Definition
The nota cambiata is the only dissonance that, in strict counterpoint, may be left by leap. It is a four-note figure, typical of sixteenth-century vocal polyphony, which Fux teaches in third species:
- first note consonant (strong beat);
- second note dissonant, reached by descending step;
- third note consonant, reached by a descending leap of a third from the dissonance;
- fourth note that rises by step (filling in the leap).
Profile: down a step, down a third, up a step. The dissonance seems to resolve downward, but the resolution is displaced.
Example
Cantus: C4 (a whole note). Counterpoint: C5 B4 G4 A4.
- C5: octave, consonant.
- B4: major seventh, dissonant, reached by step.
- G4: fifth, consonant, reached by a leap of a third.
- A4: sixth, consonant, rises by step and continues toward B4 or toward the next bar.
The B4 seems like a leading tone that should rise to C5; instead it leaps to G4, and the line then rises again. The ear accepts the dissonance because the figure is short, descending and closed by stepwise motion.
Historical variants
- Five-note cambiata: after the fourth note the line continues rising by step (C5 B4 G4 A4 B4), often used in cadences.
- Cambiata in second species: in Palestrina it also appears in half-note values; Fux limits it to third species.
- Ascending cambiata (mirror image): rare in the strict style, more common in the Baroque.
Related figures
- Double neighbor note: a note decorated by both neighbors before continuing: D5 E5 C5 D5. First and last are consonant, the two central ones may be dissonant.
- Escape tone (échappée): a dissonance reached by step and left by leap in the opposite direction: D5 E5 C5. It is not part of Fux's third species but is frequent in the Baroque.
- Anticipation: a note of the next chord anticipated on the weak beat: typical of Baroque cadences (C#5 D5 D5).
Where to use it in exercises
- To descend quickly by a fourth within a single bar without monotonous scales.
- To avoid fifths or octaves that a descending scale would create on the strong beats.
- In a cadence, to reach the leading tone from above: in Dorian over E4 you can write E5 D5 B4 C#5 → D5 (D5 a passing seventh changed, B4 fifth, C#5 sixth).
Typical errors
- Leaping a third up from the dissonance: it is not a cambiata.
- Using a leap of a fourth instead of a third.
- Placing the dissonance on the first quarter note.
- Following the leap with another leap instead of stepwise motion.
Modern application
- Toplines: the down-down(third)-up figure is a natural melodic ornament; many pop choruses use it on the final syllable of a phrase to extend it without repeating notes.
- String countermelodies: the cambiata lets you descend quickly beneath the main melody without clashes, useful in cello countermelodies.
- Choirs: in the inner voices of a choir the cambiata resolves a dissonance smoothly; it works well on open vowels.
Related topics
Modal third species, non-chord tones, ornaments, modal fifth species.