Tetrachord The difference in sound between a tone and a semitone is vitally important in music. A good way to practise hearing the difference is to begin on the A above middle C and then sing or play a whole tone down to G, another whole tone down to F and a semitone down to E. This pattern is called a tetrachord. The same pattern of two descending tones followed by a semitone can be begun on E, going down to B.
Broken Chord A chord where the notes are not played all at once but rather separated.
Chord / Chords The sound of three or more notes being played together. There is some debate over whether two notes played together could be a chord. Some dictionaries will say it is, others that only three notes together is a chord.
Chord shapes The diagrams often shown above the staff which give the fingering for chords on the guitar, piano, organ, and other instruments.
Chord progression a series of chords played one after another
Nonchord tone See escape note.
Chorale Originally, a hymn tune of the Lutheran Church characterized by blocked chords. In casual modern usage, a classical setting, eg, by JS Bach, of such a tune, in usually four-voiced, that proceeds in a primarily one-tone texture with both harmonic progression and individual voice-leading having equal importance. For this reason, they are often used as theory examples.
Notation The ordinary letters of the alphabet are easy to follow in a pattern as simple as the tetrachord, but in more elaborate music they would be confusing, so musicians have invented their own system of writing, called notation.
Jazz 1. A style of music, native to America, characterized by a strong but flexible rhythmic understructure with solo and ensemble improvisations on basic tunes and chord patterns and more recently, a highly sophisticated harmonic idiom. 2. Big band dance music.
Escape Note A non-harmonic note or tone (outside of the currently played chord) - compare changing note.
Arpeggiando This is the wavy vertical line preceding a chord which is to be 'rolled.' It is used for keyboard and harp music.
Cadence A group of chords that create a sense of resolution. A common example is the 'Amen' sung at the end of hymns in a church service. Examples of cadences are the authentic cadence, the half cadence, the plagal cadence, the interrupted cadence, the inverted cadence and the upper leading-tone cadence.
Interrupted Cadence This cadence is also referred to as the deceptive cadence. It is a five chord to any other chord. The feeling of this cadence is that the music will resolve to the one chord (I) at any moment but does not.
Half Cadence This cadence sounds incomplete, since it ends on the five chord (V).
Authentic Cadence This is also known as a closed or standard cadence. It refers to the V chord to the I chord (or the IV - V - I). The dominant seventh (V7) can replace the dominant chord.
Basso continuo (Italian) Also called 'continuo' or 'figured bass'. Basso continuo is a system for notating chords developed thorugh the 16th century and popular through the 17th century. Basso continuo is in many ways similar to modern chord notation, but there are also important differences. In basso continuo the bass line is notated in standard notation, while other chord notes might be indicated with numbers and other symbols below the bass note.
Arpeggio The notes of the chord are sounded quickly on after the other starting with the lowest note, and going up.
