What is a tie in musical notation?

• A. A curved line indicating legato between notes.
• B. A curved line connecting identical pitches to sustain.
• C. The manner of playing notes, including attack and release.
• D. A simple cyclic canon where voices enter in imitation.

Answer: (B)

A tie shows how to sustain a pitch. It’s a curved line drawn between two notes of the same pitch, telling you to hold the note for their combined rhythmic value without rearticulating it. This is what makes the note last longer than either note would on its own.

This differs from a slur, which also uses a curved line but connects different pitches to indicate smooth, connected playing across a phrase, not simply extending duration. The other descriptions point to different ideas—how a note is attacked and released (articulation) or a musical form where voices imitate each other (a cyclic canon)—and don’t describe tying two identical pitches to sustain a single pitch.