Alberti bass

The Alberti bass is a common accompaniment pattern in 18th-century keyboard music, particularly associated with Domenico Alberti, an Italian musician. It typically consists of a triad's notes played in a repeating pattern, usually in steady eighth or sixteenth notes, in the order of the lowest, highest, middle, and then highest note. This pattern creates a gently moving harmonic background that supports the melody. While Alberti consistently used this technique, he likely did not invent it. The Alberti bass was widely adopted by composers such as Mozart, Haydn, and Beethoven.12