ABSTRACT
Modulation is the process by which one tonal center changes to another. It is similar to tonicization except that a modulation gives way to a feeling that, by virtue of the length of the material in the new tonal area, the music has changed key. This chapter focuses on modulations to closely related keys. These modulations come in two varieties, the common chord modulation, and the chromatic modulation. Closely related keys are those that differ by no more than one flat or one sharp. For a given tonality, the closely related keys consist of the relative major or minor, the dominant plus its relative, and the subdominant plus its relative. A common chord modulation (also called a pivot chord modulation) turns on a chord that is diatonic in both the old key and the new key. The chapter also presents an exercise for singing melodies with modulations.
