Glossary, Semitone
   
Glossary
Acoustic
Acoustics
Ancohemitonic

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Atonal Theory

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Atritonic

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Augmented
Avoid Note
Bebop
Blues
Cardinality

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Cardinality Equivalence

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Cent
Chord
Chord Formula
Chord Type
Chromatic Cluster

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Chromatic Scale
Clock Diagram

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Cluster-free

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Cohemitonic

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Common Practice
Compatibility
Complement

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Consonance
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Diminished
Double Augmented Hexatonic
Double Diminished (Octatonic)
Eleventh
Enharmonic Equivalent
Evenness

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Fifth
Forte Number

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Fourth
Guitar
Harmonic Major
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Harmony
Interval
Interval Class

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Interval Content

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Inversion
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Jazz
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Key
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Lewin-Quinn FC-components

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Limited Transposition

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M-Relation

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Major
Melody
Minor
Mode
Ninth
Note
OC-Equivalence

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OPC-Equivalence

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OPTC-Equivalence

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OPTIC-Equivalence

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OPTIC/K-Equivalence

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OTC-Equivalence

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Octatonic
Octave
Octave-Equivalence

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Other Scales
Parallel Key
Pentatonic
Permutation Equivalence

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Piano
Pitch
Pitch Class

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Playing Outside
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Quartal

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Reharmonization
Relative Key
Rhythm
Roman Numeral Function
Root
Scale
Second
Semitone
Set Class

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Seventh
Sixth
Slash Chords
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Symmetry

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Tenth
Tertiary
Third
Thirteenth
Tonality
Tonic
Transposition
Triad
Tritone
Tritonic

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Tuning Systems
Twelfth
Twelve-tone Equal Temperament
Unison
Voice Leading
Whole Tone
Whole-Tone Scale
Z-Relation

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Semitone

Glossary

A semitone or half-step (also minor second) is the smallest interval or difference in pitch between two notes in the twelve tone system, and divides the octave into twelve equal pieces. All intervals can be divided into a whole number of semitones. (See also Whole tone.)

Common scales are composed of semitone and whole tone steps, with some alternating between them (diminished scale), one consisting solely of whole tones, and the other two consisting of runs of whole tones with semitones interspersed (diatonic and acoustic scales).

For example, a semitone is formed by moving from E to F, or from B to C, or by playing E and F at the same time, or B and C.