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VOICE LEADING RULES AND RULES OF COUNTERPOINT
Composers tend to heed certain rules of voice leading and counterpoint, such as:
- Voices that move in parallel thirds or sixths sound fine—go ahead and use ‘em.
- Voices that move in parallel fifths or octaves sound bad—avoid ‘em.
- Don't cross voices unless you know what you're doing.
- A major seventh (leading tone) should ascend to the octave.
- A flat seventh should descend to the sixth.
And so on. (In counterpoint especially, the rules can be a tad daunting.)
Bands or groups that perform harmony vocals tend to observe these rules when they work out the harmony parts—even though the singers may not realize it.