Harmonic Craft and Melody
Learn how chords and melodies interact to create emotional momentum, tension, and musical structure. Master voice leading, harmonic rhythm, and chord substitution to transform flat progressions into dynamic, expressive music.
Like Duolingo, but for Harmonic Craft and Melody. Tomo turns the whole topic into a game you play five minutes a day, until it actually sticks.
26 levels across 3 sections, about 52 minutes end to end, roughly 10 days at five minutes a day. It moves through Building Progressions That Move, Weaving Melody and Harmony Together, and Harmonic Depth and Evaluation. It assumes you already know the basics.
Free forever · No credit card · iPhone & Android
Key ideas in Harmonic Craft and Melody
- Tonic establishes home stability before harmonic movement begins
- Subdominant acts as a departure, moving away from home toward tension
- Dominant builds maximum tension that pulls forcefully back into the tonic
- A half cadence halts on the dominant (V), leaving the musical thought hanging
- An authentic cadence resolves V to I, giving full finality and closure
- Pairing a half cadence with an authentic cadence creates an open question-and-answer phrase
- A deceptive cadence resolves the dominant (V) to the submediant (vi) instead of the tonic
- Because vi shares two notes with the tonic, it substitutes as an emotional surprise
- Evading the tonic extends the musical phrase, delaying final satisfaction
- Loops sustain forward momentum by avoiding strong, definitive authentic cadences
- Ending a four-chord loop on dominant or subdominant keeps the listener in suspended orbit
- Without true closure, repetitive harmonic loops eventually risk tonal monotony
- A plagal cadence moves from IV to I, famously known as the 'Amen' cadence
- Unlike the dominant, the IV chord lacks the leading tone that snaps sharply up into the tonic
- Plagal motion gives harmony an earthy, serene, or devotional sense of settling
- Smooth voice leading moves individual notes by step or keeps them stationary
You've tried the other tabs
Thirty open tabs. Four facts you actually kept.
You watched. You nodded. By Sunday it was gone.
One answer, then back to scrolling.
Eight weeks. You meant to finish. You didn't.
Tomo gives Harmonic Craft and Melody the Duolingo treatment: levels, streaks, and quick quizzes that test what you just learned. That game loop is what the tabs above never had, so it's the one you actually finish.
Here's what playing it feels like
A real question from this course. Take your best guess.
What job does the subdominant chord do in a progression?
Get it right to open this lesson and 25 more in the app.
How to learn Harmonic Craft and Melody, step by step
Go in order. 26 short levels across 3 sections, about 52 minutes in all, five minutes a day.
- 1
Building Progressions That Move
- Functional Movement and Cadences
- Voice Leading and Inversions
- Harmonic Rhythm and Pacing
- 2
Weaving Melody and Harmony Together
- Chord Tones and Non-Harmonic Color
- Melodic Contour and Phrasing
- 3
Harmonic Depth and Evaluation
- Root Motion Mechanics
- Secondary Dominants and Modal Borrowing
- Reharmonization and Macro Structure
3 sections · 8 units · 26 levels. Built to play, not to enroll.
Questions about Harmonic Craft and Melody
How do I learn Harmonic Craft and Melody?
Go in order: start with Building Progressions That Move, then Weaving Melody and Harmony Together, then Harmonic Depth and Evaluation. On Tomo that's 26 short levels, about 52 minutes in all, played five minutes a day. Start free and play the first level in under a minute.
Is there a Duolingo-style app for Harmonic Craft and Melody?
Yes. Tomo works like Duolingo: short daily lessons, streaks and quick quizzes. Harmonic Craft and Melody is one of its free courses, and you can type any other topic to get a course of your own.
Is the Harmonic Craft and Melody course free?
Yes. Harmonic Craft and Melody is playable on Tomo's free plan, which doesn't expire. No credit card, no waitlist. Download the app and start your first lesson.
How long does it take to learn Harmonic Craft and Melody?
26 levels across 3 sections, about 52 minutes of play in total. It's built for five minutes a day, so you finish it a little at a time instead of all at once.
Do I need any background to start Harmonic Craft and Melody?
No. It's pitched at an intermediate level, so it starts where you are and builds up. If you can tap a phone, you can start.
Tomo is in ChatGPT
Tomo is also a ChatGPT plugin: the same playable courses, built and played inside your chat.
Add Tomo to ChatGPT- What to ask
- “Make me a Tomo course on black holes.” “Turn this chat into a Tomo course.”
- What you get
- Quick questions with instant feedback, hearts and stars, ready to play in about a minute.
- Where it goes
- No sign-up to start. Connect your Tomo account and your streak carries on in the app.
You pick the voice
Harmonic Craft and Melody is taught in the Bestie style: your friend who just gets it. Want a different feel? In the app you can spin up the same topic in any of Tomo's teaching styles. Same facts, totally different vibe.
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The Mechanics of Musical Harmony
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Harmonic Function: Pop, J-Pop, and K-Pop
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How Music Works
Move beyond isolated notes and basic scales to understand the inner machinery of songs. Learn how voice leading propels harmony forward, how rhythm locks into a groove, and how arrangement transforms simple progressions into compelling musical experiences.
Harmonic Reinterpretation and Substitution
Unlock modern harmonic depth by moving beyond basic functional harmony. Learn how to transform standard chord progressions using altered substitutions, chromatic mediants, polychordal upper structures, and smooth linear voice leading.
Start Harmonic Craft and Melody today.
Download Tomo, search Harmonic Craft and Melody, and play your first lesson in under a minute.