Home › Glossary › Letter M

Modality

Musical Terms
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

Want to hear it? Click the Listen button to hear the browser speak the word using text-to-speech!

The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

Modality is the use of a system of pitches or modes that shapes a piece without relying solely on major and minor tonality.

Detailed Definition
Modal music draws its character from distinctive relationships among pitches, often producing colors associated with particular traditions, eras, or moods. In poetry, modality can describe a governing mode of perception or expression: elegiac, devotional, comic, prophetic, or incantatory. A poem may shift modality when its language changes from statement to prayer or from memory to warning, altering not only its tone but the kind of world it seems able to imagine.
Example
Example in poetry:
Modality is the use of a particular musical mode or scale, and a poem can suggest modality through a consistent emotional color rather than a simple major or minor mood; Dorian-sounding modal music paired with images of dawn can give a poem an ancient, questioning atmosphere; Repeatedly emphasizing a raised sixth or a flattened seventh in sung poetry can evoke different modes; A poem that avoids a clear final resolution can create a modal feeling of openness.
Additional Notes
Modality is the organization of pitch around a mode or tonal system, including systems other than the familiar major and minor scales. Modes such as Dorian, Phrygian, Lydian, and Mixolydian can create distinctive emotional colors and melodic possibilities. In poetry, modality may describe a work’s tonal or cultural atmosphere, especially when its patterns feel ancient, folk-like, ecclesiastical, or deliberately nontraditional. Do not confuse musical modality with grammatical mood or modality in language.
Also Known As
Modal System
Skip to main content