One reason why the four notes of B-A-C-H work so well on the ukulele is that these notes can all be played on the A-string on frets 1, 0 (open), 3, and 2 consecutively. As we tend to hear the melody as the highest pitch in any chord, it makes sense to explore all the chords that offer this possibility. And there are many indeed to harmonize any melody with the notes of B-A-C-H.
As explained in my previous blog post, my new piece “B-A-C-H with a Minuet” is a juxtaposition of chords with B-A-C-H and JS Bach’s most famous minuet (that he didn’t write). The notes corresponding to the four letters are Bb, A, C, and B respectively.
Just exploring the chords with Bb as the highest note gives us the possibilities shown in the above table. Of course, is it really a different chord if the notes are exactly the same, as in the diminished 7th chords and augmented chords? Similarly, enharmonic chords of F# and Gb are the same. A chord diagram can have different names, for a chord diagram represents the notes in a particular order. A chord can have different voicings, too.
If each note can have many harmonization possibilities, imagine the possibilities for ordering the chords. How many different chord progressions sound good? Feels easy to switch with the left fingers?
Johann Sebastian Bach famously dabbled in riddles and mathematical formulae. Consider the task of harmonizing the four notes of B-A-C-H a musical puzzle.
