Would appreciate confirmation of what "in the bass" means wrt chord inversions

[Steven Charles White]

Here's what I think is correct, please let me know if it's right/wrong. :)

Let's say, on the piano, with my left hand I play a C note and with my right hand I play (lowest to highest note) C-E-G. That chord is in root position, right?

Now, if with my right hand I now play (lowest to highest note) E-G-C, but I still keep playing that C with my left hand, then I have NOT inverted the chord.

If that's the case then I can play lh:E and rh:C-E-G and the chord is in 1st inversion.

So, when you're thinking about inversions "in the bass" means what the absolute lowest note being played is, not merely "the lowest note in the triad you're playing with your right hand".

Many thanks,
Steve

[e7m]

In harmonic analysis, it's the lowest note that counts. Everything written is taken as truth. If someone transcribed a performance of what you wrote and they did not hear your left hand when writing the transcripiption, the transcription of your right hand would be named as the bass and analyzed as transcribed.
The harmonic analysis is based on the written score and everything is looked at from the lowest note as bass ann the simplest reduction of all notes above that note.
LJS
PS.
THE method of posting for this groupI currently have is very difficult. For more reliable communication please email me at
<***@gmail.com>

[Steven Charles White]

Thank you, LJS, this helps me!

Btw, regarding difficulty in posting to this group, FWIW I use https://groups.google.com/forum/#!forum/rec.music.theory and I have abridged summaries sent to my inbox.

[e7m]

Post by Steven Charles White
Thank you, LJS, this helps me!
Btw, regarding difficulty in posting to this group, FWIW I use https://groups.google.com/forum/#!forum/rec.music.theory and I have abridged summaries sent to my inbox.

Thank you for the link. I am in the middle of a technology breakdown and I
had only been able to find the group occasionally. I used to have a great
reader but with the influx of the spam posts, I think I left that reader on
a computer of mine in ShangHai. This is not as easy as that was, but it is
a great help.

Please feel free to visit my site at <element7music.com> I am not sure if
all the contact boxes are currently active. The rule for now is "if you
don't get a reply in at least a couple of days, then I did not get the
message. You can also contact me at ***@gmail.com.

You may find some things of interest in my "learning library" both in the
free downloads and in the learning links. the site is a contact point for
tutoring and the Library is certainly under construction and is not
anywhere near complete. But if you use a contact box and do not receive an
answer, please email me so I can correct the problem.

I enjoyed posting to R.M.T. for several years and it would be great to get
those discussions happening again even if one has to watch their step
walking through the spam. But tutoring and teaching is one thing (well
maybe two!) but I can also discuss theory questions at the element7 site as
well. As my guru said when I met him in Nepal, "if you are here to learn,
I am here to teach." Please feel free to contact me for any information
you want to know and I will always try to give you the best answer I can,
even if it would be "I don't know!" but with traditional theory, that
answer has not been used as yet. lol.

Element7Music is an approach I have developed over the decades to address
students on any level in a manner that lets them "cut to the chase" of what
they need to know to do what they want to do in music be it composition,
song writing, analysis, improvisation etc and incorporate what they already
know and allow the student to focus on the theory he actually needs for
whatever purpose he wants to study music. My methods allow the student to learn music through a series of guided exercises using his own music to lern what he needs to learn and the theory is then explained to him after he knows what it is in real life and has used it in his own music. Its really that simple and amazingly effective.

Please contact me. I like to discuss music so start there and if you get into the tutoring or private lessons, I will let you know when you are crossing the line.

Thanks for the link and I hope to see you at element7music.com

in re my technological meltdown, if you don't get a response, I did not get it. Try again.

LJS
element7music.com