NCEA Level 2 Music flashcards

32 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.

Sonata form

A large-scale structure with exposition (two contrasting key areas), development (thematic fragmentation and modulation), and recapitulation (both themes return in the tonic key), often preceded by a slow introduction and closed by a coda.

Perfect cadence

A cadence moving from chord V to chord I, giving a strong sense of final closure; in a minor key the dominant is usually major, requiring a raised leading note.

Interrupted cadence

A cadence moving from chord V to chord vi (or another unexpected chord instead of I), producing a sense of surprise or deferral rather than closure.

Plagal cadence

A cadence moving from chord IV to chord I, often called the amen cadence; it closes a phrase with a softer, less decisive effect than a perfect cadence.

Imperfect cadence

A cadence ending on chord V, either approached from I, ii, or IV; it leaves the phrase harmonically open and typically leads into the next phrase.

Tierce de Picardie

The practice of ending a piece in a minor key with a major tonic triad, achieved by raising the third of the chord, common in Baroque music.

Modulation to dominant

A change of key to the key a perfect fifth above the tonic, usually prepared by a new leading note or a pivot chord shared by both keys.

Relative minor

The minor key sharing the same key signature as a major key, located a minor third below its tonic; for example, A minor is the relative minor of C major.

Secondary dominant

A chromatic chord functioning as the dominant of a chord other than the tonic, commonly written V/V and resolving to the dominant within the prevailing key.

Diminished seventh chord

A four-note chord built from stacked minor thirds, symmetrical in structure; it is highly unstable and can resolve to any of four keys by enharmonic reinterpretation.

Suspension

A non-chord tone held over from the previous chord, creating a dissonance that resolves downward by step; classified as prepared, suspended, and resolved.

Passing note

A non-chord tone filling the gap between two chord tones by stepwise motion, usually unaccented and moving in the same direction as the melodic line.

Sequence

Immediate repetition of a melodic or harmonic pattern at a higher or lower pitch level; it creates forward momentum and is common in Baroque and Classical development sections.

Imitation

A texture device where one voice restates a melodic idea introduced by another voice, either exactly or varied, often overlapping in time as in a fugue subject and answer.

Contrary motion

Two melodic lines moving in opposite directions; it is a standard counterpoint technique for maintaining independence and avoiding consecutive fifths or octaves.

Homophonic texture

A texture with a single melodic line supported by chordal accompaniment moving largely in the same rhythm, as in a hymn or a melody with block chords.

Polyphonic texture

A texture in which two or more independent melodic lines sound simultaneously, each with its own contour and rhythm, as in imitative counterpoint.

Ostinato

A short rhythmic or melodic pattern repeated persistently, usually in the bass, while other parts change above it; common in Baroque ground bass and in film music.

Ground bass

A repeating bass line over which variations are built; each repetition may be harmonised differently, as in Purcell's Dido's Lament.

Da capo aria

A ternary aria form (A-B-A) in Baroque opera in which the singer repeats the opening section with improvised ornamentation, shown by the instruction da capo at the end of B.

Through-composed song

A vocal work with new music for each stanza of text, providing no repeated section; it suits narrative or changing emotional content in art song.

Strophic form

A song structure in which the same music sets each verse of text, so the melody repeats while the words change; common in folk song and hymnody.

Rondo form

A structure built on a recurring principal theme alternating with contrasting episodes, typically ABACA or ABACABA, giving a refrain-like sense of return.

Minuet and trio

A Classical third-movement form consisting of a minuet in rounded binary, a contrasting trio in a related key, then a da capo repeat of the minuet.

Theme and variations

A form in which a stated theme is followed by successive variations that alter melody, harmony, rhythm, texture, or timbre while retaining the underlying structure.

Ritornello form

A Baroque concerto structure where a recurring orchestral passage alternates with contrasting solo episodes, often in related keys for the episodes.

Hemiola

A rhythmic device where two groups of three beats are heard against three groups of two, shifting the perceived metre, common in Baroque dances and in Brahms.

Syncopation

Accentuation of a weak beat or the offbeat, or deliberate displacement of a rhythmic pattern so that expected strong accents fall elsewhere.

Compound metre

A metre in which each beat divides into three equal parts, denoted by upper numerals 6, 9, or 12, as in 6/8 with two dotted-crotchet beats per bar.

Transposition

Rewriting or performing music at a different pitch level while preserving the interval relationships; required when reading parts for transposing instruments such as Bb clarinet.

Concert pitch

The actual sounding pitch of a note; a Bb trumpet written C sounds as Bb, so its part must be transposed up a major second to read at concert pitch.

Programme music

Instrumental music that depicts a story, scene, or idea, often supported by a descriptive title or written programme, as in Berlioz's Symphonie fantastique.