dominant, in music, the fifth tone or degree of a diatonic scale (i.e., any of the major or minor scales of the tonal harmonic system), or the triad built upon this degree. In the key of C, for example, the dominant degree is the note G; the dominant triad is formed by the notes G–B–D in the key of C major or C minor. For further explanations of these relationships, see also cadence and harmony.
The strongest harmonic progression in tonal music is from the dominant chord to the tonic triad (i.e., the triad built upon the first note of a diatonic scale). It has been estimated that during the period when tonal harmony dominated Western music, from about 1650 into the 20th century, a substantial percentage of all harmonic successions involved a dominant–tonic relationship of some kind. The relationship between tonic and dominant keys (e.g., C major and G major) is an essential component of the tonal organization of the sonata form.