Definition

1. Noun:
   • In music theory: The third degree of a diatonic scale, located exactly halfway between the tonic (first degree) and the dominant (fifth degree). It is a crucial note for establishing the mode (major or minor) of the scale.

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • In the C major scale, the mediant is the note E.
  • The composer emphasized the mediant to create a sense of harmonic color.
  • The shift from a major to a minor mediant changed the entire mood of the piece.

Advanced Usage

• "Mediant relationship": A harmonic relationship between two chords whose roots are a third apart, often sharing two common tones. This creates a smooth, coloristic harmonic shift.

  • The composer used a mediant relationship to modulate to a distant key without a jarring transition.

• "Double mediant": Refers to a chord whose root is a third above or below another chord's root, but with the quality (major/minor) reversed.

  • The progression from C major to A-flat major is an example of a double mediant shift.

Variants and Related Words

• Submediant (n): The sixth degree of the diatonic scale, located midway between the tonic and the subdominant.
  • In C major, the submediant is A.

Synonyms

• Third: Specifically refers to the interval from the tonic to the mediant, or the scale degree itself in a general context.
• Scale degree three: A more technical, descriptive synonym.

Related Terms and Concepts

• Tonic (n): The first and primary note of a scale, the "home" note.
• Dominant (n): The fifth note of a scale, which creates strong tension resolving to the tonic.
• Pre-dominant (n): A harmonic function (often the subdominant or supertonic) that prepares the dominant chord.

Noun

1. (music) the third note of a diatonic scale; midway between the tonic and the dominant