The document discusses tonality in music. It defines key terms like major, minor, modal, tonal, modulation, and dominant. It notes that exam questions may ask about the tonality of a piece, which could be answered with a single word like major, minor, or modal. Examples of pieces in major and minor tonality are provided. Modal music is described as using modes that sound like notes are missing. Modulation is described as a change in key, often to the relative major, relative minor, or dominant key.

1. Tonality
GCSE Listening

2. Key Words for Tonality:
• Major • Tonic
• Minor • Relative Major
• Modal • Relative Minor
• Tonal
• Modulation
• Dominant • Key Identification
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3. Exam questions
• An exam question about tonality may be as
simple as:
• “Describe the tonality of this piece” 1 mark
• So how do you do this? A 1 mark question is
generally asking for a one word or phrase
answer.
• Some words that may be the answer to your
question….
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4. Major
• A piece that is in a major key sounds happy.
http://www.feedmechocolate.com/stuff/key/Jupiter.mp3
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ASB6hFUat4g
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d3Oy2TpdTzU
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5. Minor
• A piece in a minor sounds sad
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=whhAMSS
exQ8
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6. Modal
• Modal music is in a mode. Modes are 7 note
scales. They sound as if notes have been
missed out of the scale.
• Modal music is hard to spot so be careful!
Listen carefully. It’s often found in jazz, folk
and pop music.
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7. Modulation
• Modulation means that you change the key of the piece. This
happens a lot in pop songs, near the end, normally for a
repeated chorus.
• The 3 most closely related keys are the relative major, the
relative minor or the dominant. It is usually one of these that
piece modulate into (especially in popular music).
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8. Dominant Key
• Changing to the dominant key
• If it was major before and major still it will
most probably have modulated to the
dominant key
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9. Modulation
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_1_MydgRFZw&feature=r
elmfu
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PivWY9wn5ps&ob=av3e
GCSE Listening