Tonality
What Tonality means in Music GCSE, as defined for Pearson Edexcel.
Definitions of Tonality
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Reference: Pearson Edexcel
The relationship of notes within a scale or mode to a principal note, a wider term than key but often used synonymously with it.
Named by the tonic, the home key of a piece, which is the home note that gives the key its name.
The sense of key that a piece establishes and returns to, confirmed across a passage.
The sense of a home note or key centre that a piece gravitates towards.
Topics that use Tonality
- Appendix 3: Musical vocabulary - Tonality (Pearson Edexcel GCSE)
- Component 3: Appraising - Musical elements (Pearson Edexcel GCSE)
Related terms
- Basic modulation and its signals
- Cadence types and their effect
- Cadences and modulation
- Dotted rhythms
- Dynamic markings
- Effect of omitting semitone steps
- Harmonic chord progressions
- Interval calculation
Using Tonality in the exam
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