Perfect or imperfect cadence? How to hear every cadence in an aural test

A cadence is the way a musical phrase comes to rest, and in an aural test you name it from the last two chords. There are four to know: perfect, imperfect, interrupted and plagal. This guide explains what each one sounds like, what the bass line does, how to decide quickly and which boards and grades ask for which.

What a cadence is

Phrases in tonal music end with a pair of chords that work like punctuation. Some endings sound like a full stop, some like a comma and one like a surprise. Each cadence is defined by the chords it uses, written as Roman numerals counted from the key note: I is the chord on the key note (doh), IV the chord on fah, V the chord on soh and vi the chord on lah.

You don't need to name the chords to name the cadence, at least not until the higher grades. What matters is where the phrase lands and how it gets there. The last chord tells you most of the story, and the chord before it settles the rest.

Perfect cadence: the full stop

A perfect cadence moves from chord V, or V7, to chord I. It sounds complete and final, like the end of a sentence, and you will hear one at the end of almost every classical piece. If you could happily stop the music there and nothing feels missing, start by thinking “perfect”.

Listen to the bass: it usually falls from soh to doh, or rises a fourth to it. At the top, the melody often climbs from the leading note, ti, to doh, or steps down from re to doh. That pull of the leading note up to the key note is the strongest sign of a perfect cadence.

Imperfect cadence: the comma

An imperfect cadence ends on chord V. The chord before it might be I, ii, IV or another chord, but the landing point is always the dominant, so the phrase sounds open and unfinished, like a question waiting for its answer. It often comes halfway through a melody, before a second phrase that closes with a perfect cadence.

The bass usually ends on soh, and the melody often stops on re, soh or ti, none of which feels like home. If the music stops and you want to hum one more chord to finish it, you have probably heard an imperfect cadence.

Interrupted cadence: the surprise

An interrupted cadence starts exactly like a perfect one: you hear chord V and expect the home chord. Instead the music lands on chord vi, which is a minor chord in a major key. The effect is a small jolt, like a door you expected to open onto the street leading into another room.

The bass gives it away. Instead of falling from soh to doh, it rises one step from soh to lah. The melody often goes to doh just as it would in a perfect cadence, which is why this cadence fools people: the top sounds settled while the harmony underneath does not. In a minor key the final chord is major (VI), so the surprise sounds brighter rather than darker.

Plagal cadence: the Amen

A plagal cadence moves from chord IV to chord I. It sounds finished, like a perfect cadence, but softer and warmer, without the strong pull of the leading note. It is the “Amen” heard at the end of many hymns, often straight after a perfect cadence.

Here the bass falls from fah to doh, or rises a fifth to it, and the key note is usually held over in the melody from one chord to the next. If the ending sounds final but gentle, and you could almost sing “A-men” to it, think “plagal”.

Follow the bass line

Most wrong answers come from listening only to the tune. The bass of the last two chords is often enough to name the cadence, so hum the lowest note of the final chord, then the one before it, and compare them with the key note. At the highest grades some chords are inverted, so the bass is not always the root, but in most cadences these patterns hold.

Ends on doh, coming from soh: perfect cadence.
Ends on doh, coming from fah: plagal cadence.
Ends on soh: imperfect cadence.
Ends on lah, one step above soh: interrupted cadence.

A quick way to decide

In ABRSM and AMEB cadence tests you hear the key chord first and the phrase twice, so you can give each playing its own job. Keep that key chord in your head throughout: if the final chord matches it, the cadence is perfect or plagal, and if it doesn't, the cadence is imperfect or interrupted.

First playing: finished or not? If it sounds complete, it is perfect or plagal. If it sounds open, it is imperfect or interrupted.
Second playing: which one? For a finished ending, listen for the leading note rising to doh (perfect) or a gentle “Amen” (plagal). For an open ending, decide whether the music paused on the dominant (imperfect) or swerved to an unexpected chord (interrupted).

Practice tips

Play the four cadences at a keyboard in several major keys and sing the bass line as you play.
Practise in minor keys too. Chord V is still major there, because the leading note is raised, so the pull home is just as strong.
Spot cadences in the pieces you are learning: you will often find imperfect cadences in the middle and perfect ones at the end.
At ABRSM Grade 7, where you also name the two chords, work out the last chord first and then the one before it. At Grade 8, listen for inverted chords, such as the second-inversion tonic (Ic) that often leans into V just before a cadence.
Little and often: five cadences a day for a few weeks will do more than an hour in one go.

Which boards and grades ask about cadences

ABRSM: Grade 6 asks whether a cadence is perfect or imperfect. Grade 7 adds interrupted and asks you to name the two chords of the cadence. Grade 8 adds plagal, with chords that may be inverted, and you name three chords with their positions. The Grade 6 aural tests are the first step.
Trinity: Grade 4 asks whether the final cadence of the piece is perfect or imperfect, and Grade 5 includes all four types.
AMEB: Grade 6 asks for perfect and plagal cadences in a short piece in a major key, Grade 7 adds interrupted and Grade 8 covers the four principal cadences, usually understood to include imperfect.
RCM: there is no cadence test by name. From Level 5 you identify chord progressions such as I–IV–I and I–V–I instead, which calls on the same kind of listening.

Practise cadences with our trainer

Our trainer generates cadences in four-part harmony, voiced by classical rules and played on a sampled grand piano, with the answer choices your board and grade use. After each answer you see the chords that were played and a tip for hearing them. Start from the ABRSM aural tests page, the AMEB page or the Trinity page, and practise a few cadences every day.

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Questions people ask

What is the difference between a perfect and an imperfect cadence?

A perfect cadence goes from chord V to chord I and sounds finished, like a full stop. An imperfect cadence ends on chord V and sounds unfinished, like a comma or a question. The quickest check is the final chord: if it sounds like the home chord of the key, the cadence is not imperfect.

How do I tell an interrupted cadence from an imperfect one?

Both leave the music unfinished, but in different ways. An imperfect cadence comes to rest on chord V, so it sounds like a pause. An interrupted cadence reaches chord V and then, instead of resolving home, lands on chord vi, so it sounds like a surprise. Listen to the bass: in an interrupted cadence it rises one step from soh to lah.

Why is the plagal cadence called the Amen cadence?

Because it is the harmony traditionally sung to “Amen” at the end of hymns: chord IV moving to chord I. It sounds finished, like a perfect cadence, but softer, because there is no leading note pulling up to the key note. In the bass you hear fah moving to doh rather than soh to doh.

Which grade asks for plagal cadences?

In ABRSM exams, plagal cadences first appear at Grade 8, alongside perfect, imperfect and interrupted. Trinity includes them at Grade 5, in the question about the final cadence of the piece. AMEB introduces them earlier, at Grade 6, together with the perfect cadence. RCM ear tests don't name cadences at all; they use chord progressions instead.

Are cadences harder to hear in a minor key?

Only slightly. In a minor key chord V is usually major, because the leading note is raised, so a perfect cadence still has the same strong pull home. The main difference is the interrupted cadence: in a minor key it lands on a major chord (VI), which can sound bright rather than surprising. Practise in both major and minor keys so neither catches you out.

Do I need to know the names of the chords?

Not to name the cadence. Until the higher grades you only need the type of cadence, which you can hear from how the phrase ends. ABRSM asks for the chords themselves from Grade 7, where you name the two chords of the cadence, and at Grade 8, where you name three chords together with their positions.