Enharmonic

1 definition found

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Enharmonic \En`har*mon"ic\ ([e^]n`h[.a]r*m[o^]n"[i^]k),
  Enharmonical \En`har*mon"ic*al\ ([e^]n`h[.a]r*m[o^]n"[i^]*kal),
     a. [Gr. 'enarmoniko`s, 'enarmo`nios fitting, accordant; 'en
     in + "armoni`a harmony: cf. F. enharmonique.]
     1. (Anc. Mus.) Of or pertaining to that one of the three
        kinds of musical scale (diatonic, chromatic, enharmonic)


        recognized by the ancient Greeks, which consisted of
        quarter tones and major thirds, and was regarded as the
        most accurate.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     2. (Mus.)
        (a) Pertaining to a change of notes to the eye, while, as
            the same keys are used, the instrument can mark no
            difference to the ear, as the substitution of A[flat]
            for G[sharp].
        (b) Pertaining to a scale of perfect intonation which
            recognizes all the notes and intervals that result
            from the exact tuning of diatonic scales and their
            transposition into other keys.
            [1913 Webster]