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Mastering Vocal Harmonies

Posted on by Kasper Randler

We are absolutely sure that adding vocal harmonies to your arrangement could really elevate your song! In this article, we go through the basics of creating and recording harmonies. A fundamental understanding of notes, chords, scales, and intervals is recommended. Need additional support? Click below to learn about our studio services!

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Basic Harmonies – Following the Chords

The simplest method for creating harmonies is to base them on the song’s chords. The most common chords – major and minor chords – consist of three notes:

  • Root note (e.g., C in C major)

  • Third (major or minor, e.g., E in C major or C in A minor)

  • Fifth (e.g., G in C major and E in A minor)

If you know the chords of the song, you can easily create harmonies by having different chord tones sung simultaneously with the melody.

Example:

  • The melody sings a C note while a C major chord is played. The simplest harmonies can be created by singing the chord’s other tones, E or G.

  • If A minor is played and the melody sings an A, the harmonies can sing C or E.

A practical way to map out harmonies is to click the melody and chord tones into the Piano Roll/MIDI Editor in your DAW (Digital Audio Workstation). This type of editing mode has different names in different DAWs:

  • Logic Pro: Piano Roll

  • Pro Tools: MIDI Editor

  • Cubase: Key Editor

  • FL Studio: Piano Roll

  • Ableton Live: MIDI Note Editor

Here, you can visually see which notes are played and easily mute harmonies one at a time when recording them. The simplest version of this harmony technique involves giving the harmonies the exact same rhythm as the melody. Below, you can see in three steps how to add these harmonies in Logic Pro’s Piano Roll, starting with the root note, then the third, and finally the fifth. We have chosen to stay in C major, using the chords C, F, Em, Am.

 
Ackord med grundton endast

Step 1: Add the root note of the chord.

Ackord ters

Step 2: Add the third of the chord.

Ackord kvint

Step 3: Add the fifth of the chord.

TIPS:

To easily learn how to sing these harmonies, it is wise to listen to them one at a time and sing along. The easiest way to do this is to mute the two harmonies you don’t want to hear. If you want to learn the purple middle harmony (third harmony), for example, select all the other red and green notes (roots and fifths) and press Ctrl+M in Logic Pro.

Alternative Methods for Creating Harmonies

If you want more variation in your vocal arrangement and a less static-sounding song, you can use these alternative methods for creating harmonies. Below, we go through four basic techniques.

1. Parallel Harmony

Here, you choose a fixed interval, usually a third or sixth, and move the harmony parallel to the melody. This means that if the melody moves from C to D, the harmony does too, maintaining the fixed interval within the scale. In C major, this means the harmony would move from E to F if using a third interval.

Tip:

  • Copy the melody in Piano Roll/MIDI Editor and shift the notes up by the chosen interval.
  • Adjust certain notes to fit within the scale to avoid dissonance.
  • Use the same method as in the previous example to learn the harmony, i.e., mute the melody and listen only to the harmony.
Parallellförd tersstämma

Parallel Third Harmony

2. Independent Harmony

Instead of strictly following the melody, a harmony can move more freely. One way to create this type of harmony is to:

  1. Start the new melody an octave (or another large interval) above the main melody.
  2. As in the previous example – mute the melody in your project!
  3. Record a new melody that is not identical to the main melody.
  4. Listen and adjust certain notes to ensure the harmonies don’t clash too much.

Tip:

  • Use “contrary motion” – let the harmony move up when the melody moves down and vice versa.

Conclusion

Creating harmonies is an exciting and creative process that can enhance your song. The methods covered here provide a solid foundation, but there are endless possibilities to experiment and find your unique style – both within and beyond these techniques. Try combining different techniques and listen carefully to how the harmonies interact with each other and the melody.