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CHORD PROGRESSIONS

CHORD PROGRESSIONS. What are they and how will they help you?. Chord Progression v Harmonic Progression. Any two or more chords heard in succession can be called a harmonic progression

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CHORD PROGRESSIONS

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  1. CHORD PROGRESSIONS What are they and how will they help you?

  2. Chord Progression v Harmonic Progression • Any two or more chords heard in succession can be called a harmonic progression • Successions of chords that have become a regular, standard part of our harmonic vocabulary can be called chord progressions

  3. How can chord progressions help? • By knowing them you can: • Choose chords to harmonise chorales • Understand baroque counterpoint • Choose chords for middle eights (of 32 bar pop songs) • Compose and analyse music • Understand your performance pieces better

  4. Functional Harmony • Chord progressions within functional harmony serves a purpose - usually to establish and maintain a key

  5. 3 main groups of chords • Tonic Group: I (sometimes VI). Chord I has the tonic in its root and is normally the only chord considered stable enough for a whole piece to end on. • Dominant Group: V, V7 & VII (normally used as VIIb). All 3 chords contain note 7; the leading note – so called as it wants to lead back/rise up to the upper tonic and tonic group of chords. • Subdominant Group: IV, II & II7. Again these chords have a close relationship with each other.

  6. Chords I and V • Chords I & V (or V7) are the two chords best able to establish and maintain key, and much music (particularly C18th) makes extensive use of them. Composers often move from I to V7 (and their inversions) and back again. • Think of these chords as ‘Home & Away’ – I invites a journey away & V signals a need to return home. • The progression V-I is the strongest of all progressions. • It forms a perfect cadence and is the most widely used type of cadence in functional harmony.

  7. Approaching a Perfect Cadence • Many phrases that end with a perfect cadence use the following progression: • A chord from the subdominant group • A chord from the dominant group (usually V or V7) • Chord I from the tonic group.

  8. Your turn! • Complete the activity on your desk labelled ‘Christmas!’

  9. The Cadential 6/4 • A perfect cadence can also be approached from a chord Ic. • This is a common approach. • It is similar to a chord V as it shares the same bass note. • It is often used as an approach chord in between the subdominant group and the actual perfect cadence e.g IV-Ic-V7-I • When the progression produces intervals of a 6th falling to a 5th, and a 4th falling to a 3rd it is known as a 6/4 – 5/3 movement and is the essence of the IC-V progression. • When Ic is used in this cadential progression it is often called the cadential 6/4.

  10. Your Turn! • Complete the exercises titled ‘Cadential 6/4’

  11. Interrupted Cadences • Interrupted cadences are sometimes used as a delaying tactic. • To create an interrupted cadence you can replace chord I in a perfect cadence with any other chord. • Chord VI is the most common chord to use, but any chord that creates an effective surprise is possible. • In a minor key, chord VI is major which makes the effect more arresting. • Chord VI cannot replace I at the start or end of a piece as it does not help to establish the key.

  12. Listen & Play! • Play the example & follow the instructions to create different effects.

  13. Imperfect Cadences • An imperfect cadence is formed by ending the phrase on a chord V. • It is commonly approached from a chord I, but other progressions may be II-V, IIb-V & II7b-V. • I-V does not have to restrict itself to cadences and can be used almost anywhere. • Chord V in an imperfect cadence is often preceded by a cadential 6/4, particularly in music from the classical period.

  14. Plagal Cadences • A plagal cadence is formed by using chords IV-I. • It is sometimes referred to as the ‘amen’ cadence as it was common to sing ‘amen’ to this cadence years ago in church hymns. • IV is widely used before & after chord I • A plagal cadence can end a section or piece because its final chord is I, but it is used far less frequently than a perfect cadence (it has a weaker effect).

  15. SUMMARY • Perfect & Imperfect cadences are the most frequently used. • PERFECT: V(7)-I • IMPERFECT: any chord–V (often IIb(7)–V • INTERRUPTED: V(7)–any chord except I (often V(7)–VI) • PLAGAL: IV-I

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