Perfect Authentic Cadence I-IV-V-I
Piano sound loads on first tap. Resolved in the key of C — every chord links to its full analysis.
The strongest resolution in tonal music: subdominant (IV) builds tension, dominant (V) demands resolution, and the return to the tonic (I) delivers a complete, conclusive sense of home. This I–IV–V–I motion is the backbone of Western harmony.
What each degree does
Feels like home — complete rest, where the piece departs from and returns to. The major tonic, where everything settles.
A step out from home into the light — the subdominant. It sets up the dominant or resolves with a plagal ('amen') colour, opening space without sharp tension.
Tension pulling home — the chord that 'wants to resolve' to I; it closes or opens sections. The dominant, the engine of the key.
Feels like home — complete rest, where the piece departs from and returns to. The major tonic, where everything settles.