WebFacts More WebFacts    WebFacts 1 Listen again to the climax of the Schubert song "Du bist die Ruh," paying particular attention to the left-hand piano part. Follow your anthology score, and notice from the III chord in measure 56 through the penultimate chord in measure 59, that Schubert uses rather blatant parallel fifths in the lowest voices of these piano chords! Remember: the prohibition against parallel fifths is a guideline, not a rule. The reason that composers of the common-practice era tried to avoid parallel fifths and octaves is that these intervals tend to thwart the independence of contrapuntal lines: parallel perfect intervals make two voices sound like a single voice reinforced by the fifth or octave, instead of two independent voice-leading strands. But a reinforced single voice is the effect Schubert is seeking in this spot: he adds parallel fifths in the lowest voices in order to thicken the left-hand chords, to give them more resonance and weight on the approach to the climax in the same manner that composers sometimes double octaves to reinforce a line. This technique creates a striking difference in the sound of these chords-it distinguishes them from chords in the rest of the song, which are connected by the traditional guidelines of common-practice voice-leading.

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