Chromatic movement in music refers to movement by what interval?

• A. By semitones
• B. In parallel motion
• C. In whole tones
• D. In key signatures

Answer: (A)

Chromatic movement involves moving by semitones; each step is a half step in pitch. Because the chromatic scale uses all twelve semitones in an octave, passages that move chromatically advance one semitone at a time. Movement by whole tones would skip a semitone, which is a different kind of motion. Parallel motion describes multiple voices moving in the same direction by the same interval, not the size of the step between consecutive notes. Key signatures govern which notes are altered in a key, not the actual interval between successive notes. So the interval associated with chromatic movement is the semitone.