Diatonic functions

tonal center of a diatonic scale

In music, the subdominant is the fourth tonal degree () of the diatonic scale. It is so called because it is the same distance below the tonic as the dominant is above the tonicin other words, the tonic is the dominant of the subdominant. It also happens to be the note one step below the dominant. In the movable do solfège system, the subdominant note is sung as fa.

fifth scale degree of the diatonic scale, between the subdominant and the submediant

In music, the mediant (Latin: "being in the middle") is the third scale degree () of a diatonic scale, being the note halfway between the tonic and the dominant. In the movable do solfège system, the mediant note is sung as mi. While the fifth scale degree is almost always a perfect fifth, the mediant can be a major or minor third.

note a major seventh above the tonic, which typically resolves to a note one semitone higher or lower

note from which a chord is formed

specific, recognized role of each of the 7 tones and their chords in relation to the diatonic key

In music, the submediant is the sixth degree () of a diatonic scale. The submediant ("lower mediant") is named thus because it is halfway between the tonic and the subdominant ("lower dominant") or because its position below the tonic is symmetrical to that of the mediant above. (See the figure in the Degree (music) article.)

In music, the supertonic is the second degree () of a diatonic scale, one whole step above the tonic. In the movable do solfège system, the supertonic note is sung as re.

In music, the subtonic is the degree of a musical scale which is a whole step below the tonic note. In a major key, it is a lowered, or flattened, seventh scale degree (). It appears as the seventh scale degree in the natural minor and descending melodic minor scales but not in the major scale. In major keys, the subtonic sometimes appears in borrowed chords. In the movable do solfège system, the subtonic note is sung as te (or ta).

harmonic device in Western music

thumb|V of V in C, four-part harmonyFile:V of V in C four-part harmony.midIn music, tonicization is the treatment of a pitch other than the overall tonic (the "home note" of a piece) as a temporary tonic in a composition. In tonal music, pieces (or sections) are in a key. This means that the tonic chord has a corresponding dominant chord (e.g., in the key of C major, the tonic chord is C major and the dominant chord is G major or G7). The dominant chord, especially if it is a dominant seventh chord, is said to resolve to (or leading to) the tonic, due to the leading note in the dominant chord

musical theories of Hugo Riemann