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Harmony with Carl

Notes:
Semester 1:
Pg. 1: The concept of the incomplete dominant
Pg. 2: The concept of the secondary dominant
The concept of chromatically altered chords (part 1)
Pg. 3: The concept of chromatically altered chords (part 2)
Pg. 3-4: The concept of chromatic mediants
Pg. 5: The concept of regions within structural functions (part 1)
The concept of vagrant harmonies within structural functions (part 2)

Incomplete Dominants
 Flexible

How to construct: Incomplete Dominant Minor Ninth

1) write a complete Dom minor ninth chord (Vb9)

Minor Ninth Chord–

 semitone higher than root octave higher
 Seventh C
 Fifth
F G
 Third
 Root B D
Eb A
2) Emit the root

 All notes Minor third apart

F
 should form a diminished chord
 One or more of notes may be enharmonically altered
 EG: alter B natural into C b, stack notes up in thirds B natural is
now minor ninth of chord.
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Secondary dominants:
 Any degree of the scale can be preceded by its own dominant

 First chord - Temporary tonic- Tonicisation

These chords can:

 Can strengthen tonality
 Add harmonic colour
Also used as..
 Pivot chords- modulation/ impression of a modulation

 Chord VII cannot act as a temporary tonic- diminished and unstable

– can be used in certain contexts
 One chord can be interpreted in different keys
 Regular resolutions – to the tonic
 Common irregular resolution – to another chord

11th and 13th chords

How to construct

11th chords:

 Root 5th 7th 9th 11th

 Usually emit the 3rd of the chord – as the 11th wants to resolve
to this note
 Non Dom 11ths can be constructed on Chords II III IV VI
 11th and 3rd may be present
 3rd and 11th separated by more than octave, resolves quickly

13th chords

 Root 3rd 5th 7th 9TH 11th 13th

 Never place 13th next to 7th
 b 9th always works for 13th chords
 reminder (7th 9th 11th 13th resolve down)
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Chromatically Altered Chords

How to construct:

Italian 6ths
 ALWAYS- put Root first
 Put augmented 4th
 Major 3rd below the tonal centre

French 6th
 Root
 Aug 4th
 Major 3rd below
 Add major 2nd
German 6th
 Root
 Aug 4th
 Major 3rd below tonic
 Minor 3rd above tonic
 (Fun fact: German 6th is a Dominant 7th chord in a key a
semitone higher/lower!)
Neapolitan 6th
 Chord II
 Lower root and 5th a semitone
 A dominant strengthening chord
 Minor- lower root and 3rd

Chromatic Mediant Concept (Borrowed chords)

E
ab (bVi)

e c
Ab (bVI)
Eb (bIII)

a (diatonic)
eb (biii) A (VI)
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 Mode Mixture: One place you take notes from – bIII bVI
 Double Mixture: Two places – biii bvi

 A chromatic Mediant relationship is established when the roots of

the chords used in the common-tone modulation are either a major
or minor third apart.
 For example, in the key of C major the diatonic mediant and
submediant are E minor and A minor. Their parallel majors are E
major and A major.
 The mediants of the parallel minor of C major (C minor) are E♭
major and A♭ major, and their parallel minors are E♭ minor and
A♭ minor, totaling four chromatic mediants for that key.
 Thus an E major chord is one of six chromatic mediant chords in C
major and the keys of C major and E major share a chromatic
mediant relationship.
 Chromatic mediants are usually in
root position.
 They may appear in either major or
minor keys, usually provide color
and interest while prolonging the
tonic harmony, proceed from and to
the tonic or less often the
dominant, sometimes are preceded
or followed by their own secondary
dominants, or sometimes create a
complete modulation.
 Some chromatic mediants are
equivalent to altered chords, for
example ♭VI is also a borrowed
chord from the parallel minor, VI is also a secondary dominant of ii
(V/ii), and III is V/vi, with context and analysis revealing the
distinction.
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Structural Functions

Class 1- Direct
 Dominant
 Subdominant
 Submediant Minor
 Mediant Minor

Class 2 – Indirect but still close

 Tonic minor
 Mediant
 Submediant
 Dominant minor
 Subdominant minor
 b Submediant
 b Mediant

Class 3- Indirect
 b Mediant minor
 b Submediant minor

Class 4- Indirect and remote
 Super tonic (Subdominant of Submediant)
 Subdominant of Submediant Minor
 Neapolitan (Submediant minor of Submediant major) (b Mediant
minor of the dominant Mediant minor)
 b Mediant of the dominant (Subdominant of subdominant)
 b Mediant minor of the dominant
Class 5- Distant
 b Mediant minor of the dominant Mediant major
 b Mediant minor of the dominant Mediant minor
 b Mediant minor of the Mediant
 b Mediant minor of the Mediant minor
 b Submediant minor of the Submediant
 b Submediant minor of the Submediant minor
 Mediant of the Mediant
 Mediant of the Mediant minor
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 Submediant of the Submediant

 Submediant of the Submediant minor
 Supertonic of the Submediant
 Supertonic of the Submediant minor