An Introduction to Prout's Harmony

Since the purpose of this blog is instructional—for myself and, I hope, for you—I thought a good place to start would be to look at some of the books I have found helpful in my own journey as a composer. Of the many books I’ve read on composition, none have I found more enlightening and practical than those of Ebenezer Prout.

Ebenezer Prout was an English composer, theorist, and teacher active during the latter part of the 19th century. He was, for a time, considered one of the most promising of English composers. However, his music was soon regarded as outmoded and, today, has mostly fallen into obscurity. His theoretical writings, on the other hand, which run the gamut from harmony to orchestration, have thankfully fared better.

I first discovered the writings of Ebenezer Prout in college. On occasion, if I had some idle time, I would browse the shelves of the music library with no particular purpose than to see what might catch my eye. It was on one such excursion that I found Prout’s Harmony: Its Theory and Practice sitting among a shelf full of books on harmony. Casually taking the book from the shelf, I flipped through its pages and was intrigued enough to check it out from the library. This little random act, in time, lead me to completely rethink my understanding of tonal harmony.

At the time that I discovered Prout’s harmony treatise, I was nearing the end of the music theory courses I was required to take for my degree. Despite having had excellent professors, I was increasing frustrated with the actual content of the courses. I found many of the concepts vague and ill-defined, leaving too much to “interpretation.” Yes, music is an interpretative art, but this applies to its performance, not its theoretical underpinnings.

Reading through Prout’s Harmony was like walking into another world. In contrast to what I had experienced thus far, I found a system of harmony that adhered consistently to a well-defined set of principles. Concepts were specific with set parameters and boundaries. What was open to interpretation was, at most, trivial—mere trifling semantics.

Today, Prout’s Harmony is a vital component of my understanding of harmony and remains the most well-rounded and consistent system of Roman numeral harmonic analysis I have encountered. I periodically return to this little treasure for refreshment and to work out its exercise, which never fail to provide some benefit. In the succeeding posts, I hope you’ll join me as I delve a little deeper into this under-appreciated treatise on harmony, discussing the aspects that make it unique, and demonstrating its many benefits.