Half Cadence

A half cadence is a musical gesture which can begin with any chord, in this case the tonic chord of D Major, and ends on the dominant chord, A Major (I-V). Usually the half cadence calls for a continuation of the piece, due to its sounding incomplete or unfinished. The first movement of Carlos Seixas' Overture in D Major ends with a half cadence, continuing into the second movement in D minor. This is a rare occurrence, as a half cadence usually happens in the exposition of a sonata form, or at the end of the first part of a binary form.