Substitute chords: substituting one chord for another

Substitutions for a dominant seventh chord

Below I show you all the possibilities for replacing a dominant seventh chord.

1. Extensions, tensions and inversions of the chord. Example: a C7 can be replaced by a C9,
C(b9), etc.
2. Any type of minor chord placed a perfect fifth above. Example: a C7 can be replaced by a
Gm7, Gm9, etc.
3. A semi-diminished chord (m7b5) located a major third above the root. Example: a C7 can be
replaced by an Em7b5 (which would actually be a C9 without a root).
4. Any type of major chord located one tone below the tonic. Example: You can replace a C7
with a BbMaj7.
5. A major chord located one tone above the tonic. Example: You can replace a C7 with a D.
6. Any type of chord located a diminished fifth above the tonic. Example: A C7 can be replaced
by a GbMaj7, Gb9, etc.
7. A minor chord with a major seventh or minor sixth located a half step above the root note.
Example: a C7 can be replaced by a Dbm7, Dbm6, etc.
8. Any dominant seventh chord whose root is in the diminished chord arising from the root of the
original chord. Example: a C7 can be replaced by an Eb7, Gb7-A7 .
9. An altered major seventh chord one step below the root and all (altered) major seventh chords
whose roots are on the diminished seventh chord starting one step below the root of the
original chord. Example: a C7 can be replaced by a BbMaj7b5, DbMaj7b5, EMaj7b5 and
GMaj7b5 .
10. An altered minor seventh chord located a perfect fifth above the root and any altered minor
seventh chord whose root lies on the diminished chord beginning on the root of the original
chord. Example: a C7 can be replaced by a Gm7, Bbm6, Dbm6, Em7b5.
11. Altered dominant 7th chords every 2 frets above and below the root, every 3 frets above and
below the root, and every 4 frets above and below the root.

SUBSTITUTIONS FOR MAJOR CHORDS

1. Adding extensions, tensions and any chord inversions.

2. Any type of minor chord located a major third above the root. Example: You can replace a
CMaj9 with an Em7.
3. Any type of minor chord located a minor third below the root. Example: You can replace a
CMaj9 with an Am7.
4. Any type of chord a diminished fifth above the root, especially if the original chord resolves a
just fourth above. Example: You can replace a CMaj9 with a GbMaj7, Gb7, Gbm7 ....
5. A dominant seventh chord, usually altered.

SUBSTITUTIONS FOR minor CHORDS

1. Extensions, tensions and inversions of the chord.

 2. Any type of major chord located a minor third above the root. Example: You can replace a
Cm7 with an EbMaj7 .
3. Any type of major chord located a major third below the root. Example: You can replace a
Cm7 with an AbMaj7.
4. Any type of dominant seventh chord located a perfect fourth above the root. Example: You can
replace a Cm7 with an F11.
5. Any type of dominant seventh chord built on the same root as the original chord. This type of
substitution is common when the minor chord resolves a just fourth above.
6. Any type of chord located a diminished fifth above the root. Example: You can replace a Cm7
with a GbMaj7 .
7. Any type of minor seventh chord whose root is found in the diminished seventh chord built on
the root of the original chord. Example: You can replace a Cm7 with an Ebm7 , Gbm7 and
Am7.

Harmonic function of a chord

When we want to make a diatonic substitution we must use chords that have the same harmonic
function. This can be done because chords of the same function are very similar to each other, they share
several notes and have the same characteristics.

To group the chords we must know the different harmonic functions: Tonic, Subdominant, Dominant
and know which chord is part of which group, let's see how the chords are organized according to their
harmonic function within the major scale and the minor scale:

Harmonic functions within the major scale:

Chords with tonic harmonic function: I iii vi

Chords with subdominant harmonic function: ii IV
Chords with dominant harmonic function: V vii°

If we applied this to the G major scale, for example, the chords would be distributed as follows:

Chords with tonic harmonic function: G Bm Em

Chords with subdominant harmonic function: Am C
Chords with dominant harmonic function: D F#°

Harmonic functions within the minor scale:

Chords with tonic harmonic function: I iii vi

Chords with subdominant harmonic function: ii IV VII
Chords with dominant harmonic function: V vii°

If we applied this to the E minor scale, for example, the chords would be distributed as follows:
Chords with tonic harmonic function: Em G C
Chords with subdominant harmonic function: F#° Am D
Chords with dominant harmonic function: B D#°

Now that we know how the chords are divided within the major and minor scale, we will proceed to
make harmonic substitutions:

Harmonic substitutions of diatonic type

Let's look at the following example, we have a repeating harmonic progression that is composed of
chords with different harmonic functions: C Dm Am G

This progression is in a C scale, we find two chords with a tonic function: C and Am (I and vi) degrees
of the scale, we find a chord with a subdominant function: Dm (ii) degree of the scale and we have a
dominant : G (V) scale degree.

Now let's use this to replace them with other chords that have the same function:

As a first example I am going to replace the subdominant, within the major scale I have another
subdominant which is the F chord (IV) degree of the scale, if I wish I can use F within the harmonic
progression instead of the Dm chord.

C Dm Am G = C F Am G

Now let's make a new substitution but on the dominant, we are going to use the other dominant of the
scale (vii) which would be a B° chord:

C Dm Am G = C Dm Am B°

I can also change some of the tonic chords for the tonic that we have within the scale and have not used
yet, I am talking about the Em chord (iii) degree of the scale.

C Dm Am G = C Dm Em G

In the three previous examples I only changed one chord, but this does not mean that you can't change
several:

C Dm Am G = C F Em B°

Substitutions are a good way to gain variety within songs that repeat the harmonic cycle many times,
they are a great tool for composing and giving our personal touch to the songs we perform.

If you want, you can read the other article we have on the blog where we talk specifically about the
harmonic functions of chords: Harmonic functions
These concepts are covered in greater depth in our complete theory course , more than 200 lessons and
15 hours of video.

diminished chords

The diminished chord appears within the harmonic minor scale, specifically on its seventh degree, this
type of chord is very versatile when it comes to harmonizing, substituting and experimenting.

Diminished chords with a seventh have a particularity, they are built only with minor thirds:

C Eb Gb Bbb
BDF Ab

This makes these chords symmetrical since their construction with minor thirds will always take us to
the fundamental note of the chord:

BDF Ab (G#) “B”

This means that the diminished chords when inverted will always maintain the same structure and fulfill
the same function, basically it is like having 4 chords in one, some schools explain that diminished
chords can have 4 fundamentals, others say only 1, the important thing It's really finding a practical use
for it.

Use of diminished chords:

1. Replacing the dominant chord:

A diminished chord can replace a dominant chord, the trick is to start from the third of the dominant and
generate the diminished chord from that note. Let's see the following example: GBDF replace with BDF
Ab

If we superimpose the two chords we will have a GBDF Ab or Gb9

Now the interesting thing about this is that since it is a symmetrical chord, the B° could also be D°, F°
or Ab°, giving us 4 possible substitutions for the dominant chord, which means that G7 could be
replaced by B°, D° , F ° or Ab° maintaining its dominant function.

As an exercise I recommend performing the substitution and moving the chord by minor thirds and
trying the different resolutions, for this particular example make the resolution to a CMaj7 or a Cm7.
This concept can also be applied to secondary dominants, which makes it even more extensive and
interesting.

2. Passing chord:
A diminished chord can function as a passing chord between two chords:

CMaj7 C#° Dm7

Some schools claim that this works exclusively if the chord enters ascendingly as in the previous
example (from C to D ) but the opposite option does not sound bad at all, I personally tend to use it a lot:

DM7 C#° CMaj7

Em7 Eb° Dm7

As always the question is to experiment and try, this chord is very useful thanks to its symmetry and
allows us to make some very interesting and, above all, very beautiful harmonic variations.

If you are looking for a way to improvise it, use the symmetrical scale, this scale is built with a
symmetrical pattern of tone, half tone, tone, half tone, etc.

We develop all of these contents in greater detail in our complete theory course.

How to make a tritonal substitution

The tritonal substitution is made on dominant type chords, particularly it is used to replace the dominant
V degree chord of a major or minor scale.
It consists of changing the dominant chord of the scale for another dominant one but built an augmented
fourth or diminished fifth (Tritone) away. Let's look at some examples:

If we were in the scale of C or Cm, its fifth degree G7 could be changed to Db7
If we were on the scale of F or Fm, its fifth degree C7 could be changed to F#7
If we were on the scale of D or Dm, its fifth degree A7 could be changed to Eb7

In all the cases explained above we have a distance of three tones between the notes (Tritone).

This means that in a harmonic progression where we have the following chords:
Dm7 G7 CMaj7

The G7 chord could be replaced by a Db7 leaving the progression as follows:

Dm7 Db7 Cmaj7
With this tritonal substitution we achieve a couple of things, first we achieve harmonic variety, second
we generate a chromatic movement in the bass, while in the first progression the bass makes leaps of
fourths:
DGC

In the second the bass moves chromatically:

D Db C

Why can a tritonal substitution be made?

The reason why this type of substitution can be made is that the two dominant chords, both the fifth
degree of the scale and its tritone substitute, share the tonal tritone of the scale, this makes them
dominant chords with the same harmonic function within the scale.

Tonal tritone: It is the tritone that is found within the scale, in a major scale it is composed of the fourth
and seventh degrees, in a minor scale by the fourth and seventh degrees as long as the harmonic minor
scale is used.

We see the following example:

Within the C major scale the tritone is composed of the notes F and B , the dominant chord of G7 has
these two notes:

G “B” D “F”

When we use the Db7 tritonal substitute this chord also has these two notes:
Db “F” Ab “Cb” Cb = B

For this reason this substitution can be made and it is really common to find it within Jazz.

What are harmonic functions?

There are three harmonic functions, the Tonic, the subdominant and the dominant, each one generates a
different musical sensation, the tonic, for example, are responsible for generating balance in a song, the
dominant ones are responsible for generating tension and the subdominant ones are a middle ground. ,
they do not generate too much tension but we cannot consider them balance chords either, ideally a
piece of music should have chords of the three functions so that it is not monotonous to the ear.

A major scale has three important notes: the third, fourth and seventh degrees, each of them helps us
determine the harmonic functions of the chords within a key, these notes are known as harmonic
function determinants.

A chord can belong to any of the three harmonic functions, Tonic, Subdominant and Dominant, the idea
is to know to which a chord belongs so that it is possible for me to replace it with another.
The rules for positioning a chord within the harmonic functions are very simple:

1. What determinant of function does ( E, F, B ) have?

The note E tells us that the chord is a tonic

The note F tells us that the chord is a Subdominant
The note B tells us that the chord is a dominant.

2. If it has two determinants, the one located lower in the chord determines the function.

3. Relationship with basic chords.

4. If it has a tritone it is a dominant.

5. Chord inversion

If you look at a chord of Cmaj7 =CEGB , this chord is the main chord of the key so it will be our main
tonic. It also has the grade “E” in one of its first partials.

Now let's look at an FMaj7 chord = FACE has the “ F ” as its fundamental, this makes it our main
Subdominant

And finally let's look at a chord of G7= GBDF, this chord has the “ B” and the “F” which generates a
tritone and makes it our main Dominant.

These three chords will be the main chords of any major key and constitute the basic harmonic cycle par
excellence I IV V.

A major scale generates 4 more chords, let's look at each of these carefully.

The second chord of the scale is a Dm7 = DFAC , this chord has the determinant “F”, if you compare it
with the FMaj7 you will see that they share 3 notes (kinship), if we invert it and place the bass on “F”
we will would give an F6 , for these reasons this chord is without a doubt a subdominant.

The third chord of the scale in an Em7 = EGBD , this chord has the function determinants “ E” and “ B
”, the E is the lowest partial, if we compare it with a CMaj7 we will see that they share 3 notes
“Relationship” ”. This tells us that this chord is a tonic.

This particular chord can change function, if we invert it GBDE we can see that the lowest partial is
now the “B”, we can also see that it also shares 3 notes with the “G” and in this inversion it becomes a
G6, For these reasons we can consider it a dominant.
The sixth chord of the key is an Am7 = ACEG , this chord has the determiner “E” and shares 3 notes
with the CMaj7 chord, for this reason it is a Tonic, some schools use its relationship with the “FMaj7”
chord with which also shares 3 notes to use as a Subdominant.

The seventh chord of the key is a Bm7b5 = BDFA, this chord has the tension determinants “ B ” and “ F
” the lowest partial is the “B”, in addition the “ B ” and the “ F ” generate a tritone for For these reasons
this chord is a Dominant.

Now we know that there are three basic harmonic functions and why they exist, let's put this to practical
use:

Let's look at the following table

Keynotes: IMaj7, iiim7 and vim7

Subdominants: IVMaj7, iim7 and vim7
Dominant: V7, viim7b5 and iiim7 in first inversion.

In C major this would give us:

CMaj, Em7 and Am7 for the tonic notes
Fmaj7, Dm7 and Am7 for the subdominants
G7, Bm7b5 and Em7/G for the dominants.

Harmonic functions are a great tool when used properly, we can replace and complement chords, and
they also help us to have a correct musical structure.

If we have a song whose harmony is:

IMaj7 IVMaj7 V7 IMaj7

We could convert it to:

I iim7 iiim7 (1 inv) vim7

Note: all the examples are cited in C major, so I recommend starting to work on it as always in all the
keys.

We explain all these concepts in more detail in our complete music theory course , this in particular is
one of the most important composition resources, which is why it is essential to know and master it.

The dominant ones by extension

Posted on January 7, 2019 by Miguel Martinez

Category: Theory lessons
The dominants by extension are a complement to the secondary dominants, they serve to highlight
musical passages, generate tension for prolonged periods of time and with the help of the relative chords
to generate very complex progressions from very basic elements.

Dominants by extension make use of the first rule of harmonization “Before any chord can come its V
degree”, this includes a chord that is usually overlooked to apply this principle, the V degree chord of
the scale.

This indicates that within a harmonic progression where a fifth degree is found, whether that of the
tonality or a secondary dominant, a chain of chords can be made as long as desired.

How to apply Dominants by extension

Let's say you have a C chord within a harmonic progression and enough space to apply several more
chords:

Am |  |  | G7 |
C | Dm | G | C |

Before the G7 chord it is possible to apply a dominant “Before any chord you can go its dominant or
V°”

Am |  | D7 | G7 |
C | Dm | G | C |

Now applying this same rule you can do the same with the D7:

Am | A7 | D7 | G7 |
C | Dm | G | C |

A chain of dominant chords has been created composed of the chords of A7 D7 and G7, this is called
dominants by extension, in this case the chain is three chords but can be as extensive as desired:

C#7 | F#7 | B7 | E7 |

A7 | D7 | G7 | C |

These chains accumulate tension that is resolved on the last chord of the progression, usually the main
chord of the key. It is common to find chords that change type, become dominant and begin the chain of
dominants by extension:

C | Dm | G | Am |
A7 | D7 | G7 | C |

In some cases, using tritonal substitutions you can create chromatic type dominant chains, these have an
interesting sound and do not differ much from a regular dominant chain.

D7 | D  7 | C7 | C  7 | B  Maj7

When to use dominants by extension

Dominants by extension open up an interesting range of possibilities. As a resource, they are widely
used in changes in tone. Generating a chain of dominants can soften a distant modulation, making the
arrival at the new tone sound more natural.

They are also interesting for highlighting chords, for example we want a chord within the progression to
stand out, using this resource allows us to reach any chord by accumulating tension, which undoubtedly
stands out when reaching the destination chord.

It is very common with dominants by extension to use a second degree, this chord helps us extend the
harmonic progression much further:

A7 | D7 | G7 | c

With relative seconds:

Em7 A7 | Am7 D7 | Dm7 G7 | c

As we see, the second degree of the dominant chord is used to further extend the progression .

How to improvise dominants by extension

To improvise dominants by extension, it is very useful to use the Lidia b7 scale since it works for
dominant chords whose resolution is not entirely clear.

For these chords it is also useful to use mixolydian type scales, this one, although it generates a lot of
tension in the improvisation, is useful for type 7 chords when they are chained.

As is logical with both the b7 lidia and the mixolydia, the ideal is one per chord, the scale changes as the
harmony moves.

Dominants by extension are a good resource if you want to prolong harmonic progressions and serve to
generate tension in a musical passage.
This type of content is developed in our complete music theory course where this, among many other
resources, is explained in detail.

Deceptive resolution of the dominant chord

Posted on October 15, 2018 by Miguel Martinez — 2 comments

It is common within musical structuring that a dominant chord resolves on the tonic or first degree of the
scale, however sometimes we look for some type of harmonic variation, something with which to break
the musical monotony, this is when a deceptive resolution for A dominant chord can be useful, let's see
what this concept consists of and how we can apply it.

A deceptive resolution consists of resolving the dominant chord in an unexpected way, a resolution on a
chord that does not necessarily have to have a tonic function. This unexpected resolution will help us
generate harmonic variety and, why not say it, take our listener by surprise.

Some of these deceptive resolutions are so common that they do not require a special analysis, such is
the case of the resolution to vim or iiim, which function as substitutions for the tonic chord, which is
why in this article we are going to study and explain the not common resolutions, its special
characteristic will be that the chords are not diatonic, or in other terms that do not belong to the scale.

Non-diatonic deceptive resolution of a dominant chord

V7 to iv#m7 (b5):

This first resolution works due to the great similarity of the iv#m7b5 with the sixth degree chord of our
major scale, let's see what notes make up these chords, we will take the key of C major as an example:

vim = Am = ACEG
iv#m7b5 = F#m7b5 = F# ACE

We see that these chords share 3 notes, so a resolution of this type works effectively as a broken
cadence.

V7 to IIIbMaj7

This Deceptive Resolution works well within the major scale and is taken as a modal exchange, the
IIIbMaj7 chord is part of the minor scale, by bringing it to the major scale as a modal exchange we will
have a slightly strange sensation that can help us to generate a modulation.

On C major the harmonic progression would be as follows:

G7 EbMaj7

Interpreted correctly through Voice leading we can soften the resolution:

Feb
DC
B Bb
GG

V7 to iibMaj7

In this resolution we are going to find a special sonority, it is resolving the dominant to what would be
its tritonal substitution if it were done with a type 7 chord, usually after this chord the I degree chord is
used, generating a sensation of chromatic movement.

On C major the harmonic progression would be as follows:

G7 DbMaj7

V7 to VIbMaj7

Another deceptive resolution brought as a modal exchange from the parallel minor scale, this resolution
can help us make a change of mode, if we take as an example the key of C major we will find that the
note C found in the VIbMaj7 works as a thread for us conductor within the harmonic progression. In
addition, a sensation of chromatic movement is generated when making the harmonic progression.

Let's see how the progression would look like:

G7 AbMaj7

V7 to VIIbMaj7

Of the different types of deceptive resolution, this is one of the most interesting, the VIIbMaj7 chord
does not appear within the relative minor or parallel, however the similarity of this chord to a
subdominant allows us to generate a plague-type resolution of the dominant, If we take the key of C as
an example, the VIIbMaj7 chord would be BbMaj7, if we look at its notes we will find the following:

BbMaj7: Bb D F A
We see that the chord shares three notes with the subdominant of the 2nd degree and two with the
subdominant of the 4th degree. This melodic coherence allows us to use this chord as a deceptive
resolution.

With this we close this article about the Deceptive Resolution of the dominant, soon we will talk about
how we can return to the key after using a resolution of this type.

If you are interested in finding out more about this concept, we invite you to take our complete music
theory course , where this concept and many more are explained in video, text, you will have teaching
support and access to the content is for life.

Dominant chords or 7 chords

Published on March 30, 2019 by Miguel Martínez

In today's lesson we will talk about the 7th chords or dominant chords, we will see
how they are constructed, how they are applied and what their function is within the
harmonic progressions.

We invite you to watch the following lesson from our YouTube channel:

When we talk about 7th chords we must understand something very important, the 7th
or dominant chord is part of the family of seventh chords that includes the chords:
Maj7, m7, 7, m7b5, dis7, 7#5, 7b5, mMaj7, among others.

Within a major or minor scale, the dominant chord is the second most important
chord, along with the tonic or fundamental, the fifth degree of a scale is the one that
generates all the movement of a harmonic progression, it must always seek balance or
tension using one of the two chords.

The function of the 7th or dominant chords is to generate tension, to understand this
we must understand that music moves in two poles, tension and balance, in a piece of
music usually the chord on which it ends or final chord is usually the chord of balance
and the fifth degree of the scale is usually the tension chord. To better understand this
concept, I invite you to play the following chord sequence on the guitar:

C Am Dm G
Now let's change the endings and end on each of the following chords:

C Am Dm G “Am”
C Am Dm G “Dm”
C Am Dm G “G”

We can notice when doing this that there is no clear feeling of ending, it always feels
like something is missing, but if we finish the chord sequence in the following way we
will feel a clear and forceful ending:

C Am Dm G “C”

This happens because in this case the C chord is the main chord of the scale and since
it is the first degree it is the one that generates balance, the other chords of the scale
have the function of generating tension, some to a greater degree than others.

The V chord is the one that generates the most tension, that is why CG or DA
combinations are so common in songs, in this case we are talking about an IV
relationship, “balance / tension”

In our previous example, the V chord would be the G chord. If we want this chord to
generate much more tension than it already generates, we use it as a dominant type
chord or 7th chord (G7) and not as a major chord (G). ), in our previous example the
chord sequence would look like this:

C Am Dm G7

We must understand that the 7th chords may or may not appear in the songs we
perform, but if the V chord appears as a major and not as a dominant, it does not
indicate under any circumstances that we cannot implement it, we only have to
identify the fifth degree of the scale. in which we are and convert it into 7 chords, we
see the following examples:

F Gm C Dm = F Gm C7 Dm
AF#m C#m E = AF#m C#m E7

In this way we can apply our 7 chords to generate tension on any song, we just need to
identify the scale we are in and apply the dominant chord on the V degree of the scale.
The fifth degree chord works better when tension is added, for this reason it is
common to find it with ninths C7 (b9) or with trecenas c/ (b9 b13) the more loaded it
generates the greater tension and therefore is more effective.

Now I want to talk a little about the composition of this chord and why it is a great
tension generator.

Chord structure 7
1 3 5 7m

First degree, major third, perfect fifth and minor seventh, between degrees 3 and 7
what is known as a tritone is generated and when we do it on the fifth degree of the
scale
we have a tonal tritone:

If we are in the C major scale the tritone would be comprised of the notes: F and B

CDEFGAB

These notes are part of the G7 V chord of C: GBDF

Having the tonal tritone is the reason why this chord generates so much tension and
always makes us return to the first degree.

Summary:
Music is divided between tension and balance
Balance is represented by the I degree
The voltage is represented by the V degree
If we want to generate more tension we can make the fifth degree chord 7 or
dominant.

The reason why the 7th chords or dominant chords located above the V degree
generate tension is because it has the tonal tritone.

If you want to learn more about chords and their application, we invite you to learn
about our complete music theory course.
What are 6 chords and how do they
work?
Posted on December 10, 2018 by Miguel Martinez — 3 comments

Category: Theory lessons

In this lesson we are going to talk about the 6th chords or chords with a sixth, we will
see their construction and their application in music.

What are 6 chords?

The chord with a sixth is characterized by breaking the sequence of thirds that is
normally used to build a chord, it is made from a major triad and is complemented
with a sixth, this breaks the pattern by having a second between the fifth and the sixth
of the chord , this means that a chord with a sixth does NOT use a seventh, it is a
major triad with an added sixth degree.

Construction of chords 6
The sixth chord or 6th chords are basically a triad to which the sixth degree or a major
second is added from the fifth of the chord. Let's look at some examples:

If we have a C chord: C EG

We only have to add the sixth degree “A” to complete the chord, it would look like
this:

CEGA

We see that between the notes G (fifth of the chord) and A there is a second, this is
where the classic structure of the chord is broken by thirds, if you still do not know
how to build basic chords you can go through this article first, “How to build chords”

On a B chord it would look like this:

B D# F#

The major sixth or a major second is added to this chord from the fifth degree:

B D# F# G#

In this way the B6 chord is found

It is not common to find this chord in a minor form, however if it were to be

constructed it should take a major sixth.

Using chords 6
The 6 chords have few restrictions when it comes to being applied, they can easily
replace any major type chord giving it a slightly softer sound.

The sixth chord has a special use as a substitute for Maj7 type chords, let's see why:

The Maj7 chord can present problems when applied in a piece of music, to do it
correctly it is essential to monitor what happens with the melody, in this particular
case if the melody is on the tonic of the chord it is not convenient to use a seventh,
The reason is the interval of a second that would be formed between it and the
melody.

It is in this case when it is preferable to use a chord with a sixth, the interval created is
a third which constitutes a consonance and does not clash with the melody.

Let's remember the most important points:

1. The sixth chord is a major triad with a major sixth

2. It is not common to find it in minor form.
3. It is used to replace Maj7 chords when the melody of the musical piece is in
the tonic of the chord.

If you want to learn more about chords, their uses and applications, we invite
you to take our complete music theory course.
The suspended chords
Posted on October 24, 2018 by Miguel Martinez — 7 comments

Category: Theory lessons

Tag: Suspended chords

If you have always wanted to know what that sus2 or sus4 next to a chord
means, you are now just a few seconds away from finding out. In this article
we will talk about suspended chords, we will see how they are constructed
and how they are applied within a piece of music.

These chords are very common due to how easy they are to apply in any
musical style. Due to their soft sound, they serve to replace chords that
otherwise do not work in what we are playing or composing.

In the next lesson on our YouTube channel we will explain how these chords
work:

The suspended chords

The first thing we must learn about suspended chords is that they are neither
major nor minor, they simply comprise other types of chords, the reason why
they are called suspended is because they change one of their notes,
specifically the third for the second or the fourth with respect to the
fundamental.

The third of a chord is its most important note, it is the one that defines
whether the chord is major or minor, for this reason when we delete it we will
have a chord without a definition of type, something similar to what happens
with power chords.

We have two possibilities to change the third of a chord for another note, the
first is a second, however we must take into account that this second is always
major or of one tone:
E G B = Em
E F B = Error, the second is half a tone
E F# B = Esus2

We see in the previous example how the Em chord changes its third degree
“G” which is the note that defines whether the chord is major or minor, for the
note F#, we must use this altered note so that it adds the complete tone that
we need.

The other note that we can use in suspended chords to replace the third is a
perfect fourth, using the previous example we will see that:

E G B = Em
E A B = Esus4

The perfect fourth must be two and a half tones from the root of the chord, in
this way we ensure that the suspension of the chord has been done correctly.

Once we understand that it is about changing the third of a chord for the
second or fourth, we can apply this concept to almost all types of chord, we
could do it on chords with a seventh, finding chords like CMaj7sus2 or
C7sus4, the latter is one of the most used chords in music.

The V7sus4 is a chord that works as a dominant, only it is a little softer, it is

used when you want to have a light dominant, without so much attraction
towards the tonic.

Suspended chords, unlike other types of chords, do not have application rules;
they can be placed on any chord at any time in the harmonic progression.
However, since it is a chord without further definition due to the lack of the
third degree, it should be used with caution. If it is used excessively we can
feel that the harmonic progression has become weak.

Conclusion:

1. Suspended chords replace the third with the second or fourth with respect to
the tonic.
2. They can be used freely on any chord, they do not have any type of
restriction.
3. They work well on dominant chords since they help us smooth out the
function of the chord within the harmonic progression.

We work on these concepts in greater depth in our complete electric guitar

and acoustic guitar courses.

Posted on August 6, 2018 by Miguel Martinez — 2 comments

Category: Theory lessons

The 13th chords are the last extension for triad chords, these chords have
seven notes, use all possible partials and are characterized by being used for
dominant type chords, these chords must be used on the fifth degrees of the
major scale and minor.

In this lesson we will talk about their construction, application and how to
finger them on the guitar.

I will show two procedures to build 13th chords, by thirds and intervals, the
second method is the most recommended for this type of chord.

How to build chords 13

Method 1: Build 13th Chords by Consecutive Thirds

Chord 7 (9 13)
Chords of this type are used to replace the fifth degree within a major key,
within its construction a major third, a minor, a minor, a major and a perfect
fifth are used, this chord is characterized by not using eleventh in its
construction. With this formula you can easily reach this chord from any note.

For this example the note G will be used:

GB, we have a two-tone major third.
BD, you have a minor third of a tone and a half.
DF, you have a minor third of a tone and a half.
FA, you have a two-tone major third.
AE, we have a perfect fifth of three and a half tones.
The G7 chord (9 13) is composed of the notes GBDFA E.

Chord 7 (b9 b13)

The 7th chord (b9 b13) is a chord that is used to replace the fifth degree
within the minor key, in its structure it uses a major third, a minor, a minor, a
minor and a perfect fifth, this chord is characterized by no use oncena in its
construction.

Below is an example from note C:

CE, we have a two-tone major third.
EG, e has a minor third of a tone and a half.
G Bb, you have a minor third of a tone and a half.
Bb Db, you have a minor third of a tone and a half.
D Ab, we have a perfect fifth of three and a half tones.
The C7 chord (b9 b13) is composed of the notes CEG Bb Db Ab.

For these chords it is easier to use the interval method, if you start by taking
the chord with
seventh as a starting point, you only have to add the ninth and the thirteenth
to get the chord.

Method 2: Build Chords with Elevens by Intervals

Chord 7 (9 13)

The 7 chord (9 13) is composed of a major third, a perfect fifth, a minor

seventh, a
major ninth and a major trecena, with this interval structure you can reach this
chord from any note.

For the following example, note A will be taken:

AC#, you have a two-tone major third.
AE, we have a perfect fifth of three and a half tones.
AG, we have a minor third of five and a half tones.
AB, we have a major ninth of seven tones.
AF#, there is a larger thirteen of ten and a half tones.
The A7 chord (9 13) is composed of the notes AC# EGBF#.
Chord 7 (b9 b13)
The 7th chord (b9 b13) is composed of a major third, a perfect fifth, a minor
seventh, a
minor ninth and a minor thirteenth, with this formula you can reach any chord
from any
note.

For the following example, note D is used.

DF#, you have a minor third of a tone and a half.
DA, you have a perfect fifth of three and a half tones.
DC, you have a five-tone minor seventh.
D Eb, we have a minor ninth of six and a half tones.
D Bb, there is a minor trecena of ten tones.
The D7 chord (b9 b13) is composed of the notes DF# AC Eb Bb.

Posted on June 20, 2018 by Miguel Martinez — 8 comments

Category: Theory lessons

Tag: diminished chords

In this lesson we will learn how diminished chords are constructed and used,
this type of chord is known as the wild card in music, its symmetrical
construction and its different types of resolution make it a very interesting
alternative when what is look for a different sound in a musical passage

In the next video on our channel we will see how to build this chord and how to
use it.

diminished chords
The diminished chord appears within the harmonic minor scale, specifically on
its seventh degree, this type of chord is very versatile when it comes to
harmonizing, substituting and experimenting.

Diminished chords with a seventh have a particularity, they are built only with
minor thirds:
C Eb Gb Bbb

BDF Ab

This makes these chords symmetrical since their construction with minor
thirds will always take us to the fundamental note of the chord:

BDF Ab (G#) “B”

This means that the diminished chords when inverted will always maintain the
same structure and fulfill the same function, basically it is like having 4 chords
in one, some schools explain that diminished chords can have 4
fundamentals, others say only 1, the important thing It's really finding a
practical use for it.

Use of diminished chords:

1. Substitution of the dominant chord:
A diminished chord can replace a dominant chord, the trick is to start from the
third of the dominant and generate the diminished chord from that note. Let's
look at the following example:

GBDF replace with BDF Ab

If we superimpose the two chords we will have a GBDF Ab or Gb9

Now the interesting thing about this is that since it is a symmetrical chord, the
B° could also be D°, F° or Ab°, giving us 4 possible substitutions for the
dominant chord, which means that G7 could be replaced by B°, D° , F° or Ab°
maintaining its dominant function.

As an exercise I recommend performing the substitution and moving the chord

by minor thirds and trying the different resolutions, for this particular example
make the resolution to a CMaj7 or a Cm7.
This concept can also be applied to secondary dominants, which makes it
even more extensive and interesting.

2. Passing chord:
A diminished chord can function as a passing chord between two chords:

CMaj7 C#° Dm7

Some schools claim that this works exclusively if the chord enters ascending
as in the previous example (from C to D) but the opposite option does not
sound bad at all, I personally tend to use it a lot:

DM7 C#° CMaj7

Em7 Eb° Dm7

As always the question is to experiment and try, this chord is very useful
thanks to its symmetry and allows us to make some very interesting and,
above all, very beautiful harmonic variations.

If you are looking for a way to improvise it, use the symmetrical scale, this
scale is built with a symmetrical pattern of tone, half tone, tone, half tone, etc.

We develop all of these contents in greater detail in our complete theory

course, follow this link for more information.

What is a secondary dominant?

Posted on April 10, 2019 by Miguel Martinez — 13 comments

Category: Theory lessons

Many times when we are performing a song we can find chords that are not
part of the scale or the main tone, many times these chords function as chords
to enhance or highlight another, sometimes they are used to change tone or
scale, also to produce tonalizations or momentarily highlight a chord without
making a modulation or change of tone felt. In the vast majority of cases these
chords are known as secondary dominant.

What is a secondary dominant?

The most basic rule of harmony when it comes to reharmonization says:
“Before any chord we can use its dominant or fifth degree” this means that we
can use a fifth degree before any note, let's see the following example:

We have the following harmonic progression in the key of C

Dm | Am | G | c

If I apply this concept before each chord I will be able to apply its fifth degree

A7 Dm | E7 Am | D7 G | G7 C

A7 functions as the fifth degree of Dm, E7 as the fifth degree of Am, D7 as the
fifth degree of G and G7 as the fifth degree of C.

Note the relationship that exists between each pair of chords, each type 7
chord is the fifth degree of the chord in front of it.

So far we have a group of type 7 chords that are placed before others but we
still do not have the secondary dominants resolved, for a chord to be a
secondary dominant it must comply with two principles:

1. This chord must be made for one of the degrees of the scale.
2. The note on which the chord is generated must be a note of the scale.

We know that each scale generates a group of chords, if we generate a

dominant for each of these we will find the secondary dominants:

C=x
Dm = A7
Em = B7
F=C7
G = D7
Am = E7
B° = x

We see here that two chords do not generate secondary dominant, in the case
of C the G7 chord is the main dominant of the scale, for this reason it is not
considered a secondary dominant.

For the B° chord, its fifth degree would be F# and this note does not belong
to the scale , for this reason it cannot be considered a secondary dominant.

The other chords are known as secondary dominant and it is common to find
them under the following numerical code:

V/ii, V/iii, V/IV, V/V, V/vi

This numerical encryption clarifies the concept of secondary dominant where

we have that the chords that are generated for each of the degrees of the
scale, fifth of the second, fifth of the third, etc... are clear examples of this
concept.

A secondary dominant is generated on and for notes of the scale and serves
to prepare changes in tone or to highlight a chord. In Jazz it is common to find
them tonicalizing or highlighting chords. They are usually accompanied by
their second relative degree, this way. In this way the harmonic progressions
are extended without generating a clear sensation of modulation.

Before finishing I want to clarify a concept, we call modulation or change of

tone when we make the musical piece go to another key, when a modulation
occurs it has a long duration.

When we do a tonicization we do not abandon the key we are in, we simply

highlight a chord through its fifth degree, this has a short duration within the
piece of music.

We study these concepts in depth in our complete music theory course.

What is a musical cadence
Published on September 26, 2018 by Miguel Martinez — 3 comments

Category: Theory lessons

Tag: cadence

Just as for many the term musical harmony means “that everyone sounds
good”, the term musical cadence is also often misinterpreted, for many it is a
kind of movement with “cadence” or fluidity but in reality it refers to something
much more. complex, refers to the end of a phrase or a piece of music.

Technically speaking, a musical cadence is the use of a harmonic or melodic

formula that leads us to the end of a phrase, section or piece of music.
Generally this melodic harmonic sequence should lead us to a tonic chord,
preferably the first degree. or towards some other chord that fulfills that
function, below I am going to expose some of the most common cadences:

Types of musical cadence

perfect cadence

It is the one that is created when we use the fifth and first degree within the
key, it has two important requirements, the first is that the chord of the first
degree is in the fundamental, the second is that it is positioned on the
downbeat of the measure. It is the most common and most conclusive
cadence, it generates a clear feeling of ending, generally the harmonic
progression should be:

SAW

imperfect cadence

In this type of cadence we maintain the progression V I but unlike the perfect
cadence, in this the fifth degree can be inverted or is positioned on a weak
beat of the measure, this removes the feeling of finality and generates a
feeling of lack, lack, we feel that we need more chords to reach the end of the
musical piece.
Plagal Cadence

The plague cadence is the one that is done on the IV degree of the scale, in
this case the progression is usually:

IV I

A variation widely heard in commercial music is:

IV ivm I

Semicadence

In this type of cadence the fifth degree does not resolve, the progression must
remain unfinished, for this the first degree inverted within the progression is
used. It is composed of the chords:

iim I6/4V

broken cadence

In this cadence we change the I degree of the scale for another unexpected
one, it is usually done on the VI degree, this generates a feeling of continuity
and is not used to end a piece of music.

Andalusian cadence

Common within the minor key, this type of musical cadence is composed of
the following chords:

Im VIIb VIb V

Third of mischief

It is used when within a minor key you end up using a major chord, since the
note that is modified is the third of the chord and acquires that name.
These are the most common types of cadences and as one of my chess
teachers said, “it is not logical to learn to play if you do not know how to finish
the game, you can make great plays but if you do not know how to win you are
condemned to lose.”

It's not that serious here, but learning how to finish a piece of music can make
a difference. If you want to learn more resources like this, we invite you to
learn about our complete music theory course where all of this is treated in
greater depth.