10645 / 18210 · Workshop 88 — Harmonic Memory: How Earlier Chords Change the Meaning of Later Chords, How Repetition Rewrites Function, and How to Make a Listener Hear Long-Range Relationships← prev⊞ allnext →
88.9Memory has a decay curve
Immediately after an event:
its influence is strong.
Later:
weaker.
But important structural events can remain active for much longer.
Examples:
- opening tonic
- recurring motif
- distinctive borrowed chord
- unresolved suspension
- original key after modulation