Notation Through History

Notation through History

Neume Names 9th to 10th Centuries 11th to 13th Centuries Modern Notation Virga

Punctum

Podatus (Pes)

Clivis

Scandicus

Climacus

Torculus

Porrectus

Scandicus flexus

Porrectus flexus

Torculus Respinus

Pes subpunctis

Notation Symbols through History

Greek Acutus Gravis Accents

Neumes 6th to 13th Virga Virga centuries Jacans

Punctum

Mensur Maxim Longa Brevis Semibrevi Minim Semimini Fusa Semifus al a (Long) (Breve) s a ma a (Duple (Semibrev (Mini Notatio x e) m) n Long) 13th century

14th century

15th to 17th

centuri es Modern 17th to Double Whole Half Quarter Eighth Sixteent th Notatio 20 Whole- Note Note Note Note h Note centuri Note n es

The Anatomy of a Note

Notation English French German Italian Spanish

Note note Note nota nota

testa or Head tête de la note Notenkopf testina or oval capocchia

Hals or asta, or Stem queue plica Notenhals gamba

coda Fahne or Flag crochet uncinata or corchete Fähnchen bandiera

Beam barre Balken barra barra

Dot point Punkt punto puntillo

punktierte nota con Dotted note pointée nota puntata Note puntillo Note

Notation American British French German Italian Spanish

Double Cuadrada or Double- Doppelganze or whole Breve Breve Doble ronde Doppelganzenote note Redonda

Whole Ganze or Semibreve Ronde Semibreve Redonda note Ganzenote

Halbe or Minima or Half note Minim Blanche Blanca Halbenote Bianca

Quarter Viertel or Semiminima or Crotchet Noire Negra note Viertelnote Nera

Eighth Quaver Croche Achtel or Achtelnote Croma Corchea note

Sechzehntel or Sixteenth Double- Sechzehntelnote Semiquaver Semicroma Semicorchea note croche Sechzehntel or Sechzehntelnote

Thirty- Quadruple- Zweiunddreissigstel or second Demisemiquaver Biscroma Fusa croche Zweiunddreissigstelnote note

Sixty- Octuple Vierundsechzigstel or fourth Hemidemisemiquaver Semibiscroma Semifusa croche Vierundsechzigstelnote note

One hundred Cent- Hundert und and vingt- achtundzwanzigstel or Centoventottavo Semihemidemisemiquaver Garrapatea twenty- huitième Hundert und (nota) eighth (note) achtundzwanzigstelnote note

Notation American British French German Italian Spanish

Double Double- Pausas de Breve rest Doppelganze Pause Pausa di breve whole rest pause Cuadrada

Whole Pausa di Pausas de Semibreve rest Pause Ganze Pause rest semibreve Redonda

Demi- Pausa di Pausas de Half rest Minim rest Halbe Pause pause minima Blanca

Quarter Pausa di Pausas de Crotchet rest Soupir Viertelpause rest semiminima Negra

Eighth Demi- Pausas de Quaver rest Achtelpause Pausa di croma rest soupir Corchea

Sixteenth Quart de Pausa di Pausas de Semiquaver rest Sechzehntelpause rest soupir semicroma Semicorchea

Thirty- Huitième Pausa di Pausas de second Demisemiquaver rest Zweiunddreissigstelpause de soupir biscroma Fusa rest

Sixty- Seizième Pausa di Pausas de Hemidemisemiquaver rest Vierundsechzigstelpause fourth rest de soupir semibiscroma Semifusa

One hundred Trente et Semihemidemisemiquaver Hundert und Pausa di Pausas de and deuxième rest achtundzwanzigstelpause centoventottavo Garrapatea twenty- de soupir eighth rest

Table of Key Signatures: Sharp Key Signatures (Major)

Sharp Key Signatures (Minor)

Flat Key Signatures (Major)

Flat Key Signatures (Minor)

The circle of fifths:

MUSICAL SCALES:

One Octave Scales from c to c'

SCALE STEPS (IN SEMITONES OR HALF-STEPS) SCALE NAME 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 Chromatic Scale c c# d d# e f f# g g# a a# b c'

Major Scale c d e f g a b c'

Minor, Natural c d eb f g ab bb c'

Minor, Melodic

Ascending c d eb f g a b c'

Descending c d eb f g ab bb c'

Minor, Harmonic c d eb f g ab b c'

Whole Tone c d e f# g# a# c'

Gypsy c d eb f# g ab b c'

Pentatonic c d f g a c'

Octatonic c c# d# e f# g a a# c'

Blues c d eb e f gb g a bb b c'

Table of Major Scales: C major

G F Major Major

D Bb Major Major

A Eb Major Major

E Ab Major Major

B Db Major Major

F# Gb Major Major

C# Cb Major Major

Table of Minor Scales:

Natural Minor & Harmonic Minor

Melodic Minor

E D Minor Minor

B G Minor Minor

F# C Minor Minor

C# F Minor Minor

G# Bb Minor Minor

D# Eb Minor Minor

A# Ab Minor Minor

Scales - Scale Syllables:

Note: A hand symbol

Key to Languages Italian English French German

C C# D D# E F F# G G# A A# B C

do di re ri mi fa fi sol si la li ti do do di re ri mi fa fi so si la li ti do ut di ré ri mi fa fi sol si la li ti ut do di re ri mi fa fi sol si la li ti do

C B Bb A Ab G Gb F E Eb D Db C

do ti te la le sol se fa mi me re ra do do ti te la le so se fa mi me re ra do ut ti te la le sol se fa mi me ré ra ut do ti te la le sol se fa mi me re ra do

Table of Accents

Pressure Percussive Accents Combined Accents Accent

Strong Accent - Strong & Strong & Strong & generally meant for Staccato Legato Staccatissimo Strong attacks at loud Accents - Accents - Accents - dynamic levels of very very strongest Accents forte or louder percussive percussive percussive and shorter while attack duration retaining possible with than full an duration of exaggerated notated notation short duration

Normal Accent - Legato Normal & Normal & moderately sharp Accent - Legato & Legato and Legato Normal & Staccatissimo attack that can be this can be Staccato Staccatissimo Accents - Staccato Accents - used at any dynamic used at any Accents - - stressed and moderately Accents - moderately level from dynamic stressed quite short percussive moderately percussive Medium pianissimo to level and is and with full percussive with short fortissimo a slight moderately note Accents and short note duration stress short, duration

without a separated noticable from next attack and note held to the full duration of the note

Staccato Staccatissimo Light Accent - - an

Accents short and exaggerated separated short duration from the of the note following note

Table of Clefs

G-Clefs Notation English French German Italian

Chiave di Treble clef Clef de sol G-Schlussel violino

French

Violin clef

G-Octave Clefs

Octave

treble clef

Octave treble clef

Vocal tenor clef

Double

treble clef

F-Clefs Notation English French German Italian

Bass clef Clef de fa F-Schlussel Chiave di basso

Baritone clef

Sub-bass clef

F-Octave Clefs

Octave bass clef

C-Clefs Notation English French German Italian

Baritone clef

Tenor clef Clef d'ut C-Schlussel Chiave di tenore

Alto clef

Mezzo-soprano

clef

Soprano clef

Neutral Clefs

Notation English French German Italian

Neutral clef percussion clef

indefinite pitch clef

Neutral clef percussion clef

indefinite pitch clef

Table of Dynamic Markings

Term Abbreviation Definition Piano p Soft volume Pianissimo pp Pianississimo ppp Very soft volume Pianissississimo pppp Pianississississimo ppppp Extremely soft volume Pianissississississimo pppppp As soft as possible Mezzo-forte mf Medium loud volume Mezzo-piano mp Medium soft volume Fortissississimo ffff As loud as possible Fortississimo fff Extremely loud volume Fortissimo ff Very loud volume Forte f Loud volume Begin the note loudly with a very Forzando or Forzato fz or ffz strong accent sf or sff or Sforzando Loud and accented sfff sfz or sffz or Sforzato Loud and accented sfffz

Combined Markings Abbreviation Definition Pianoforte pf Soft then immediately loud Loud and accented then Fortepiano fp immediately soft Begin the note very loudly, Fortissimo piano ffp instantly diminishing to a much softer volume. Begin the note moderately Mezzoforte piano mfp loudly, instantly diminishing to a much softer volume. Begin the note loudly, with a marked and sudden emphasis, Sforzando piano sfp instantly diminishing to a much softer volume.

Dynamic Transitions Abbreviation Definition Crescendo cresc. Gradually increase volume or Decrescendo or decr. or Gradually decrease volume decresc.

Diminuendo or dim. Gradually decrease volume

Meter Basics

| Meter Basics | Simple Meter | Compound Meter |

METER NOTATION

Meter is a recurring pattern of stresses or accents that provide the pulse or beat of music. Meter is notated at the beginning of a composition with a time signature. Time signatures are always notated with two numbers, one on top of the other, much like a fraction in math. The top number denotes the number of beats (or number of pulses) in each measure. The bottom number denotes the note value that receives the beat. The note values that can receive beats include double whole note, whole note (1), half note (2), quarter note (4), eighth note (8), sixteenth note (16), thirty-second note (32), sixty-fourth note (64), and one hundred and twenty-eighth note (128).

An example of 4/4 meter means that there are four (4) beats in each measure and the quarter note (4) receives the beat. Thus, there are four quarter notes in each measure or a strong accent every four quarter notes.The table below shows an explanation of several common meters and their notations.

Name Notation Meaning Rhythmic Notation Two-four There are 2 beats per measure Two quarter notes per measure meter or (top number) and Two-four the quarter note (bottom time number) gets one beat. Three-four There are 3 beats per measure Three quarter notes per measure meter or (top number) and Three-four the quarter note (bottom time number) gets one beat. Four-four There are 4 beats per measure Four quarter notes per measure meter or (top number) and Four-four the quarter note (bottom time number) gets one beat. Five-four There are 5 beats per measure Five quarter notes per measure meter or (top number) and Five-four the quarter note (bottom time number) gets one beat. Six-eight There are 6 beats per measure Six eighth notes per measure meter or (top number) and Six-eight the eighth note (bottom time number) gets one beat.

METER WITH RELATION TO TEMPO

All indications of meter are subject to the interpretation of the composer and of the performer. In realizing their musical ideas, composers need to work within the existing notation, augment the existing notation, or create new notation. Although creating new notational systems were popular in the first half of the twentieth century, the problems they created often exceeded the value of the composition and are not commonly used. Therefore, it is not uncommon for composers to create music using existing notation that is perceived as being inconsistent with what is performed.

When the tempo (or speed) of the music is very slow or very fast, the beat can be perceived as being different from the meter as notated. An example of a fast tempo would be a Viennese Waltz where the meter is shown as 3/4 (with 3 beats per measure and the 4 or quarter note getting one beat), but this style of waltz is performed so quickly, it is perceived as being performed with one beat per measure. The written meter is still correct, only the performance of the composition gives the perception of something different. Similarly, when a composition is performed very slowly, the listener can often hear (or feel) twice the number of beats than are notated. With extremely slow music, it is often difficult to hear any beat or pulse.

Also, some compositions, such as some fantasias, have no measures and provide only the basic meter and note values. This allows the performer to freely interpret the composition and decide how fast or slow to perform each phrase. The meter only provides a basic guide to the relationship of one note value (or length) to the next. Thus, no two performances or interpretations will be exactly the same and there is no possibility of perceiving any meter at all.

TYPES OF METER

Meter can be categorized as simple, compound, or complex. These three categories can explain all rhythmic patterns in Western music. Each of the categories of meter is defined by the subdivision of beats. Within each of these three categories are further classifications of groupings. The number of beats per measure determine the term associated with that meter.

Beats Per Measure Term Meters (Time Signature) 1/1 - 1/2 - 1/4 - 1/8 - 1/16 - 1/32 - 1/64 - 1 Single 1/128 2/1 - 2/2 - 2/4 - 2/8 - 2/16 - 2/32 - 2/64 - 2 Duple 2/128 3/1 - 3/2 - 3/4 - 3/8 - 3/16 - 3/32 - 3/64 - 3 Triple 3/128 4/1 - 4/2 - 4/4 - 4/8 - 4/16 - 4/32 - 4/64 - 4 Quadruple 4/128 5/1 - 5/2 - 5/4 - 5/8 - 5/16 - 5/32 - 5/64 - 5/128 6/1 - 6/2 - 6/4 - 6/8 - 6/16 - 6/32 - 6/64 - 6/128 5 or more Complex 7/1 - 7/2 - 7/4 - 7/8 - 7/16 - 7/32 - 7/64 - 7/128 8/1 - 8/2 - 8/4 - 8/8 - 8/16 - 8/32 - 8/64 - 8/128

SIMPLE METER

Simple meter or Simple Time can be defined as a meter where each beat in a measure can be subdivided by two.

Subdivision of Simple Meters

Subdivision means to divide the meter into smaller (or shorter) beat components. The chart below shows the basic subdivision of simple meters. Each beat unit in sequence is one half the duration of the previous unit. So a whole note is half as long as a double whole note, a half note is half as long as a whole note, a quarter note is half as long as a half note, an eighth note is half as long as a quarter note, etc.

Double Whole Half Quarter Eighth Sixteenth Thirty- Sixty- One Whole Note Note Note Note Note second fourth hundred Note Note Note and twenty- eighth Note

Beat Unit

Division of

Beat Unit

Subdivision of Beat Unit

COMPOUND METER

Compound meter can be defined as a meter where each beat in a measure can be subdivided by three.

Dotted Dotted Dotted Dotted Dotted Dotted Dotted Dotted One Whole Half Quarter Eighth Sixteenth Thirty- Sixty- hundred Note Note Note Note Note second fourth and twenty- Note Note eighth Note

Beat Unit

Division of Beat Unit

Subdivision of Beat Unit

COMPLEX METER Complex meter can be defined as a meter where each measure is a combination of several other meters.

Table of Pitch Names

Notation English French German Italian Spanish

La double La doppio La doble A double sharp Aisis dièse diesis sostenido

La A sharp La dièse Ais La diesis sostenido

A La A La La

La A flat La bémol As La bemolle bemol

La double La doppio La doble A double flat Ases bémol bemolle bemol

Notation English French German Italian Spanish

Si double Si doppio Si doble B double sharp Hisis dièse diesis sostenido

Si B sharp Si dièse His Si diesis sostenido

B Si H Si Si

B flat Si bémol B Si bemolle Si bemol

Si double Si doppio Si doble B double flat Hesses bémol bemolle bemol

Notation English French German Italian Spanish

Do double Do doppio Do doble C double sharp Cisis dièse diesis sostenido

Ut dièse Do C sharp Cis Do diesis Do dièse sostenido

Ut C C Do Do Do

Ut bémol Do C flat Ces Do bemolle Do bémol bemol

Do double Do doppio Do doble C double flat Ceses bémol bemolle bemol

Notation English French German Italian Spanish Ré double Re doppio Re doble D double sharp Disis dièse diesis sostenido

Re D sharp Ré dièse Dis Re diesis sostenido

D Ré D Re Re

Re D flat Ré bémol Des Re bemolle bemol

Ré double Re doppio Re doble D double flat Deses bémol bemolle bemol

Notation English French German Italian Spanish

Mi double Mi doppio Mi doble E double sharp Eisis dièse diesis sostenido

Mi E sharp Mi dièse Eis Mi diesis sostenido

E Mi E Mi Mi

Mi E flat Mi bémol Es Mi bemolle bemol

Mi double Mi doppio Mi doble E double flat Eses bémol bemolle bemol

Notation English French German Italian Spanish

Fa double Fa doppio Fa doble F double sharp Fisis dièse diesis sostenido

Fa F Sharp Fa dièse Fis Fa diesis sostenido

F Fa F Fa Fa

F Flat Fa bémol Fes Fa bemolle Fa bemol

Fa double Fa doppio Fa doble F double flat Feses bémol bemolle bemol

Notation English French German Italian Spanish

Sol Sol doppio Sol doble G double sharp double Gisis diesis sostenido dièse

Sol G Sharp Sol dièse Gis Sol diesis sostenido

G Sol G Sol Sol

Sol G Flat Sol bémol Ges Sol bemolle bemol

Sol Sol doppio Sol doble G double flat double Geses bemolle bemol bémol

Components of the Staff

The staff (or stave) is a set of five, equidistant, horizontal lines joined together by barlines. The staff is used to clearly communicate musical notation. Note symbols, dynamics, and other performance directions are placed within, above, and below the staff. More than one staff (or staves) can be grouped with a bracket or a brace to create a system. The bracket typically groups independent parts to form a system. In the example below, the voice parts (soprano, alto, tenor and bass) are connected with the bracket to create the visual grouping of the voice parts.

They are independent because each of the voices only needs their part to perform the music. The brace typically groups dependent parts to form a system. In the example below, the piano parts are connected with a brace or curved bracket, to create the visual grouping of the piano parts. The parts are dependent because both treble clef and bass clef staves are necessary to perform the music on the piano.

The staff has several components that are commonly found in every composition.When discussing the staff, numbers are used to identify the lines and spaces. The numbers start from the bottom for both lines and spaces. When referring to lines and spaces above or below the staff, count from the first space above (or below) the staff or the first line above (or below) the staff.

Staff (or The staff (or stave) provides a framework to indicate all 1 stave) aspects of music (i.e. pitch, duration, dynamics, etc.) The bracket provides a visual connection between 2 Bracket independent parts into a system. The brace provides a visual connection between dependent 3 Brace parts (i.e. two piano staves) into a system. The clef indicates the specific pitches represented by the 4 Clef vertical position of notes on the staff. Key 5 The key signature indicates the tonality of the composition. signature Time The time signature indicates the underlying rhythmic 6 signature patterns that will be used in the composition. Ledger The ledger lines provides a method to indicate pitches above 7 lines and below the staff. The barline separates rhythmic note groupings based on the 8 Barline meter signature. The double bar is used to indicate a change in the Double composition such as a change of key or change of meter. It 9 bar also can be used as a convenient location for an ensemble to start in a rehearsal setting. Final The final barline indicates the end of the composition (or in 10 barline some cases a movement of a composition).

Tempo Terminology - Basic Directives

Voice Type Chart

Additional Classifications Voice Type Typical Range (Light Voice to Heavy Voice Style)

Coloratura

Lyric Soprano Soprano Lirico Spinto

Dramatic Soprano

Mezzo Soprano

Castrato

Alto (Contralto)

Countertenor

Tenore Di Forza

Tenor Tenore Robusto

Heldentenor Baritone

Basso Cantante Bass Basso Profundo

Standard Blues Progressions

The Blues

The Blues is an American form of folk music related to jazz. It is based on a simple, repetitive, poetic-musical structure. The sound is based on the Blue Note, or a slight drop of pitch on the third, seventh, and sometimes the fifth tone of the scale. It is also known as a bent pitch.

The Blues Scale is typically a diatonic major scale incorporating a lowered or bent 3rd, a lowered or bent 7th and sometimes a lowered or bent 5th to approximate melodic notes that originated in African work songs. Since the actual pitch is unavailable on a traditional keyboard instrument (piano, organ, etc.)

The flatted note is often played or "crushed" against the natural pitch to approximate the blue note. Any improvisation in blues music is done using primarily the notes in the basic chords themselves and the addition of the blue notes.

SCALE STEPS (IN SEMITONES OR HALF-STEPS) 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 c d (eb) e f (gb) g a (bb) b c'

12-Bar Blues Chord Progression

One of the most well-know chord progressions in popular music of the 19th century and later is the 12-bar blues. Countless jazz and popular songs have been composed within the structure of this series or progression of chords.

The basic blues progression uses 3 chords - the Tonic (I) or the chord that the song is centered on, the Dominant (V) or the chord based on the fifth step of the Tonic scale, and the Subdominant (IV) or the chord based on the fourth step of the Tonic scale. In the example below, we use the key of F major. Thus the Tonic is F, the Dominant is C and the Subdominant is B-flat.

There is a cadence starting in measure 9 going from the Dominant (V) to the Subdominant (IV) finally to the Tonic (I) in measure 11. There are many variations on this cadence and may be V-IV-I or V-I or II-V-I, etc.

General Elements of the 12-bar Blues progression:

1. The progression is 12 measures long. 2. The 5th measure is typically the Subdominant (IV chord), or the chord based on the fourth step of the Tonic scale. 3. The 9th measure begins a cadence progressing to the Tonic (I chord).

Basie Blues Chord Progression

A standard variation on the basic 12-bar blues progression is the Basie Blues chord progression, named after the Count Basie Band because of it's frequent use by this band. It is very similar to the standard 12-bar blues progression. General Elements of the Basie Blues progression:

1. The progression is 12 measure long. 2. The 5th measure is the Subdominant (IV chord), or the chord based on the fourth step of the Tonic scale. 3. The 9th measure begins a cadence progressing to the Tonic (I chord).

12-Bar Minor Blues Chord Progression

Another variation on the basic blues chord progression is the 12-Bar Minor Blues chord progression with the minor tonality in place of major. There are strong similarities to the standard 12-bar blues progression.

General Elements of the 12-Bar Minor Blues chord progression:

1. The progression is 12 measures long. 2. The 5th measure is the Subdominant (iv chord), or the chord based on the fourth step of the Tonic scale. 3. The 9th measure begins a cadence progressing to the Tonic (i chord).

8-Bar Blues Chord Progression

Another variation on the basic 12-bar blues chord progression is the 8-Bar Blues chord progression with a shorter pattern of chords. It is derived from measures 1 to 3 and measures 8 to 12 of the Basie Blues chord progression.

16-Bar Blues Chord Progression

Another variation on the basic 12-bar blues progression is the 16-Bar Blues chord progression with an extended pattern of chords. There is the same basic chord structure as the 12-bar blues with measure 9 and 10 repeated three times.

Notation Effect of Ornament [Eng] Short Acciaccatura Acciaccatura Appoggiatura [Eng] Crushed note Acciaccatura OR

[Fr.] Pincé étouffé [Ger.] Kurzer OR Vorschlag or Zusammenschlag [It.] acciaccatura

[Eng] Appoggiatura Appoggiatura Appoggiatura [Fr.] ports de voix or notes d' agrément [Ger.] langer Appoggiatura Appoggiatura Vorschläge [It.] appoggiature

Appoggiatura Appoggiatura

[Eng] Double Double Appoggiatura Double Appoggiatura Appoggiatura or Slide

[Ger.] Double Appoggiatura Double Appoggiatura Anschlag Schleifer Schneller

Double Appoggiatura Double Appoggiatura

[Eng] Unaccented Unaccented Appoggiatura Unaccented Appoggiatura Appoggiatura

[Ger.] Nachschlag

Nachschleifer Unaccented Appoggiatura Unaccented Appoggiatura

[Eng] Mordent Mordent Mordent [Fr.] mordant or pincé [Ger.] Pralltriller or Mordent Pralltriller Pralltriller [It.] mordente

Inverted Mordent Inverted Mordent

[Eng] Trill Trill - Begin on Principal Trill - Begin on Principal [Fr.] tremblement [Ger.] Triller

[It.] trillo Trill - Begin on Auxiliary Trill - Begin on Auxiliary

Trill - With After-beat Trill - With After-beat

Trill - With flat sign Trill - With flat sign

Trill - With sharp sign Trill - With sharp sign

Trill on Lower Auxiliary Trill on Lower Auxiliary

Trill on Upper Auxiliary Trill on Upper Auxiliary

Quintuplet Trill Quintuplet Trill

[Eng] Chain of Trills Chain of Trills Chain of Trills

[Ger.] Trillerkette [It.] Catena di trilli

[Eng] Turn Turn Turn [Fr.] brisé or Turn with Nachtschlag Turn with Nachtschlag Group groupe Group or doublé [Ger.] Doppelschlag

[It.] gruppetto Inverted Turn Inverted Turn

Quintuplet Turn Quintuplet Turn

Chord Components:

A chord is the sounding of three or more notes (pitches) simultaneously, typically a triad. The two most common chords are the major and minor chords based on the interval of a third. A major chord is composed of the interval of a major third above the root (or bottom note), and the interval of a perfect fifth above the root (or bottom note), a minor chord is composed of the interval of a minor third above the root (or bottom note) and the interval of a perfect fifth above the root (or bottom note).

The triad can be built on any note of any scale. Figure 1 shows that a chord is comprised of a root, a third, and a fifth. The chord name always starts with the name of its root, such as a C chord that has the note C as its root.

Types of Triads:

Triads can be major, minor, augmented, or diminished (see figure 2).

 The major triad consists of the interval of a major third between the root and the third and the interval of a minor third between the third and the fifth.  The minor triad consists of the interval of a minor third between the root and the third and the interval of a major third between the third and the fifth.  The augmented triad consists of the interval of a major third between the root and the third and the interval of a major third between the third and the fifth.  Finally, the diminished triad consists of the interval of a minor third between the root and the third and the interval of a minor third between the third and the fifth.

Triads are often notated with the pitch name of the root of the chord followed by the type of triad. In figure 7 below, the first triad is a C major chord (also notated as CM, or CMaj). The second triad is a C minor chord (also notated as Cm, or Cmin). The third triad is a C augmented chord (also notated as Caug, or C+). The last triad is a C diminished chord (also notated as Cdim or Cº).

Chords Beyond Triads:

Seventh Chords, Ninth Chords, Eleventh Chords, Thirteenth Chords

The triad is the basis for chords, however, the addition of notes at the interval of a third above these triads can create common chords based on the original triad.

 Figure 3 below shows a triad, or three notes with the interval of a (major) third over the root (or bottom) note and a second interval of a (minor) third above that. It should be noted that this results in the interval of a perfect fifth above the root (or bottom note).

 Figure 4 shows a seventh chord, that contains the original triad with an additional note of a (major) third above the basic triad. It is important to understand that that the seventh chord refers to the interval of a seventh between the root (or bottom) note and the additional note above the triad.

 Figure 5 shows a ninth chord, with an additional note of a (minor) third above the seventh chord. Again, the ninth chord refers to the interval of a ninth between the root (or bottom) note and the additional note above the seventh chord.

 Figure 6 shows an eleventh chord, with an additional note of a (minor) third above the ninth chord. Again, the eleventh chord refers to the interval of an eleventh between the root (or bottom) note and the additional note above the ninth chord.

 Finally, figure 7 shows a thirteenth chord, with an additional note of a (major) third above the eleventh chord. Again, the thirteenth chord refers to the interval of a thirteenth between the root (or bottom) note and the additional note above the eleventh chord.

Chord Inversions

The examples of chords seen above have all been shown in root position (see figure 1). That is, the root of the chord (or the note that the chord is based on) has always been the lowest note of the chord. Any chord can be changed so any other note from the chord can be the lowest note (in terms of sounded pitch). These are called inversions. In the example below (see figure 8), the C chord is first shown in root position (where the root "C" is the lowest note), then in first inversion (where the third "E" is the lowest note), and finally in second inversion (where the fifth "G" is the lowest note).

Broken Chords - Arpeggio

Like intervals, all chords can be performed harmonically, (when all their notes sound together), or melodically, (when all their notes sound consecutively). In such cases, the chord is called a broken chord, or sometimes, arpeggio. In figure 9 below, the harmonic chords are shown in the top line, or chords with all of their notes sounding together. Directly below them are the broken chords (arpeggios), where all of their notes are sounded consecutively. As you can see, the notes of harmonic chords are written one above the other and the notes of broken chords are written one after the other.

Parallel Chords

A sequence of chords consisting of intervals that do not change as the chord moves. Example 10 below shows a major chord of C, E, and G (with the intervals of a major third between the C and E and a minor third between the E and G). This chord would be parallel to the following chord of F, A, and C (again a major chord with the intervals of a major third between the F and A and a minor third between the A and C), which, in turn, would be parallel to the next major chord consisting of G, B, D, etc. This is also referred to as parallel motion.

Other Types of Chords

Chords are typically classified as collections of similar intervals that are typically sounded simultaneously. All of the examples above have used the interval of a third (which is the most conmon type of chord iin Western Music). However, chords can be based not only on the interval of a third (see figure 11), but also on the interval of a fourth (see figure 12), or interval of a fifth (see figure 13).