Grade 3 music theory builds on prior knowledge with increased complexity, introducing new terminology, exam styles, and concepts such as tonic triads, anacrusis, and various time signatures like 6/8, 9/8, and 12/8. Students learn to identify intervals and their types, transpose music, and understand phrasing in compositions. This level prepares students for more advanced concepts in future grades, emphasizing the importance of practice and revision.

1. MUSIC THEORY
GRADE 3
By Suzan G

2. MINI INTROAs you have passed through grade 1 and 2, grade
3 becomes slightly harder as there's different
terminology and exam style questions are
introduced. So, it's important to read and revise
carefully to get through because after your done
grade 4 expects a lot of terminology, key
signatures and other basics to be remembered for
it. Don't worry, these slides will provide the help!

3. ITALIAN TERMS
Agitato – with agitation.
Attacca – go on at once.
Animato – with animation.
Tranquillo – calm(ly).
Con anima – with feeling.
Con brio – with spirit.
Con grazia – with grace.
Con forza – with force.
Dolce – soft and sweet.
Risoluto – with resolution.
Ben marcato – well marked.
Una corda (U.C.) – (one string) with the soft pedal.
Tre corde (T.C.) – (3 strings) release the soft
pedal.
Main droite (M.D) - right hand.
Main gauche (M.G) - left hand.
Ad libitum – at pleasure, quite freely.
Opus (Op.) - a work or group of works.
Loco - at normal pitch (after an 8va sign).
Sforzando (sfz or sf) - a strong accent.
Forte-piano (fp) - loud then immediately soft.
Calando – getting softer and slower.
Morendo – dying away.
Largamente – broadly.
Larghetto - rather broadly.
Con moto - with movement.
Prestissimo - extremely fast.

4. SIGNS
Sign Name of Sign Meaning of Sign
M.M. Maelzel‛s Metronome Metronome marking.
8va Ottava Play one octave higher
than written.
Sf or Sfz Sforzando A strong accent.
fp Forte-piano Loud then immediately
soft.
Duplet 2 notes played in the time
of 3 notes of equal value

5. TONIC TRIADS
• As you should know the 1st degree of the scale is the 'Tonic' and that a tonic triad
is a chord built up from the 1st, 3rd and 5th degree. You might be asked to
identify a tonic triad for example: What key is the tonic triad? Answer- 'It’s built
on the tonic, F, with the 3rd degree of the scale, Ab, and the 5th, C. So, it's in the
key of F minor.'
• You might be asked to add a clef and a key signature or accidentals to a tonic
triad.
• E.g.

6. NEW NOTES
Grade
2
Grade1
Apart from the other notes and
rests, this one is new for grade 3
and it's called a Demisemiquaver
which is half of a semiquaver. This
means it's 1/8 of a beat and has 3
stems!

7. ANACRUSIS
 The Anacrusis literally means 'pushing up'
but, in music theory it is a note or several
notes that comes before a bar. It's basically
an introduction where it doesn't have to hold
the number of beats from the time signature.
In traditional notation, the amount of beats
in the anacrusis is grabbed out of the last bar
to even it out.

8. HALVING AND DOUBLING (NO TIME SIG.)
• In Grade 1, you learned how to rewrite the melody the exact same and in Grade 2,
you must have learned how to rewrite a melody with the notes halved or
doubled. However, in Grade 3 when you rewrite the melody you need to either
half or double without the time signature given to you! When you halve or
double you change the bottom number of the time signature but, the top
number stays the same.
• Notes doubled = bottom number halved
• Notes halved = bottom number doubled

9. NEW TIME
SIGNATURES
• In Grade 3, you learn the time signatures 6/8, 9/8 and
12/8. They are compound signatures and not simple
because, a dotted crotchet equals 1 whole beat and
not 11/2. The notes and rests are grouped in 3s to
show the dotted crotchet beats. 6/8= 2 , 9/8= 3 ,
12/8= 4 . 6/8 has 2 sets of 3 quavers, 9/8 has 3 sets
of 3 quavers and 12/8 has 4 sets of 3 quavers.
Time sig. Beats Grouping Definition
6/8 Compound
duple
9/8 Compound
triple
12/8 Compound
quadruple

10. MAJOR, MINOR AND PERFECT INTERVALS
• In Grade 1 and 2, naming intervals is easy as we count up from the bottom note but, in Grade 3,
not only do you name the interval (e.g. Gm), you also say the 'type' of interval. The 3 'types' of
intervals are major, minor and perfect. Major scales have intervals that are either major or perfect
however, Harmonic scales have major, minor and perfect intervals. Minor intervals are 1 semitone
smaller than major intervals.
• Major scale: (example- G major scale)
• Harmonic minor scale: (example- G harmonic minor scale)

11. SCALE DEGREES
• Scale degree 1: Tonic
• Scale degree 2: Super Tonic
• Scale degree 3: Mediant
• Scale degree 4: Sub-dominant
• Scale degree 5: Dominant
• Scale degree 6: Sub mediant
• Scale degree 7: Leading
• Scale degree 8: Tonic

12. ''
TRANSPOSING
• In Grade 3, you must know how to
transpose a chord progression, presented in
chord symbols, up or down one whole step
(whole tone) within a range of keys up to 2
sharps and 2 flats. Transposing is moving a
group of notes in a melody either up or
down in pitch by a constant interval. So, you
need to be able to transpose between clefs,
at the octave. 'At the octave' means
transposed 8 notes up or down and
'between clefs' means change the clefs used
(e.g. from treble to bass clef).

13. PHRASING
• A 'phrase' in music is a musical sentence, they're
shown as long curved lines in pieces. However, in
the grade 3 exam (any exam) phrases are written
as square brackets. They're usually 2, 4 or 8 bars
long, sometimes they begin on an anacrusis and
this means that most of the other phrases will
begin on an upbeat. The end of the phrase is as if
it's a 'breathing point' in the music.