Diatonic
A term referring to music or intervals confined to the pitch material of a given scale or mode.
Diatonic-third relationship
Two chords whose roots lie a third apart and which contain two common tones, as in I-vi, I-iii, i-VI, and so on.
Diminished seventh chord
The chord formed by the addition of a diminished seventh above the root of a diminished triad. It most often occurs on the leading tone of a minor key, as the vii o7 .
Diminished triad
A 3 note chord formed when a minor third is stacked above a minor third, the highest note producing a diminished 5 th above the root.
Diminution
The restatement of a melodic/rhythmic figure in shorter note values.
Disjunct
Melodic motion involving intervals larger than a whole step.
Dissonance
The effect of two or more pitches sounding together that produces a sense of instability and desire for resolution.
Dominant
The functional name given to the 5 th degree of a scale and to the triad formed on this pitch.
Dominant-major 9 th chord
The harmony formed when a 3 rd is placed above the seventh of a minor-key dominant seventh chord, forming a minor 9 th above the chord root.
Dominant-minor 9 th chord
The harmony formed when a 3 rd is placed above the seventh of a major-key dominant 7 th chord, forming a minor 9 th above the chord root.
Dominant 7 th chord
The 7 th chord type formed on the fifth scale degree, consisting of a major triad with a minor 7 th above its root. Because this type of 7 th chord appears diatonically only on the dominant, it is simply called the dominant seventh.
Dorian
One of six church modes that predated and led to the major and minor scales, viewable today as a natural minor scale.
Double period
Four phrases in which the final phrase ends more conclusively than the preceding three. The phrase pairs may be similar (called a parallel double period) or dissimilar (called a contrasting double period).
Doubling
In four-part writing, reinforcing one of the members of a triad by including it in two of the voices.
Doubly augmented fourth chord
A German sixth chord with the mediant respelled enharmonically as a supertonic to reflect its upward resolution to the third of a major tonic six-four chord.
Dramatic shape
The form of a musical work created by its psychological or emotional effect. It is normally defined in terms of areas of peak intensity and the approach to and resolution of those areas.
Dynamic accent
Emphasis placed on a particular note by virtue of its performance at a louder level or with a more emphatic articulation than the surrounding notes.
Eleventh chord
A chord formed by the addition of a third above the ninth in a ninth chord.
Embellishing diminished seventh chord
A fully diminished seventh chord that functions not as a leading-tone chord but as an auxiliary chord, usually to the tonic or dominant. The seventh of this chord is a common tone with the root of the embellished chord.
Embellishing tone
A pitch that serves as a connection between or a decoration of the more important pitches of a melodic line.
Enharmonic
A term referring to different spellings of the same pitch or interval.
Enharmonic change of mode
A shift to the parallel major or minor key accompanied by an enharmonic respelling of that key, as the Gb (major) to F# (minor).
Enharmonic diminished seventh chord
A diminished 7 th chord used enharmonically, usually in a modulation, so that a chord member other than its root functions as the new root.
Enharmonic equivalence
Two pitches, intervals, or chords that sound the same but are spelled differently.
Enharmonic pivot
A chord which, at the point of a modulation, is diatonic in the old key and, respelled enharmonically, diatonic in the new key.