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Here is an image of the exercise I am doing. I'm supposed to write the figured bass symbol underneath the chord label but I am not sure if this is right. I just put a double sharp next to the 3. Can someone correct me please?

Richard
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  • The question stands in the abstract, but unless I'm mistaken, you don't need it (or any figured bass) here because it's a major chord in root position. Figured bass only shows exceptions, altered notes, inversions. – Andy Bonner Oct 21 '21 at 15:29
  • Wait, my bad, given the instructions "assuming a key signature with no sharps or flats," that might make it required. But at any rate you shouldn't need the "3" in the C#m. – Andy Bonner Oct 21 '21 at 15:30
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    Can you post not just your quizes, but the instuctional part? What you wrote is logical, but a D# major chord in C major is odd. You would probably have a hard time finding a historical example. Knowing what the book instructed, and what is unclear to you, would make the whole post more helpful. – Michael Curtis Oct 21 '21 at 16:09
  • Michael it is in the image on top –  Oct 21 '21 at 18:37
  • @MichaelCurtis I'm pretty sure that's those chords are not intended to be read as a continuous passage... It's a figure bass exercise – Divide1918 Oct 23 '21 at 12:43
  • @armani, those are the instructions for the quiz, right? I mean the actual text that discusses figured bass. Bullet points (a) and (b) can't be the whole discussion. What I'm getting at is whether the text discussed complications like double sharp in figures. – Michael Curtis Oct 25 '21 at 12:32
  • @Divide1918, of course it isn't a passage, there are double bars between each chord. What are you getting at? – Michael Curtis Oct 25 '21 at 12:34
  • @MichaelCurtis So how could it be in C major? (What do you mean by "D# major chord in C major", otherwise?) – Divide1918 Oct 25 '21 at 12:37
  • @Divide1918, in the instructions "assume a key signature of no sharps and flats." So, OK. I guess your making a point about it could be in A minor. D# major in A minor would also be odd. Figures are written relative to the key signature. If you want to use historic examples as a guide, you'll have trouble finding one for this question. So... I would like to read some of the textbook's discussion about these more unusual figures. – Michael Curtis Oct 25 '21 at 13:19
  • I'm more concerned about how a bunch of unconnected chords without any real musical context linking them together whatsoever can be given a key signature now. Perhaps the key signature isn't meant to carry any indication of key (or even mode)? – Divide1918 Oct 25 '21 at 13:40
  • @MichaelCurtis But yeah, I do agree that it would definitely help a lot if we could read the discussion in OP's textbook. – Divide1918 Oct 25 '21 at 13:42

2 Answers2

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You can write it exactly as you've done it! Double accidentals in figured bass are rare, but they do happen; see Can we use double accidentals in figured bass?

Another option would be to replace the "x3" with just a doublesharp. Since a lone accidental applies to the pitch a third above the bass, just putting a doublesharp by default applies to the F above the bass D♯ (just as the first sample only has a ♭ on the A♭ chord to indicate lowering the third above the bass C).

Richard
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  • Thank you. what about the #5? That is incorrect because I am in effect saying that the 5th will be augmented when it should be a perfect 5th so that should just say 5 or I could leave it out completely? –  Oct 21 '21 at 19:08
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    @armani In my experience, that should be clarified as #5, exactly as you've done it. In my experience, there's no reason to assume a major chord above this D-sharp; all accidentals should be clarified. – Richard Oct 21 '21 at 19:23
  • By saying #5 wont that be an augmented 5th above D#? –  Oct 21 '21 at 20:04
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    @armani Not in my experience, no. Figured bass is agnostic to the bass pitch; an accidental on the bass pitch doesn't affect any upper voices, unless those upper voices are specifically altered by the figures themselves. – Richard Oct 21 '21 at 20:06
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    Oh ok so had I not added the # in front of the 5 the player would assume a natural A which would give a diminished 5th. –  Oct 22 '21 at 08:12
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D#FxA# is the triad of D# in rootposition (neither the 3rd augmentation has to be indicated nor the double sharp of the 5th needs an asignment. This means if there stands a D# as a root note the other intervals (3rd and 5th) will be played as Fx and A#, referring to their function as major 3rd and perfect 5th.

(2. chord: In my opinion C#m implies a G# as a perfect fifth and needs not a sharp in the figured notation, it would need a "natural sign" if it wouldn't be sharpened, like the 3rd would need a # if it was a C#-Major-chord.)

Looking at the next chord EbBG: Eb as a root note of Eb major would imply a Bb, but as we have a B (augmented 5th) we'll have to set here a natural sign.

Albrecht Hügli
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  • I was thinking the same thing: if an unfigured D# you would expect to play a root position, major triad. Historically, this would be an odd case, probably hard to find an example, D# major triad in C major. I though, if one were found it might have just a plain 5/3 figure. I'd like to read what the book instructs. – Michael Curtis Oct 21 '21 at 16:13
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    This kind of thinking is what lead to my initial mistaken comment, but I'm pretty sure* the rule is not "Everything is a root-position major chord unless otherwise indicated," but "everything follows the key signature unless indicated." After all, if you were in C and had a V/V of an EM chord, you'd need the # to distinguish it from the expected Em. *Disclaimer, I'm neither a theory major nor a baroque continuo player, so I'm not 100% positive either about usage for theory analysis or for baroque notation (which, no, wouldn't be likely to have a D#M in any key, let alone C). – Andy Bonner Oct 21 '21 at 16:54
  • Their function need not be major third though. It could be a D#m chord right? So the figures would have to specify if it was a major or minor chord against a key signature with not sharps or flats. –  Oct 21 '21 at 17:52
  • I bow my head in front of Andy and armani. I‘m neither a specialist in baroque figured bass notation and I agree that D# could also be the root note of D#m (e.g. iii of B). Now to as secondary dominant it would be V of G# and needs a double sharp, which must be assigned in the fig. bass notation. – Albrecht Hügli Oct 21 '21 at 18:12
  • (Also, lol, I don't know what I was thinking about when I suggested that the secondary dominant in C major was E! Same logic, then, but with, ahem, D.) – Andy Bonner Oct 21 '21 at 18:24