English cadences

A form of English cadence — A perfect cadence characteristic of English Renaissance music, involving a flattened seventh note played against the dominant chord (containing a regular raised seventh). Conventionally, the flattened seventh is played as part of a suspension on the penultimate beat, before resolving downwards to the sixth and then fifth of the final chord, while the raised seventh is held before resolving upward to the first; however, more complex variations are also possible.

Meanings

noun
  1. pluralplural of English cadence
Cite this entry
APA

English cadences. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/English%20cadences

MLA

“English cadences.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/English%20cadences. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “English cadences,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/English%20cadences.

Source: English cadences on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.