Module 6 — Cadences, Phrase Structure, Harmonic Rhythm, and Hearing Musical “Punctuation”
This module connects harmony to musical sentences.
Up to now, we have learned what chords are and what functions they have. Now we ask:
How does music organize those chords into phrases that feel unfinished, paused, surprised, or complete?
This is extremely useful for playing by ear, because you often do not need to identify every chord immediately. First, you can hear:
- where a phrase starts,
- where it is heading,
- whether it pauses,
- whether it resolves,
- and where “home” is.
6.1Music has punctuationThink of spoken language.6.2Authentic cadence = periodThe strongest basic resolution is:6.3Why V7 → I feels so strongG7 contains:6.4Half cadence = question markA half cadence ends on V.6.5Play the differenceFirst:6.6Plagal cadence = softer endingPlagal cadence:6.7Deceptive cadence = expected destination avoidedYou expect:6.8Why G7 → Am worksG7:6.9Phrases usually come in chunksA lot of music is organized in phrases of:6.10Antecedent and consequentA very useful classical concept:6.11Hear the question-answer shapePlay:6.12Harmonic rhythmNow another important concept:6.13Same progression, different harmonic rhythmTake:6.14Harmonic rhythm often accelerates toward a cadenceA common pattern is:6.15Bass movement helps reveal phrase structureWhen listening by ear, sometimes chord quality is hard to identify.6.16Strong beats matterA chord change on beat 1 usually feels more structurally important than a quick passing chord between beats.6.17Reduction: simplify firstSuppose a song has:6.18Phrase-ending cluesWhen listening, ask:6.19Melody also tells you where phrases endPhrases often show one or more of these:6.20Example with a simple melodic sentenceImagine a four-bar melody in C that ends:6.21Cadential 6/4 — a classical sound you may recognizeBecause of your classical background, you may recognize this sound even if the terminology is rusty.6.22Why inversion affects functionRemember:6.23A practical ear-training methodTake a simple song you know well.6.24Finding tonic by earA useful exercise:6.25Finding dominant by earOnce you know tonic, dominant is degree 5.6.26Phrase skeleton exerciseTake any simple 8-bar song.6.27A very common 8-bar skeletonTry:6.28Change the cadence and change the formTake the first four bars:6.29Repetition plus changed endingA very common compositional technique:6.30Melodic sequence and harmonic sequenceSuppose you have a melodic idea:6.31Circle-of-fifths phrase motionThis progression:6.32Phrase expansionSuppose basic phrase is:6.33Don't confuse complexity with functionA sophisticated chord may still perform a simple job.6.34Practical accompaniment exerciseTake:6.35Create a question and answerAt the piano, make your own 8-bar structure.6.36Apply it to improvisationImprovisation should also have punctuation.6.37Silence is part of phrasingThis is particularly important.6.38Rhythmic motif before pitch complexityCreate a rhythm:6.39Your first real arranging decisionTake a melody you know.•Homework for Module 6Spend roughly 25–30 minutes.•Module 6 mini-testTry before checking the answers.•Next: Module 7 — Harmonizing a MelodyThis is where we start doing one of the things you originally wanted most: take a melody you know—without an existing accompaniment—and…