Chords & Harmony on Music Theory Print

Augmented sixth chord

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Augmented sixth interval#

The augmented sixth interval is typically between the sixth degree of the minor scale, , and the raised fourth degree, . With standard voice leading, the chord is followed directly or indirectly by some form of the dominant chord, in which both and have resolved to the fifth scale degree, . This tendency to resolve outwards to is why the interval is spelled as an augmented sixth, rather than enharmonically as a minor seventh ( and ). Although augmented sixth chords are more common in the minor mode, they are also used in the major mode by borrowing of the parallel minor scale.

Augmented triad

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Analysis#

Whereas a major triad, such as C–E–G, contains a major third (C–E) and a minor third (E–G), with the interval of the fifth (C–G) being perfect, the augmented triad has an augmented fifth, becoming C–E–G. In other words, the top note is raised a semitone. H.R. Palmer notes: The augmented chord on I may contain the major seventh (I () or I ()), while the augmented chord on V may contain the minor seventh (V (), V (), or V ()). The example below shows III+ as a substitute dominant in a ii-V-I turnaround in C major. \omit Score.TimeSignature \relative c’ 2 1 \bar " " See, for example, Henry Purcell’s Dido & Aeneas.

Borrowed chord

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Common borrowed chords#

Sheila Romeo explains that " i n theory, any chord from any mode of the scale of the piece is a potential modal interchange or borrowed chord. Some are used more frequently than others, while some almost never occur." The next most common involve the and . These chords are shown below. Chord progressions may be constructed with borrowed chords, including two progressions common in rock music, I–VII–VI–VII, common everywhere, and I–VI–IV (), used by bands like Genesis, Yes, and Nirvana. In popular music, the major triads on the lowered third (III), sixth (VI) and seventh (VII) scale degrees are common. Borrowed chords have typical inversions or common positions, for example ii 6 and ii, and progress in the same manner as the diatonic chords they replace except for VI, which progresses to V (7) .

Cadence

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Common classifications#

Cadences are divided into four main types, according to their harmonic progression: authentic (typically perfect authentic or imperfect authentic), half, plagal, and deceptive. Typically, phrases end on authentic or half cadences, and the terms plagal and deceptive refer to motion that avoids or follows a phrase-ending cadence. Each cadence can be described using the Roman numeral system of naming chords. Authentic cadence An authentic cadence is a cadence from a dominant-functioning chord (commonly V) to the tonic chord (I). During the dominant chord, a seventh above the dominant may be added to create a dominant seventh chord (V 7 ); other dominant-functioning chords such as a leading tone triad or seventh chord can also take its place. The dominant chord may also be preceded by a cadential chord. The Harvard Concise Dictionary of Music and Musicians says, “This cadence is a microcosm of the tonal system, and is the most direct means of establishing a pitch as tonic. It is virtually obligatory as the final structural cadence of a tonal work.” Authentic cadences are generally classified as either perfect or imperfect. The phrase perfect cadence is sometimes used as a synonym for authentic cadence but can also have a more precise meaning depending on the chord voicing.

Chord (music)

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Definition#

A chord is the sound of two or more notes being played at the same time. The term derives from “accord”, which became “cord” in Middle English. The original meaning was an agreement or harmonious sound. In the 17th century, the spelling was changed to “chord” to prevent confusion with “cord”. Until the Middle Ages, harmony was any combination of two notes. In the Renaissance, the simultaneous sound of three notes began to be understood as the working definition of harmony. An arpeggio is a broken chord where each note is sounded successively instead of simultaneously. Chords can also be implied by melodies. A chord progression is a collection of harmonies with a specific destination or purpose, such as reinforcing the tonic or modulation to a new pitch center. Chord progressions are common in Western music. Homophonic textures where the melody and harmony generally move in unison are considered the standard practice in classical music and remain central to music instruction. The study of harmony involves chords and progressions and the principles of connection that govern them.

Chord progression

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Basic theory#

A chord may be built upon any note of a musical scale. Therefore, a seven-note diatonic scale allows seven basic diatonic triads, each degree of the scale becoming the root of its own chord. A chord built upon the note E is an E chord of some type (major, minor, diminished, etc.) Chords in a progression may also have more than three notes, such as in the case of a seventh chord (V 7 is particularly common, as it resolves to I) or an extended chord. The harmonic function of any particular chord depends on the context of the particular chord progression in which it is found.

Consonance and dissonance

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Definitions#

The opposition between consonance and dissonance can be made in different contexts: * In acoustics or psychophysiology, the distinction may be objective. In modern times, it usually is based on the perception of harmonic partials of the sounds considered, to such an extent that the distinction really holds only in the case of harmonic sounds (i.e. sounds with harmonic partials). * In music, even if the opposition often is founded on the preceding, objective distinction, it more often is subjective, conventional, cultural, and style – or period – dependent. Dissonance can then be defined as a combination of sounds that does not belong to the style under consideration; in recent music, what is considered stylistically dissonant may even correspond to what is said to be consonant in the context of acoustics (e.g. a major triad in 20th century atonal music). A major second (e.g. the notes C and D played simultaneously) would be considered dissonant if it occurred in a J.S. Bach prelude from the 1700s; however, the same interval may sound consonant in the context of a Claude Debussy piece from the early 1900s or an atonal contemporary piece. In both cases, the distinction mainly concerns simultaneous sounds; if successive sounds are considered, their consonance or dissonance depends on the memorial retention of the first sound while the second sound (or pitch) is heard. For this reason, consonance and dissonance have been considered particularly in the case of Western polyphonic music, and the present article is concerned mainly with this case. Most historical definitions of consonance and dissonance since about the 16th century have stressed their pleasant / unpleasant, or agreeable / disagreeable character. This may be justifiable in a psychophysiological context, but much less in a musical context properly speaking: Dissonances often play a decisive role in making music pleasant, even in a generally consonant context – which is one of the reasons why the musical definition of consonance/dissonance cannot match the psychophysiologic definition. In addition, the oppositions pleasant/unpleasant or agreeable/disagreeable evidence a confusion between the concepts of “dissonance” and of “noise”. (See also Noise in music and Noise music.) While consonance and dissonance exist only between sounds and therefore necessarily describe intervals (or chords), such as the perfect intervals, which are often viewed as consonant (e.g., the unison and octave). Occidental music theory often considers that, in a dissonant chord, one of the tones alone is in itself deemed to be the dissonance: It is this tone in particular that needs “resolution” through a specific voice leading procedure. For example, in the key of C Major, if F is produced as part of the dominant seventh chord (G 7 , which consists of the pitches G, B, D and F), it is deemed to be “dissonant” and it normally resolves to E during a cadence, with the G 7 chord changing to a C Major chord.

Counterpoint

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

General principles#

The term “counterpoint” has been used to designate a voice or even an entire composition. Counterpoint focuses on melodic interaction—only secondarily on the harmonies produced by that interaction. Work initiated by Guerino Mazzola (born 1947) has given counterpoint theory a mathematical foundation. In particular, Mazzola’s model gives a structural (and not psychological) foundation of forbidden parallels of fifths and the dissonant fourth. Octavio Agustin has extended the model to microtonal contexts. Another theorist who has tried to incorporate mathematical principles in his study of counterpoint is Sergei Taneyev (1856–1915). Inspired by Spinoza, Taneyev developed a theory which covers and generalizes a wide range of advanced contrapuntal phenomena, including what is known to the English-speaking theorists as invertible counterpoint (although he describes them mainly using his own, custom-built terminology), by means of linking them to simple algebraic procedures. In counterpoint, the functional independence of voices is the prime concern. The violation of this principle leads to special effects, which are avoided in counterpoint. In organ registers, certain interval combinations and chords are activated by a single key so that playing a melody results in parallel voice leading. These voices, losing independence, are fused into one and the parallel chords are perceived as single tones with a new timbre. In counterpoint, parallel voices are prohibited because they violate the heterogeneity of musical texture when independent voices occasionally disappear turning into a new timbre quality and vice versa.

Diminished seventh chord

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Analysis#

Music theorists have struggled over the centuries to explain the meaning and function of diminished seventh chords. Currently, two approaches are generally used. The less complex method treats the leading tone as the root of the chord and the other chord members as the third, fifth, and seventh of the chord, the same way other seventh chords are analyzed. The other method is to analyze the chord as an “incomplete dominant ninth”, that is a ninth chord with its root on the dominant, whose root is missing or implied. A vii 7 chord in the minor key (for example, in C minor, B–D–F–A) occurs naturally in the harmonic minor scale and is equivalent to the dominant 79 chord (G–B–D–F–A) without its root. : \omit Score.TimeSignature \relative c 1 \bar " " This was already proposed by Arnold Schoenberg, and Walter Piston championed this analysis. Jazz guitarist Sal Salvador, and other jazz theorists, also advocated this view, rewriting chord charts to reflect this and supplying the “missing” root as part of their bass lines. The dominant ninth theory was questioned by Heinrich Schenker. He explained that although there is a kinship between all univalent chords rising out of the fifth degree, the dominant ninth chord is not a real chord formation. Jean-Philippe Rameau explained the diminished seventh chord as a dominant seventh chord whose supposed fundamental bass is borrowed from the sixth degree in minor, raised a semitone producing a stack of minor thirds. Thus, in C, the dominant seventh is G 7 (G–B–D–F) and the sixth degree borrowed from the minor scale produces A–B–D–F. : \omit Score.TimeSignature \relative c 1 \bar " " In his Treatise on Harmony, he observed that three minor thirds and an augmented second make up a chord where the augmented second is such that “the ear is not offended” by it. He may have been talking of the augmented second in quarter-comma meantone, a tuning he favored, which is close to the just septimal minor third of 7:6.

Diminished triad

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Harmonic function#

In major scales, a diminished triad occurs only on the seventh scale degree. For instance, in the key of C, this is a B diminished triad (B, D, F). Since the triad is built on the seventh scale degree, it is also called the leading-tone triad. This chord has a dominant function. Unlike the dominant triad or dominant seventh, the leading-tone triad functions as a prolongational chord rather than a structural chord since the strong root motion by fifth is absent. On the other hand, in natural minor scales, the diminished triad occurs on the second scale degree; in the key of C minor, this is the D diminished triad (D, F, A). This triad is consequently called the supertonic diminished triad. Like the supertonic minor triad found in a major key, the supertonic diminished triad has a predominant function, almost always resolving to a dominant functioning chord. If the music is in a minor key, diminished triads can also be found on the raised seventh note, vii. This is because the ascending melodic minor scale has a raised sixth and seventh degree. For example, the chord progression vii–i is common. The leading-tone diminished triad and supertonic diminished triad are usually found in first inversion (vii 6 and ii 6 , respectively) since the spelling of the chord forms a diminished fifth with the bass. This differs from the fully diminished seventh chord, which commonly occurs in root position. In both cases, the bass resolves up and the upper voices move downwards in contrary motion.

Eleventh chord

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Relation to suspended fourth chord#

The fourth degree is octave equivalent to the eleventh. The dominant eleventh chord could be alternatively notated as the very unorthodox ninth added fourth chord (C 9add4 ), from where omitting the 3rd produces the more common ninth suspended fourth chord (C 9sus4 , also known as the jazz sus chord).

Figured bass

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Basso continuo#

Basso continuo parts, most common in the Baroque era (1600–1750), provided the harmonic structure of the music by supplying a bassline and a chord progression. The phrase is often shortened to continuo, and the instrumentalists playing the continuo part are called the continuo group. The makeup of the continuo group is often left to the discretion of the performers (or, for a larger performance, the conductor), and practice varied enormously within the Baroque period. At least one instrument capable of playing chords must be included, such as a piano, harpsichord, organ, lute, theorbo, guitar, regal, or harp. In addition, any number of instruments that play in the bass register may be included, such as cello, double bass, bass viol, or bassoon. The most common combination, at least in modern performances, is harpsichord and cello for instrumental works and secular vocal works, such as operas, and organ and cello for sacred music. A double bass may be added, particularly when accompanying a lower-pitched solo voice (e.g., a bass singer). Typically performers match the instrument families used in the full ensemble: including bassoon when the work includes oboes or other winds, but restricting it to cello and/or double bass if only strings are involved. Harps, lutes, and other handheld instruments are more typical of early 17th-century music. Sometimes instruments are specified by the composer: in L’Orfeo (1607) Monteverdi calls for an exceptionally varied instrumentation, with multiple harpsichords and lutes with a bass violin in the pastoral scenes followed by lamenting to the accompaniment of organo di legno and chitarrone, while Charon stands watch to the sound of a regal. The keyboard (or other chord-playing instrument) player realizes (adds in an improvised fashion) a continuo part by playing, in addition to the notated bass line, notes above it to complete chords, either determined ahead of time or improvised in performance. The figured bass notation, described below, is a guide, but performers are also expected to use their musical judgment and the other instruments or voices (notably the lead melody and any accidentals that might be present in it) as a guide. Experienced players sometimes incorporate motives found in the other instrumental parts into their improvised chordal accompaniment. Modern editions of such music usually supply a realized keyboard part, fully written out in staff notation for a player, in place of improvisation. With the rise in historically informed performance, however, the number of performers who are able to improvise their parts from the figures, as Baroque players would have done, has increased. Basso continuo, though an essential structural and identifying element of the Baroque period, rapidly declined in the classical period (up to around 1800). A late example is C. P. E. Bach’s Concerto in D minor for flute, strings and basso continuo (1747). Examples of its use in the 19th century are rarer, but they do exist: masses by Anton Bruckner, Beethoven, and Franz Schubert, for example, have a basso continuo part that was for an organist.

Half-diminished seventh chord

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Expressive potential#

The half-diminished seventh chord is frequently used in passages that convey heightened emotion. For example, the “mournful affect” of the sombre opening Chorus of J. S. Bach’s St Matthew Passion (1727) features the chord on the seventh beat of its first bar and on the first beat of its third bar: Similarly in the Et incarnatus est section from Michael Haydn’s Missa Sancti Nicolai Tolentini (1768): In contrast, however, one of the most striking and best known examples of a half diminished seventh can be found in a piece that expresses joyful celebration, namely the chord that follows the fanfare at the start of the Wedding March from Mendelssohn’s incidental music to A Midsummer Night’s Dream (1842). An instance of the power latent in this “quintessentially dramatic chord” can be found in the “shriek of despair” that launches the “torrent of fury” that is Chopin’s Scherzo No. 1 (1835): Wagner frequently used the chord for dramatic and expressive effect. (The chord that opens Tristan und Isolde (1859) is the best known and most-discussed example.) However, in his final opera Parsifal (1882), the composer used the half-diminished seventh to colour a leitmotif that conveys how its hero develops as the story progresses. In the first Act, the music portrays Parsifal as vigorous, youthful and naïve. His leitmotif consists almost entirely of diatonic chords: “As the hero grows in wisdom, so his music develops.” When Parsifal re-appears in the final act, set many years later, half-diminished chords permeate the leitmotif. The chromatic harmony here conveys “a deeply sad and resigned impression” In the opening section of his Fantasy-Overture, Romeo and Juliet (1880), Tchaikovsky follows a minor chord with a half-diminished chord to striking effect: Gustav Mahler saw the opening movement of his Symphony No. 7 " (1905) as a tragic night without stars or moonlight." The low register of the half-diminished chord at the start appropriately conveys a dark, brooding character. A striking phrase on the tenor horn unfolds the chord as an arpeggio in the second bar. In his book celebrating popular songs of the first half of the twentieth century, musicologist Allen Forte writes, “The half-diminished seventh chord is in many respects the star of the seventh chord harmonic cast. Many songs in the classic American popular song repertoire reserve it for their most intensely expressive moments.” Forte cites as a particular example George Gershwin’s use of the chord in his song “Embraceable You”. Other examples in the popular song repertoire that use the half-diminished seventh chord include “From This Moment On” by Cole Porter, where the opening phrase of the melody unfolds the chord as an arpeggio and “Because” by the Beatles.

Harmony

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Etymology and definitions#

The term harmony derives from the Greek harmonia, meaning “joint, agreement, concord”, from the verb harmozō, “(Ι) fit together, join”. Aristoxenus wrote a work entitled Elements of Harmony, which is thought the first work in European history written on the subject of harmony. In this book, Aristoxenus refers to previous experiments conducted by Pythagoreans to determine the relationship between small integer ratios and consonant notes (e.g., 1:2 describes an octave relationship, which is a doubling of frequency). While identifying as a Pythagorean, Aristoxenus claims that numerical ratios are not the ultimate determinant of harmony; instead, he claims that the listener’s ear determines harmony. Current dictionary definitions, while attempting to give concise descriptions, often highlight the ambiguity of the term in modern use. Ambiguities tend to arise from either aesthetic considerations (for example the view that only pleasing concords may be harmonious) or from the point of view of musical texture (distinguishing between harmonic (simultaneously sounding pitches) and “contrapuntal” (successively sounding tones)). According to A. Whittall: The view that modern tonal harmony in Western music began in about 1600 is commonplace in music theory. This is usually accounted for by the replacement of horizontal (or contrapuntal) composition, common in the music of the Renaissance, with a new emphasis on the vertical element of composed music. Modern theorists, however, tend to see this as an unsatisfactory generalisation. According to Carl Dahlhaus: Descriptions and definitions of harmony and harmonic practice often show bias towards European (or Western) musical traditions, although many cultures practice vertical harmony. In addition, South Asian art music (Hindustani and Carnatic music) is frequently cited as placing little emphasis on what is perceived in western practice as conventional harmony; the underlying harmonic foundation for most South Asian music is the drone, a held open fifth interval (or fourth interval) that does not alter in pitch throughout the course of a composition. Pitch simultaneity in particular is rarely a major consideration. Nevertheless, many other considerations of pitch are relevant to the music, its theory and its structure, such as the complex system of Ragas, which combines both melodic and modal considerations and codifications within it. So, intricate pitch combinations that sound simultaneously do occur in Indian classical music – but they are rarely studied as teleological harmonic or contrapuntal progressions – as with notated Western music. This contrasting emphasis (with regard to Indian music in particular) manifests itself in the different methods of performance adopted: in Indian Music, improvisation takes a major role in the structural framework of a piece, whereas in Western Music improvisation has been uncommon since the end of the 19th century. Where it does occur in Western music (or has in the past), the improvisation either embellishes pre-notated music or draws from musical models previously established in notated compositions, and therefore uses familiar harmonic schemes. Emphasis on the precomposed in European art music and the written theory surrounding it shows considerable cultural bias. The Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians (Oxford University Press) identifies this clearly: Yet the evolution of harmonic practice and language itself, in Western art music, is and was facilitated by this process of prior composition, which permitted the study and analysis by theorists and composers of individual pre-constructed works in which pitches (and to some extent rhythms) remained unchanged regardless of the nature of the performance.

Homophony

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

European music#

Homophony first appeared as one of the predominant textures in Western classical music during the Baroque period in the early 17th century, when composers began to commonly compose with vertical harmony in mind, the homophonic basso continuo becoming a definitive feature of the style. Jazz and other forms of modern popular music generally feature homophonic influences, following chord progressions over which musicians play a melody or improvise.

African and Asian music#

Homophony has appeared in several non-Western cultures, perhaps particularly in regions where communal vocal music has been cultivated. When explorer Vasco da Gama landed in West Africa in 1497, he referred to the music he heard there as being in “sweet harmony”. While the concept of harmony in that time was not necessarily the same as the concept of homophony as understood by modern scholars, For instance, the Fang people of Gabon use homophony in their music. In eastern Indonesia (i.e. in the music of the Toraja in South Sulawesi, in Flores, in East Kalimantan and in North Sulawesi), two-part harmonies are common, usually in intervals of thirds, fourths or fifths. Additionally, Chinese music is generally thought to be homophonic, since instruments typically provide accompaniment in parallel fourths and fifths and often double the voice in vocal music, heterophony also being common in China.

Inversion (music)

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Intervals#

An interval is inverted by raising or lowering either of the notes by one or more octaves so that the higher note becomes the lower note and vice versa. For example, the inversion of an interval consisting of a C with an E above it (the third measure below) is an E with a C above it – to work this out, the C may be moved up, the E may be lowered, or both may be moved. : \override Score.TimeSignature #‘stencil = ##f \override Score.SpacingSpanner.strict-note-spacing = ##t \set Score.proportionalNotationDuration = #(ly:make-moment 1/4) \new Staff > The tables to the right show the changes in interval quality and interval number under inversion. Thus, perfect intervals remain perfect, major intervals become minor and vice versa, and augmented intervals become diminished and vice versa. (Doubly diminished intervals become doubly augmented intervals, and vice versa.). Traditional interval numbers add up to nine: seconds become sevenths and vice versa, thirds become sixths and vice versa, and so on. Thus, a perfect fourth becomes a perfect fifth, an augmented fourth becomes a diminished fifth, and a simple interval (that is, one that is narrower than an octave) and its inversion, when added together, equal an octave. See also complement (music).

Modulation (music)

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Requirements#

Harmonic: quasi-tonic, modulating dominant, pivot chord
Melodic: recognizable segment of the scale of the quasi-tonic or strategically placed leading-tone
Metric and rhythmic: quasi-tonic and modulating dominant on metrically accented beats, prominent pivot chord The quasi-tonic is the tonic of the new key established by the modulation. The modulating dominant is the dominant of the quasi-tonic. The pivot chord precedes the modulating dominant, and is common to both the key of the immediately preceding tonic, and the new key of the quasi-tonic. For example, in a modulation to the dominant, ii/V–V/V–V could be a pivot chord, modulating dominant, and quasi-tonic.

Common-chord modulation#

Common-chord modulation (also known as diatonic-pivot-chord modulation) moves from the original key to the destination key (usually a closely related key) by way of a chord both keys share: “Most modulations are made smoother by using one or more chords that are common to both keys.” For example, G major and D major have four triad chords in common: G major, B minor, D major and E minor. This can be easily determined by a chart similar to the one below, which compares triad qualities. The I chord in G major—a G major chord—is also the IV chord in D major, so I in G major and IV in D major are aligned on the chart. : Any chord with the same root note and chord quality (major, minor, diminished) can be used as the pivot chord. Therefore, chords that are not generally found in the style of the piece (for example, major VII chords in a J. S. Bach-style chorale) are also not likely to be chosen as the pivot chord. The most common pivot chords are the predominant chords (ii and IV) in the new key. In analysis of a piece that uses this style of modulation, the common chord is labeled with its function in both the original and the destination keys, as it can be heard either way. Where an altered chord is used as a pivot chord in either the old or new key (or both), this would be referred to as altered common chord modulation, in order to distinguish the chromaticism that would be introduced from the otherwise diatonic method.

Monophony

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Western singing#

According to the modern medieval scholar Ardis Butterfield, monophony “is the dominant mode of the European vernacular genres as well as of Latin song … in polyphonic works, it remains a central compositional principle.”

Plainchant#

The earliest recorded Christian monophony was plainchant or plainsong (of which one well-known style was called Gregorian chant) a single unaccompanied vocal melody sung by monks. Sung by multiple voices in unison (i.e. the same pitch and rhythm), this music is still considered monophonic. Plainsong was the first and foremost musical style of Italy, Ireland, Spain, and France. In the early 9th century, the organum tradition developed by adding voices in parallel to plainchant melodies. The earliest organum merely augmented the texture of the melody by adding a second voice in parallel octaves or parallel fifths, which could still be considered monophonic; however, by the 11th century the organum had developed a style called “free organum” in which the voices were more independent, evolving into a polyphonic tradition.

Neapolitan chord

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Origin of the name#

Especially in its most common occurrence (as a triad in first inversion), the chord is known as the Neapolitan sixth: * The chord is called “Neapolitan” because it is associated with the Neapolitan School, which included Alessandro Scarlatti, Giovanni Battista Pergolesi, Giovanni Paisiello, Domenico Cimarosa, and other important 18th-century composers of Italian opera. But it seems already to have been an established, if infrequent, harmonic practice by the end of the 17th century, used by Giacomo Carissimi, Arcangelo Corelli, and Henry Purcell. It was also a favorite idiom among composers in the Classical period, especially Ludwig van Beethoven, who extended its use in root-position and second-inversion chords also. * It is called a “sixth” because the interval between the bass note and the root of the chord is a minor sixth. For example, in the key of C major or C minor the chord consists of D (the root note), F (the third of the triad), and A (the fifth of the triad) – with the F in the bass, to make it a II 6 rather than a root-position II. The interval of a minor sixth is between F and D.

Ninth chord

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Dominant ninth chord#

A dominant ninth chord is a dominant seventh chord plus a major ninth above the root. For instance, a C dominant ninth chord (C 9 ) consists of the notes C–E–G–B–D. : \override Score.TimeSignature #‘stencil = ##f \relative c’ \time 4/4 \set Score.tempoHideNote = ##t \tempo 1 = 20 1 When the symbol “9” is not preceded by the word “major” or “maj” (e.g., C 9 ), the chord is a dominant ninth. The ninth is commonly chromatically altered by half-step either up or down to create more tension and dissonance. Fétis tuned the chord 4:5:6:7:9. In the common practice period, “the root, 3rd, 7th, and 9th are the most common factors present in the V 9 chord,” with the 5th, “typically omitted”. The ninth and seventh usually resolve downward to the fifth and third of I. is a chord consisting of the notes B, F, B, D, A and C. According to Nicholas Cook, Stimmung could, in terms of conventional tonal harmony, be viewed as “simply a dominant ninth chord that is subject to timbral variation. The notes the performers sing are harmonics 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, and 9 of the implied but absent fundamental—the B flat below the bass clef.”

Nonchord tone

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Theory#

Chord and nonchord tones are defined by their membership (or lack of membership) in a chord: “The pitches which make up a chord are called chord-tones: any other pitches are called non-chord-tones.” They are also defined by the time at which they sound: “Nonharmonic tones are pitches that sound along with a chord but are not chord pitches.” For example, if an excerpt from a piece of music implies or uses a C-major chord, then the notes C, E and G are members of that chord, while any other note played at that time (e.g., notes such as F) is a nonchord tone. Such tones are most obvious in homophonic music but occur at least as frequently in contrapuntal music. According to Music in Theory and Practice, “Most nonharmonic tones are dissonant and create intervals of a second, fourth or seventh”, which are required to resolve to a chord tone in conventional ways. If the note fails to resolve until the next change of harmony, it may instead create a seventh chord or extended chord. While theoretically in a three-note chord, there are nine possible nonchord tones in equal temperament, in practice nonchord tones are usually in the prevailing key. Augmented and diminished intervals are also considered dissonant, and all nonharmonic tones are measured from the bass note, or lowest note sounding in the chord except in the case of nonharmonic bass tones. Nonharmonic tones generally occur in a pattern of three pitches, of which the nonharmonic tone is the center: : Nonchord tones are categorized by how they are used. The most important distinction is whether they occur on a strong or weak beat and are thus either accented or unaccented nonchord tones. They are also distinguished by their direction of approach and departure and the voice or voices in which they occur and the number of notes they contain.

Plagal cadence

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

History#

As early as the early 16th century, German music theorists described the plagal cadence as a (formal close). 18th century music theorists including Guillaume-Gabriel Nivers, Charles Masson, and Jean-Philippe Rameau analyzed the cadence, calling it a (imperfect cadence) or (irregular cadence).

Modern use#

Plagal cadences are commonly used in rock music: the IV chord is the most common chord preceding the tonic in rock music other than the tonic itself. Modern rock songs that utilize a plagal cadence include “Billie Jean” by Michael Jackson, “Fortunate Son” by Creedence Clearwater Revival, “Hound Dog” by Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller, and “In My Life” by The Beatles. The fourth and sixth scale degrees, which are used in the IV chord, are rarely treated as stable in rock music.

Polyphony

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Antecedents#

Polyphony in traditional music has a wide, if uneven, distribution among the peoples of the world. Most polyphonic regions of the world are in sub-Saharan Africa, Europe and Oceania. There are two contradictory approaches to explaining the origins of vocal polyphony: the Cultural Model and the Evolutionary Model. According to the Cultural Model, the origins of polyphony are connected to the development of human musical culture; polyphony came about as the natural development of primordial monophonic singing; this leads to polyphonic traditions gradually replacing monophonic traditions. According to the Evolutionary Model, polyphonic singing is connected to earlier stages of human evolution, as an important part of a hominid defence system, and traditions of polyphony are gradually disappearing all over the world.

Root (chord)

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Root vs. bass note#

The root of a chord need not be its bass note (i.e., its lowest note). If the root is the bass note, then the chord is said to be in root position; otherwise, it is an inverted chord. A triad can be in three possible positions: (1) root position, with its root in the bass; (2) first inversion, with its third in the bass; or (3) second inversion, with its fifth in the bass. In the music below, the root of each triad is shown in red. : \new Staff \override Score.SpacingSpanner.strict-note-spacing = ##t \set Score.proportionalNotationDuration = #(ly:make-moment 1/4) \override Score.TimeSignature.stencil = ##f \time 4/4 \set Score.tempoHideNote = ##t \tempo 1 = 20 1^\markup \column “Root” “position” ^\markup \column “First” “inversion” ^\markup \column “Second” “inversion” \new Voice \voiceOne \shiftOff \relative c’ \override NoteHead.color = #red c1 a’ f » Seventh chords and chords with higher extensions can similarly be inverted.

Secondary chord

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Secondary dominant#

A secondary dominant (also applied dominant, artificial dominant, or borrowed dominant) is a major triad or dominant seventh chord built and set to resolve to a scale degree other than the tonic. The dominant (seventh) of the dominant (written as V 7 /V or V 7 of V) is the most frequently encountered. The chord that the secondary dominant is the dominant of is said to be a temporarily tonicized chord. The secondary dominant is normally, though not always, followed by the tonicized chord. Tonicizations that last longer than a phrase are generally regarded as modulations to a new key (or new tonic). According to music theorists David Beach and Ryan C. McClelland, " t he purpose of the secondary dominant is to place emphasis on a chord within the diatonic progression." The secondary-dominant terminology is still usually applied even if the chord resolution is nonfunctional. For example, the V/ii label is still used even if the V/ii chord is not followed by ii.

Seventh chord

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Classification#

Most textbooks name these chords formally by the type of triad and type of seventh; hence, a chord consisting of a major triad and a minor seventh above the root is referred to as a major/minor seventh chord. When the triad type and seventh type are identical (i.e. they are both major, minor, or diminished), the name is shortened. For instance, a major/major seventh is generally referred to as a major seventh. This rule is not valid for augmented chords: since the augmented/augmented chord is not commonly used, the abbreviation augmented is used for augmented/minor, rather than augmented/augmented. Additionally, half-diminished stands for diminished/minor, and dominant stands for major/minor. When the type is not specified at all, the triad is assumed to be major, and the seventh is understood as a minor seventh (e.g. a “C” chord is a “C major triad”, and a “C 7 " chord is a “C major/minor seventh chord”, also known as a “C dominant seventh chord”). For symbols used for seventh chords, see also .

Suspended chord

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Definition#

The term derives from suspensions in counterpoint, where tones of a previous chord are suspended into the next harmony. The suspension creates a dissonance which must be resolved. A common suspension is a fourth above the root resolving to the third of the chord. Sevenths, ninths, and seconds are also common suspensions. As tonality expanded, classical composers began embracing less functional harmony structured in fourths and fifths. In popular music, it also became commonplace to leave suspensions in place without resolving them. Popular musicians further dispensed with the requirement that the suspended note originate in the preceding harmony. Suspended chords are commonly nicknamed “sus chords”. In chord notation, a number is added to indicate the suspended note, for instance C sus4 . The absence of the third creates an ambiguous, open sound.

Texture (music)

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Common types#

In musical terms, particularly in the fields of music history and music analysis, some common terms for different types of texture are: Many classical pieces feature different kinds of texture within a short space of time. An example is the Scherzo from Schubert’s piano sonata in B major, D575. The first four bars are monophonic, with both hands performing the same melody an octave apart: Bars 5–10 are homophonic, with all voices coinciding rhythmically: Bars 11–20 are polyphonic. There are three parts, the top two moving in parallel (interval of a tenth). The lowest part imitates the rhythm of the upper two at the distance of three beats. The passage climaxes abruptly with a bar’s silence: After the silence, the polyphonic texture expands from three to four independent parts moving simultaneously in bars 21–24. The upper two parts are imitative, the lowest part consists of a repeated note (pedal point) and the remaining part weaves an independent melodic line: The final four bars revert to homophony, bringing the section to a close; A complete performance can be heard by following this link: Listen

Thirteenth (interval)

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Interval#

A thirteenth interval is between two notes that are thirteen scale degrees from the root of a chord and also the interval between the root and the thirteenth. The thirteenth is most commonly major or minor. For instance, the interval between C 4 and A 5 (in scientific pitch notation) is a major thirteenth, while the interval between C 4 and A 5 is a minor thirteenth. : \override Score.TimeSignature #‘stencil = ##f \relative c’ \time 4/4 \set Score.tempoHideNote = ##t \tempo 1 = 20 1

Triad (music)

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

History#

In the late Renaissance music era, and especially during the Baroque music era (1600–1750), Western art music shifted from a more “horizontal” contrapuntal approach (in which multiple, independent melody lines were interwoven) toward progressions, which are sequences of triads. The progression approach, which was the foundation of the Baroque-era basso continuo accompaniment, required a more “vertical” approach, thus relying more heavily on the triad as the basic building block of functional harmony. The primacy of the triad in Western music was first theorized by Gioseffo Zarlino (1500s), and the term “harmonic triad” was coined by Johannes Lippius in his Synopsis musicae novae (1612).

Voice leading

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Example#

The score below shows the first four measures of the C-major prelude from J.S. Bach’s The Well-Tempered Clavier, Book 1. Letter (a) presents the original score while (b) and (c) present reductions (simplified versions) intended to clarify the harmony and implied voice leading, respectively. : #(set-global-staff-size 14) > \new Staff > » \new PianoStaff 1^\markup “Harmony (block chords)” \addlyrics I II V I » » \new PianoStaff > \new Staff > » » In (b), the same measures are presented as four block chords (with two inverted): I – II – V – I. In (c), the four measures are presented as five horizontal voices identified by the direction of the stems, which are added even though the notes are actually whole notes, making them look like half notes. Notice that each voice consists of just three played notes due to the ties: from top to bottom, (1) E F — E; (2) C D — C; (3) G A G —; (4) E D — E; (5) C — B C. The four chords result from the fact that the voices do not move at the same time.

Chords & Harmony on Music Theory Print

Augmented sixth chord

Augmented sixth interval#

Augmented triad

Analysis#

Borrowed chord

Common borrowed chords#

Cadence

Common classifications#

Chord (music)

Definition#

Chord progression

Basic theory#

Consonance and dissonance

Definitions#

Counterpoint

General principles#

Diminished seventh chord

Analysis#

Diminished triad

Harmonic function#

Eleventh chord

Relation to suspended fourth chord#

See also#

Figured bass

Basso continuo#

Half-diminished seventh chord

Expressive potential#

Harmony

Etymology and definitions#

Homophony

European music#

African and Asian music#

Inversion (music)

Intervals#

Modulation (music)

Requirements#

Common-chord modulation#

Monophony

Western singing#

Plainchant#

Neapolitan chord

Origin of the name#

Ninth chord

Dominant ninth chord#

Nonchord tone

Theory#

Plagal cadence

History#

Modern use#

Polyphony

Antecedents#

Root (chord)

Root vs. bass note#

Secondary chord

Secondary dominant#

Seventh chord

Classification#

Suspended chord

Definition#

Texture (music)

Common types#

Thirteenth (interval)

Interval#

Triad (music)

History#

Voice leading

Example#