Specification points
College Board AP Music Theory music-theory
129 points in 8 topics, with College Board's codes and titles.
Codes and titles are read by a script from College Board's published specification and have not been checked by a person. What each point covers is in the specification itself: College Board’s specification.
1 Music Fundamentals I: pitch, scales, rhythm, meter and expression
- 1.1 Pitch and Pitch Notation
- PIT-1.A Identifying pitches in treble, bass and C clefs
- PIT-1.B Pitch discrepancies between notated and performed music
- PIT-3.A Sight-singing melodies
- 1.2 Rhythmic Values
- RHY-1.A Rhythmic values of notes and rests
- 1.3 Half Steps and Whole Steps
- PIT-1.C Half and whole steps
- 1.4 Major Scales and Scale Degrees
- PIT-1.D Major scales
- PIT-1.E Scale degree names and numbers
- 1.5 Major Keys and Key Signatures
- PIT-1.F Major keys and key signatures
- PIT-3.B Melodic dictation
- 1.6 Simple and Compound Beat Division
- RHY-1.B Beat division and meter type
- 1.7 Meter and Time Signature
- RHY-1.C Meter type
- RHY-1.D Time signatures
- 1.8 Rhythmic Patterns
- RHY-2.A Rhythmic patterns in simple and compound meter
- RHY-2.B Rhythmic discrepancies between notated and performed music
- 1.9 Tempo
- DES-3.A Tempo markings
- 1.10 Dynamics and Articulation
- DES-3.B Dynamics
- DES-3.C Articulation
- DES-3.D Sight-singing with dynamics, articulation and tempo
2 Music Fundamentals II: Minor Scales and Key Signatures, Melody, Timbre, and Texture
- 2.1 Minor Scales: Natural, Harmonic, and Melodic
- PIT-1.G Forms of the minor scale
- 2.2 Relative Keys: Determining Relative Minor Key and Notating Key Signatures
- PIT-1.H Relative keys and key signatures
- PIT-1.I Minor and relative keys
- 2.3 Key Relationships: Parallel, Closely Related, and Distantly Related Keys
- PIT-1.J Key relationships
- 2.4 Other Scales: Chromatic, Whole-Tone, and Pentatonic
- PIT-1.K Chromatic, whole-tone and pentatonic scales
- 2.5 Interval Size and Quality
- PIT-1.L Interval size and quality
- 2.6 Interval Inversion and Compound Intervals
- PIT-1.M Interval inversions and compound intervals
- 2.7 Transposing Instruments
- PIT-1.N Transposing instruments
- 2.8 Timbre
- DES-2.A Performance media and timbres
- 2.9 Melodic Features
- PIT-3.C Features of melody
- 2.10 Melodic Transposition
- 2.11 Texture and Texture Types
- DES-1.A Texture types
- 2.12 Texture Devices
- DES-1.B Texture devices
- 2.13 Rhythmic Devices
- RHY-3.A Rhythmic devices
- RHY-1.E Irregular beat division and grouping
3 Music Fundamentals III: Triads and Seventh Chords
- 3.1 Triad and Chord Qualities (M, m, d, A)
- PIT-1.O Chord quality
- 3.2 Diatonic Chords and Roman Numerals
- PIT-2.A Chord identification with Roman and Arabic numerals
- 3.3 Chord Inversions and Figures: Introduction to Figured Bass
- PIT-2.B Roman numerals from figured bass
- 3.4 Seventh Chords
- PIT-2.C Seventh chord quality
- 3.5 Seventh Chord Inversions and Figures
- PIT-2.D Identifying seventh chords
4 Harmony and Voice Leading I: Chord Function, Cadence, and Phrase
- 4.1 Soprano-Bass Counterpoint
- PIT-4.A 18th-century voice leading
- PIT-2.E Composing a bass line harmonically
- PIT-2.F Chords and inversions implied by a bass line
- PIT-2.G Harmonic dictation of outer voices
- PIT-3.D Composing a bass line melodically
- RHY-2.C Rhythm of a composed bass line
- FOR-1.A Phrases: beginnings, ends and lengths
- 4.2 SATB Voice Leading
- DES-1.C Relationships among musical lines
- PIT-4.B Chord spelling and doubling
- PIT-4.C Chord voicing and spacing
- PIT-4.D Part-writing with first-inversion chords
- 4.3 Harmonic Progression, Functional Harmony, and Cadences
- PIT-2.H Harmonic function in a progression
- PIT-2.I Cadence types
- 4.4 Voice Leading with Seventh Chords
- 4.5 Voice Leading with Seventh Chords in Inversions
5 Harmony and Voice Leading II: Chord Progressions and Predominant Function
- 5.1 Adding Predominant Function IV (iv) and ii (ii°) to a Melodic Phrase
- 5.2 The vi (VI) Chord
- PIT-2.J Harmonic function and progression
- 5.3 Predominant Seventh Chords
- 5.4 The iii (III) Chord
- 5.5 Cadences and Predominant Function
- 5.6 Cadential six-four chords
- PIT-2.K Identifying six-four chords
- PIT-4.E Voice leading of cadential six-four chords
- 5.7 Additional six-four chords
- PIT-2.L Describing six-four chords
- PIT-4.F Voice leading of other six-four chords
6 Harmony and Voice Leading III: Embellishments, Motives, and Melodic Devices
- 6.1 Embellishing Tones: Identifying Passing Tones and Neighbor Tones
- PIT-2.M Embellishing and nonharmonic tones
- 6.2 Embellishing Tones: Writing Passing Tones and Neighbor Tones
- PIT-2.N Composing a bass line with passing and neighbour tones
- 6.3 Embellishing Tones: Identifying Anticipations, Escape Tones, Appoggiaturas, and Pedal Points
- 6.4 Embellishing Tones: Identifying and Writing Suspensions; Identifying Upward-Resolving Suspensions
- PIT-2.O Notating embellishing tones
- 6.5 Motive and Motivic Transformation
- FOR-1.B Motives and their development
- PIT-3.E Melodic procedures
- RHY-3.B Transforming rhythmic patterns
- 6.6 Melodic Sequence
- 6.7 Harmonic Sequence
- PIT-2.P Harmonic sequences