Total Voice Leading

Abstract

The total voice leading b etween sets X and Y is defined as the complete collection of ordered pc intervals formed between the pcs in X and the pcs in Y. These interval multisets ( imultisets ) describe the sonic signature of the motion from X to Y, and they always have the property of transpositional combination . In some cases, the same total voice leading may be produced by different pairs of X and Y (Cohn 1988 refers to this as “multiple parentage”). In such cases, the total voice leading may remain the same even though the generating chords differ.