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The key of Eb Major has three flats – Bb, Eb, and Ab:
W W H W W W H
Eb Ab Bb Eb
F G C D
Eb D Db C
1H 2H 3H
Eb Major and C Minor share the same key signature and the same notes:
C Minor
Eb Major
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Tensions
Tensions are notes that add color or interest to a chord. In lesson, we discussed the
tension 9, which is the 9th scale degree of a chord scale. For example, below is an Eb
Major scale. If we take the root, 3rd, 5th, and 7th from this scale, we would have an
EbMaj7:
EbMaj7
If we take the 9th scale degree in the Eb Major scale and add it to the EbMaj7, we create
an EbMaj9:
EbMaj9
Notice the 2nd scale degree and the 9th scale degree are the same note – F:
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Below are the diatonic 7th chords in Eb Major with 9ths added (Note that D-7b5 does
not have a 9th since 9ths are not commonly added to -7b5 chords):
Harmonic Function
Harmonic Function describes how a chord is related to the other chords in a particular
key. For example, you may be familiar with the terms tonic, subdominant, and
dominant:
Subdominant: The fourth scale degree or chord in a key, which often leads to the
dominant
Dominant: The fifth scale degree or chord in a key, which often resolves to the tonic.
In the key of Eb Major, EbMaj7 is the tonic, AbMaj7 is the Subdominant, and Bb7 is the
Dominant:
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