What should we expect from a successful theory of tonality? Why should we prefer one theory of tonality over another? To what extent do theories of tonality pose the same methodological problems as theories in other domains? Although these are surely basic questions for any music theorist to ask, they are by no means easy ones to answer. In part, the difficulties stem from the fact that the term ‘tonality’ has come to mean different things to different people; as mentioned in the preface, some theorists use it very generally to denote music that centers on a stable pitch or tonic, whereas others use the term more restrictively to denote music that centers functionally on a particular tonic triad. But difficulties also arise because theorists often disagree about what they take to be the goals of their work. Once again, opinions differ widely. Some believe that theory building is an explanatory pursuit akin to the natural and social sciences, whereas others believe that it is a critical activity, analogous to art criticism or literary theory. As a result, some theorists deal exclusively with the internal properties of tonal music, whereas others insist that these properties cannot be studied apart from their cognitive, aesthetic, historical, and ideological context.

The purpose of this Introduction is not to address these issues in a systematic manner, but rather to pinpoint some of the methodological concerns that shape my own particular views about tonal theory. I will proceed from the assumption that, before we can assess the cognitive, aesthetic, historical, and ideological implications of a particular theory, we must first see how that theory explains why tonal music behaves in some ways and not others. Since I believe that, at some level, we process our knowledge of music separately from our knowledge of other domains, I find it useful to treat music theory autonomously from other disciplines. Furthermore, since I also believe that tonality is basically a general property of voice leading and harmony, I will focus my attention on explaining these phenomena. This does not mean, however, that I am uninterested in thematic, rhythmic, or formal relationships.