Tendency Tones
Definition
Tendency tones are specific notes within a musical phrase that have a natural inclination to resolve to another pitch. They create tension and resolution, adding emotional depth to music.
Related terms
Resolution: Resolution refers to the movement from dissonance (tension) to consonance (release) in music.
Leading Tone: The leading tone is often considered one of the strongest tendency tones because it strongly resolves upward by half step.
Dominant Seventh Chord: The dominant seventh chord contains multiple tendency tones that create strong resolutions when progressing to tonic chords.
"Tendency Tones" appears in:
Study guides (2)
AP Music Theory - 4.2 SATB Voice Leading
AP Music Theory - 5.3 Predominant Seventh Chords
Additional resources (2)
AP Music Theory - Unit 4 Overview: Harmony and Voice Leading I (Chord Function, Cadence, and Phrase)
AP Music Theory - 6.4 Embellishing Tones: Identifying and Writing Suspensions; Identifying Retardations
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Cram Mode
AP Score Calculators
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© 2024 Fiveable Inc. All rights reserved.
AP® and SAT® are trademarks registered by the College Board, which is not affiliated with, and does not endorse this website.