A piezoelectric vibration can be characterized by the components of its electric equivalent. The dynamic nature of these components, as well as their dependence on the location of the electrodes on a piezoelectric structure, is studied in this article. General equations, based on a decomposition of a known vibration into its eigenmodes, are derived for a flexural vibration. A correction factor for the dynamic and geometric properties of the equivalent components is derived. The mechanical compliance of the beam is shown to depend on the choice of electrode configuration. The behavior far from resonance is also studied. It has been assumed that the mechanical and the piezoelectric properties can be treated as two quasiseparate problems.