In music, the V–IV–I turnaround, or blues turnaround, is one of several cadential patterns traditionally found in the

twelve-bar blues The 12-bar blues (or blues changes) is one of the most prominent chord progressions in popular music. The blues progression has a distinctive form in lyrics, phrase, chord structure, and duration. In its basic form, it is predominantly based on ...

, and commonly found in

rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a Genre (music), genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It Origins of rock and roll, originated from Africa ...

. The cadence moves from the tonic to dominant, to

subdominant In music, the subdominant is the fourth tonal degree () of the diatonic scale. It is so called because it is the same distance ''below'' the tonic as the dominant is ''above'' the tonicin other words, the tonic is the dominant of the subdomina ...

, and back to the tonic. "In a blues in A, the turnaround will consist of the chords E⁷, D⁷, A⁷, E⁷ –IV–I–V" V may be used in the last measure rather than I since, "nearly all blues tunes have more than one chorus (occurrence of the 12-bar progression), the turnaround (last four bars) usually ends on V, which makes us feel like we need to hear I again, thus bringing us around to the top (beginning) of the form again.".

History

"It seems likely that the blues turnaround evolved from

ragtime Ragtime, also spelled rag-time or rag time, is a musical style that flourished from the 1890s to 1910s. Its cardinal trait is its syncopated or "ragged" rhythm. Ragtime was popularized during the early 20th century by composers such as Scott ...

-type music", the earliest example being I–I⁷–IV–iv–I (in C: C–C⁷–F–Fm–C), "The Japanese Grand March".Baker, Duck (2004). ''Duck Baker's Fingerstyle Blues Guitar 101'', p.17. . This is a plagal cadence featuring a dominant seventh tonic (I or V/IV) chord. However, Baker cites a turnaround containing " How Dry I Am" as the "absolutely most commonly used blues turnaround". Fischer describes the turnaround as the last two measures of the blues form, or I⁷ and V⁷, with variations including I⁷–IV⁷–I⁷–V⁷.

Analysis

The root movement of the V−IV−I cadential formula found in the blues is considered nontraditional from the standpoint of Western harmony. The motion of the V−IV−I cadence has been considered "backward," as, in traditional harmony, the subdominant normally prepares for the dominant which then has a strong tendency to resolve to the tonic. However, an alternative analysis has been proposed in which the IV acts to intensify the seventh of V, which is then resolved to the third of the tonic. The V–IV–I movement has also been characterized as "unwinding" the V–I cadence with the addition of the passing IV.

Variations

The blues turnaround may be "dress dup" by using V aug ("an uptown V⁷") instead of V⁷ , "adding a touch of jazzy sophistication."Johnston, Richard (2007). ''How to Play Blues Guitar: The Basics and Beyond'', p. 19. . An important variation is the jazz influenced turnaround ii–V–I–V.

Sources

{{DEFAULTSORT:V-Iv-I Turnaround Cadences Chord progressions

History

Analysis

Variations

See also

Sources