What is Melodic Decoration?

(grade 7 theory)
There are several ways that we can make a harmonic line more interesting - liven it up
a little - so that it doesn't sound like a boring, simple progression of chords.
The different techniques we can use to do this are, as a group, called "melodic
decoration", and can be found in any of the harmonic lines.
Notes which form part of the melodic decoration are also known as "non-chord"
notes, because they are not part of the actual chord chosen for the harmony.


ook at these bars taken from a !ach "horale !#$ %.&. The first score shows the
"bare bones" harmony - each chord is spelled out using the notes you would e'pect,
with one chord per beat.




!ach added some melodic decoration to this harmonisation, making it a lot more
interesting. "an you spot the differences(


)ach type of melodic decoration has a name. *ou'll need to learn the names and how
to recognise the decorations in a piece of music. +or grade &, you don't need to
actually write any melodic decorations. !ut, you will see them, both in the
harmonisation questions and in the general knowledge section ,questions - . /0.
Types of Melodic Decoration
These are the types of melodic decoration or ,"non-chord notes"0 you need to know
about for 1rade $2 Theory3
4assing notes ,accented, unaccented, chromatic . harmonic0
5u'iliary notes
"hanging notes
5nticipations
6uspensions
7etardations
4edals ,tonic . dominant0

Non-chord notes can be either accented or unaccented.

Non-chord Notes

1. assing Notes
5 passing note falls in between two different chord notes. +or e'ample, the notes "
and ) are both part of the " ma8or chord, so they are both chord notes. They are a
third apart. The 9 ,marked :0 falls between them, so it is a passing note.

4assing notes can be har!onic or chro!atic.
"ar!onic passing notes are notes that naturally occur in the key of the piece, like in
the previous e'ample. They usually happen when the two chord notes are a third
,ma8or or minor0 apart.
#hro!atic passing notes have an accidental added because they don't occur naturally
in the key of the piece. +or e'ample, this passing note is "; - it falls between the two
chord notes " and 9. "hromatic passing notes usually happen when the two chord
notes are a ma8or second apart.

The passing notes above are unaccented, because they fall on a weak beat of the bar
,between two chords0. 4assing notes which fall on a strong beat are called accented
passing notes. "ompare the following with the first e'ample - this time the 9 is
sounded on the strong beat - at the same time as the second chord. This time it's an
accented passing note.


2t's possible to have more than one passing note - the chord notes 1 - " here are filled
in with two passing notes, 5 ,unaccented0 and ! ,accented0.


$. %u&iliary Notes (also called 'Neigh(our Notes')
5n au'iliary note falls between two chord notes which are the same. 2t can be higher
or lower than the chord note, and it can be chromatically altered ,have an accidental0.

5u'iliary notes can be either accented or unaccented, 8ust like passing notes.

). #hanging Notes (#a!(iata * +chappee)
There are two types of changing note.
The first type falls between two notes which are often a fourth apart3

ook at the soprano line. The notes 1-9 are a fourth apart, and the changing note, +,
falls between them. 2t's not a passing note, because passing notes always move by
step. This kind of changing note is also called the ca!(iata.
The cambiata moves down by step ,from 1-+0, then falls by a third in the same
direction ,+-90. The ne't note ,)0 is then a step upwards ,9-)0. This kind of
decoration was more common in 7enaissance music ,<-==-<&==0.
Try to learn it as down $nd, down )rd, up $nd.

The second type of changing note falls outside of the two chord notes3

ook at the soprano line. ! and 1 are chord notes. The 9 is the changing note. This
kind of changing note is also called the +chappee.
The )chappee moves by step in one direction ,!-"0 and then by a leap in the opposite
direction ,"-10, or vice-versa.
Try to learn it as step one way, leap the other. This kind of decoration was more
common in !aroque music ,<&==-<>/=0.

-. %nticipations
5n anticipation happens when we write a chord note earlier than e'pected - in the
beat before the rest of the chord sounds. ?ere, the ! is part of the 1 ma8or chord. The
1 ma8or chord is sounded on the %nd beat, but the ! is sounded earlier, on the half
beat before, so it is an anticipation. 5nticpations are approached by a downwards
motion ,e.g the " falls to !0.
The ! is not part of the " ma8or chord, even though it is heard at the same time. +or
this reason, it is a non-chord note.

.. /uspensions
/uspensions are the opposite of anticipations. 5 suspension happens when we write a
chord note later than e'pected - during the beat after the rest of the chord sounds. 2n
this e'ample, the ! doesn't sound immediately with the rest of the 1 ma8or chord -
instead, the " from the " ma8or chord is held on for a little longer, and then falls to
the ! half a beat after the 1 ma8or chord has sounded. The " is not part of the 1
ma8or chord, so it is a non-chord note. The " is a suspension.

0. 1etardations
1etardations are a type of suspension. 2n the e'ample of a suspension above, the "
resolved downwards to !. 2n a retardation, the non-chord note resolves upwards.
?ere the 5 resolves upwards to !.

7. edals
5 pedal is when either the tonic or dominant note is played continuously, while the
chords in the other voices change. edals normally occur in the bass, ,but it is
possible to find them in any of the other voices too0. The pedal note is either held on
for a long time, or repeated several times. ?ere's a tonic pedal3

5nd here's a dominant pedal3
4edals which happen in the melody line are called "inverted" pedals.
Non-#hord Notes in %ction
et's look again at the !ach e'tract at the top of this page, and try to work out some of
the melodic decorations he used.

Note Type 1eason
<.
+
natural
?armonic,
unaccented
passing note
+ natural is part of the scale of 1 minor, so it's harmonic.
2t falls on the second quaver, so it's unaccented. 2t falls
between two different chord notes, 1 and ) flat:, so it's a
passing note.
%. 9 " " 5s above.
@. "
?armonic,
accented passing
note.
This time the passing note falls on the first quaver of the
pair - on the strong beat, so it's an accented passing note.
-. 9 5u'iliary note
The 9 is between the two " sharps, so it's an auxiliary
note.
/. +
?armonic,
unaccented
passing note
+ is part of the scale of 1 minor, so it's harmonic. 2t falls
on the second quaver, so it's unaccented. 2t falls between
two different chord notes, 1 and ):, so it's a passing
note.

:9on't forget that the melodic minor version of the scale uses both ) and ) flat, and +
natural and + sharp, because the note series is different on the way down.