt:.'JGfH OF TU\11::' 7
~ 'THA~SITIONS EXAMJ~ED'
PAHSt-:
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[ I·" T H 4 ~ [ 0 • -1] [ 1 . -1]] 4 1]
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[ I.~ T 0 4 rE 0 • 0] r 0 . -1]] 2 -1]
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**IESTKEYS*~********~***************~***********************
*************~*********~*****************[ 11 MINGRJ*
1 'eXTERNAL DIAOS'
0
****~********c******~*********~**********[ 11 MAJOR]*
1 '~XlERNAL DIADS'
0
*****~*******~***************~***********[ 10 MINOI~]*
1 ' 1: x r E R. NAL D I Ans ' .

0
********~**~*****************************[ 9 MAJOR]*
1 '~XfERNAL DIAD~'
0
***~*********~********~******************[ 8 M}NQRl*
1 ' t: X r E i~ NAL D I A DS '

t)
--
*****~*****~*~********~******************[ H MAJOR]*,
1 'I:XfE~NAl DIADS'
J
***********~*~******~·~~*****************[ 6 MINORJ*
1 I l: X J E ~ NAl. :) I ADs \
0
**~~****~**~*~********~******************[ 6 MAJORJ•
1 I E: X I Ei~ NAI_ D I ADs \

0
*************=*********~***********~*****[ 5 MINORJ•
1 I 1:: x rE RN A.L · DI An s '

0
***********•*•***************************[ 4 MAJORJ•
1 ~~XIERNAL DIADS'
0
************~**************************~*[ 2 MINORJ•
1 ~~xf.ERNAL DIADS'
0
*****************************************[ 2 MAJORJ•
1 '~XlERNAL DIADS'
0
*************~***************************[ 1 MINOR]*
1 1
bXIERNAL ~lADS'
I ·I) lA I) \ ( -1 I -1 ) TO 0,-1.)
MA 1 ~J r A IN
***********~***********~*****************( 1 MAJOR]*
1 ' t:: X I E K N AL :1. I A DS '
I i.) I Au \ (-1,-1) TO < o,-1>

MA l , J I A 1 rJ
!} * * c I J: JF I !~M* :t * : · ~· * * * :;. * ·:< :l * ·!: * * * * ~ * * * * * :;. * * :;. * -: · * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

**'E~rK~vs~~~=*********~***************~********************
******~*~**~********-::**~*~***************[ 1 MAJOR]•
VIRTUAL [-1 • -1][ 0 • -1]

I T K A i'J 5 , T y p F. \ j lH1 p ' , F R0 M \ [ 1 • -1J TO [ 0 • -1J
1 ' t.; X I E !~ N AL :1 I AIJ S'
1
fllAI.J' ( 0,-t) TO ( 0,-1>
MA1'JTA1N
~•*~****~*******************~************[ 1 MINOR]•
VIHTUI\l [-1 . -1][ 0 . -1]
I Tt< AN s Ty p E= \ JuMp ' , F ~ 0 ~1

I \ [ 1 , -1] TO ( 0 • -1]
1 't:X1ERNAI.. DIADS'
1
ili'Au' < o,-t> TO o,-1>
MA 1 •J f l\ 1 "J
**fE~fKEYS•*~~******-::***************************************
. '
*~***********~*************************§*[ 1 MINQRJ•
vit<TtiAL (-1 • -1][ 0 • -1Jf 0 -1]
' T r-< A1\J s , r vP E ' Ru~ I 1 r HoM ' c u . -1 J T o c- 2 · • -1 J

1 l: 

MAI :-J I A·I ~J
'!lJ.\d' ( u~-1> TO <-1,-1)

MA I · J I A I rJ
***~********~~******-::*******~**********~*[ 1 MAJOR]*
,
--
V I t~ TU AL [ -1 • ·-1 ] [ 0 • -1 J [ 0 • -.1 ]
'TtL-\·~S , TYPF 'RUN' ,FROM ' [ 0 • -1] TO l-2 • -1J

I r r< 1\ N :) 1 T I () N c ~) NTA I Ns Acc I 0 t NT AL \
~ 1\}1_::)
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l 1 ~1 I ·'J 0 ri J
s I u 1-: s [ 11 .
Vl~TuAL [-1 . -1.][ U . -1Jl 0 • -1][-1 . -1J
I ~ l s ll) ,'J AT ~,J 0 T E Nu M, I~ E: R \ 1:;

I Lt.:·lliTH OF TU'-!E \ 22
3 'Tt<A~~SITJO:JS EXA~II\IED'
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[ INT 0 ~ [ [ 0 • OJ [-1 . -1]] 1 '1]
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-1] r-2 .
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(I NT 4 ?. [ [ 0 -2] c-:-2 -1]] 1 1]
1 . Jf
(.I I'J T 6 2 [[-2 -1] [ 0
[ I i\J T 4 ? r [ 0 • -2) [-2
. . -1]]
-2]] 1 -1]
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l I i·J T 6 2 [[-?. • -1] [ 1 . -1]] 2 -j ]
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I · U d S J [ 1 A .S .1 L 0 f. 3 J [ 11 d 2 J [ 4 8 3 ] [ 5 8 3 J
t. 1 ;J J 2 JL ~) :1 2 J 0 21 r o
1 1o 2 J[ 5 4 2 J c
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1 1
l: X I E r~ 1\1 AL 'J I A DS '
t)
I !) I' A iJ \ (- 1I 0) TO (-1,-1)
:'1 A 1 ·J T.A. 1 N
0
0
*****************************************[ 10 MAJOR]•
·4 ~ t:: x·t E i~ ,'J AL I) 1 A ns '

a
0
I)
l)
t1 , 1.: ~ 1 L: ·r'-J ~\ L o1Aos '
4 't:XfE·?:~AL :JIA;lS'
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11 t\ 1 .J I A l 'J
J
. -..
*******~~~*~*~*****~C~*~***************~*( 7 MINOR]*
0 I t: X I t: :·~ !\J AL J 1 ADs .'
4 'tXIE~NAL DIADS'
0
t)
I ;) 1 A ~·J \ ( o., 0) TO 0 '-1)

M/\l'JlAl:-J
I Q 1 f\ !) \ ( 0, 0) ro (-1, 0)
•'1Al 'JTA1!\J
4 't:.XIERNAL IJIAi1S'
1.1 •
0
0
0
tJ 't:XItH'\JAL !.11ADS'
:l 'tXIEr?\IAI DIADS'
i}
;)
i}
i)
***~*~*~**~**~******~********************( 1 MINQR]*
4 't:XIF.HNA.L :11AI1S'
':lll\d' ( Q,-1) TO
MA i .. JI A i.'J
n
I;__ ·
E·
n
i)
4 I 1- l( I E rnJ 1\ L J I A i) s \
)!1\tJ'
I ( l},-1_) TO (-1,-l.)
11 A 1 ·J I A 1 ~~
I ;) 1 f\ 1} \ ( - 1I (1 ) TO (-.1,-1)
MA 1 .J I A 1 ·~
0
a
******~****§*~******~********************[ 0 MINOR]*
4 't:XIEri~-JAI. DIADS'
0
a
0
0
*************~***************~***********( 0 MAJ(lR]*
4 '~XIf.1iNAL. DIADS'
l)
:)
.)
0
* * * f; d ·~ ~ I RM* * * ~ ~ * * * * * :: :~- * :: * :.- * * * * * * * :.- ·: · ~· ~· :. * ~ * * * * * * ~ * * * ~· * * * * * * * * *
Vlr<Tl'AL [-1 [1][-1 • -1J
I T.~A .'4 s , T yp t '1/ u,'J I I F R tH·1 [ -1 • -1] TO [-3 • -1]

I r r< A .~ ~; 1 r I oN c o1'1 r 1\ 1 rJ s Acc 1 tJ f -'J r AL '
r ;\ 1 LS
l} * * * * * * * *.* * * * :: * * * * * * ~ * * : · * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * [ . 1 MA J 0 R :t * .~
Vl•(fl•o\L. l 0 . -1][-1 • -1]
. --~--- ---- ·--- . __ : ...:..1.

I r ,<" ,.J :> , r Yr F , HtP-1 1 , rHo M ' r -1 • -1 J To [- 3 • -1 J
' Tl <A;·~ ') 1 T I l) \J C0 ·~ T 1\ I NS ACC I tJ 1:>'4 T AL '
~A 1 L ~
· V I t< f u /.\ L [ 0 • - 1 .J L - 1 • - 1 J
I r .~A ;-.J s , r YPE 'IHPJ I , r.- Ho N ' r: -1 • -1 J ro c- 3 • - t J

I TI~ A:\J :) 1 T I 0 N c ') '.J T A I iJ s Asc I 0 r: ,\j T AL '
~All.~>
VI t~ TUJ\ L [ 0 • OJ[-1 . 0]
I T ti 1\ N s ' T yF' 1: \ Ru\JI , F H DH \ [ - 1 • -1 ] T0 [ .1 • 1]

' Tr~ 1\ N '.) 1 T I 0 N C ~1 N T A J :·J S AGC I U F 'J T AL '
~AILS
Vlt<TUAL [ 0 • 0][ 0 . -1]
' T If A N ') , f YP E ' H tJ ~~ ' , r R 0 t-1

' [ - 1 • - 1J T0 [ 1 • 1J
I T I~ A1\1 ~.i 1 T I G:~ c 0 N TA i i Js Acc I 0 E .-..J TAL '
I· A 11.. ~
V It~ TU AL ( 0 • OJl 0 • -1J

I TR ".'J ') T yp E \ f? urJ c· Rn~~ \ [ - 1
I I ' • - 1J T0 [ 1 • - 2]
I r t<" ":-; 1 r 1 0 f\J c 'J ·1 TA 1N s As c 1 tJ E .'..J TAL '
~AlL:)
VJ~TUAL [-1 . 0][-1 . -1]
' T H ,, N s , r yp E , ntJ.'J ' , FRo ~l ' r -1 • -1 J ro 3 • -1 J c-

' r t< A·'J ~' I r 1 o 'J cn ·~ r " 1 Ns Acc 1 oE ,\J r AL '
~A 1L:,
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Xo1
V I t< f lJ AL ( - t .
I r '~ A~-.J s 1 T v P F. ' J uNP ' , F =? o~~ ' [-J • - 1J To [-4 • - 1J

I TI< 1\ :· J ~; 1 T I 0 :\j c t) N TA I j-J s Acc I I) E .\J T AL \
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* * ~ :t * * * * * * * : · -: - {: :t * * * *-~ -:: ~ * -: · * * * * * * * * * * -:t * ~ * * * * [ 1 MA J 0 H J *
V I HT U A L [ 0 • -1 J [ -1 • -1 J lJ"J ~J t: F
I r ;-< AN s
I r vP r: , J uMP I , F RoM ' [ - " • - 1J r o r- 4 • - 1J
1
THANS1TION CONTAINS ACCIDENTAL'
fAlLS
Vlr<TUAL [ 0 • -1][-1 • -1JU-'JDt:F
' TH 1\ f\j s , T yp E \ J lJ Mp F ~ 0 t-1 \ I [-j

, • ~1 J T0 [ 0 • -2]
I T t< A i~ s 1 T I 0 N c1 NTA INs A cc I IJ E ;\J TAL \
FAlL~
**~*******~*~~*********~*********~**C****[ 5 MINOR]*
VlHTUAL [ 0 • ·OJ[-1 •
I T ~~AN 3 , T y p t \ j lJ MpI , F ~ 0 (1.1 \ [ 1 • 1J T0 [ 0 • 1]

'TI<ANSlTI0\1 COi\ITAii-JS ACCIDENTAL'
fAlL~
.VIKfUAL ( 0 • 0][ 0 -1JU~Ot:F
1
Tre 4 ·"'~ c.; , T YPE ' J u~, P I , F RoN ' c 1 • 1J To ( o • 1J
I r H4 N :> 1 r I o~J c o~~ T A I Ns Ac c I uE ~ T AL '
fAlL~
Vlt<JUAL ( 0. OJr 0 . -1JU:\JDt:F
ITK At'l :-1 , TypE \ ,J u i"l p I , F ~ 0 M \ [ 1 • -?.] T0 .( 0 • - 2 J .

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' ,· JiJ :J t: C0 'J F I RMD • J\LL 1\F.YS ACC. ALL RE:STJ~l:D.' ·
~*§*~**~***~*~******~********************[ 1 MAJOR]*
VIHTUAL f-1 .
' r 1< A 1'J s I r YP E , ,J ur-1 P , , r Ro~1 ' c- 4 • - 1J ro [ - 1 . oJ

' TH 4 N S I r I 0 \1 C0 :'.J T A I ~ S ACC I D£ 'J T AL '
~ A 1L S
***********~*=*****~~*****~************~*[ 1 MAJOR)*
V I R T U AL [ 0 • - :l. J [ - 1 • - t J lF•J 0 t: F LJ NDE F
I THAN 5 , T y p E \ .J I. HIp I I F ~ 0 f\1 ' [ - 4 • -1 J ,. 0 ( -1. • 0]

'TrlANSITION CONl'AINS ACCIO~~TAL'
~AIL::,
VIr\TUAL [ 0. -11f-1. -1]UNilt:FUNDEF
I 1 ,~ A r., s , T yp L \ ..J uN p , , F R0 M ' 0 r • - 2] T0 [ -1 • 0)

I I t( A•\J :) 1 T I u \J c ·) .'•J TA I Ns Ac(; I 0 E \J T AL \
~A I L~
** ;t ~ * * * :. * ~ * : - * :: * * * * * * * * :· * *· ~· ~· * * * * * * -: - * * * ~ * ·:t- *' [ r; f\1 I N0 R J ~-
Vl t< f UA L ( 0 0][-1 . OJU\JOt:FUNDEF

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[ 0 ll TO . [-1 . OJ
4 , t: X l t ~~ Nt\ L !liADS'
1;)!1\JJ' ( 0I 9) TO <-1, 0)
"t :\ 1 I I A 1 ··J
'Jlo\IJ' ( -1. , 1) TO (-1, 0) •

f·td L!:>
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.'!Jll\1.1' < O, 1.) TO C-1, 1>

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V I ~~ f UA L [ o • 0J[ U • - 1 J U.\J Dt: F UN DE F
I T t< A; J s , T yP E ' J u r~ P I , F RoM ' E u • 1J To [ -1 • oJ

4 1:: X'I E~ N A I. D I A D
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'D!AiJ' < o, O> TU <-1, a>
M A l..J
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'•>IAU' ( -l, 1) TO ( -1, 0)

~All~>
1
111All' 0, 1) ro ( 0I 0)
fAlLS
1
:JJAU' ( u , 1> ro ( -1 ~ 1)
~A 1LS
VIRTUAL [ u . OJ( 0 • -l]UND~FUNOEF
' Tt< Ar~ s , T yr F ' J u N P ' , F ~ oi-1 ' [ 0 • - 2J To [ -1 • 0J

I T r< " i\J :) 1 T I 0 ;\J c 0 i'~ T A I ~J s J.\ c c I I) ~ :'J T AL \
fA 1 LS
***~*********~****~******~******~***~**«*[ 10 MINOR]*
'./Jt-<TtJ.\L [-1. 0](-1. -l]U:-..JDEFUNOEF
' r ~< '\ i~ s , T vr' f ' J u. ~ P, , F ~ oM ' c-4 • -1 J ro r -1 • oJ

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f ~ 1 LS
I. a:, N I ,'~ 0 r~ J
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V I r< TtJ A L [ ~J • 0] f 0 • -1 J U \J nt: F ( 0 • 0 J [ -1 • 0 J
I 'J t: G i s I 0 \J A T \I 0 TE Nu f'-18 t: R ' 0

'LL: .JG fH JF TUNr:' 14
4 ' r r-< A ··j s I r 1 oNs E xA '-'~ 1 \J ~: o '
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.
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r d ~ lJ[ 7 2 1J[ ~ 2 1Jr 3 2 tJl 5 2 tJc 3 2 11

[ ~ 2 1'][ Ll 2 1][ 8 ?,1][ 0 2 1][ ii 2 1][ 0 2 1]
*•fESTKEYS*************~**~*********~******~****************
*************~*********~*~***************[ 11 MAJOR]•
0 't:XrERNAL DlADS'
***~**~******~***~•~~*~§*****************[ 9 MINOK]*
. I
0 'EX1ERNAL DIADS'
***~*********~******~*********~********~*[ 9 MAJOR]*
0 'tXfERNAL DIAOS'
***~*******~*~***************************[ 8 MINORJ•
1 'tXTERNAL JIADS',
I f '-1 L L d .~ E D 8y \ 4I I N TE R \1 AL D I AD s F K 0 M 1 s T 1 N T • 0 F RuN '
0
0
0
0
0
1 ~~XIERNAL OIADS',
1
f .JLLU.-IEO HY ' 4' INTER.\IAL DIADS FROM 1ST INT. OF HUN'
.1
I)lAD' ( (}.-1) TO
MAl ···J rAIN
0 .-
n
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. ;#__ .. ,.,. ...::.. (: ~
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1"1 A 1 'J I A 1~
J
1
DlAIJ' ( Q,-1 > TO 1, -1)
MA 1 -'·If A 1 N
6 MINOR]*
0 I t:
--
X I E i ~ N AL D I A 0 s \
---- --------
***********************~*************~*~*[ 6 MAJOR]*
0 't:XfEHNAL DIADS'
*************~***************************[ 5 MINOR]*
0 'EXTERNAL DIAOS'
***********~*~***************************[ 4 MAJORJ•
0 '~XTERNAL
.
DIADS'
*************c******~********************[ J MINOR]*
1 't:XIEriNAL DIADS',
I FOLLOWED BY' 4' INTER'~AL DIADS FROM 1ST INT. OF RUN'
0
0
0
a
0
***********»*~******~********************[ 3 MAJOR)*
1 I 1-: X f F.~:~ AL IJ I ADs \ .,

'FOLLUwtD 8Y ' 4 ' INTERNAL uiADS FROM 1ST INT. OF RUN'
o·
i1
'DIAIJ' ( 1,-1) TO
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0
0
.. ·• 1- , j"
1 MINOR]*
' .' .,._,_ ... '.,..

.. --~·.. ·_, . •. .
1 't.:XIEi~:~AL !1IADS',
~;JLLUWED
1
HY ' 4 1 INTEHNAL OIADS FROM 1ST INT. OF" RUN'
0
/ 0
n
0
0
***********~*=******~********************[ 1 MAJOR]*.
1 , t: x 1E "N A 1.. :n A os ' ,

' F rJ L L U ~..J E l) 8Y ' 4' 1 1\J TE R ~ AL t) I ADS F R0 M 1 S T 1 NT • 0 F RUN '
0
0
0
0
0
***~****~*~~*~*********~*****************[ 0 MINOR)•
1 I 't: XTE ;~ ;\J A L J I A!) s \,

I F DL L lHJ t: o R Y ' 4 ' · I N r E f\ \J AL o1 Aos F HuM 1 s T 1 Nr . or ~~ uN \
0
'DI/\.tJ' ( 0' 0) TO ( 1, 0 )
MA 1 ~IT A1 N
'OlAD' ( 1,-1) TO ( 1, 0 )
MA I~~ r A1 N
0
0 ,)
***CONFIRM•~;**********~***********************~******~*****
VI~TUAL [ 1 . -1][ 1 • OJ
' r !"( ~~ N s , T vP ~ ' J uMP ' , F ~ o~ ' ( 1 . -1) TO [-1 0]

1 'tXi~RNAL OIAuS'
'OlAil' ( 1, !.1) TO (I , 0)
r1 :, 1 'J 1 A 1 N
~~***********~***************************( 0 MINOR]*
( OJ( 1 • 0]
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-~.
I Tt~ A1\J s , Ty r> r:: ' J uMp ' • F ~ 0 l-1 \ [ 1 • - 1] T0 ( -1 • 0J
1 't:XIER,'U\1_ DIADS'
'i1IAD' < 1, O> ro < o, o> ··

MA!.'.JrA!N •
VIHTUAL [ 1 • -1][ 1 • 0]
'TKANS , TYPE 'JUMP' ,FROt-1 ' [ 1 • -1.] TO [ 3 • -1]

3 I f: X I E RN Al. ~) I 1\ Ds \
1
Q1A0' < 1,-1> TO ( 2,-1)
i~ A I "J TA iN
1
l11A.Il' 1, Q) TO ( 2, 0)
FAIL~
1
DlAtJ' < 2,-1) TO 3,-1)
~A 1 LS
VIRTUAL [ 0 • -1)[ 1 . -1)

1
T~ANS , TYPE 'JJMP' ,FROM ' [ 1 -1] TO C-1 • OJ
1 't:XIE~NAL DIADS'
1
01AU' ( 1,-1) TO ( 0,-1)
,.., A1 'J f A I \J
*************~*************************~*( 8 MAJOR)*
VI~T0AL [ 0 . -1J( 0 . 0]
I THA;\JS , TYPE \ JU:-iP I ' F"~Ot·1 \ ( .1 • -1 J TO (-1 • 0]

1 I l::: XlE l~ NAL q I A0 s \
1
,J1Au' < O, f)) TO <-1, 0)
t- A 1 LS
~************=*~****~********************[ 8 MAJOR]*
\1 I.H TU AL [ 0 • - 1Jf 1 • -1 J
I T H A·'J s , T yp E ' J u~1 p I t F~0M \ [ 1. • -1 ) T0 [ -1 • 0)

1 ' t: X TE :~ i\J A. L D I ADS '
'DlAIJ' < 1.,-t) TO Q,-1)

f"1At~·J141:\J '
********~**~~~.~*~***~********************[ ~ MAJOR]*
V I 1~ T UAL [ 0 • - 1J[ 1 • - 1 J[ 0 , - 1J
1
T~A~S , TYPE 'RUN ,FROM ' [-1 , 1
OJ TO [ 0 • 0]
'THANSLTION CONTAINS ACCIDE~TAL'
FAILS
*~******************~****************~***[ d MAJOR]•
VI~TUAL [ 0 . -1][ 1 . -1][ 0 • -1]

1
TRANS , TYPF 'RUN',rROM ' r-1 . OJ TO [ U • 0]
I r K A'~ s I T I 0 \J cr) i'-! TA. I ~~ s A cc I I) E '.J TAL \
FAILS
*************R**********************~****[ 3 NAJOR)*
VIRTUAL ( 1 • -j_J( 1 . -1][ 2 • -1]
'THANS I TYPE. 'RU\1 1 ,FROM \ [ 3 • -1] TO ( 0 • 0)

1
'1 A 1 N T A I \1 8 Y l .·~ TE RNAL I NVt R~ E 1 N RlJ N '
1 E: Xl E ~ NA'- D I ADs \
I
'OlAJJ' < 2,-1) TO C 1,-1)

MA 1 ~J 1 A 1 N
VI~TUAL ( 0 • OJ[ 1 • O][ 0 • OJ

I TKANS , TYPF. 'RUN' ,FROM ' r-1 • OJ TO [ 0 • OJ
·~ I NV~ RSE
1
1A I N f .1\ I g Y I :-.J TER f.J AL. I N li UN '
1 '~XfERNAL DIAOS'
'JlAU' < Q, 0) TO < Q, Q)
M A 1 'J 1 A 1 ,-.J
*****~****~**~******~***~************~*~*( U MINOR]*
V I H TlJ AL [ 1 •. - :1. ] [ 1 • 0 J t:· · 0 ·~ · 0J

·~··
'Tril\t'J:i, TYPE 'f~U~',rROM' [-1 0] 10 ( 0 • 0)
- ~·1t:J·
,·
' · 1A I '" TA I .\! fi Y J ~J T EHN A1.. I N V ER SE 1 N RUN '

1 'tXfEqNAL JIADS.'
/
'tl!AIJ' < O, O> TO < 01 0) ·-
t-1 A1 . l TA 1 'J
**T~STKEYS***•*~*~***********~*****~*******~***********~****
VI~TUAL [ 1 . -1][ 1 . 0][ 0 • 0][ 0 • OJ

'fRANS I TYPF: 'JUMP' IF~O~ \ [ 0 OJ TO [ 0 • -lJ
1 'l:XJ'ERNAL IJIADS'
'tJIAD' ( Q, 0) TO ( Q,-1)
FAILS
VIRTUAL [ 1 . -1][ 1 . uJ' t 0 • 0 1L 1 . 0J
I TRA ;\J s I T y p E \ J lJ!·1 p I , F ~ 0 ~1 \ [ 0 OJ TO [ 0 • -lJ

'4~4 'r:x TE·~NAL D I Atrs'
'DIAD' ( 1 I -1 ) TO Q,-1)
FAJLS
'DlAtJ' ( 0 I 0) TO ( o~-1>
~AI LS
I Ill AlJ \ ( 1 I 0) TO ( 1,-1)

MAI'Jll\it~
'i)lALI' ( 1I e> TO ( u ,. ·o >

f'1Al llAlf~
~***~*******~~*~********~****************[ 0 MINOR]~
VlrlTUAL [ 0 • OJ[ 1 • ilJ[ 0 • OJ[ 0 • OJ
' TK At'.J :; I T..y p E.= \ ..JlJ 111 pI I F R0 t4 ' [ 0 OJ TO ( 0 • -1]

1 t:X ff·1NAl. ~l] ADS''
I
I I) I ,\ ;J \ ( 01 Q) TO 0, -1)
~·All.~
-;~.
·.~
,· .,.,.,.,;• ~.6
·,
311
Vlt<ftJAL [ 0 • OJ[ 1 • OJ[ 0 • 0][ 1 • OJ
' r H '\ :··J s

1 r Y f-' r.:: ' J uMP ' , r ~ ot-1 ' co OJ TO [ 0 • -1J
4 , t:X rr:r?\JAL :)1 ADS'
':)11\il' ( 1 '-1 ) TO ( 0, -1)

r'"Ali.S
1
jjlAlJ' ( i.) , 'J ) ro ( 0, -1 )
~1\JLS
I l:) /~ i) \ ( 1, 0) ro ( l,-1)
MA l -~ l A 1 ~J
'fJlf\IJ' ( 1I 0) TO ( 0 1- .. 0)
1-1 A i J I A ! rJ
V I H TU 1\ l. [ 1 • -1 J [ 1 . -1 J [ 2 • -1 J [ 1 . -1 J
I r H A~~ s , r Y? E ' J uMP , , F ~ oM ' ·c o • oJ To c o . -1J

1 'EXTERNAL DIAOS'
'!1!.l\i)' ( 1,-1) TO ( o,-f) -
FAILS
* *' * * * * * * * * *
!} l} H- *** ·;!- '* * ~ ~ * {~ * * * * * * ~ * .* * * * * * * * [
l:· ~ MA J 0 I~ ] *
VIHTUAL ( 1 . -1][ 1 . -1][ ? . -1][ 1 • -1]
'T1~ANS , TYPE 'JU"-1P' ,FROM ' ( U • OJ TO [ U • -1]

1 'tXIERNAL DIADS'
,a 1 A1J , c 1, -1 > ro < o, -1 >
,. A 1 ~_s
l l.) •.11;~~)~]
sI u.: S C 1J
viHfUAL [ 0 . 0]( 1 • 0]( ll • 0][ 1 • 0][ 0 • 0]
I ~ >t: ~~ a
1 s 1 ~~ A r \J o r F. NuN Rt: R ' 9
'Lt: J1iTH l)F TU'\t=:' 12
s
4 ' r ~ A,~ 1 r I o:J s E xA"-t 1 \J t- n '
K :JtJ
-
.• ..J.) rE
[ 1·~ r a ? Lr o • -1 J r 0]] 1 -1]
1 •
[I~T 7 ? l[ 1 • OJ [-i . 0]) 1 -1)
I I ·s T 5 ? f [ - 1 0 J •[ 1 -1]] 1 -:i]
....
-- /
r~ .J I F:
KUI~
[ I ;\J T ,$ ? . rc 1 • -1] [ -1 . UJ) 1 1J
NJif.
[ I ;'J T 5 ? f[-1 0] ( 1 .~ -l.] J 1 -1]
l I .'.J T ·3 2 r c 1. -1] [ 2 0)] 1 -1]
JU~1!->
c I :·J r 2 ?. :· [ L,.., . 0] [ 0 . U]J 1 .-1 J
IJ J I E
I'J(J'I
[ I r'J T
t:
(l ? [ [ 0 • OJ [ () . -1]] 5 1]
[ I ,·J T 8 2 rc 0 -1] [ 0 0]] ? -1]
'
c:·
." ...
""· . ._• ...>·~<.

..41 .
. ·se AVW\e.. Ord~ F~~~

·l.__ ( r~c.nW c )
.[ l S?. 1][ 4 16 1][ 9 16 1][ 7 16 1J[ 0 3?. 2]( 11 16 1]
[ tJ 1 f) 2]
***PHOtJOSE
1 I l: x r r: K \J AL n1 Ans '
0
1 I t: x r E j.u" ,., 1. n 1 A i) s '

er
~) I 1:: X I E RN ~ L i1 I AI) s \
1 'tXIE~NAL niAOS'
Ij
1 ' t: X I EH .\J AL IJ 1 A)) S. '

0
~t * ·* r· ~ * * * * * * :~- -~:· :. * * * * * * * * * ~ * ~- * * * * *"* *;: * * * ~ * * If [ I f'1 A J t l f..' J *
1 1
tX1ERNAL ~lADS'
0
1 '~XIERNAL ~lADS'
l}
1 'I::Xf'ERNAL :lJADS'
0
1 '~XfE~NAL ~lADS'
'~1lr\IJ' ( l., 0> TO 0I 1)

i-1 A I . J l A1 :J
1 't:XTEaNAL DIADS'
0
l) I 1.; X I E ;~ NAL J I A J) s \
****~*****.**~~**~************************[ 2 MAJOR)*
0 'tXIE~NAL JIADS'
1 ' t: x r F. ~ NA. 1.. :> I ADs ' ·

;)
1 '~XfERNAL JIAOS'
I :J 1 1\ f} \ ( 1I 0) TO L·O, 1)
MA J ··J I A 1 :\J ..
t
-··
**~*****~**~*~******~**~***~***********~*( 0 MAJO~l*
V I I< TlJ ;\ L [ 1 • 0 J[ 0 • 1]
I T r< A:"=-> , r YP r: ' ,JlP1 P I , F =~ or-1 ' · c o • 1] TO [-1 . 1]

1 't::XrE~NAL DIADS'
'DIAl>' ( 0I j ) TO (-1, 1>
~AILS
***~~******~*****************~***********[ 4 MINOR]*
VI~TUAL [ 1 . 0J[ 0 • 1]
I T H J\ N s , T y p E \ J u "'1 p I , F R0 f-.1 \ [ u • 1] TO [-1 • 1]

1 'l:X.IE~~JA.L. JIADS'
1
i.11A0' ( o, 1.) TO (-1, 1)
rAILS
I !\1 l) ·'J 1:: c 0 ..~ F I RM[) • NO~-ACC. KEYS RESTORED.
*»*~~********c*****~****************~**~*( 4 MINOR]*
VIHTUAL [ 1. . 0][ 0 . 1 JJ,\JDEF
1
T r< AI'JS , TYPE 'JUHP' ,FROt-1 ' [-1 1] TO [ 1 • 0]
-3 1
tXfE~.\JAL JIADS'
1
i11ALJ' (-1, 0 ) TO ( Q, 0}
~~!I.S
':ll,\IJ' ( -1' 1) TO ( 0, 1. )
t AlL S
!f\ 1.) \
..
I 1) u I :' ) TO ( 1I 0)
~ 1\JL~.
. .
**~~~********~*~~***~**~~*****~**~*******[ 0 MAJOR]*
Vf;~fUAL [ 1 . 0 J[ 0 • 1JUNDtF
I Trl ...\ ,-.j \; , T y pc \ J {J Np, , F ~ 0 M \. (-- 1 11 TO [ 1 &l
.' "·•····
~ ~~(IE~~Al JIAOS'
.
:,'.;~
'l1AU' ( -1, ') ) TO 0, 0)
FAlL::i
'DlAIJ' ( -1. ' 1) TO 0, 1)

~AILS
':llAIJ' ( 0I r. ) TO 1, n>
11 A 1 .·J TA l ~~
[ U 11AJORJ
S I IJ ES [ 1 ~~ 1
VIKfUAL [ 1 . 0)[ 0 • 1][ 0 • 0][ 1 . 0]
I I) t: c I s 10 ..~ AT N() T E Nu~1 B '= R \ 4

'lt:NGTH OF TUN~' 7
J 'TRANSITIONS EXAMINED'
J;Jd?
· NJ lt:
[ I ,'J T 7 :~ 2 [[ 1 OJ [ 0 1]] 2 -1]
JU,'1P
NOIE
l I t'J T 4 16 er 0 . 1] (-1 . ~]] 3 1]
..
JUMP
·NOTE
. ( 1··~ T 9 16 [[-1 1] [ 1 0]] 1 -1]
N:JTE
[Ir\JT 7 16 [[ 1 . OJ ( 0 . 0]] 3 1J
... . .r.··.·
·-
.. ,. :; ~ ;.. ,
:
·'
.A:·ppendix V
:Musical Terms
• e
The musical terms that are used in the bod.y· of the work without.
explicit definition ~re here described, and a couple of very minor .
generalisations to orthodox use pointed out.
t
The precise nature of the cor.cept of key is one of the main·
concerns of Part III. Ho~·!~ver, as far as mere ter:ninology goes, a
key is associated with a scale, or ordered set of seven pitches, or

degrees that are of special sigr~ficance for pieces of music which
are in that key. Tl1ese seven pitches are in a determined relation to
each oth~r, and in particular to one of their number, the key-note, or
·tonic. The scale divides the interval between the tonic and its
octave, the note of twice its frequency, into seven non-equal parts,
the intervals of a tone or a semitone between each note of the scale
and its successor. We show in the text of Part III that not all
intervals of a tone are the same, but for the moment it will do to
think of tones as approximately equal to two semitones, as the names
suggesto In particular, in Bach's time there were two such orderings
of tones and semitones used, called the major and minor scaleso The
major scale is the sequence of pitches defined by the sequence tone,
tone, semitone, tone, ·tone, tone, semitone, while the minor scaie is·
defined by the sequence tone, semitone, tone, tone, serrdtone, tone,
semitone, although in the text it is shown how the minor scale is a
littl~_more complicated than this •
. T:b,~ .:g._grves. of El- scale can be r~ferred to in several ways. One way
is by ordinal position in the scale, where the tonic is the first of the
scale, and the others are the second, and so on up to the seventh-.a.nd
eighth, or octave. :By extension, the notes in the vers:Lon of~the.sa.me
scale beginning on the octave can either be referre~ to .as .t~.ninth
tenth and so on, or as the octave second, octave third ang.so on.
:Because this set of names would allo't<T of such confusillg phrases as
"the fifth fifth in the pieceJ', there is an alternative set of names
for the notes of a scale in relation to the first. One of this set
has already been used, in referring to the ~irst, or key-note ·as th~
. .
tonic. There are similarly names for each one ·of the seven degrees
of:/
.'; ,,~~
1'--·:.t:.
/of the scale. They are, in order, after the tonic, the oupr~rtoni~,
mediant, subdominant, d.omin2.nt, submediant, and leading-not(;, rc')SpE:ctivcly,

and vre might add the octave in as the eighth. In particular the clorr.in:::nt
subd.ominc.nt, and tonic, are frequently referred to by these nnmes ir.. the
text.
The degrees of a scale may also be referJ•ad to by note-n~!Tl.es. In

this case the nomenclature is not relative to the tonic, but :i.s in some
sense absolute. The system is based on the assignEent of the name C' to
a certain frequency. The othe:c notes of the major ocale \-Thich has C as
tonic are then given the names D, E, F, G, }}., and. B., Each of t}H:;Se can
be a tonic of itB own scale. However, on occasion, these ~·rilJ. include
notes which have not so far been named. For example, the majo:e £lc~.le o.f
D starts vTi th a tone, r.vhich takes us to the already-r...a.lli(~d. E. The nex·t
interval is also a tone, vrhich takes us to a note intermediG.te be·t·v1e8n
F, a semi tone a~·lay, and G, a semi tone plus a tone ar.'!ay, for vhie b. 0.::-: y-2 t;
we have no name. Such notes are named in relation to the degrees of C
m..9.jor. They may be referred to either as the flattened dBg:cee above, or
·as the sharpened degree bclo-vr. This ambiguity of nomencla turo is or.lj.y
apparent, but for present purposes it can be resolved by thA follc~;ing
ruie of thumb, which vrill be explained later. For a given l<:ey-note

name, each successive degree is named with the succeeding nctc-le·tter
in the alphabet of C ma,jor, together with an indication of Bharpening
or flattening sufficient to satisfy the demands of the earlier fie.fiDition
of a scale as a sequence of tones and semi toneso In i;he earlier· ·e"::a.mpl f.
of D major, the third note by this rule must have to be~ kind ofF,
and. to be a tone aboYe E, it must be a sharpened ~,~ written F.i;.' • The
alternative "spelling" of the note as a flattcr..ed G, vrri+.ten Gb, would
be urong in this case. However, in the case of the key of E:b minor, as
a spelling of the third degree of the s~ale, Gb vrould be correct, and -::'iP
would be wrong. The significance of these dis.tinctions is d~al t . l·rit.h
in the body of the vTork, in Part III. For the present purpost: thE:
distinction must just be asserted.
Any note defined in this way may be t:he tonic of its m·rn sea] e. On
occasion, for a rather exotic key, or for an accidental, (a note of a
meiody/ 1."
- "":---
/melody not in the scale of its key) it may be necessary to name a note
I by more than one flattening or sharpening step of a semitone. The
third degree or mediant of the scale of AALmajor must be some kind of
C, but to be a tone above the supertone B#, it is not enough for it
to be raised by one sharp. It is in fact raised by h1o semitones,
and referred to as C double-shr~rp, vrritten C~ (The correspouding
double-flat is simply v~itten as Ebb.) A0cidentals may receive any one
of these spellings, which again are seen in i;:be text "to reflect real
musical distinctionso
Traditional musical notation is a means of \Tri ting dow-n pieces of'

music in a key, made up to notes identified in thip system. The
conventions of this notation are assumed. In the body of the wo~k
the term notation is used to refer to the drai·!ing of these distinctions

as to the name and function of noteso However, one concern of Pe.~·t III
is to show thr::.t there are similar distinctions of function that: are
ignored in the traditional notation. A slightly r.on-stanc.arii u:~~: of
musicological terminology involved in the teA-t is that the term p.ot?-tio:n
is generalised i:o include the dravring of these further dist·:.ncticns
The modern keyboard, ·by blurring the distinctions that have h~en
hinted at, equated all of these "spellings", and this is t!1e last
system by vrhich notes can be referred to, by idcntifyirLg thsm with
the notes of the keyboard that ivould be used to play them., 'l'hE: trans-
··:'
formation by which the distinctions are compresGed into tb.e ·tw·elve
semitone degrees of the piano keyboard is called the system of _Eaua,l ·.
Temperament, and its precise nature is also the concern of Par·t III.
When people hear music, and perform the tasks the. t are modelled in the '•
,(
body of this work, the music is generally played in the intonation of

Equal Temperamento When therefore, it is necessary to make it clear
that some group of notes is to be und.erstood as only defined to 1·r:i_ th:i.n
the ambiguity of Equal TemperamerJ.t, then those pitches l·Till be identifj ed
l·Ti th the numbers from 0 (for the keyboard note C, B#, etc.) to ii, (for
B, Cp etc.), since the us1~l notation would imply a false definiteness.
->!l''
... ":·
"320
The intervals bet,'leen any two notes in a scale are "identified by

the number of scale steps that must be taken to get from one to the
other, plus one. Thus, the interval from a tonic to its supertonic
or the version of the leading note just below it is a second, descending
in the latter case. There is one exception to this rule. The interval
between a pitch and itself is not called a first, but a unison. As with
the degrees of the scale, the rule is not limited to the aompass of a
single octave: such intervals as the ninth will occur.
i
These interval-names are further qualified. by adjectives identifying

both their actual size in semitones, (e.g. the minor and ££ior t.birds,
or the tone and semi tone already mentioned,) and their fu.nction.. (So
incidentally are the note-na.mes above.) The same applies vihen they
involve accidentalse However the question of function does not belong
in a section on terminology, and the traclitional nomenclature is very
unsystematic. It will not in general be used without explanation,
except in the cases of the tone and semi tone and of the rn~·.:-fixes Jlino_£
and ma,ior. These will be used to refer, as in the example above, to
the intervals of the same size and nature as those made b~t a tonic and
the degree in question in a minor and.ma.ior scale· respectively., Thu.3
the interval between E and G in the scale of C ruaj or is a mino!:· third,
because it is of the same size and nature ~s thH interval from C to·Eb
in the scale of C minor.
When several notes occur simultaneously, the ensemble is referred to
as a chord. When the notes of a chord follow one smother in sequer1ce
it is called an arpeggio. The nomenclature of chords in general· is a
subject which is, again, far beyond the scope of an appendix on termin-
ology, and again is taken up in Part III. However certain terms can
be defined here.
One note of a chord is of paramount importance in the definition of ;,.
the function of the chord. This is called the root. The complex
nomenclature for chords involves qualifying adjectives applied to the
root of the chord, as for example in the chords of C major and·C minoro
The/
321
The definitions of these two.chords, which consist of the tonic, mediant,

and. domin::tnt of the relevant scales, .E!:,ll be assumed. The conve~tion
/
that a chord l·rhich includes all of these, together t<Ti th some other degree
of the scale, can be referred to as e.g. C major ninth, will also
occasionally be used.
The notes of, for example, a major chord, may occur at any octave, or
even in sevcra.l, and in any ordero The chord is still referred to as the
major chord. These different forms are termed the inversiol~ of the
chordo This is a slightly more general use of the term than is orthodox:
us~~lly the process of inversion of a chord would not include the addition
of extra notes in additional octaves but only the rearrangement of ·the
same number of noteso Since we sr~ll not in general be concerned with
the differences between various inversions, nor very often with the
difference bet'i<Teen octaves, 1·re can use the term in this l\ay c: F·or
similar reasons t!Je term triad which traditionally means a chor·d made
up of a single octave occurrence of each of three notes of a chord, will
be used for any chord t<Thich contains only three note-names, even if these
occur in many octaves.
Chords, and single intervals, and by extension larger fraements of

music, may receive the same descriptors although they involve quite
different pitches, as we saw for the minor third, and the major and
minor chords. Such groups of notes are said to be related by a
transposition of some interval. This is to say that the one cou~d
be produced by moving every note of the other by the same interval.

On occasion the term "the same interval" 1-.rill be taken to mean the same
kind of interval, i.e. some notes may be transposed. by the minor, and
some by the major, version of an interval.
The terffi metre is used in the sense in which Cooper and Meyer (1960),
among others, use it, to mean the regular framework of accent and unacce:at
against which the rhythm or local relations of note-d~·ations are to be !
understood, as for example, being syncopations (non-coincidence of rhythmic

and metrical accent) or not. The metre of a piece is written in the
traditional/
·t . .
traditional notation with a time signature, bar-lines and groupings of
/ notes within bars. As before, familiarity with this notatio~ is
assumed.
Within a metric group, the first beat is assumed to be accented 1

and is referred to as the d.ovmbeat. All other beats are referred to
as upbeats.
There are s~ightly different conventions for naming note-du~~tions '\

between European and American musicology. The note dura tions 1vhich to
an American musician are known as a whole-note, a :half-note, a. quarter...
note~ an eighth-note, a sixteenth-note, and a thirty-second-note, are
to an English musician a semibreve, a minim, a crotchet, a quuver,
a semiquaver, anu a demisemiquaver, respectively.
References
BURST.ALL, R.M. et al. (1971) Progra;nm:i.nf2 in POP-2. Edinburgh:
Edinburgh Uni v. Press.
CHOMSKY, N. and HALLE, M. (1968) Sound Pat~erns of ~r.!glish. New York:
Harper and Row.
COOKE, D. (1959) The Language of Music. London: Oxford Univ. Press.
COOPER, G. and MEtER, L.B. (1960) The Rhyth:nis Structure Q.f.,:_Music.
Chicago: Univ. Chicago Press.
Proc. Roy. Soc. ~' 3o
I C:, •
EIJLIS, A.J. ( 1875 ) ~end.i.x XX to 1st ed. trans. of Helmholtz \~~ . . . ?.)
q.v. London: Longrnans.
ELLIS, A.J. {1885) Ibid. 2nd ed. expanded version.
FQRTE: A. ( 1967). ~nta~-B~ed Anal;y:_ti~.!ea~l!LQ.:r Musice.~-~Cl.2X:~E.·
Mac-Tr-39, M.IoT.
Grul.BRICH, E.H. (1960). Art and Illus ~<?E.· Lo!lO.on: Phaea.on.
GOMBRICH, E.H. (1963) Meditai-::io:1s on a Hobby--ho:£_~£!. Lon:1on: Phaed.on.
GOMBRICfl, E.H. ( 1 972) Tne Visual Imag_e. Scientific Americen, 227,
September, 82.
HELMHOLTZ:, H.L.F. (1862) Die Lehr~ Von Den To:nempfindunge:r:!• Bru.:tlSYii ck:
Vieweg. Trans. Ellis, k.J. (1875} (q.v.) as Th0 Sens~"1_:b.?l:iLt2:r.):o~--·
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This thesis has been submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for a postgraduate degree

This work concerns a problem in modelling people's understanding

of music. The pTOblem is cast in the terms of discovering formal

rules for transcribing r.:clodics into musical notation, as thio might

be done by a student in a harmony class, taking musical dictation

reflects important aspects of the structure and interpretation of the

piece, which are only implicit in the performance. In Part I it is

argued that this p~radigm raises questions of general relnvance to the

study of our perception of music.

In carrying out the task of notating a piece, two kinds of problem

In Part III the harrno!'lic problem is considered .. It arises frorn

not:, by itself, identify their harmonic relation, l·Thich is vrhat t!Je

piece is an important characterisation of this identificatio:-t ·- bu:l;

An earlier theory of h9.rmonic relations is further cievelop~~d into

algorithms for .:tssigning key-signatures and notation to !D~lodies.

By -the definition of the problem, v!e are committed to i.-h2 coilC(-~rn

Some of the contents of P[--.rt Il, Section § 2, and of Pn.:.c-t III,

Section ~ 3, have already appeared in a paper published in collabo:ratioE

prior \vork in formul::-t ting the theory of h·J.rmonic rela::ions, mentio:1ed

and has been published elsG'tlhere by him.

Professor H. C. Longuet-Iliggins, "ivhom the author than..'l{s for his :~eac}"~itj·g ~

It is intended that the <liscuasion to follow should l::c unde:j·sta.nd-

generally explained in the accompanying tex·t, ev~n at the ri ~le.: of

certain terms are so basic as to be necessarily assUffied in the t8xt,

T:he fugue subjects of the ~afell--Tempered Clavier ~~e:r-:·~ taken from

·the edi-ti'on edited by 'J.'.ovey and Snr::.uel ( 1924). I~ t~anscribing them

for.the computer, each note was represented by a triple cf integers,

identifying ·the p:.ano-key, or equall;y--tewpered value of its ·d. tch,

its octave, and its duratio::-1 e.s written, rexpressed. as a l!lultiple of

cribed as single notes, or rests, in keeping ~li th the ideB- of giving

the programs o.u.ly the i11formation explicitly available to t~te ear:3 of

the student in the '~usical dictation' paro.digm. Hoivever~ 7-rills,

such, rather than as the sequence of notes which would ~Q used to

the conventions of scores). A long note is a~rked as a trill, b~t

is only in fact the bogin..'.1ing of the trill, whose ending is explicitly

with an alternation of tonic and leading note.

1• llliy Study Musical Perception ? 2

2. How To Study MusicaJ. Perception. 6

1. Why Study !1usical Perception?

psychology. Unlike such capabilities as those involved in

vision and use of language, it can hardly be imagined to have

come. about as something of direct evolutionary value. Yet it has

a power and attraction quite disproportionate to this non-utility.

In these respects it is more like such arts as painting and poetry,

which seem to be the 'by-products', or secondary developments, of

the more directly useful corresponding faculties of vision and

of this work might seem to imply.

Thorne (1970) characterized this secondary nature of art, as

the offspring of more practical faculties, when he identified the

relation of poetry to its parent, natural language, as one of

creation of "a nelv language or dialect", to the end of saying

things that "cannot be said in Standard English at all, - though

they can be understood only by someone who ~~derstands Standard

relation of painting to Vision.

Husic is like this, inasfar as part of t:he activity of co:nposition

lies in the creation of a nerr 'language' or 'dialect' , by modifying

It \'Tould be most unusual for a study of one of the faculties

that have been described as 'basic', or 'pri~ary', to be attempted

by looking first at its 'secondary' artistic developments. You