Music interview podcast. Interested in Partimento, Music Schema Theory, Counterpoint, Hexachordal Solfeggio, Basso Continuo, Critiques of Modern Music Education, Gregorian Chant, Catholic Sacred Music, Renaissance Polyphony, Filmscoring, and more!
Counterpoint is the "huge topic" that crowns the Neapolitan method and the Paris Conservatoire tradition—and yet it's often taught today in ways that leave students confused, discouraged, and musically disconnected.
In this Counterpoint Panel, I'm joined by:
• Robert O. Gjerdingen (Author of "Music in the Galant Style", "Child Composers")
• Peter van Tour (Author of "Counterpoint and Partimento")
• Job IJzerman (Author of "Harmony, Counterpoint, Partimento")
We talk about how counterpoint was introduced to each of them, why modern harmony courses often set students up for failure, and why "rules on paper" don't work without singing, playing, and real stylistic vocabulary.
We also tackle:
• Why counterpoint matters (and what it actually trains)
• The truth about Fux and why the "species-only" pipeline so often collapses
• Why asking students to "write like Bach" can be a disaster—and what to use instead
• Whether everyone needs to write a fugue
• What "written counterpoint" training should look like when students already have practical skills
• Counterpoint's future: horizontality, melody-making, and creative freedom
• If you teach, study, or care about the old training paths (solfeggio → partimento → counterpoint), this episode completes the trilogy. Subscribe for more interviews & deep dives into partimento, improvisation, historical pedagogy, and musicianship.
3 Jun 2024
182: Giovanna Barbati (Partimento and Improvisation on the Cello)
Today I speak to cellist and viola da gamba player Giovanna Barbati, whose repertoire extends from early to contemporary music and who has a special interest in improvisation. She appears frequently as a soloist, she plays her own music and has given the first performance of a number of works for solo cello. She has recently recorded the complete works for cello by Francesco Supriani (Da Vinci CD) with the ensemble Les amies Partimentistes. We discuss improvisation upon a ground, Francesco Supriani's diminution technique works, partimento and the cello, music theory/composition, and more!
17 May 2024
144: Sietze de Vries (Classical Improviser, Organist)
Professor Sietze de Vries, famed for his mastery in classical improvisation, joins the show to talk about his education, training, approach to music, music education, and demonstrates classical improvisation in multiple styles, and time periods.
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Apple Podcasts (US)
5.0 / 5
29 ratings
Spotify
5.0 / 5
10 ratings
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