The Harmony Encyclopedia

A comprehensive, interactive, and completely free guide to music harmony.

Hover or click a note to inspect it.

References

Intervals

Musical intervals, qualities, consonance and inversions

Key Signatures

All 24 keys with their signatures and relationships

Scales

Major, minor, modal and classical scale systems

Chords

Complete reference of most chord types

Chord Progressions

Common progressions across genres

Cadences

Classical, popular, and common harmonic cadences

Voice-Leading Rules

Four-part writing rules, each with the mistake and its correction

Non-Chord Tones

Passing tones, suspensions, appoggiaturas, and other melodic dissonances

Pivot Chords

Pivot chord modulations and key relationships

Score Editor

Placing notes

  • Use the toolbar to select the note type. This can also be selected using the number keys as shown on the toolbar.
  • Hover over the staff to see a preview of where it will land. Click empty staff space to place a note at that pitch and time.
  • To build a chord, click multiple pitches on the same beat — each click adds a note to the chord.

Selecting notes

  • Click a notehead or rest symbol to select it. Selected notes are highlighted.
  • Use Ctrl+click to select multiple notes at once
  • Clicking a selected note will unselect it.

Moving notes

  • With one or more notes selected, use ↑ and ↓ to move those notes up or down by a semitone.
  • You can also click and drag to move individual notes
  • With one or more notes selected, use Q to change the note(s) to an equivalent note with a shorter duration or E for a longer duration

Deleting notes

  • Right click a notehead to remove that note. Removing a note replaces it with an equivalent rest.
  • Use Backspace or Delete to remove all selected notes.

Accidentals

  • Use toolbar buttons or keys: + sharp, - flat, = natural. Selecting an accidental will apply it to the next note placed.
  • With one or more notes selected, use the toolbar buttons to apply accidentals to the selected notes.

Rests

  • Use the toolbar to select a rest. Rests are placed the same way as notes
  • Rests are automatically placed when notes are deleted or note durations are changed

Other shortcuts

  • Ctrl+Z — undo
  • Ctrl+Y — redo