Andalusian Cadence - Origins

Origins

A popular melodic pattern of Ancient Greece offers a possible starting point for the Andalusian cadence. Called the Dorian tetrachord, the sequence resembles the bass line of the chord progression developed centuries later. Some theorists consider that the same structure may have occurred earlier in Judah. A sequence more or less close to the Greek tetrachord structure might have been known to the Moors in Southern Spain and spread from there through Western Europe. The French troubadours were influenced by the Spanish music.

The Andalusian cadence known today, using triad chords, may be no earlier than the Renaissance, though the use of parallel thirds or sixths occurred from the 13th century. Some sources state that the chord sequence was noted for the first time by Claudio Monteverdi in a choral work, Lamento della Ninfa, first published in the Eighth Book of Madrigals (1638) – other works in the same collection are known to have been played as soon as 1607.

The progression resembles the first four measures of the 15th century Passamezzo antico; i – ♭VII – i – V. The use of the ♭VI chord may suggest a more recent origin than the Passamezzo antico since the cadences i – ♭VII and ♭VII – i were popular in the late Middle Ages, (see also double tonic) while ♭VII – ♭VI arose as a result of advancement in music theory. However, the absence of the leading tone from the ♭VII chord suggests that the progression originated before the tonal system in the modal approach of the time of Palestrina, where the tonic must be approached from chord V whereas typical Baroque style would have avoided the flat VII and introduced dominant chords (♮VII or V chords, to form cadences resolving upon a i chord).