In music

Music

Music is an art form whose medium is sound and silence. Its common elements are pitch , rhythm , dynamics, and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture...

, the V-IV-I turnaround, or blues turnaround, is one of several cadential patterns

Cadence (music)

In Western musical theory, a cadence is, "a melodic or harmonic configuration that creates a sense of repose or resolution [finality or pause]." A harmonic cadence is a progression of two chords that concludes a phrase, section, or piece of music...

 traditionally found in the twelve-bar blues, and commonly found in rock and roll

Rock and roll

Rock and roll is a genre of popular music that originated and evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s, primarily from a combination of African American blues, country, jazz, and gospel music...

.



The cadence moves from the tonic

Tonic (music)

In music, the tonic is the first scale degree of the diatonic scale and the tonal center or final resolution tone. The triad formed on the tonic note, the tonic chord, is thus the most significant chord...

 to dominant

Dominant (music)

In music, the dominant is the fifth scale degree of the diatonic scale, called "dominant" because it is next in importance to the tonic,and a dominant chord is any chord built upon that pitch, using the notes of the same diatonic scale...

, to subdominant

Subdominant

In music, the subdominant is the technical name for 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 tonic - in other words, the tonic is the dominant of the subdominant. It is also the note immediately...

, and back to the tonic. "In a blues in A, the turnaround will consist of the chords E7, D7, A7, E7 [V-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.".
The blues turnaround may be "dress[ed] up" by using Vaug  ("an uptown V7") instead of V7 , "adding a touch of jazzy sophistication." An important variation is the jazz influenced turnaround ii-V-I-V.

History

"It seems likely that the blues turnaround evolved from ragtime

Ragtime

Ragtime is an original musical genre which enjoyed its peak popularity between 1897 and 1918. Its main characteristic trait is its syncopated, or "ragged," rhythm. It began as dance music in the red-light districts of American cities such as St. Louis and New Orleans years before being published...

-type music", the earliest example being I-I7-IV-iv-I (in C: C-C7-F-Fm-C), "The Japanese Grand March". 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.