| 18th-century harmony | The harmonic practices and conventions of common-practice period music from the 1700s, including rules for chord construction and voice leading. |
| 4-3 suspension | A suspension where a fourth above the bass is held and resolves to a third, commonly notated in figured bass as 4-3. |
| accented nonharmonic tone | A nonharmonic tone that falls directly on a beat, making it rhythmically prominent. |
| anticipation | A nonharmonic tone that sounds before the chord it belongs to, typically resolving by step to a chord tone. |
| appoggiatura | A nonharmonic tone that is approached by leap and resolved by step to a chord tone, typically creating emphasis or dissonance. |
| bass line | The lowest melodic line in a musical composition that often implies harmonic progressions through its note choices. |
| chain of suspensions | A series of successive suspensions that occur in sequence, creating a continuous pattern of suspended and resolving tones. |
| chorale style | A compositional style featuring four-part harmony with block chords, typically used in 18th-century German hymn settings. |
| embellishing tones | Pitches that do not belong to the underlying harmonic chord and serve to embellish or decorate the melody. |
| embellishing tones | Pitches that do not belong to the underlying harmonic chord and serve to embellish or decorate the melody. |
| embellishing tones | Pitches that do not belong to the underlying harmonic chord and serve to embellish or decorate the melody. |
| embellishing tones | Pitches that do not belong to the underlying harmonic chord and serve to embellish or decorate the melody. |
| embellishment | A decorative musical element used to enhance or ornament a melodic line. |
| escape tone | A nonharmonic tone that is approached by step and left by leap, creating a sense of escape from the expected resolution. |
| figured bass | A notational system using Arabic numerals below a bass note to indicate the intervals and pitches of the chord to be played above that bass note. |
| lower neighbor | A type of neighbor tone that approaches and resolves from a pitch below the main melodic note. |
| neighbor tone | A type of nonharmonic tone that includes lower neighbor and upper neighbor classifications based on melodic approach and resolution. |
| neighbor tones | Embellishing tones that move by step away from and then back to the same harmonic tone. |
| ornament | A decorative musical figure or embellishing tone used to enhance a melodic line. |
| parallel sixths | Two melodic lines moving in the same direction with a consistent interval of a sixth between them. |
| parallel thirds | Two melodic lines moving in the same direction with a consistent interval of a third between them. |
| passing tone | A type of nonharmonic tone that is melodically approached and resolved in a specific manner, classified as either accented or unaccented based on its rhythmic placement. |
| pedal point | A sustained or repeated pitch in the bass that remains constant while harmonies change above it, creating a nonharmonic relationship. |
| preparation | The approach or introduction of a nonharmonic tone, establishing how it enters the melodic line. |
| rearticulated suspension | A suspension in which the suspended tone is restruck or rearticulated rather than held continuously from the previous chord. |
| resolution | The movement of a chord tone, typically by step, to another chord tone, often from a dissonant interval to a consonant one. |
| retardation | A nonharmonic tone that delays the resolution of a chord tone by resolving upward by step to a chord tone, the opposite of a suspension. |
| Roman numeral progression | A harmonic progression notated using Roman numerals to indicate chord function and quality. |
| soprano line | The highest melodic line in a musical composition, typically sung by the highest voices or played by the highest instruments. |
| suspension | A nonharmonic tone created when a note from a previous chord is held or rearticulated over a new chord before resolving downward by step to a chord tone. |
| trill | An ornament consisting of the rapid alternation between a note and the note above or below it. |
| unaccented nonharmonic tone | A nonharmonic tone that falls on a division between beats rather than directly on a beat. |
| unaccented passing tones | Embellishing tones that occur on weak beats and connect two harmonic tones by stepwise motion. |
| upper neighbor | A type of neighbor tone that approaches and resolves from a pitch above the main melodic note. |
| voice exchange | A technique where two voices exchange their melodic material or swap positions in the harmonic texture. |
| voice leading | The technique of moving individual melodic lines (voices) in a musical composition, including considerations for smooth transitions and proper resolution of chords. |