BookatlasPiano Rabbit Hole: Improvisation Theory & Practice
9901 / 18210 · Workshop 81 — Polychords and Bitonal Hearing: Two Harmonic Worlds at Once, Upper Structure vs. True Polychord, Controlled Clashes, and Making “Wrong” Chords Sound Intentional← prev⊞ allnext →

81.111Polychords and voice leading

Even the most dissonant polychord can sound inevitable if:

its arrival is prepared

and its voices resolve convincingly.

Example:

D♭ major over C

→ C major:

D♭→C

F→E

A♭→G.

The ear understands the motion.