Open Tone Harmony

2.1.2 Voice independence

Question. Do the voices move independently — different rhythms, different pitch contours, different motion types — or do they fuse into homophonic block-chord motion?

How to check.

1. Look at three or more consecutive chord transitions. Are the voices all moving in the same direction? (Bad: parallel block motion.)
2. Look at the rhythmic profiles. Are they identical across voices in many places? (Bad: homophony where polyphony was intended.)
3. Look for orbit-persistence. Are three or more consecutive chord-graph edges all within the same orbit? (Bad: voice fusion likely.)

Common findings. A common failure is “parallel-perfect-orbits” — extended sequences within the same orbit, the OTH analog of parallel fifths. Watch for it.