Okuzeka
Music vocabulary · Music Theory and Harmony

Harmony

Meaning in music, with examples

/ˈhɑːrməni/nounCore term

In music, harmony means: The sound of different notes heard together, and the way chords are built and connected. It also means a second vocal line sung above or below the melody.

In Turkish: armoni, uyum

How it is used

Two common uses: the theory subject ('a harmony class', 'four-part harmony') and singing ('Can you sing harmony on the chorus?'). Singers 'add harmonies' or 'sing the high harmony'.

Example sentences

  1. In the last chorus, the two backing singers add a harmony a third above the melody.

  2. First-year students take two semesters of harmony and counterpoint.

Common collocations

  • sing harmony
  • add harmonies
  • four-part harmony
  • close harmony
  • harmony class
  • chordThree or more different notes played or sung at the same time. Chords give a piece its harmony and are named after their root note and type, such as C major or A minor.
  • melodyA sequence of single notes that forms a recognisable musical line, often the part that people remember and sing along to.
  • chord progressionA series of chords played one after another that forms the harmonic backbone of a song, often written with Roman numerals such as I–IV–V.
  • dissonanceA combination of notes that sounds tense or unstable and seems to need to move, or resolve, to a more restful sound. The opposite is consonance.
  • intervalThe distance in pitch between two notes, named by counting letter names and checking the number of semitones, such as a major third or a perfect fifth.

More terms: Music Theory and Harmony

Practise with graded reading

Reading at the right level is the fastest way to make new words stick. Pick free English books by level: