In music, a scale or key — the set of pitches that forms the basis of a piece (e.g. C major, G major).
バッハのト長調の曲が好きだ。
I like Bach's pieces in G major.
ハ長調とイ短調の違いを教科書で確認した。
I checked the difference between C major and A minor in the textbook.
この曲はニ長調で書かれている。
This piece is written in D major.
A mode or melodic system used in traditional music (e.g. gagaku); a particular musical mode/scale associated with repertoire or style.
雅楽のある調は平安時代から受け継がれている。
A certain mode used in gagaku has been passed down since the Heian period.
研究者たちは平安時代の謡の調を比較している。
Researchers are comparing the modes of Heian-period chants.
能楽の特定の調を復元する試みが行われている。
There are attempts to reconstruct specific modes used in Noh music.
Tempo, rhythm, or a time-related pace — the regular beat or flow of an activity or music.
詩はゆったりした調で読むと味わいが増す。
Reading a poem in a slow rhythm enhances its flavor.
マラソンでは一定の調を保って走ることが大切だ。
In a marathon it's important to run at a steady pace.
合奏団はまず調を合わせてから演奏を始めた。
The ensemble tuned/settled their tempo before starting to play.
The meter of a poem or song (e.g. the five-seven meter); the rhythmic pattern or poetic metre used in verses.
この歌詞は五七調で構成されている。
These lyrics are composed in the five-seven metre.
伝統的な和歌は五七調のリズムを持つことが多い。
Traditional waka often have a five-seven rhythm.
彼は五七調で短い詩を書いた。
He wrote a short poem in five-seven metre.
A style, tone or manner (often as the suffix -chō): the way something is said or written (e.g. colloquial style, archaic style, ironic tone).
レポートは正式な文語調で書いてください。
Please write the report in a formal written style.
彼女は冗談めいた調で話していたが、本気の部分もあった。
She spoke in a joking tone, but there were parts she meant seriously.
あの雑誌は軽い調の記事が多い。
That magazine has many light-toned articles.
Historical term: a tax paid in kind under systems such as the ritsuryō, paid with locally produced goods (cloth, rice, etc.).
律令制では地方から布や米で調が納められた。
Under the ritsuryō system, taxes in kind such as cloth and rice were paid from the provinces.
古文書には年貢や調の記録が残っている。
Old documents preserve records of taxes like annual tribute and payments in kind (chō).