Accented Passing Note

An accented passing note is one which occurs on the strong part of the bar or beat. It is more strongly accented than the note to which it proceeds.

GENERAL
- Accented passing notes ascending need care. They should pass between the root and the 3rd or the 3rd and the 5th of the same chord.
- Two parts may take the same accented passing note, an octave apart.
- In a descending scalic passage, prefer accented passing notes to unaccented. Of course the strength of harmonic basis is a key factor.
- It is possible to have an accented passing note succeeding an unaccented passing note in a descending scalic passage.


RULES
- Rules of movement as they apply to unaccented passing notes also apply here.
- An accented passing note and its note of resolution may not be struck together unless the latter be in the bass.
- Accented passing notes in the bass, to or from the bass of a second inversion must be avoided.

IDENTIFICATION
- When a note leaps, it must invariably be treated as a harmony note. A note that moves by step may be a non-harmony note. This applies in any part. This can help at times in identifying the presence of an accented passing note.