HARMONY 1 by Barrie Nettles » Berklee COLLEGE OF MUSIC)& copyright ©1987 Berklee College of Music All rights reserved. Laws: HARMONY | one another ‘standing of Harmony deals with the Study of chords and their relationsni The understanding of narmonic practice is essential to the uncer the language of music. As in learning any language, the fi learning process 1s the develooment of a vocabulary THE STAFF The foundation of our notation system is a grid of five lines callec a staff The position of notes placed on the staff visually represents relative highness" or “lowness” of pitches. nigh low Each line and space of the staff may be assigned a letter name, The letter names are arranged alphabetically in ascending order: ABCD EFG. The location of the letter names is determined by a clef placed at the beginning of the staff. The following example uses the F clef (also known 2s the bass Clef), The F clef locates F below “middie C” on the fourth line of the staff ABCDEFGHarmony | 2 The G Clef, also known 2s the treble clef, locates G above “middle C” on the A second line of the staf?. @ Abc DE The C clef locates “middle C” on the middle line (or, in some cases, on fourth line) of th GABCOD Note that the music alonabet goes from A to G, and then starts over. j 3 ‘When two staves and the treble and bass c 4 called the Grand Staff or Great Staff. 7Harmony! 3 29 LINES es called Jeger lines are added to extend the staff. ett Notice that the notes in the spaces directly below or directly above che do not need added leger lines. £ The same applies to notes tn the spaces beneath or above the leger lines ) the staff, wnich snows the high/low relationsnip det notes, 2) the clefs, which locate pitch names given to lines and spaces of the staff. 3) the leger lines, which extend the five lines of the staff for higher or lower pitches,Harmony Homework numbers: 1, 2, 3Harmony 5 ACCIDENTALS The foregoing information about the Grand Staff covers the letter names of the white keys on the keyboard, What about the other five notes (the black keys)? In order to maintain the integrity of the alphabet, the other five pitcnes are represented as alterations of the basic seven pitches. The terms useq are sharp and flat. Sharp = |/2 step nigner, written ag , flat written asp. A°C#" is tne pitch 1/2 steo above C and 1/2 step below 0. The sharp sign is placed before the note for reading purgoses.Harmony 4 The names of the twelve notes in ascending order are: This serves of notes 1s callec the chromatic scale chromatic scate may also be examined in descenging orcer DS, flats are placed before the notes to which they avo’: Note that there are two options for naming the five black Key pitcnes or C#, Eo of DF, etc.}. When there are two (or more) possible nat game pitch, tt 1s sai¢ that enharmonic spelling 's being applic I Jol |elel ajefelo's | ; | | | ee eee eeeHarmony 7 Once a sharp or a flat has occurred in a measure, there must be 2 means of canceiling (neutralizing) it so the note reverts to its unaltered conaicion, The symbol used for this is a natural (4 ), Collectively, snaps, naturals are called accidentals. within an octave (elght consecutive letter names), there haif-steos i__ ortave In certain situations, it may become necessary to raise or lower 2 aitch by two half-steps. The symbols for these purposes are X: for a double-sharp. and bp for adouble-flat. These symbols are also called accicentais.Harmony | 8 SSRI HE RHE HEIR IEE RHEE LA SHEH MAS OA eIaa a SESE EHR SH RIESE HIRE Ii IIRL ian ttiE The rules for sharps (4 ), flats (b ), naturals (4 ), douole-snargs ( doudle-f B flats (pp) are: A natural cancels a sharp or flat A single sharp or flat will cancel a double-sharp or couble- respectively One natural alone will cancel both doubie-sharns and double-flats, AN accidental remains in effect for the duration of the measure it 1 in, or for the duration of tied pitches, inside a measure or bar-line, To raise 2 note which has already been sharped, use 2 couble~sharo, to lower a note which nas already been flatted, use a coubie-f!: An accidental ONLY affects a specific note, in that actaHarmony 1" 9 A scale is a series of ascending or descending notes in a stepwise pattern = EZ ee This Is achromatic scale. it uses ali the notes between tne F’s and all the pitches move by i/2 step. (Chromatic impites “1/2 step.") The following scale uses ali natural notes in an octave from C to C: : C major scale. ‘The same notes can be used to begin and end at different points in the order of notes: G Mixolydian A Aeolian B Locriani All of the avove are scales, but theyre not the same Kind of The characteristics of the C major scale above are the 1/2 steps from tne re to th degrees and from tne 7th to the Ist degrees. The distance between the other notes is 2 whole step (two 1/2 steps). In the other scaies above, the half-steos {from E to F and B to C) occur in different oar: respective scale, This creates a coilection of related scales modes, The modes shown aoove are all relative to the C major means that each mode starts and ends on a aifferent note of tne 2 major ale. Here again is the C major scale. > = oe Pee ee lle 2 if this stepwise pattern 1s applied starting on G, the result 1s 2 6 major scale. All major scales utilize the same steow/se pattern,Harmony |Harmony | 2 MODE NArE CHARACTERISTH SCALE “ e oa Cael Jee Ca nwa a vy 4 Mixolyaian I < q Aeolian (minor) 2-3; 5-6 ee ae hinaHarmony | 13 Scales may also be described by comparing them to the paraile! major or ee Thus, Dorian mode may be described raised a minor scale with the 6 ch) Gis Phrygian mode may De described as a minor scale with the 2 a ag. aug. aug aug a. us. 2nd Sed ath sth ein 7h otBe Diminished intervals mage smaller by diminished dl ge s ‘couble touble ‘ouble aim, Sth dim, 6tn aim, oct, Augmented intervals made larger by an additional nalf-steo b augmented: 2 = ad couple double couble aug Sra aug. tn aug. 7th a It is aiso possible to have a1 This interval is calted a = majer 1th eS (or a major 3rd plus | octave. interval which exceeds the octave: Here are the basic rules ang names (when examining the dist: first note of a major scale upwards) 1} -2nds, 3rds, 6ths and 7ths are major intervals. 2) Unions, aths, Stns and octaves are perfact intervals 3) Major intervals mage smaiter by 1/2 step become minor 4) Major intervals made smaller by 2 half-steps become diminisnea. 3) Perfect intervals made smaller by 1/2 step become diminish 6) Perfect intervals made smaller by 2 helf-steps become ‘gouble-diminisned, 7) Major or pertect intervals mace larger by 1/2 step are augmented, by two haif-steps they become double augmentea Homework numbers: 12, 13,1 Harmony | INVERSION OF INTERVALS. Intervals describe the distance between two notes. The notes involved can appear and sound in two ways: In other words, any interval can be turned upside-down (Inverted) SS 1s the Inversion of ——— ang vice versa 7. . i When an interval is Inverted, the note names involved are still tne same, and the intervailic relationship follows a pattern, In the above exemole, one interval is a major 2nd; the inversion is a minor 7th. Some simple rules for inversion of intervais follow: 4 1) "9" minus the number of the interval equals the inversion interval 9 minus 2nd) = 74th) minus 7th) = 2) Major intervais inverted become minor intervals: = Major Sra Minor 6tn 3) Minor intervals inverted become Major: ———————— Minor 6th Major Srawe darmony ! ae Perfect stn ome giminisn: ug, Sth dim. 3rd Aug. 6th 7) Double diminished intervais inverteo decome double augmenta Double Doudie Dem. in Aug. Sth ~ Double Ooudle Aug. Sth Dim. ain | graer to correctly oraduce an inversion of any interval, tne pattem oytcr be raised one octave or the top pitch must de lowered one octave. The inversion of a perfect unison becomes a perfect octave and vice versa =Harmony 1 ‘The tritone interval (augmented 4tn) is 2 spectal case. Unlike any other interval, when it 1s Inverted, the number and qualifier change, but !t remains a tritone. FSS crags anton 2 woes FS Os rcimmmreasenteite ‘one - 3 whole Homework number: | 4,Harmony | M TRIADS 1s aban ive have loowes at net ale situ tuations, Now, w2 wi'l place The terms usea to descrice three note ¢ major, minor. augmented, 2n¢ diminished (Per: tervals) Three not tne tatervai of a chores are called triads. The dasic buita rt with, the major scale w ale wili 32 glacec two more oizches ~ the fe the second pitch 2 Zrd aove ihe Above each note in the 3 Ir¢ above the note from the giten All the pitches used to bulld the chords are from ine key of ¢ major aiatonic to 5 major The diatonic triads In the key of € major contain three of the four sesscb4 triagte chore structures (major, minor, and diminisned). if tne intesva ic relationships within each chord are studied, these three chora types and train characteristics can oe seen: 1) Major triads: chords with intervals of 2m {pottom note! te the midcis rote, and 2 oer te top note 2) MINGR TRIADS. chords with intervals of 2 min from the root respectively: Dmin Emin AminHarmony | 25 3) DIMINISHED TRIAD: @ chord with an interval of a miner 3rd anc diminisned Sth, respectively 8 dim > Note that in al! cases, the letter name of the triad signifies the cottom note. This note Is called the root of the chord. In addition, each chord will be identified with a Roman numeral recresenting the scale degree of the dottorn pitch maj 1 mim [hmin 1¥ mej ¥ maj YI min VIE dim | maj = Here are some universally accepted aboreviations used for triads: C=C major triad. Optionally “major” or its abbreviation "maj" may appear: i.e, C major or C maj min” ig the abbreviation for minor. Also used, though not universally, 1s the minus sign * ~ * (wnich will remain the choice for this course). “Aminor* will be notated in this course “A- Diminished is represented best by “dim” or a small circie above the triag name, i.e; dim or B° The diatonic triads are: tmaj limin iiimin ivmaj Vmay Vimin Vitdim | maj OR \ He vy vie vitHarmony | 26 The fourth type of triad, besides major, minor and diminished, is the augmented triad, It 1s abbreviated either "aug" or * +.” The augmented triad has a major 3rd and an augmented Sth from the root: Fe Ae Ebe Bor Oe SSS The augmented triad is not diatonic to any major key. Its usage will de discussed later. There is one more type of chord. it is a very common chord in contemporary music, and it doesen't fit the normal pattern of stacked thirds. it is the “suspended 4th" chord. The chord symbol used is sus4. A susgendes fourth chord (sus4) is a triad in whicn the 4th degree reolaces the 3rd degree Gisusd) 6-(sus4) ROD H HR EIS RIO ROBB IO ROI ARES II II IIA To summarize; Major triads are constructed witn major Srds _S—— = Minor triads are constructed with minor 3rds and perfect Sths from the root: cam Diminished-triads are constructed with minor 3rds and diminished 5ths from the root: ce Augmented triads are constructed with major 3rds and augmented Sts from the root: = Homework number:Harmony 1 27 CHORD CONSTRUCTION (CONT'D) SEVENTH CHORDS: The logical extension of a diatonic triad 1s the addition of another diatonic third above tne fifth of the trac The result is a diatenic seventh chord which contains a diatonic 7th cecr: above the root. In triads there are anly three intervallic rélationshisc. rect to 3rd, root to Sth and 3rd to Sth With the added pitch of 7th cnera: complexity doubles: root to 3ra, Sth, 7th; 3ra to Sth, 7th, Sth to 7th. Thus, 7th chords are more compiex than triads. Chords with a major 3ra, perfect Sth and major 7th from the raat def maj? Fmaj7 major 7th chord Chords with a minor 3rd, perfect Sth and minor 7th from the root define 2: D-7 +7 AA? minor 7th chord A chora with a major 3ra, perfect Sth an minor 7th from tne root erin o7 dominant 7th chord A chord with a miner 3rd, diminished Sth and minor 7th from the root defines a 8-705) chord 7 -