A translation on the section Concerning a Partimento in Major that Rises by Semitone and Begins said Ascent from ③ in Fedele Fenaroli’s Partimenti ossia basso numerato, Book III Naples (1775) Ed. Gjerdingen, with adaptions to the guitar.
The first note of this Partimento, which is the third degree of the key, will be considered as the ⑦, which moves to the ①; therefore, as a seventh that rises to the octave, it will have the accompaniment of a 3d and 6h. To this will be added the diminished 5th, considering that it is a semitone note.
The following note of the Partimento will be considered as the ① of the key; therefore, it will have a 3rd, 5th, and 8ve — and so on, successively.
Note: On the second note of the said Partimento, one may give on its first beat the accompaniment of a 4th, prepared by the diminished 5th, which resolves to a 3rd on its second beat. See example B.
To the aforementioned second note of the Partimento, one may also give an accompaniment of a 9th, prepared by the 3rd, which on the second beat resolves to the 8ve. See example C1 and alternative C2.
Note: On the guitar it is sometimes more common to give the passing dominant (or semitone) a diminished 5th instead of a 6th, because of the idiomatics of the instrument. See example A – ♯④.
This concludes this short text on partimento that rises by semitone from ③, as instructed by Fedele Fenaroli in his Partimenti ossia basso numerato. You can download this essay as a PDF for free.
Karl Michelson 