C
S
Cadences and Other Closural Phenomena
PC full cadence, perfect TA tonic arrival IC full cadence, imperfect DA dominant arrival NC full cadence, nonperfect
HC half cadence
OFC occluded full cadence DC deceptive cadence OHC occluded half cadence EC evasion of a cadence
arrival When a cadential state extends well beyond its onset and becomes a
period of activity, I call the point of onset an arrival. Arrivals, in other words, are a species of cadence in which rhythmic rest appears well after the onset of the final harmonic state.
authentic cadence Seefull cadence.
caesura A point of rhythmic rest.
deceptive cadence A cadence in which the tonic closure of the primary line is
stabilized not by ˆ1in the bass but instead ˆ6.
duration of the closing state The duration of a closing harmonic state is
de-termined by the metrical position of the clause’s beginning: the duration of the closing state is a full metric unit less the length of the anacrusis, if any, at the beginning of the clause.
elided cadence Seeoccluded cadence.
evasion of a cadence Evasion of a cadence occurs when the primary line or
the counterpoint is on the verge of cadencing, but one or more, and pos-sibly all, of the lines fail to progress into the closing state and instead initiate a new internal or cadential unit.
full cadence (a) In a melodic line (a primary line), a full cadence requires the
perfect or imperfect completion of a linear progression, thus ending on ˆ1
or ˆ3: (b) In contrapuntal contexts, there is a full close in the bass (ˆ5–ˆ1), the
primary melodic line has a perfect or imperfect close, and the subsidiary lines harmonize with closure in the bass and primary lines. In rare cases,
the uppermost line is a subsidiary line that reaches a point of nonperfect closure.
half cadence (a) In a melodic line (a primary line), a half cadence is the
ter-mination of a linear progression on the verge of closure, on ¯7or ˆ2, or on
ˆ5. (b) In contrapuntal contexts, the subsidiary lines harmonize with the
dominant state of the primary line and that state is stabilized by ˆ5in the
bass.
half cadence, tonicized A tonicized half cadence may be (a) an inflection of a
normal half cadence, or (b) a simulation of a full cadence in the
domi-nant, in which case the primary line may conclude on ˆ5.
metrically strong cadence A cadence in which the closing state is initiated on
a downbeat.
metrically weak cadence A cadence in which the closing state is initiated on
a weak beat.
occluded cadence A full or, more rarely, a half cadence may be occluded by
the initiation of a new thematic unit that coincides with the initiation of the cadential harmonic state. This often occurs in compositions that involve several players or groups of players, such that the conclusion of activity in one group is overlaid with the initiation of activity in another group. I call this an occluded full cadence. When describing an occluded cadence, it is important to include mention of the type of cadence that is occluded (e.g., an occluded perfect cadence).
partial cadence A full cadence is a point of contrapuntal agreement with
re-spect to tonic closure, so a partial cadence occurs when at least one but not all of the contrapuntal lines reach tonic closure at the point of an ex-pected full cadence. Deceptive cadences and evaded cadences are two such cases.
plagal cadence Not a cadence, in that it does not result from the
harmoniza-tion of linear closure. Typically involves harmonizaharmoniza-tion of the upper
neighbors to ˆ3 and ˆ5, either over a sustained tonic or stabilized as a 53
klang with ˆ4in the bass.
Clauses
cadence The concluding contrapuntal formula of a clause; sometimes called
clausulae. See terminology related to “Cadences.”
clause A clause is a musical unit in which (a) a period of activity in some
harmonic state is initiated in one or more lines and (b) that activity comes to rest in a stable harmonic state. Moreover, (c) the period of activity that
precedes the closing state must last at least three primary metrical units (bars in moderate tempos, half bars in very slow composite meters, and possibly bar groups in very fast tempos); normally, the period of activity is much longer than the closing state. And, finally, (d) the framing states of a clause must frame a coherent harmonic progression, so there may need to be one or more harmonic states that mediate between the initial and closing states. — The initial harmonic state may be either a stable tonic state or some other state (including unstable tonic), but the closing
state must be either a stable tonic (Tc= ˆ1|53) or dominant (Dc= ˆ5|53). If the
clause ends on tonic, the tonic must result from the harmonization of
linear closure (D–T) and the cadential dominant must be stabilized by ˆ5
in the bass. In other words, clauses end with either half or a full cadence. There are two types of initiation and two degrees of finality, hence there are four types of clause:
Dc Tc
stable Ti inceptive definitive
not stable Ti inconclusive conclusive
A clause is monotonal if it the framing harmonic states are in the same key (scale) and modulating if they are different. Definitive clauses are always monotonal, so there are only three types of modulating clause.
conclusive clause A clause that begins in something other than a stable tonic
state and ends with a full cadence.
conclusive clause, modulating A clause that begins in something other than
a stable tonic state in one key and ends with a full cadence in another key. If the closing tonic is equivalent to the dominant of the first key, the clause is a modulating inceptive clause.
coordinators The syntactic category that includes conjunctions and occlusions. deceptive clause A monotonal clause begins in some harmonic state and ends
with a deceptive cadence. The syntax may be completed by repeating the entire clause and ending with a full cadence, appending a new clause, or repeating and fully executing the cadential unit.
deceptive clause, modulating A modulating clause begins in a harmonic state
in one key and ends with a deceptive cadence in another key.
definitive clause A monotonal clause that begins and ends in a stable tonic
state and is finalized with a full cadence. Definitive clauses have differ-ent degrees of finality, depending upon whether the primary upper line closes perfectly, imperfectly, or non-perfectly.
inceptive clause A monotonal clause that begins in a stable tonic state and
inceptive clause, modulating A modulating inceptive clause (a) begins in a
stable tonic in one key, (b) concludes with a full cadence in the key of the dominant in which the (c) closing state is a major triad. If the closing state is a minor dominant triad, it is not an inceptive clause, but rather a modulating conclusive clause.
inconclusive clause A monotonal clause that begins in something other than
a stable tonic state and ends with a half cadence.
inconclusive clause, modulating A clause that begins in something other than
a stable tonic state in one key and ends with a half cadence in another key.
interrupted clause A clause in which the cadence is evaded. The syntax is
interrupted at the point of closure; the syntax is usually completed by repeating and fully executing the cadential unit.
subordinators The syntactic category that includes deceptive and evaded
ca-dences.
syntax A term in search of a theory.
Sentences
components constructions connections thematic unit period conjunction phrase –antecedent occlusion appendix –consequent
paired clauses Schoenbergian
antecedent clause The first of two clauses that begin with the same thematic
material and together form a period.
appendix A thematic unit appended to the cadence of a clause. An appendix
may (a) echo the clause’s cadence, (b) sustain the closing harmonic state, or (c) present brief cadence-like progressions.
cadential unit, cadential phrase The final thematic unit of a clause that
con-tains the cadence. A cadential unit may be repeated, and the cadence of the repetition(s) can either strengthen the original cadential effect or undermine the original cadence. Repetition of a cadential unit can also instigate a modulation.
codetta A thematic unit appended to a sentence that is not an independent
clause and consists of thematic material that is not a repetition of the final cadential unit of the sentence.
conjunction (a) A linear (melodic) structure that is initiated during the closing
state of one clause and reaches completion at the start of the next clause. (b) An accompanimental texture that is initiated during the closing state of one clause and continues into the next clause.
consequent clause The second of two clauses that begin with the same
the-matic material and together form a period.
double period Pairs of couplets that are parallel in construction (ab ab. The cadence of the second pair is a full cadence that has greater finality than the cadences of the other clauses.
modulating conjunction A linear conjunction that effects a change of key (scale). modulating consequent A consequent clause that modulates.
occlusion Occlusion occurs when the initial state of a new clause begins at the
same time as the closing state of the preceding clause.
paired clauses Two clauses in the same key that end with the same type of
cadence.
parallel clauses A pair of consecutive clauses that begin with the same
the-matic material. The first is the antecedent clause and the second is the consequent clause. The second clause may also modulate, in which case it is a modulating consequent clause.
parallel period Seeperiod.
parallelism Units that have similar thematic content and occupy similar
rhetor-ical positions.
period A compound sentence in which the first clause ends with a half
ca-dence and the second ends with a full caca-dence. If the two clauses are parallel, the consequent clause may modulate and end with a half ca-dence in a different key. If the pair of clauses are of the same length, usually four or eight bars, the period is a couplet. If the clauses begin with similar thematic material, they form a parallel period.
phrase A component of a clause (e.g., a motive or thematic unit) that is
rhyth-mically discrete.
Schoenbergian sentence A clause in which the thematic units are arranged
in an accelerating progression, usually in pairs. The first pair of units are often similar and complementary (e.g., I–V and V–I). The rhythm
of an eight-bar sentence might be: [2+2] [1+1] [1
2 1
2] [cadence]. The first
pair of segment are commonly referred to as the presentation, the internal phrases as the continuation, and the cadence as the cadence.
sentence One clause or a series of linked clauses, usually ending with a
rela-tively strong caesura.
simple sentence A single clause that (a) is motivically homogeneous (i.e., a
single invention) and (b) ends with a relatively strong caesura.
thematic unit A segment of a sentence that is a coherent motivic invention.
Usually identified by its position within the clause: initial unit, internal unit, cadential unit. If rhythmically discrete, the unit may be called a phrase.
Rhetorical Elaborations in Sentences
repetition of a phrase or thematic unit
subversion of a cadence Through (1) deceptive resolution, (2) evasion, (3) one
of the outer voices dropping out, (4) one or more voices entering as a new outer voice that contradicts the cadence.
multiple cadences
liquidation Repetition of a motive with gradual reduction of its content,
lead-ing ultimately to an instance that is null and void. Liquidation often re-inforces closure, but it may also set the stage for something new, and perhaps surprising, to occur.
dissolution pauses
