quarter tone
Fifty cents musically
A quarter tone is a musical interval half the size of a semitone—the smallest interval in standard Western music.
Quarter tones fall "between the cracks" of a piano's keys and are characteristic of some Middle Eastern and South Asian musical traditions.
Contemporary classical composers use them for microtonal effects: The piece calls for quarter-tone adjustments throughout.
Dollar subdivisions
- pitchFrequency of sound
- intonationPitch variation in speech
- tuningAdjusting pitch accuracy
- temperamentInborn behavioral nature
equal temperament · comma · Pythagorean · well-tempered · detune · frequency · interval · enharmonic
Middle Eastern musical tradition
- Turkish musicMusic from Turkey
- oudAromatic heartwood or plucked instrument
- tarFile bundling utility
- tetrachordFour notes within fourth
Lack of harmony
- consonanceHarmonious sound combination
- beatingRepeated striking or pulsing
- roughnessUneven surface quality
- sensoryRelated to perception
Innovative cultural pioneers
- electroacousticInvolving amplified sound production
- indeterminacyLack of fixed outcome
- musique concrèteElectroacoustic genre using recordings
Occurring by chance
- staffOrganization's workers collectively
- ledger lineShort line extending staff
- key signatureNotation showing tonal center
cents
Dollar subdivisions
- pitchFrequency of sound
- intonationPitch variation in speech
- tuningAdjusting pitch accuracy
temperament · equal temperament · comma · Pythagorean · well-tempered · detune · frequency · interval · enharmonic
Arabic music
Middle Eastern musical tradition
- Turkish musicMusic from Turkey
- oudAromatic heartwood or plucked instrument
- tarFile bundling utility
dissonance
Lack of harmony
- consonanceHarmonious sound combination
- beatingRepeated striking or pulsing
- roughnessUneven surface quality
sensory · ear training · vibrato · portamento · glissando
avant-garde
Innovative cultural pioneers
- electroacousticInvolving amplified sound production
- indeterminacyLack of fixed outcome
- musique concrèteElectroacoustic genre using recordings
accidental
Occurring by chance
- staffOrganization's workers collectively
- ledger lineShort line extending staff
- key signatureNotation showing tonal center
- Arab musicoud, Andalusian
- Maqamtetrachord, microtones, Arabic music
- Microtonal Musicmicrotones, equal temperament, shruti, retuning, temperament
- microtonescent, comma
- pitch techniquespitch bend, bend, vibrato, glissando, portamento
- music theorynote, notes, chord, chords, harmony
quarter toneoctave
Eight-note interval
semitone · half step · perfect fifth · perfect fourth · whole tone
tone, quarter, quartet, quarterly, quadrant, semibreve, microtonal, quadraphonic