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The problem it solves
Melodies seem to "want" to keep going because some degrees rest and others pull. Knowing which are stable and which are active lets you predict where a note wants to resolve, and it underpins the function of the dominant.
Detailed theory
Key idea
Stable degrees: 1, 3 and 5 (the notes of the tonic triad), points of rest.
Tendency degrees: 2, 4, 6 and 7; they create tension and resolve toward the nearest stable degree (7→1, 4→3, 2→1 or 2→3, 6→5).
Understand it
Not all degrees of the scale carry the same weight. Three of them —1, 3 and 5, which are precisely the notes of the tonic triad— are stable: they sound like resting points, places where a melody can stop without leaving anything pending.
The other four degrees —2, 4, 6 and 7— are active or tendency tones. They do not rest: they create tension and lean toward the stable degree right beside them. That is why a melody stopping on one of them leaves the feeling that it still "wants" to move.
The typical resolutions show where each active degree pulls: the 7th (the leading tone) rises to the tonic (7→1), the strongest pull in the scale; the 4th usually falls to the 3rd (4→3); the 2nd resolves to the tonic or the 3rd (2→1 or 2→3); and the 6th falls to the 5th (6→5).
An analogy: stable degrees are level ground, where you can stand still; tendency tones are like standing on a slope, where you roll toward the nearest flat spot. This musical gravity is what gives a melody its direction.
The 4th and 7th degrees are the most active of all, and not by chance: together they form the tritone of the dominant chord. This unstable interval resolves very strongly toward the tonic (the 7th rises, the 4th falls) and is the engine of the V-I cadence.
Tension curve
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The tension of the dominant (V), with the tritone F-B, resolves to the rest of the tonic (I): the 7th rises to C and the 4th falls to E.
How to recognise it
How it's written
First mark the notes of the tonic triad (1, 3, 5): they are the resting points. The rest (2, 4, 6, 7) are tendency tones; draw an arrow from each toward the neighbouring stable degree (7→1, 4→3, 6→5) to see where it resolves.
How it feels
Play the scale and stop on a tendency tone, for example the 7th: you will notice the sound "hangs" and asks to rise to the tonic. Stop instead on the 1st, 3rd or 5th and everything sounds resolved and at rest.
Common mistake
Treating every degree as equally stable: 1, 3 and 5 rest, but 2, 4, 6 and 7 pull toward a neighbour.
Forgetting that the leading tone (7) rises to the tonic and that the 4th usually falls to the 3rd: the resolutions have direction, they are not free.
Try it
In C major, play B (7) and resolve it to C (1): you will feel the strongest pull in the scale, the leading tone moving to the tonic.
Play F (4) and resolve it to E (3): the downward tendency of the 4th degree, the other half of the dominant tritone.
On the instrument
Staff & keyboard
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The degrees of C major: stable (1 C, 3 E, 5 G, 8 C) and tendency (2 D, 4 F, 6 A, 7 B). The leading tone (B) is the one that pushes most strongly.
Interval distance
B-C: the leading tone (7) rises a semitone to the tonic (1). It is the strongest resolution in the major scale.
Interval distance
F-E: the 4th degree falls a semitone to the 3rd. It is the downward tendency that completes the dominant tritone.
Where it's used
- Composing melodies with direction
- Resting phrases on stable degrees (1, 3, 5) and using tendency tones to create expectation.
- Resolving the dominant
- Leading the 7th degree to the tonic and the 4th to the 3rd to resolve the dominant chord naturally.
- Anticipating with your ear
- Predicting where a melody "wants" to go in a dictation by recognising which degrees pull and which rest.
Examples
Staff & keyboard
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A short phrase ending on the leading tone B and rising to the tonic C: the 7→1, the resolution that closes the melody.
Exercises
Feel the tendency of the degrees
Melodic dictation, circle of fifths and degree recognition.
Complete 10 attempts · 70% accuracy to pass
Mini test
Check that you've got it.
0/8 answeredQuestion 1/8
Which degrees of the major scale are stable (resting)?