Music · Lesson 7

Phrases, answering, setting words, modulating melodies, two-part counterpoint

JAMBWAECNECO

What the syllabus asks

JAMB: continuation of a given opening to 12–16 bars, possibly modulating (dominant, subdominant, relative); setting English words; 1(B) two-part free counterpoint. JAMB Section B: setting words to music; answering phrases; Paper-1-type questions on melodic cadences and motion.

WAEC: continuation of a given opening to 12–16 bars, possibly modulating (dominant, subdominant, relative); setting English words; 1(B) two-part free counterpoint. JAMB Section B: setting words to music; answering phrases; Paper-1-type questions on melodic cadences and motion.

NECO: continuation of a given opening to 12–16 bars, possibly modulating (dominant, subdominant, relative); setting English words; 1(B) two-part free counterpoint. JAMB Section B: setting words to music; answering phrases; Paper-1-type questions on melodic cadences and motion.

What you will learn

Write answering phrases with correct cadences.
Shape melodies with balanced steps, leaps and a climax.
Develop a motif by repetition and sequence.
Set English words with correct stress.
Plan 12–16-bar melodies that modulate and return.
Write and check two-part counterpoint.

Key points

Period = question + answer, usually 4 + 4 bars.
Question ends on re/soh/te; answer on doh.
Mostly steps; leaps then step back.
Avoid augmented 2nd, tritone, 7th leaps.
One climax, about two-thirds through.
Develop motifs with sequence and repetition.
Words: stress on strong beats; anacrusis if needed.
Modulate: dominant via sharpened 4th; subdominant via flattened 7th.
Counterpoint: mostly 3rds and 6ths.
No consecutive or hidden 5ths and 8ves.
Begin and end on octave/unison; te–doh over re–doh.
Count beats and check accidentals before finishing.

Start here: Why melody writing matters

WAEC Paper 2 Question 1 is compulsory and covers “Theory/Composition (Melody Writing, Harmony and Counterpoint)”. The syllabus asks you to continue a given opening to make a melody of 12 to 16 bars, which may modulate, and to set English words to music. JAMB Section B asks for “setting words to music” and “answering phrases”. Aural Test (b) in Paper 3A is also melody writing (from dictation). These skills therefore carry many marks across both exams.

A melody is a succession of single notes that makes musical sense. Good melodies are not accidents: they follow principles of shape, balance, repetition and direction that you can learn. This unit teaches those principles, then applies them to answering phrases, word setting, modulating melodies and two-part counterpoint.

You will need: keys and scales (mu3), intervals (mu4), cadences (mu6), and time and grouping (mu2).

Worked example: Reading the question. A WAEC-style question: “Continue the following opening to make a melody of twelve bars, modulating to the dominant and returning to the tonic. Add phrase marks and suitable marks of expression.”
What earns marks. (1) Correct length (exactly 12 bars, counting a given anacrusis correctly). (2) Correct time values in every bar. (3) Modulation to the dominant shown by its leading note, with a cadence in that key. (4) Return to the tonic with a perfect close at the end. (5) Musical shape: motifs, climax, balance. (6) Phrase marks and expression (dynamics, tempo).

A step-by-step routine. Many students freeze when faced with a blank stave. Use the same routine every time: (1) identify the key, time signature and whether there is an anacrusis; (2) sing or play the given opening several times; (3) draw bar lines for the full length first and number the bars; (4) mark where the phrase endings fall (bars 4, 8, 12, 16) and write the cadence note you want at each; (5) decide where the climax goes; (6) fill in the bars, reusing the opening motif; (7) check, then add phrase marks and expression. Planning the skeleton before the details is the secret of a well-shaped answer.

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Practice questions

1. The first phrase of an 8-bar melody is often called the

question (antecedent)
answer (consequent)
coda
episode

Show answer

A: question (antecedent)
Answered by the consequent.

2. A question phrase in a major key commonly ends with

a plagal cadence
an interrupted cadence on I
no cadence
an imperfect cadence

Show answer

D: an imperfect cadence
Ending on V invites an answer.

3. The answering phrase normally ends on the

subdominant
leading note
tonic with a perfect cadence
dominant

Show answer

C: tonic with a perfect cadence
It brings closure.

4. A good exam melody moves mainly by

octave leaps
step
leaps of a 7th
augmented intervals

Show answer

B: step
Steps are easy to sing.

5. After a large leap, a melody should usually

move by step in the opposite direction
leap again the same way
stay on the same note for 4 bars
modulate

Show answer

A: move by step in the opposite direction
This balances the line.

Key words

Phrase: A musical sentence, often 4 bars.
Antecedent: The question phrase, ending unfinished.
Consequent: The answer phrase, ending finished.
Motif: Short recurring musical idea.
Sequence: Motif repeated at another pitch.
Climax: The highest or most intense point.
Conjunct: Moving by step.
Disjunct: Moving by leap.
Anacrusis: Up-beat before the first bar line.
Word painting: Music that imitates the meaning of words.
Counterpoint: Combining independent melodies.
Consecutive 5ths: Two perfect 5ths in a row between the same parts.

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