The name of a chord is determined by the relationship to the tonic of every note in the chord.
Introduction
Once you know how to name triads (please see
Triads and
Naming Triads ), you need only a few more rules to be able to name all of the most common chords.
This skill is necessary for those studying music theory. It's also very useful at a "practical" level for composers, arrangers, and performers (especially people playing chords, like pianists and guitarists), who need to be able to talk to each other about the chords that they are reading, writing, and playing.
Chord manuals, fingering charts, chord diagrams, and notes written out on a staff are all very useful, especially if the composer wants a very particular sound on a chord. But all you really need to know are the name of the chord, your
major scales and
minor scales , and a few rules, and you can figure out the notes in any chord for yourself.
What do you need to know to be able to name most chords?
You must know your major, minor, augmented and diminished triads. Either have them all memorized, or be able to figure them out following the rules for triads. (See
Triads and
Naming Triads .)
You must be able to find intervals from the
root of the chord. One way to do this is by using the rules for intervals. (See
Interval .)
Or if you know your scales and don't want to learn about intervals, you can use the method in #3 instead.
If you know all your scales (always a good thing to know, for so many reasons), you can find all the intervals from the root using scales. For example, the "4" in Csus4 is the 4th note in a C (major or minor) scale, and the "minor 7th" in Dm7 is the 7th note in a D (natural) minor scale. If you would prefer this method, but need to brush up on your scales, please see
Major Keys and Scales and
Minor Keys and Scales .
Please note that the modern system of chord symbols, discussed below, is very different from the
figured bass shorthand popular in the seventeenth century (which is not discussed here). For example, the "6" in figured bass notation implies the first
inversion chord, not an added 6. (As of this writing, there was a very straightforward summary of figured bass at
Ars Nova Software .)
Chord symbols
Some instrumentalists, such as guitarists and pianists, are sometimes expected to be able to play a named chord, or an
accompaniment based on that chord, without seeing the notes written out in
common notation . In such cases, a
chord symbol above the
staff tells the performer what chord should be used as accompaniment to the music until the next symbol appears.
Chord symbols
A chord symbol above the staff is sometimes the only indication of which notes should be used in the
accompaniment . Chord symbols also may be used even when an accompaniment is written out, so that performers can read either the chord symbol or the notated music, as they prefer.
Wayne and Dennis like to ride the bike path from Riverside Park to the beach. Dennis’s speed is seven miles per hour faster than Wayne’s speed, so it takes Wayne 2 hours to ride to the beach while it takes Dennis 1.5 hours for the ride. Find the speed of both bikers.
from theory: distance [miles] = speed [mph] × time [hours]
info #1
speed_Dennis × 1.5 = speed_Wayne × 2
=> speed_Wayne = 0.75 × speed_Dennis (i)
info #2
speed_Dennis = speed_Wayne + 7 [mph] (ii)
use (i) in (ii) => [...]
speed_Dennis = 28 mph
speed_Wayne = 21 mph
George
Let W be Wayne's speed in miles per hour and D be Dennis's speed in miles per hour. We know that W + 7 = D and W * 2 = D * 1.5.
Substituting the first equation into the second:
W * 2 = (W + 7) * 1.5
W * 2 = W * 1.5 + 7 * 1.5
0.5 * W = 7 * 1.5
W = 7 * 3 or 21
W is 21
D = W + 7
D = 21 + 7
D = 28
Salma
Devon is 32 32 years older than his son, Milan. The sum of both their ages is 54 54. Using the variables d d and m m to represent the ages of Devon and Milan, respectively, write a system of equations to describe this situation. Enter the equations below, separated by a comma.
please why is it that the 0is in the place of ten thousand
Grace
Send the example to me here and let me see
Stephen
A meditation garden is in the shape of a right triangle, with one leg 7 feet. The length of the hypotenuse is one more than the length of one of the other legs. Find the lengths of the hypotenuse and the other leg
however, may I ask you some questions about Algarba?
Amoon
hi
Enock
what the last part of the problem mean?
Roger
The Jones family took a 15 mile canoe ride down the Indian River in three hours. After lunch, the return trip back up the river took five hours. Find the rate, in mph, of the canoe in still water and the rate of the current.
Shakir works at a computer store. His weekly pay will be either a fixed amount, $925, or $500 plus 12% of his total sales. How much should his total sales be for his variable pay option to exceed the fixed amount of $925.
I'm guessing, but it's somewhere around $4335.00 I think
Lewis
12% of sales will need to exceed 925 - 500, or 425 to exceed fixed amount option. What amount of sales does that equal? 425 ÷ (12÷100) = 3541.67. So the answer is sales greater than 3541.67.
Check:
Sales = 3542
Commission 12%=425.04
Pay = 500 + 425.04 = 925.04.
925.04 > 925.00
Munster
difference between rational and irrational numbers
Jazmine trained for 3 hours on Saturday. She ran 8 miles and then biked 24 miles. Her biking speed is 4 mph faster than her running speed. What is her running speed?
