Melody/Harmony Flashcards
Appoggiatura (AH)
Comes from the Italian ‘to lean upon’
Takes half the time value of the main note (two thirds if the main note is dotted)
Augmented triad (AH)
Major triad but the 5th degree is raised by a semitone
E.g. Eb G B
Suspension (AH)
A note from one chord is held over to the next chord creating a discord, and is then resolved by moving one step to make a concord
Adds richness and drama
Tritone (AH)
A dissonant interval
Sounds harsh and unpleasant
Consists of two notes, three tones away from each other
It lies right between the least harsh sounding intervals: the perfect 4th and perfect 5th
Turn (AH)
An ornament consisting of the note above, the main note, the note below, and the main note again
Acciaccatura (H)
Ornament that sounds like a crushed note
Played just before the beat
Added 6th (H)
A major or minor triad with a major 6th on top
E.g. C E G A or C Eb G A
Diminished 7th (H)
A diminished triad with a diminished 7th on top
Four notes, each a minor 3rd above the last
E.g. C Eb Gb Bbb
Diminished triad (H)
Three notes, each a minor third above the last
E.g. C Eb Gb
Dominant 7th (H)
A major triad with a minor 7th on top
E.g. C E G Bb
Harmonic minor scale (H)
Minor scale with a raised 7th
Sounds middle eastern
Interrupted cadence (H)
Chords V to VI at the end of a phrase
Sounds unfinished
Interval (H)
The distance between two notes
Melodic minor scale (H)
Minor scale with a raised 6th and 7th on the way up but not on the way down
Modes (H)
Used before major and minor keys
Can be found in both folk and jazz
Obbligato (H)
Prominent solo instrument part in a piece of vocal music
Instrumental countermelody played above singers
Mordent (H)
Ornament consisting of the main note, the note above, the main note
Plagal cadence (H)
Chords IV to I at the end of a phrase
Sounds finished, like an ‘amen’ ending
Tierce de Picardie (H)
When a piece in a minor key ends on a major chord
Relative major/minor (H)
Relative major and minor keys are those with the same key signature
Atonal (N5)
No feeling of key
Chromatic (N5)
Notes that move by the interval of a semitone
Cluster (N5)
Chord made of consecutive notes which clash
Contrary motion (N5)
Two parts moving in opposite directions
Countermelody (N5)
A melody played against the main melody
Descant (N5)
A melody sung above the main melody
Glissando (N5)
Sliding from one note to another
Grace note (N5)
Ornament played as a quick, crushed note
Played before the main note of a melody
Imperfect cadence (N5)
When a phrase end on chord V
Sounds unfinished and tense
Inverted pedal (N5)
A note held or repeated in an upper part
Melismatic (N5)
Vocal music where several notes are sung to each syllable
Modulation (N5)
A change of key
Perfect cadence (N5)
Chords V to I at the end of a phrase
Sounds finished
Pitch bend (N5)
Changing the pitch of a note
E.g. by pushing a guitar string upwards
Syllabic (N5)
Vocal music where each note is given one syllable
Trill (N5)
Moving quickly and repeatedly between adjacent notes
Whole tone scale (N5)
Scale where every interval is a tone
Sounds vague
Arpeggio (N4) / Broken chord (N4)
The notes of a chord are played separately
Drone (N4)
A note held on or repeated in the bass
Major tonality (N4)
Sounds bright or happy
Minor tonality (N4)
Sounds dark, creepy or sad
Ornament (N4)
Decorating a melody with extra notes
Pedal (N4)
A held note or repeated notes in the bass beneath changing upper parts
Pentatonic (N4)
A five note scale
Do, re, mi, sol and la
Often used in Scottish music
Scat singing (N4)
Nonsense words and sounds made up by the singer
Used mainly in jazz
Vamp (N4)
Rhythmic accompaniment
Bass note on the beat and a chord off the beat
Discord (N3)
A chord in which certain notes clash
Question and answer (N3)
A musical phrase (question) followed by another (answer)
These phrases usually balance each other
Repetition (N3)
An exact repeat of a musical idea
Sequence (N3)
A melodic phrase that is repeated at a higher or lower pitch
