AP Music Theory - Study Guides, Flashcards, AP-style Practice & Mock Exams
This complete AP Music Theory course offers thorough AP Music Theory exam prep by systematically navigating every required unit and topic. Solidify your understanding with targeted practice materials designed to refine your aural perception and analytical abilities, ensuring you are fully prepared for the exam’s diverse challenges.
Course Overview
This course provides a comprehensive study of music theory fundamentals and compositional practices. The curriculum covers concepts such as pitch, rhythm, meter, scales, keys, chords, and harmony. Students will develop advanced skills in four-part voice leading, figured bass realization, and Roman numeral analysis. These abilities are essential for the exam's free-response questions (FRQs). The course also hones aural skills through exercises in melodic and harmonic dictation and sight-singing. Mastery of these written and aural components is assessed through both multiple-choice questions (MCQs) and the FRQ section, which requires detailed score analysis and musical notation.
To prepare effectively, progress sequentially through the course structure. Begin by mastering the content within each of the 8 units, covering all 55 topics. After each topic, complete the corresponding AP-style quiz to check your comprehension. These quizzes function as progress checks, highlighting concepts that may require targeted review before you proceed. At the conclusion of each unit, a cumulative Unit Exam will test your knowledge. This structured learning path culminates in a full-length mock exam, which provides a comprehensive simulation of the exam format and helps gauge your overall readiness.
Units & Topics
Unit 1: Music Fundamentals I: Pitch, Major Scales and Key Signatures, Rhythm, Meter, and Expressive Elements
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This unit establishes the foundational elements of pitch, rhythm, and meter, providing the essential contextualization needed to read and analyze musical scores.
- 1.0Unit Overview
- 1.1Pitch and Pitch Notation
- 1.2Rhythmic Values
- 1.3Half Steps and Whole Steps
- 1.4Major Scales and Scale Degrees
- 1.5Major Keys and Key Signatures
- 1.6Simple and Compound Beat Division
- 1.7Meter and Time Signature
- 1.8Rhythmic Patterns
- 1.9Tempo
- 1.10Dynamics and Articulation
- 1.11Unit Exam
Unit 2: Music Fundamentals II: Minor Scales and Key Signatures, Melody, Timbre, and Texture
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Through detailed comparison, we will analyze how different scales, intervals, and key relationships create distinct melodic contours, rhythmic patterns, and textural layers in music.
- 2.0Unit Overview
- 2.1Minor Scales: Natural, Harmonic, and Melodic
- 2.2Relative Keys: Determining Relative Minor Key and Notating Key Signatures
- 2.3Key Relationships: Parallel, Closely Related, and Distantly Related Keys
- 2.4Other Scales: Chromatic, Whole-Tone, and Pentatonic
- 2.5Interval Size and Quality
- 2.6Interval Inversion and Compound Intervals
- 2.7Transposing Instruments
- 2.8Timbre
- 2.9Melodic Features
- 2.10Melodic Transposition
- 2.11Texture and Texture Types
- 2.12Texture Devices
- 2.13Rhythmic Devices
- 2.14Unit Exam
Unit 3: Music Fundamentals III: Triads and Seventh Chords
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We will build and invert triads and seventh chords, using Roman numerals and figured bass to analyze the causation behind their diatonic functions.
- 3.0Unit Overview
- 3.1Triad and Chord Qualities (M, m, d, A)
- 3.2Diatonic Chords and Roman Numerals
- 3.3Chord Inversions and Figures: Introduction to Figured Bass
- 3.4Seventh Chords
- 3.5Seventh Chord Inversions and Figures
- 3.6Causation in Music Fundamentals
- 3.7Unit Exam
Unit 4: Harmony and Voice Leading I: Chord Function, Cadence, and Phrase
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We will explore the principles of four-part writing, examining the harmonic causation that governs chord progressions and resolutions, including those involving seventh chords.
- 4.0Unit Overview
- 4.1Soprano-Bass Counterpoint
- 4.2SATB Voice Leading
- 4.3Harmonic Progression, Functional Harmony, and Cadences
- 4.4Voice Leading with Seventh Chords
- 4.5Voice Leading with Seventh Chords in Inversions
- 4.6Unit Exam
Unit 5: Harmony and Voice Leading II: Chord Progressions and Predominant Function
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We will explore the principles of harmonic causation by adding submediant, mediant, and new predominant harmonies to build more complex and conclusive cadences.
- 5.0Unit Overview
- 5.1Adding Predominant Function IV (iv) and ii (ii°) to a Melodic Phrase
- 5.2The vi (VI) Chord
- 5.3Predominant Seventh Chords
- 5.4The iii (III) Chord
- 5.5Cadences and Predominant Function
- 5.6Cadential 6/4 Chords
- 5.7Additional 6/4 Chords
- 5.8Unit Exam
Unit 6: Harmony and Voice Leading III: Embellishments, Motives, and Melodic Devices
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We analyze how composers create interest using decorative notes and transform motives through sequences, exploring the fundamental concepts of musical continuity and change.
- 6.0Unit Overview
- 6.1Embellishing Tones: Identifying Passing Tones and Neighbor Tones
- 6.2Embellishing Tones: Writing Passing Tones and Neighbor Tones
- 6.3Embellishing Tones: Identifying Anticipations, Escape Tones, Appoggiaturas, and Pedal Points
- 6.4Embellishing Tones: Identifying and Writing Suspensions; Identifying Retardations
- 6.5Motive and Motivic Transformation
- 6.6Melodic Sequence
- 6.7Harmonic Sequence
- 6.8Unit Exam
Unit 7: Harmony and Voice Leading IV: Secondary Function
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We will explore the harmonic causation of temporary key centers by applying voice-leading principles to chords that borrow function from other diatonic triads.
- 7.0Unit Overview
- 7.1Tonicization through Secondary Dominant Chords
- 7.2Part Writing of Secondary Dominant Chords
- 7.3Tonicization through Secondary Leading Tone Chords
- 7.4Part Writing of Secondary Leading Tone Chords
- 7.5Unit Exam
Unit 8: Modes and Form
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We will analyze musical forms by examining continuity and change between melodic ideas, their organization into larger parts, and the expressive use of different scales.
- 8.0Unit Overview
- 8.1Modes
- 8.2Phrase Relationships
- 8.3Common Formal Sections
- 8.4Unit Exam
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the format of the AP Music Theory exam?
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The exam has two main sections: multiple-choice and free-response. The multiple-choice portion tests both aural and non-aural skills, while the free-response section requires you to complete tasks like melodic and harmonic dictation, part-writing from a figured bass, and two sight-singing performances.
How is the AP Music Theory exam scored?
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Your final score is a composite of the multiple-choice and free-response sections. The free-response questions, including part-writing and dictation, are scored by readers who assess your accuracy and application of voice-leading rules, while the sight-singing portion is scored on pitch and rhythmic accuracy.
How long is the exam?
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The exam is approximately 2 hours and 40 minutes long. The multiple-choice and written free-response sections have specific time limits, while the sight-singing portion is administered and timed separately. Pacing is crucial for the aural-based questions, which are played on a fixed schedule.
What are the most important skills for this course?
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Success depends on developing strong aural skills, analytical skills, and compositional fluency. You must master tasks like identifying chords by ear, providing Roman numeral analysis for a given score, and correctly applying part-writing conventions to create four-part chorales.
What is the sight-singing portion of the exam?
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The sight-singing portion requires you to perform two short, unfamiliar melodies after a brief practice period. You will be recorded and evaluated on your ability to accurately sing the pitches and rhythms. This task directly assesses your skills in audiation and musical literacy.
What are melodic and harmonic dictation?
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These are free-response tasks where you notate music that you hear. In melodic dictation, you'll write down a single-line melody. In harmonic dictation, you will notate the soprano and bass lines of a four-part progression and provide a complete Roman numeral analysis.
What is part-writing?
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Part-writing is a compositional exercise where you complete a four-part texture based on a given element, such as a figured bass or a Roman numeral progression. This skill demonstrates your understanding of harmonic function, voice leading, and the treatment of dissonance according to common-practice conventions.
How should I prepare using this platform?
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We recommend a sequential approach to master all 55 topics across the 8 units. Progress from foundational unit topics to AP-style quizzes and unit exams. Finally, use the full-length mock exam to build stamina and practice pacing for the real test environment.
Are any special tools allowed on the exam?
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No calculators, keyboards, or other electronic devices are permitted during the exam. Your essential tools are a pencil and your well-trained musical ear. Consistent practice with ear training and sight-singing is the most effective preparation for the aural components of the test.
What specific theory concepts does the course cover?
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The course covers fundamentals of diatonic harmony before moving into more advanced chromatic concepts. You will learn to identify and use non-chord tones, secondary dominants, and modulation techniques, applying these concepts through both written analysis and part-writing exercises.
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