Dissonance in Music Explained: Consonance vs. Dissonance

Dissonance is the term used to describe musical sounds that build tension. In Western music, dissonant chords involve dissonant intervals. Dissonant intervals include the major and minor second, the major and minor seventh, as well as tritones (any interval of three adjacent whole tones) and certain augmented or diminished intervals. Dissonant sounds demand resolution by a consonant interval.

Composers use dissonance to lend music a sense of urgency. Dissonant sounds are part of the formula for creating a deep, moving piece of music. Jazz and classical musicians often incorporate dissonance and variations in harmonic tension to produce strong emotions in the listener. Jazz music has its own harmonic language by incorporating major sevenths so frequently that the harmonic intervals soften and become less discordant. An example from classical music can be found in the works of Mozart—a pioneer of the use of dissonance in music.

Consonance and dissonance are converse terms and can only be defined in relation to one another. Dissonance is the lack of consonant sounds, and consonance is the lack of dissonant sounds.

• Dissonance: In music theory, composers use the term “dissonance” to explain why certain melodic intervals feel unresolved. While dissonant chords are often associated with unpleasantness, they’ve been used throughout music history to create masterworks. For example, the Austrian composer Arnold Schoenberg helped develop what's known as "atonal music." While tonal music relies upon the relationship between consonance and dissonance, atonal music relies so heavily on dissonance that it lacks any tonal center. This lack of tonality earned Schoenberg both his status as a genius and a great deal of criticism.
• Consonance: In Western culture, consonant chords are often associated with pleasantness because the melodic intervals feel resolved. Some musical styles, such jazz and classical music, alternate between consonance and dissonance to give the music shape and direction.

These compositions showcase dissonance in a particularly distinctive way:

1. 1. “String Quartet No. 19” by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1785): This string quartet is nicknamed "dissonance" for its mastery of building suspense by alternating minor and major chords.
2. 2. "Piano Sonata No. 2” by Charles Ives (1920): An ode to transcendentalist authors, this work is filled with experimental dissonant harmonic intervals.
3. 3. Jaws theme song by John Williams (1975): In this song, Williams uses unexpected minor chords and nonlinear sounds to create suspense.

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