Cambiata
A non-chord tone left by leap and resolved by step
Related
A cambiata is a non-chord tone left by leap and resolved by step: it often falls on a weak beat, the leap creating surprise and the step pulling the line back. It is one of counterpoint's most easily overlooked ornaments.
It differs from a passing tone: a passing tone enters and leaves by step, a cambiata leaves by leap. The usual mistake is to hear it as a wrong leap — it is a prepared ornament; the direction of the leap and the resolution decide whether it works.
Read deeper → non-chord tone
Sources
- cambiata 的定义与对位用法，参 The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, "Cambiata"；本文为原创表述
Used for fact-checking only; all prose is original.