# What is this called?



## LordBlackudder

If I play C, G, C in the left hand, one note after the other. 

Lets say it is a broken chord accompanying the right hand.

A popular sound i hear a lot.


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## Norse

If you're talking about chords, as in a C chord, then a G chord, then a C chord, you've heard that a million times because G is the dominant of C major. The chord on the fifth degree of the scale (the dominant) is considered the second most important chord in a key next to the tonic (which would be C Major in C major, basically the 'home chord'), because of e.g. it's 'magnetic pull' towards the tonic. This type of harmonic formula often ends phrases, and are called cadences. Not all cadences are dominant to tonic, but it's the most important in traditional harmony and is called the authentic cadence. If the chords are both in root position, it's even called the perfect authentic cadence.

If you're just talking the bass moving a fifth up and then down again while the harmony in the right hand is C major throughout, I'm not sure if that has a particular name. I guess you could say that it changes from root position to second inversion and back to root position again?


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## PetrB

It is the outline of a perfect fifth without the third, 

A perfect fifth implies a triad, just without the qualifier of its major or minor third: as accompaniment, the melody would be supplying the color. The C-G establishes the key of C. If that later shifted to G-D, then it has modulated to the V of the scale.

Chords require three distinct pitches to be called a chord. Technically, when there are just two pitches, it is a Dyad, not a chord.


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## PetrB

It is the outline of a perfect fifth without the third, 

A perfect fifth implies a triad, just without the qualifier of its major or minor third: as accompaniment, the melody would be supplying the color. The C-G establishes the key of C. If that later shifted to G-D, then it has modulated to the V of the scale.

Chords require three distinct pitches to be called a chord. Technically, when there are just two pitches, it is a Dyad, not a chord.


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## Lunasong

It's an alternating bass line.


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## Kopachris

Or, if you're talking about C, G, then high C, it's also the "sunrise" motif from Richard Strauss' "Also Sprach Zarathustra."


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## BurningDesire

Kopachris said:


> Or, if you're talking about C, G, then high C, it's also the "sunrise" motif from Richard Strauss' "Also Sprach Zarathustra."


That is also a popular chordal accompaniment pattern in music by many Japanese composers, particularly Yuki Kajiura. It is a very open, ambiguous accompaniment which allows for many different things to occur over it naturally, and its also easy to play


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## Klavierspieler

Let's just call it "Steve." Okay?


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## millionrainbows

LordBlackudder said:


> If I play C, G, C in the left hand, one note after the other.
> 
> Lets say it is a broken chord accompanying the right hand.
> 
> A popular sound i hear a lot.


It's called "oom." The "pa-pa" is played by the right hand.


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