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Authentic, Plagal, Half, and Deceptive Cadences
Builds on Functional Harmony Basics
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A cadence is the harmonic punctuation at the end of a musical phrase — a specific chord-to-chord move that signals varying degrees of finality, the way a period, comma, or question mark signals different things at the end of a sentence.
An authentic cadence (V to I) is the strongest, most conclusive resolution — the leading tone pulls up to the tonic and the bass falls a 5th, landing squarely on 'home.' A plagal cadence (IV to I) is gentler and less tense (sometimes called the 'Amen cadence' from its use in hymns), since it has no leading tone pulling hard toward tonic. A half cadence ends on V itself, left hanging — it sounds like a comma, not a full stop, and expects more music to follow. A deceptive cadence sets up a V chord as if heading to I, then resolves instead to vi, subverting the expected resolution for a surprising, unresolved effect.
⚠️ Common mistake
Assuming any V-to-something motion is 'the same kind of ending.' The chord a phrase actually lands on — I, vi, or staying on V — is what defines which cadence type it is, not just the fact that a dominant chord was involved somewhere in the phrase.
📝 Summary
Cadences are the ending-punctuation of a phrase: authentic (V-I, strongest), plagal (IV-I, gentler), half (ends on V, left hanging), and deceptive (V resolves to vi instead of I, surprising).
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