Term coined by Robert O. Gjerdingen, after an observation by Leonard B. Meyer. In the words of Gjerdingen, “in the 1970s, Leonard B. Meyer noticed that many eighteenth-century phrases resembled the opening of the hymn tune ‘Adeste Fidelis’. Its melody, believed to date from the early eighteenth century, opens with a variant of the Do-Re-Mi […]

A risposta schema (or riposta schema) is a schema that follows (‘responds to’) a proposta schema. See also proposta schema. Select Bibliography Gjerdingen, Robert O. Music in the Galant Style (New York: Oxford University Press, 2007).

A proposta schema is a schema that begins a composition or an important section of it. See also risposta schema. Select Bibliography Gjerdingen, Robert O. Music in the Galant Style (New York: Oxford University Press, 2007).

A term coined by John A. Rice. A Corelli Long Comma is a three-part variant of the Long Comma with a 6/5 sonority above ⑥ and a 9–8 suspension (or a non-essential dissonance) above ①. Since the fifth in the 6/5 sonority –➌– acts as a suspension, it must be prepared. See also Clausulæ. See

A term coined by Robert O. Gjerdingen. A Long Comma is a variant of the Comma where ⑥ precedes ⑦. Its usual melody is a ➍–➌ or ➎–➍–➌ snippet. In the latter case, ➎ acts as a suspension (or a non-essential dissonance) above ⑥ and must be prepared. See also Clausulæ. See also Comma. See

A term coined by Robert O. Gjerdingen, after several 18th-century sources. A Comma is a synonym for a clausula cantizans or a ⑦–① cadence. Its usual melody is a ➎–➍–➌ or ➍–➌ snippet. See also Clausulæ. See also Long Comma. See also Corelli Long Comma. Select Bibliography Gjerdingen, Robert O. Music in the Galant Style

An octave displacement is a register switch in which a melodic line is continued an octave higher or lower than expected after a note on a strong beat, often because of a tessitura issue. Example a illustrates how two octave displacements in the upper part of bar 2 ensure that the first and last pitch