Intervals can be classified as consonant or dissonant according to the complexity of the mathematical relation between the pitches of the notes.

Although this concept has changed throughout musical history and not all theorists agree, we can offer the following classification:

Consonant Dissonance
Unison Second
Major and minor third Perfect fourth
(considered a dissonance in harmony and counterpoint)
Perfect fifth Seventh
Major and minor sixth Augmented fourth
Perfect octave Diminished fifth

See Reading Music in the Tutorials section.




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José Rodríguez Alvira.