degree

• 1. Refers to the ordinal "steps" in a diatonic scale, usually designated with Roman numerals: I II III IV V VI VII.

  Six of the degrees also have a Latin name, and one degree a vernacular name, associated with them:

  VII	[leading tone]
  VI	submediant
  V	dominant
  IV	subdominant
  III	mediant
  II	supertonic
  I	tonic

  
  

• 2. Refers to the pitches in an equal-tempered scale, one degree being the basic "step" size in the scale.

  The degree is also the numerator of the fractional exponent of 2 which gives the ratio of the interval, the total number of degrees in the scale being the denominator. For example, the 7th degree of the 12-eq scale has the ratio 2^(7/12).

  [from Joe Monzo, JustMusic: A New Harmony]

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