harmonically

Harmonically is an adverb derived from the adjective harmonic. In music and related fields, harmonically describes a relationship or effect that concerns harmony, tonal function, or the harmonic series. In music theory, statements such as "the phrase resolves harmonically to the dominant" indicate that the emphasis is on chordal relationships and functional progression rather than merely the melodic line. It can describe chord progressions, voice leading, and tonal centers that produce a sense of coherence within a key.

In acoustics and signal processing, "harmonically" refers to content that relates to harmonics, i.e., the integer multiples of a fundamental frequency. A sound is said to be harmonically rich if its spectrum contains significant energy at several harmonics; conversely, a signal with few harmonics is closer to a pure tone or less harmonically complex.

The term also appears in mathematical and analytical contexts when describing properties tied to harmonicity, such as harmonic analysis, though that usage is less common in everyday language. Overall, harmonically signals attention to how tonal relationships, overtones, or frequency content contribute to the structure, color, or perception of sound.