# Common flourish at the end of a lot of "classical" music

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-flourish-at-the-end-of-a-lot-of-classical-music/582828>\
**Category:** Cafe Society\
**Created:** [May 22, 2011, 11:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-flourish-at-the-end-of-a-lot-of-classical-music/582828 "2011-05-22T23:49:44Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Frylock](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ce7236/32.png) [@Frylock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frylock)\
**Post date:** [May 22, 2011, 11:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-flourish-at-the-end-of-a-lot-of-classical-music/582828/1 "2011-05-22T23:49:44Z")

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“Classical” in quotes because I’m somewhat aware that “classical” is a technical term when it comes to music, and what I really mean is just what the common man might call “orchestra music.”

There’s this flourish that happens at the very end of a lot of “classical music” that consists in chords emphasizing:

First, the tonic.

Second, the third.

Finally, the tonic–often an octave below the previous one–with a more audible third than was hearable in the first step above.

I think this a stereotype of classical music, but based on a bit of listening I did today on the radio it seems to be a stereotype with some basis.

Is there a name for this set of notes, and what is the history of it?

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**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\
**Post date:** [May 22, 2011, 11:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-flourish-at-the-end-of-a-lot-of-classical-music/582828/2 "2011-05-22T23:53:59Z")

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A [cadence](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cadence_(music))?

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**Author:** ![Apollon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e47774/32.png) [@Apollon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Apollon)\
**Post date:** [May 23, 2011, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-flourish-at-the-end-of-a-lot-of-classical-music/582828/3 "2011-05-23T03:20:41Z")

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> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#):
>
> A [cadence](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cadence_(music))?

No, a cadence consists of at least two different chords. What the OP is talking about only involves the tonic, after the cadence has already occured. It’s the final chord, iterated three times, always in root position but with the top voice switching from root to the third and back to the root (sometimes - as the OP noted - finishing an octave lower).  
It’s extremely common in classical and romantic (but not in baroque) music, but I’m not aware of it having a name. I think that it should have one, and if it really turns out that it doesn’t, then we should come up with one ourselves. 😛

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**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\
**Post date:** [May 23, 2011, 3:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-flourish-at-the-end-of-a-lot-of-classical-music/582828/4 "2011-05-23T03:53:32Z")

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Moving to Cafe Society.

Colibri  
General Questions Moderator