Harmony Flashcards
Tonality
The organization of music around a single pitch (the tonic)
* In tonal music, we use the terminology of being “in a key”
Tonic note
the central pitch around which the melody gravitates, the first degree of the scale
Key signature
An arrangement of sharps and flats at the beginning of each staff that defines the principal notes employed in the piece
Major key
Sounds happy
Minor key
Sounds sad
Consonance
a combination of notes which are in harmony with each other; primary, stable, pleasant
Dissonance
a lack of harmony among notes; secondary, unstable, unpleasant
Atonality
the absence of tonality; the absence of key or tonal centre
Chord; triad
Chord: Simultaneous sounding of two or more notes
Triad: Three-note chords; these are the most common chords in the music found on the listening list of this course
Harmonic rhythm
The pace at which chords change
Cadence
a harmonic configuration that concludes a phrase
o Authentic (resolved), Plagal (resolved, “Amen” cadence), Imperfect (unresolved), Deceptive (unexpected, unresolved)
Functional chords; tonic chord, subdominant chord, dominant chord
o I (major): the tonic chord, built on the first note of the scale
o IV (major): the subdominant chord, built on the fourth note of the scale
o V (major): the dominant chord, built on the fifth note of the scale
Functional progressions; I-V-I, ii-V-I, I-vi-IV-V
o Jazz: ii-V-I
Used throughout jazz pieces, including at the end (used as a cadence)
o Pop/ Rock: I-vi-IV-V
Can be used in verses, choruses, and/or other sections
o Classical: I-V-I
The “harmonic backbone” of European classical music
Modulation
the process of changing from one key to another
- Typically used at the end of a song to build energy
