plagal cadence

noun

, Music.

1. a cadence in which the chord of the tonic is preceded by that of the subdominant.

Word History and Origins

Origin of plagal cadence¹

First recorded in 1870–75

Example Sentences

Perhaps it’s not surprising that all three of those songs groove over the double plagal cadence.

From Time

These enharmonic passages recur to satiety, and the abuse of the plagal cadence deprives it of its religious solemnity.

From Project Gutenberg

The Plagal Cadence (A-men chord) at the end of the piece has been transcribed as breves instead of semibreves for authenticity.

From Project Gutenberg

A plagal cadence is one in which the tonic chord is preceded by the sub-dominant chord (IV—I).

From Project Gutenberg

The first one (a) is called a perfect plagal cadence, the last two are imperfect plagal.

From Project Gutenberg