# Woodduck's Ultimate Statement on Tonality



## millionrainbows (Jun 23, 2012)

This is from his brilliant post #135 in the thread "I want to study non-tonal theory?" from the Music Theory sub-forum:


(quote)
"The idea that "function" can apply only to common practice harmony is of a piece with the idea that only that sort of music can be tonal. What gives common practice a monopoly on these terms? Tonality, of any sort, is all about how tones function in relation to each other within a hierarchical system of functions centered on a specific pitch. Those functions may be few or many, simple or complex. But their specific nature identifies what tonal system we're working with, and they are determined by conventional usage and recognized and expected by listeners."
(end quote)

I'm considering having that tattooed on my back.


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