Neighbor Tone
Leaving a note for a neighbour and returning
Related
A neighbour tone leaves a note, moves to the upper or lower neighbour, and returns: an upper or lower auxiliary. It often sits on weak beats, adding a small turn to the melody.
It differs from a passing tone: a passing tone moves in one direction, a neighbour leaves and returns. The usual mistake is to treat it as mere decoration — on a strong beat a neighbour creates appoggiatura-like tension; on a weak beat it decides the melody's agility.
Read deeper → non-chord tone
Sources
- 邻音的分类与用法，参 The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, "Non-chord tone"；本文为原创表述
Used for fact-checking only; all prose is original.