What’s on the Cadences poster
A 4-row table: Cadence · Chords · Sounds.
A cadence is defined by its final two chords, not by the melody.
- Perfect (authentic) — V → I — Finished. Full stop.
- Plagal — IV → I — Finished, gentler. The 'Amen'.
- Imperfect (half) — any → V — Unfinished. A comma.
- Interrupted (deceptive) — V → vi — A surprise — the ending withheld.
A perfect cadence with both chords in root position and the tonic on top is the strongest ending in tonal music.
Questions about the Cadences poster
- What’s on the Cadences poster?
- A 4-row table: Cadence · Chords · Sounds. A cadence is defined by its final two chords, not by the melody. Perfect (authentic) — V → I — Finished. Full stop.; Plagal — IV → I — Finished, gentler. The 'Amen'.; Imperfect (half) — any → V — Unfinished. A comma.; Interrupted (deceptive) — V → vi — A surprise — the ending withheld.. A perfect cadence with both chords in root position and the tonic on top is the strongest ending in tonal music.
- Who is the Cadences poster for?
- Cadences belongs to the Music section rather than to a school year, because music is not something one grade owns. Anyone learning theory can pin it up — a beginner, a student mid-course, or someone revising years later.
- When should you use the Cadences poster?
- Name the last two chords of a phrase. That pair is the cadence, and it sets the expectation. A wall chart earns its place by being glanceable from where the work is happening, so Cadences belongs on the wall where that music work actually happens, within glancing distance, rather than filed away.
- What other posters go with Cadences?
- Borrowed Chords, Building Chords and Chord Inversions sit alongside Cadences in the Music section. Printed together they make a wall rather than a single sheet, which is how a reference set actually gets used.Borrowed ChordsBuilding ChordsChord Inversions
- Is the Cadences poster free to download and print?
- Yes. Cadences downloads as a free PDF with no account, no email and no watermark, like everything else in the Music section. Print as many copies as you like for a home, a classroom, a library or a tutoring group; reselling the file is the only thing the licence rules out.Read the licence
- What size does the Cadences poster print at?
- Cadences is a vector PDF laid out for US Letter, and prints on A4 with Fit to page — the same file, no separate download. Because every mark on it is drawn rather than photographed, it stays sharp enlarged to A3, A2 or A1 at a copy shop. Colour carries emphasis only, so a greyscale print of Cadences loses nothing.Printing guide
Related posters
Charts that sit alongside Cadences on the same wall.
Browse every Music poster, or start from the full catalogue.