Sointaminen

Sointaminen is the musical practice of creating chords or harmony to accompany a melody. In Western tonal music it involves selecting a sequence of chords, deciding their qualities (major, minor, diminished, seventh, etc.), and organizing the rhythm and arrangement of the accompaniment to support the melody and tonal center.

The process typically includes analyzing the melody to identify strong notes and the key or mode, choosing a functional chord progression, and ensuring smooth voice leading. Common considerations are aligning melody tones with chord tones, maintaining common tones between adjacent chords, and avoiding awkward leaps or parallel motion in the inner voices. Sointaminen can be performed on keyboards, guitar, vocal ensembles, or within orchestral or arranging contexts.

Common practice harmonic approaches such as diatonic progressions (for example I–IV–V–I or ii–V–I) form a foundation, while more advanced harmonization may introduce extended chords, secondary dominants, and modulatory passages. The style and level of complexity depend on genre, period, and the desired emotional effect, ranging from simple pop accompaniments to richly colored classical textures.

Sointaminen is a fundamental element in music education and arrangement, bridging melody and texture. It is closely related to concepts like harmony, chord progressions, and voice leading, and it can vary across musical cultures, reflecting different traditions of accompaniment and tonal thinking.